IFS Business Reporter is an ad-hoc and analytical reporting solution based on a pre-packaged, high-level information model in IFS Cloud, IFS Information Sources. IFS Business Reporter is integrated with Microsoft Excel and extends Excel from a desktop productivity tool to a more full-fledged, enterprise-scale client for ad-hoc, analytical reporting, and planning. Report output is delivered in Excel, using the capabilities in Excel for presenting and formatting information according to the report design.
IFS Business Reporter provides an efficient and secure reporting solution. This solution can be used by many different functions and user categories within an enterprise. All data and information are securely stored in IFS Cloud and only aggregated, formatted, and presented in IFS Business Reporter according to the report design. In addition, selected Information Sources support data entry, and writeback, from IFS Business Reporter in a controlled and secure way for planning purposes, e.g. for financial planning, budgeting, and forecasting.
IFS Business Reporter pulls data from IFS Information Sources, a framework that presents IFS Cloud data in a business-friendly format, eliminating the need for users to understand complex technical structures. Information Sources use a star schema model, comprising Facts and Dimensions. Facts contain measurable data that can be presented and aggregated in reports, while Dimensions provide structure for grouping, organizing, and filtering data. IFS offers a wide range of standard Information Sources across various product areas, supporting diverse reporting needs.
IFS Business Reporter supports writeback functionality for specific Information Sources, such as Business Planning, Cash Flow reporting, and Project Budgeting & Forecasting. This capability enables users to collect data within Excel and securely write it back to IFS Cloud according to report design, with all data validated against IFS Cloud business rules. This feature allows for custom planning scenarios that integrate Excel’s reporting features with the control and security of IFS Cloud, ensuring data is not stored locally but safely within the cloud.
There are two types of writeback: Aggregate writeback and Transaction-level writeback. Aggregate writeback allows direct updates of configured Excel cells, while transaction-level writeback provides an aggregated view in the report with the ability to edit detailed data in a separate, customizable window. Transaction-level writeback is available for specific Information Sources within IFS Business Planning, allowing tailored, detailed planning and data entry.
If logging on for the first time, a login options dialog opens where the user needs to provide a URL to the IFS Cloud instance (the URL is the same as to the IFS Cloud landing page) and the language to be used. This makes the IFS Business Reporter client independent of the Excel display language. Next, a dialog comes up where the user is authenticated, i.e. the username and password are provided.
User authentication should only be necessary the first time IFS Business Reporter is opened. Once authenticated, it will be possible to open new reports without any authentication.
The translation of the IFS Business Reporter client is independent of Excel. Therefore, it is possible to have the IFS Business Reporter client (client pane and report data) in one language and Excel in a different language. For example, you can have Excel menu items displayed in Swedish, and the IFS Business Reporter client and report data displayed in English. The recommended usage is to have the same language in both. However, the choice of languages to use is entirely up to the user. Please refer to the IFS Technical Documentation for more information.
IFS Business Reporter, combined with Microsoft Excel, offers a flexible environment for designing a wide range of reports, from compact and efficient to comprehensive and complex. However, its primary purpose is ad-hoc and analytical reporting, where information is aggregated and presented at a high level for analysis.
IFS Business Reporter is not designed for transaction-heavy tasks, such as loading large volumes of transactional data into Microsoft Excel. Other specialized tools are more appropriate for transaction-heavy tasks. Based on performance benchmarking tests, Business Reporter works well when rendering up to 400k cells. More data can be processed but performance and reliability will become an issue.
Report performance depends on data structure and report design. Using repeaters and minimizing individual cell filters can improve execution times. For complex reports, batch processing via the IFS Business Reporter Execution Server is recommended for optimal efficiency.
While primarily used for financial reporting and planning, IFS Business Reporter’s capabilities make it suitable for other functional areas, including budgeting, forecasting, and general ad-hoc and analytical reporting across the enterprise.