Structured Planning Opt-ins

This article provides information on the Structured Planning opt-ins.

• View Mode Flag

• Member Selector Search Mode

• Reference Cube Lines Performance Improvements

• Enable Workforce User Security

• New Template Mapping UI

• Delta Save – Template(s)

• Template Notes in Offline Planning

• Employee Number Lock

• Shared Mode

• Retain Formulas in Shared Mode

• Enhanced Workflow and Automated Task Creation

• Delta Deletions Through Incremental Cube Processing

• Consider Position Start Date for Prorated Tax Calculation

• Task Manager

• View Formulas in a Template

• Maximum Number of Lines per Block in a Block Template

• My Plan

• Offline Planning

Note:

By default, these flags are turned off. Contact Planful Support to opt in for these features.

View Mode Flag

The View Mode Flag enhances visibility into how figures are calculated by displaying cell-level formulas directly in View mode. With this feature enabled, users can select a cell in View mode and immediately see the underlying formula used to derive the figure, eliminating the need to open the template in Input mode.

This allows users to understand the source and logic behind each value better while maintaining the integrity of read-only templates.

Key Benefits

• Increases transparency into how data, figures, or values are derived

• Eliminates the need to switch to Input mode just to view formulas

• Enhances search flexibility and efficiency

• No risk of accidental edits when reviewing logic in read-only mode

Example

Let’s say a user wants to understand how a specific value was calculated in a template.

Without Feature Enabled (flag = 0)

The user must open the template in Input mode to see the formula for the selected cell.

With Feature Enabled (flag = 1)

The user can remain in View mode and select a cell to view the associated formula instantly.

This feature streamlines analysis and improves auditability by making formula logic accessible directly in View mode.

Member Selector Search Mode

The Member Selector Search Mode feature updates the behavior of the search functionality. With this feature enabled, the system performs a Contains search, even if the match type is set to Exact. This adjustment improves result accuracy and enhances usability without impacting the user interface.

Key Benefits

• Returns relevant results even when partial names are entered

• Reduces user errors caused by strict exact match conditions

• Enhances search flexibility and efficiency

• Improves discoverability for members with long or variable naming patterns

Example

Let’s say a member named Account Main exists in the system.

Search Input:

• The user searches for Revenue with the match type set to Exact.

Without Feature Enabled (flag = 0)

The system applies a strict exact match and retrieves only the results that precisely match the specified term “Revenue”.

With Feature Enabled (flag = 1)

The system performs a Contains search internally and retrieves results that include the keyword "Revenue".

This enhancement ensures that member searches remain user-friendly and efficient, particularly when dealing with partial or approximate input.

Reference Cube Lines Performance Improvements

Enabling the Reference Cube Lines Performance Improvements opt-in helps templates open faster, as Reference Cube queries now use direct data members. Simulation run times will also improve as templates with Reference Cube lines retrieve data more efficiently.

Challenges without opt-in

• Opening the template takes more time, as Reference Cube queries must resolve cross-dimensional data.

• Simulations are slow, especially when multiple users work in parallel across different regions.

• Frequent cube processing for nightly updates further impacts template responsiveness, especially during peak planning windows.

Key benefits when the opt-in is enabled

• Faster template load times help minimize user wait times.

• Improved simulation performance due to quicker data access.

• Enhances the overall user experience in planning templates.

• More efficient planning cycles due to smoother interaction with reference data.

Opt-in works only when

• Templates use default time sets.

• Templates are not configured to use the Expedited template loading option.

• Time and Scenario are not overwritten in RC line configurations.

• Scenario, Compare Scenario Setup: Actual scenario period ranges use the fiscal year start and end periods. For example, the Jan to Dec period Start and End range setup is different from the Jan to Sep or Sep to Dec period ranges.

Notes:

• If any of the above conditions are not met, the template runs in normal mode without performance benefits.

• This new opt-in is unavailable for Actual Data Templates and Timesets-based Planning templates. Irrespective of the configuration, the reference cube line processing uses the normal mode.

