Exceptions

Use the Exceptions template to identify areas that are performing above or below expectations. The template includes variances in performance and the percentage of the variance to the total business result.

Features

You can do the following in an Exceptions report:

Feature	Description
Select the metrics displayed in the report	You can select metrics for the report. For information, see Data Adjusting.
Select the dimension members filters	You can select dimension members for the report and you can also select filters for dimensions not displayed in the report. For information, see Data Adjusting.
Set the time frame	You can examine progress versus historical performance by changing time frames. The time frame settings vary depending on the type of Exceptions report you are displaying.
Set the presentation	You can specify the presentation of the report by setting the report type, setting row limits, selecting the dimension displayed down the report, suppressing portions of long labels, controlling the display of row totals, and setting user-defined hierarchies. You can set any of these report types: You can analyze the exceptions between two time periods, answers the question “How has performance changed over time and where does this lie in my expectations of performance?” You can also analyze exceptions between two metrics to answer the question “How can I sift through similar types of data to get a true reading of performance?” You can also report on two similar dimensions to review their variances. The Variance column calculates (member in column 2 - member in column 3). The % Variance column calculates the percent variance between columns 2 and 3, using the formula ((c2-c3)/c3)100, or (c4/ABS(c3))100. You can define high and low triggers by which to color the data. The Exceptions template takes high and low values you specify, called triggers, and displays members that perform above expectations in green, and members that perform below expectations in red. This way, you can quickly see the areas that are meeting expectations, or are above or below expectations. Exceptions in the data are colored based on the high and low values specified for the first column in Alerts. For information, see Presentation Setting in Exceptions. For information, see User-Defined Hierarchy Development.
Display the chart	You can control the display of the chart, specify which items are charted, and set charting features. For information, see Graph Settings.
Sort a column	The column is displayed with a gray background to quickly identify which column being sorted. An arrow appears in the column next to the column label. The arrow points in the direction in which the information is being sorted.
Drill up and down on dimensions	If you drill down and get a message stating that no data matches your criteria, you can drill up to redisplay data. You can drill up only as high as the level at which you started drilling.
Update your view	You can update your view after changing settings. If Update View appears grayed out, it means there are no report changes.

Activities

To edit the metrics that are used in the report, click Metrics in the Adjust Data section.
To edit the dimension members that are used in the rows, click Rows in the Adjust Data section.
To filter the dimensions not used in the report, click Filters in the Adjust Data section.
To set the time frame, use the settings in the Time section.
To display two metrics, two dimensions, or two time periods across the report, click a report option in the Display drop-down list in the Presentation section.
To set alerts, set limits, control the display of row and column totals, and set User-Defined Hierarchies, use the settings in the Presentation section.
To display a chart, click Display Graph in the Graph section.
To change chart settings, click Graph items in the Graph section.
To sort on a column, click the column heading.
To drill down on data, click any item in the left-most column that contains a blue link.
To drill up on data, click the Up arrow.
To update the view with new time settings, click Update View.