Report Checklist

Outlined in this topic are some points to consider before attempting to create a new report, and a walkthrough describing how to replicate an existing report.

Report Checklist

Title

It is now possible to configure a No Rows Message in the Data Properties for a Table, to prevent users being presented with empty reports.

  • What is the title of your report? A title is important, not least as a page Header or part of the Body to prevent users being presented with an empty report (due to a lack of data).

To be added to Create Report article.

Purpose

  • What is the purpose of the report, both in terms of who the audience will be and who will be designing it?
  • Stakeholders may need to specify the requirements, which need to be documented.
  • Designers will also need to understand the requirements, as well as know how to render the content.

Format

  • What formatting is required to be applied to the report: a single table, multiple tables or sections, or a chart? If a chart, what are the axes, calibration etc.?
  • Does the report require drill-down interactivity? If so, how is the data grouped and what additional data is to be displayed?
  • Does the report require click-through interactivity? If so, what other reports are required and how are the reports linked (i.e. on which fields)?
  • It may even be useful to create a sample output in MS Excel or MS Word to define the proposed layout.

Data

  • Is it understood where the data resides in Diligent Entities, in which database and Model?
  • Is it possible to list the required tables, views and fields?
  • Is it from a single entity, table or view or multiple entities?
  • If multiple entities, how are the entities related, are they already linked in the model or are any changes to the model required?
  • It may be useful to define the data with a SQL query, not only to understand how the entities are related but also to verify the output.
  • Are any calculations or calculated fields required? If so, do they require new entities or attributes to be created in the model?
  • How is the data to be filtered and should the user be prompted or able to update any parameters?
  • Does the data need to be aggregated? If so, are any group Headers or Footers required (i.e. section breaks and totals)?
  • How is the data to be sorted? This will also assist in grouping the data.

Headers

  • Are any page Headers required? Do they include images, titles or page numbers?

Footers

  • Are any page Footers required? Do they include images, titles or page numbers?

Scheduling

  • Is the report to be scheduled automatically?
  • What is the required schedule (i.e. daily, weekly, monthly, etc.)?
  • Who should receive the report?
  • Is an attachment required or just a hyperlink?

Security

  • Does the report contain sensitive data?
  • Is it possible to publish the report to all users, or should it be restricted to a particular group or groups of users?
  • If so, do the roles already exist or is it necessary to create additional ReportIt roles?