Best Practices for Optimal Performance

• Avoid frequent cube processing.

• Limit reference cube lines to under 20 in data input templates.

Enable Workforce User Security

Enhanced Workforce Reporting Security is an opt-in security feature designed to provide additional control over Workforce reporting. By enabling this feature, your organization can restrict the execution and viewing of Workforce-related reports and dashboards to specific users or groups.

Key Benefit

Implement stricter data privacy, compliance, and confidentiality controls to ensure greater access management of sensitive workforce data—ideal for organizations with elevated security requirements.

Note:

By default, this feature is turned off, allowing all users with general report access permission to execute Workforce reports.

New Template Mapping UI

Enabling the New Template Experience opt-in feature streamlines the account mapping process by allowing users to map using roll-up and leaf members directly from the hierarchy. This significantly improves efficiency during template setup, reduces manual effort, and enhances overall usability for Destination, Reference, and History account mappings.

Key Benefits of the New Template Mapping UI

• Faster and easier mapping using roll-up and leaf members directly from the hierarchy.

• History mappings are now supported for destination account lines.

• Copy Down action reduces manual input effort.

• Show errors only toggle helps quickly identify and resolve mapping issues.

• All Lines / Selected Line enhance focus during mapping tasks.

• Direct mapping via Column J simplifies navigation.

• Efficient management through Add, Copy, Edit, and Delete options.

Feature Details

Below are the key enhancements introduced in the New Template Mapping UI to improve speed, accuracy, and ease of use during mapping.

Streamlined Navigation via Column J

• A new Column J in Template Setup provides direct access to mapping screens:

  • Destination Account

  • Reference Account

  • Reference Cube
    

• Clicking the edit icon opens the respective mapping window for fast configuration.

Flexible Hierarchy Mapping

• Users can select roll-up or leaf members for each segment (e.g., account, department, product).

• Helps reduce the number of lines and simplifies complex mappings.

Destination Account Mapping

• Posting account mappings can be assigned directly from the hierarchy.

• The Clear Mapping option removes all posting mappings for a row.

History Mapping

• Accessible by clicking Add/Edit in the History column.
  

• Supports:

  • Mapping across all lines or just the selected line.

  • Tools like Add Row, Copy, Edit, and Delete.

• Use Copy Down to replicate field values across multiple rows quickly.
  

• The Show errors only toggle filters and highlights problematic row

Reference Account Mapping

• Allows mapping to a reference template with the ability to select hierarchy members per segment.

• Tools similar to history mapping include Add Row, Copy, Edit, Delete, Copy Down, and Error Filtering.

• Follows the same rules: No mixed account member types (e.g., MTD/YTD in the same roll-up).

Delta Save – Template(s)

Enabling the Delta Save – Template(s) opt-in feature enhances the performance of template save operations by appending only new lines to the database instead of replacing all existing data. This results in faster saves, reduced database load, and improved responsiveness. Users benefit from a smoother workflow with no changes to the current user interface.

Key Benefits

• Appends only new lines, avoiding full data replacement

• Preserves existing data, reducing the chance of accidental loss

• Improves performance, especially for large templates with minimal changes

• Reduces database load by only writing what’s necessary

• Ideal for incremental updates and frequent template changes

Example

Let’s say you have a template that’s already been saved to the database with the following lines:

Current database:

• Product A - $100

• Product B - $200

You now update the template by adding a new line:

• Product C – $300

Without Delta Save

The system saves all lines (A, B, and C) again, replacing existing data — even though only one new line was added.

With Delta Save enabled

• Only Product C is added to the database.

• Products A and B remain unchanged, resulting in a faster, more efficient save.

Template Notes in Offline Planning

This feature allows you to view all notes associated with a template in one consolidated location in Offline Planning.

Employee Number Lock

The Employee Number Lock feature allows you to lock an employee number when you have employees with several positions. The employee numbers for new employees will automatically be created when this feature is enabled. If you want to change employee information, you must do that outside the Planful application by manually reconciling your data.

