Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Trial Balance is a key financial report that helps in Consolidation. It contains the list of all general accounts along with their debit and credit balances. Once all data is collected in the Trial Balance, adjusting journal entries are recorded, eliminations are performed, and currency translated adjustments are applied. After this validation, the finalized Trial Balance data serves as the basis for consolidated financial statements such as Balance Sheet and Income Statement. Click here to learn more about the Consolidation process

Why is Consolidation not showing loaded data?

Planful allows you to load data into the application and process Consolidation via Data Load Rules, Journals, Templates, or Translation Setup. If the application is not displaying loaded data, we recommend revalidating the data load process. Click here to learn more about the different data load processes in detail.

Adjustments (CC) in the Reporting dimension is used to account for any currency adjustments arising due to exchange rate differences when translating local currency (LC) into common reporting currency (CC). Click here to learn more about using local currency and common currency in Planful.

The Trial Balance Account setting is a property applied to leaf-level members in the Account Hierarchy to indicate whether an account should be included in the trial balance validation. When this property is set to Yes, the account is part of the system’s trial balance check, which verifies that the sum of all debits equals the sum of all credits across ledger accounts. This ensures data integrity and accurate financial reporting. You can set this option when configuring the segment properties for an account on the Hierarchy Management page​.

Account hierarchy trial balance

Recurring Journals differ from Standard Journals

Standard Journal entries are used to record one-time journal entries. These are typically ad hoc adjustments or manual entries that are not expected to repeat across periods. Standard Journals are manually created and used when a transaction does not require repetition. Click here to learn more about Standard Journals.

Whereas, Recurring Journal entries are designed for repetitive, consistent transactions that occur over multiple periods without change. These entries are automatically generated for each specified period, helping to automate routine postings. Using Recurring Journals enhances efficiency, reduces manual effort, and minimizes the risk of human error in the consolidation process. Click here to learn more about Recurring Journals.

Yes, you can create a journal entry that includes multiple companies or entities. For example, when creating a standard journal entry, add multiple rows and select a different company or entity for each row.

To learn more about different types of journal entries, see:

• Standard Journals

• Recurring Journals

• Dynamic Journals

Yes, you can post a journal entry to multiple companies or entities. Create a journal entry, add multiple rows, and select the appropriate company or entity for each row. Once the journal is ready, click Post under Entry Actions to submit the journal entry to all selected companies or entities.

Yes, you can create a balance sheet based on budget data. To do this, navigate to Reports and open the Balance Sheet report. In the Scenario dimension, select Budget as the dimension member, and click Run to generate data in the report. The report will display data only if budget entries exist for the combination of all other dimensions used in the report, such as Entity/Company, Account, Time, and so on. If no data appears, check that budget data is available for the relevant intersections.

Yes, you can unpost different types of journals, such as Standard, Dynamic, and Recurring journals. However, the process to unpost differs for each journal type.

• Unpost Standard Journal

  • You can use the Unpost action under Entry Actions to unpost an already posted standard journal entry.

  • You can unpost multiple standard journals at once, or unpost one or more standard journals for multiple companies. However, you cannot unpost standard journals for multiple periods at once, as they are created only for a single period.

  • The period for which you want to unpost standard journals should be in an unlocked state.

  • To learn more about all entry actions in Standard Journals, click here.

• Unpost Dynamic Journal

  • You can use the Clear Data action under Entry Actions to unpost an already posted dynamic journal entry.

  • You can clear data from multiple dynamic journals at once, or clear data from one or more dynamic journals for multiple companies. You can also clear data from one or more dynamic journals for multiple periods at once, as dynamic journals can be created for multiple periods.

  • The period for which you want to unpost dynamic journals should be in an unlocked state.

  • To learn more about the Clear Data actions in Dynamic Journals, click here.

• Unpost Recurring Journal

  • Recurring journals are created or posted to standard journals, depending on the action you select during processing.

  • If you select both the Create Standard Journals and Post Standard Journals options, then the application creates and posts the recurring journal entry in standard journals.

  • To unpost a recurring journal, navigate to Standard Journals, select the entry, and click Unpost under Entry Actions.

