Author: Karry Schupp, Senior Financial Analyst for DH Pace Company and Community Captain
Although our company has been using Board for over three years, I still feel like I am new to it. I have so much to learn, but the ever-changing business environment is not going to wait for me to get up to speed—I must adapt. As I produce new reports, end-users see how useful the product is and request improvements and modifications to current reports. In most cases, the reports touch on hot topics that need some alterations that I am not even sure that Board can handle.
A few weeks ago, I was asked to produce a report that ranks our locations by margin. That seemed simple enough. Board has a sorting function and a way to apply a rank; however, nothing is that simple. The request required the locations to be grouped into three categories and then ranked within those groups. This added a level of complexity that I was unsure how to do it, and to top it off, we updated to the newest version, 14.3. I believe that if someone can explicitly express what they want, there must be an executable solution. I just had to take a deep breath, and dig in.
First, I start with research. I learn as much as I can about the key features of the report needed. Board has made the research simple by providing outstanding tools such Board Manuals, How-to Guides, Training Courses, Forums and News, all found on the Board Community. These resources are amazing and provide a variety of ways for users to learn.
Most importantly, Board works with Partner companies; our Partner is CFO Solutions. I would describe CFO Solutions (or any Board Parter) as a Board Concierge. They not only provide help and answer questions, but they do most of the heavy lifting as well. They are our experts to go to first when we need help.
After research, I begin to talk it through. Sometimes just talking to someone about what you want to do can help you arrive at the answer. Now that we have added another Analyst, we are able to bounce ideas off each other. Explaining already created reports and processes to the new Analyst has also helped me realize improvements that could be made. If I cannot talk it through with a co-worker, I can rely on our Board Partner, CFO Solutions, to listen and provide feedback.
Lastly, I have found that thinking outside the box can force a solution. All the resources mentioned earlier will never provide the answer—only thinking outside the box on how to apply those resources will work. In addition, I think about how I would solve the report request if I was using older reporting tools and/or queries, or how current Board reports can be adapted to come up with solutions.
Many of you reading this will be screaming at your screen—yelling the solution because it came to you automatically. For those of you who are new to Board, I would suggest utilizing the various learning materials offered. As you progress, you will come up with your own way to arrive at solutions. One day, I will go back and read this and laugh at my struggle. My process allowed me to come up with a solution quickly and effectively. Keep learning!