Shared Mode

This feature allows you to share data between multiple Global Template - Single Copy (GTSC) templates. If changes are made to a GTSC template within an account, with the Shared mode enabled, this data is updated for all other GTSC templates within that account. This feature is not recommended for existing tenants because it may corrupt the existing data.

Retain Formulas in Shared Mode

This feature allows you to retain formulas in the Shared mode. When a formula results in zero and you upload the data through DLR, the formula remains the same and is not overwritten by zero.

Note:

This applies only to the Shared mode-enabled tenants.

Enhanced Workflow and Automated Task Creation

The Enhanced Workflow and Automated Task Creation provide Planning Administrators with an enhanced ability to control and organize tasks necessary to complete the planning process. For users, these enhancements offer the ability to systematically complete assigned tasks methodically by tracking and updating workflow actions. If the Workflow Setup remains disabled, the Planning Control Panel will continue operating in line with its current behavior. However, enabling Workflow Setup triggers specific application behaviors:

• Enabling Workflow Setup for a scenario and starting the process activates automated tasks and multiple authorization functionalities.

• If Workflow Setup for a scenario remains disabled, the Planning Control Panel operates as usual without automated tasks and multiple authorization functionalities.

Regardless of whether Workflow Setup is enabled for a scenario or not, Workflow Actions for Templates are activated, allowing access to Forward and Approve actions for templates.

Note:

Once this functionality is enabled, it cannot be disabled.

Delta Deletions through Incremental Cube Processing

This feature improves the efficiency of the Automatic Data Refresh functionality for segment combination deletions by using the Delta_Delete_ICP flag. When this flag is enabled, the system automatically identifies the deleted segment combinations and processes only the deletions incrementally. This helps resolve issues related to reporting performance, errors, and cube processing time.

When segment combination data is deleted, the corresponding values are set to zero. Users can now exclude rows or columns with these zero values in dynamic reports by using the Suppress: Zeros feature.

Note:

The Suppress: Zeros feature hides rows and columns containing only zeros, similar to how it handles empty rows and columns.

Consider Position Start Date for Prorated Tax Calculation

This feature allows you to consider an employee’s Position Start Date while calculating the prorated tax for a financial year of an employee. This applies only to the Workforce Planning Template. This feature is enabled by default for new customers. Existing customers can contact Planful Support to enable it.

Task Manager

Stay organized and collaboratively streamline your planning process with Task Manager. Task Manager provides a personalized checklist of tasks to better manage your planning or consolidation process.

You must contact Planful Support so that they can enable server-side properties.

Then follow these steps to provide users with Navigation Access to Task Manager.

1. Navigate to Maintenance > Admin > User Management.

2. Select Navigation Role.

3. Select the user’s Navigation Role and click Navigate Access.

4. Select the Task Manager checkbox and click Save.

View Formulas in a Template

This feature allows you to view formulas in a Template. By default, you can view only the data in a template. When this feature is enabled, you can view formulas associated with the data.

This feature is enabled by default for new customers. Existing customers can contact Planful Support to enable it.

Maximum Number of Lines per Block in a Block Template

This feature allows you to control the number of lines per block in a Block template.

My Plan

A robust, yet easy-to-use Planning solution for the casual business user, where users can carry out all budgeting tasks for human resources, capital expenditures, forecasts, and budgets from one centralized interface, without the help of administrators. The interface, called MyPlan, can be customized to display specific charts and accounts so that Planning users can quickly report and perform various tasks related to budgeting and forecasting.

Offline Planning

This functionality is available on an opt-in basis at no charge. These opt-in features and functions differ from the paid-for opt-in services (such as the Key Performance Indicator Data Service, Benchmarking, and so on). Please contact Planful Support to enable this feature.

Offline Planning provides various functionalities so that you can:

• Open and download templates (GTSC) in Offline mode.

• Refresh data from the online application.

• Synchronize changes or save data back to the Planful application.

• Open multiple templates of a selected budget entity and scenario in Microsoft Excel.