  • You cannot unpost standard journals for multiple periods at once, as they can be created only for a single period.

  • To learn more about all entry actions in Recurring Journals, click here.

You can use journals, such as Standard, Recurring, and Dynamic, to capture entries for cash flow statements. Navigate to the required journal in the Consolidation Control Panel, add new entries, map them to the appropriate cash flow accounts, and post the entries for the relevant period. Once posted, go to Reports and include the impacted accounts in your cash flow statement.

Yes, you can grant the ability to initiate the consolidation process to any user, including an admin. To do this, navigate to the Security window within the Consolidation Control Panel, select the admin user, and check the appropriate Consolidation Process permissions. These selections determine which stages of the consolidation workflow the user can access.

The projection range of a non-actual scenario depends on the Fiscal Year and the Budget Parameters configuration. Consider an example where the Budget scenario’s Fiscal Year is 2025, and the Budget Input Years in Budget Parameters is set to 5 years. In this case, the projection range of the scenario is from 2025 to 2030. If you select periods for consolidation outside of 2030, such as Jan-28 to Jan-31, the application will display an error stating that the selected periods are not in the projection range of the scenario.

Furthermore, the projection range of an actual scenario is a 12-month period based on its Fiscal Year. If you select periods for consolidation outside of this 12-month period, the application will display an error asking you to select periods within the same fiscal year.

In Hierarchy Management, the account type refers to the classification assigned to account members within the account dimension. It determines how the data for those accounts is handled and interpreted during planning and reporting processes. You can assign a Flow or a Balance account type to an account member in the hierarchy.

A Flow account tracks movement or changes over a period of time. It is like tracking how much money was earned or spent during a month, quarter, or year. These accounts are used in financial statements like the Income Statement to measure performance over time. These are MTD (month-to-date) accounts and cannot carry forward to next year.

A Balance account shows the status at a specific point in time—not what changed, just where things stand. These accounts are used in financial statements like the Balance Sheet to show assets, liabilities, and equities at a certain date. These are YTD  (year-to-date) accounts and can carry forward YTD balances to next year.

Each account type typically corresponds to financial classifications such as Asset, Liability, Equity, Revenue, or Expense. Additionally, the account type selection influences the behavior of such account members in areas like:

• Rollups and aggregations

• Currency conversions

• Retained earnings calculations

• Consolidation processes, and so on.

Proper setup ensures accuracy in calculations and reporting throughout Planful.

If you're not seeing consolidation data in your reports, several factors could be the cause.

• Scenario Access - You might not have access to the scenario that contains the consolidation data. Only users with the appropriate scenario permissions can view related data in reports. Contact your Planful Administrator to confirm your access rights.

• Incomplete Data Load - If the data was recently loaded, ensure that the Data Load Rule (DLR) completed successfully and without errors. A failed or partial data load can prevent data from appearing in reports.

• Consolidation Process Not Executed or Failed - If the consolidation process wasn’t run after data was posted, or if it failed due to system issues, the data will not be available for reporting. Check the Consolidation Control Panel and process logs for errors or incomplete tasks.

• Report Configuration Issues - Review the report filters to ensure that the correct scenario, time period, and entity selections are applied. Misconfigured filters can result in reports displaying no data.

• Access to Actual Scenario Partitions - If you’re missing data for the Actual scenario, it could be due to restricted access to specific time partitions. To verify access, go to Administration > Lock Data and check the Actual Data Load Months tab.

Access to Standard, Dynamic, and Recurring Journals is managed through Consolidation security settings configured by your administrator.

To get access to these journals, your administrator must complete the following steps:

1. Navigate to Consolidation > Consolidation Control Panel.

2. Under the Administration section, click Security.

3. From the User dropdown, select the user who needs access.

4. On the Processes tab, select different access checkboxes for Standard Journals, Dynamic Journals, and Recurring Journals, as required.

5. Click Save to confirm the changes.

The years and months displayed under Administration > Exchange Rates > Currency Exchange Rate depend on the scenario type.

