Any dimension can be dragged and dropped onto an account to instantly change the data perspective

Description

The ability to drag-and-drop dimensions onto an account within CPM software allows users to change the data perspective instantly. Users can explore multiple dimensions (e.g., time periods, regions, departments) simply by dragging them to the account details for immediate recalibration. This functionality is a core advantage of a multi-dimensional CPM tool over pivot tables.

Example Use Case

Scenario: A SaaS company wants to plan revenue by a specific SKU. They have revenue accounts such as Net New, Renewal, and Upsell. They would like to look at specific SKUs to see where revenue in these areas is growing, or at risk, and if there is any seasonality.

Solution: With a drag-and-drop feature, they can easily select the SKU dimension and drag it onto their 'Revenue' account to instantly see a breakdown of revenues by type. Then, they can drag the 'Time' dimension to gain insights into which products have a seasonality fluctuation. This flexibility in data analysis reduces time and resources spent on generating various reports.

Considerations

This specific functionality should be included in every evaluation as it is one of the biggest benefits users can get over an Excel environment. Imagine being in a board meeting and being asked, “What is the revenue by location for this product? Is there a trend by month over the past 6 months?” You would be able to answer that question in seconds with this functionality.

Systems that lack dimensionality struggle with this. If you're in the market for a reporting tool only, this may be okay as reports can usually be configured to output what is described here, albeit in 3 separate reports. There are major benefits to this when building a plan, as you can use one sheet in the system instead of maintaining several in Excel to get to this same level of granularity.

Questions to Ask a Vendor

• Dimension Usability: How is the drag-and-drop feature implemented within your CPM system? Can any dimension be attached to any account?
• Planning: Can we slice on these dimensions and expose editable fields as a result, or is this only allowed on a read-only report?
• Scalability: We have hundreds of accounts and thousands of SKUs. How long does your system take to process a data slice with that data volume?