• Actual Scenario - For the Actual scenario, the grid always displays periods from the current fiscal year. The current year and corresponding months are automatically shown by default.

• Non-Actual Scenarios - For all other scenarios, such as Budget, Forecast, or Planning, the years and months shown are determined by the configuration in Scenario Setup and Define Budget Parameters.

  • Scenario Setup - The Fiscal Year defined here determines the starting point for the periods displayed. It may or may not include the current year, based on the scenario configuration. Example: If the Fiscal Year is set to 2021 and the value in Budget Input Years is 2, only years 2021 and 2022 will be shown. In this case, the current year 2025 and its months will not appear.

  • Define Budget Parameters - The Budget Input Years value specifies how many years should be displayed, starting from the defined Fiscal Year. This affects what appears in the Currency Exchange Rate tab.

To change the foreign exchange rate for Budget, Actual, or other scenarios, do the following:

1. Navigate to Maintenance > Exchange Rates > Currency Exchange Rate tab.

2. From the Scenario dropdown, select the scenario for which you want to change the foreign exchange rate.

3. Make the required changes in the exchange rates

4. Click Save.

You can configure eliminations on the Eliminations page in the Consolidation Control Panel. To add a new elimination rule:

1. Navigate to Consolidation Control Panel > Processes > Eliminations.

2. Click the Add Rule icon.

3. Configure the elimination rule. To learn more about elimination rule configuration, click here.

Elimination rules help remove intercompany transactions during the consolidation process to ensure accurate financial reporting.

No, currently Process Flows requires you to select a specific company (entity) and a specific journal. You cannot define a process flow that triggers across all journals and all companies in a single step. Each process flow task must be explicitly tied to its journal and entity context.

To handle multiple journals/companies, you can create multiple tasks within the same process flow, each pointing to the respective journal and company.

To record an EBITDA-related income adjustment between entities in a consolidation scenario, you can consider the following options:

• Create a Standard Journal in the scenario. To learn more, click here.

• Use an Elimination Journal if the income is an intercompany transaction. To learn more, click here.

• Use Cloud Scheduler to automate recurring journal entries if this type of adjustment needs to run on a schedule. To learn more, click here.

• Use a Reclassification Entry within the consolidation process, if applicable. To learn more, click here.

Eliminations may sometimes remove amounts greater than what exists in the account when the system’s elimination logic does not fully align with the configured rules. Common causes and corrective actions include:

• Roll-up operators applied inconsistently across hierarchies can cause mismatched eliminations. To fix this, review and standardize roll-up operator settings across the hierarchy.

• Ownership rules defined outside of active periods may trigger unintended eliminations. Resolve this by adjusting ownership rules so they align with the valid active periods.

• Calculation misalignments during the Consolidation process may result in over-elimination. To address this, validate balances against elimination rules and, if needed, correct discrepancies with manual journal entries.

To correct a double-counted elimination line item in the Consolidation Control Panel, select the duplicate elimination rule. From the Entry Actions pane, click the Clear Data option to remove the posted elimination data associated with that rule. After the data is successfully cleared, select the same elimination rule again and use the Inactive action to deactivate it. This ensures the rule no longer impacts future consolidations. To learn more about using the Clear Data entry action, click here.

No, you cannot convert a standard journal into a recurring journal. To achieve this, you must create a new recurring journal manually. Follow these steps:

1. Unpost the existing standard journal and run the Consolidation process to remove its posted data.

2. Create a new recurring journal, post it, and then run the Consolidation process again to include the new journal data.

To add a new account to a financial statement (such as a balance sheet, income statement, or cash flow statement), you must create an account member in the Account dimension. After the account member is created, it can be used in financial statements built using Reports.

To add an account member, do the following:

1. Navigate to Hierarchy Management.

2. Select Type, Dimension, Hierarchy as Finance Hierarchies, Account, and Account.

3. Click Edit Hierarchy.

4. Click the Add (+) icon.

5. Select Node Type and Node Sub Type as Leaf Node and Leaf Member, respectively.

6. In the Properties pane, enter the necessary account details

7. Click OK, and then click Save. The account is added successfully to the Account dimension.