Planning Analytics

 View Only

 Non Licensed Users - Data Input Options

Lauren Dollemont's profile image
Lauren Dollemont posted Fri April 17, 2026 05:51 PM

Hi everyone,

I have a few cases where we have 40+ 'offline' input excel files that are distributed to non TM1/PA users. The data gathering is required as we have a central division and each business unit (Tax Department, Accounting Department, etc.) needs to provide the FP&A team with a budget/forecast for their department.

I know we could consolidate all the excel files into a CSV and use a TI to upload the data, but is there any other practical way to do this?

Thank you!

George Tonkin's profile image
George Tonkin IBM Champion posted Mon April 20, 2026 01:38 AM

A Quick Report may be a good option as it can refresh from PA, be sent to a non-PA user, have them update the values and then when you receive you can review the changes and commit them back to PA.

We have used the where users need to complete and return a timesheet and the time needs to be stored in PA to drive allocations.

Essentially we had three components:
1) The template in the format the users would receive and input data

2) The timesheet generator which was a macro to process a list of users and for each user open the template, update with the current user, save as a new file, email to recipient.

3) The timesheet submitter which was another macro and processed the timesheet files stored in a folder by opening and triggering a commit via API code, closing and moving to the next file.

I have not tried with the Universal reports but maybe the above gives you a starting point for consideration.

Andrew Weiss's profile image
Andrew Weiss posted Mon April 20, 2026 09:50 AM

Lauren,

We're a business partner that offers an add on solution to PA specifically designed to address the needs of distributed reporting and data collection integrations for users that are not part of the core planning systems. You can learn about the solution here at https://reportworq.com, or connect with me on LinkedIn and I can setup a call with you to share how we can help. I would recommend watching this 2 minute case study which sounds very similar to your use case. https://reportworq.com/success-stories/capstone-implements-reportworq-automation-capabilities

Thank you,

Andy Weiss

Head of Product - Reportworq

Philippe CHAMPLEBOUX's profile image
Philippe CHAMPLEBOUX IBM Champion posted Mon April 20, 2026 10:24 AM
Hi Laureen,
Personally, I tried using Quick Reports and a set of Dbsget queries, but it became a real hassle (for me) to check, validate, and then push the updates.
 
I now use as many web sheets as needed (dynamic, custom) and export them in batches as snapshots using the TM1Web (or Workspace) features.
 
I run a macro (embedded in each Excel file) that sets up basic Excel formulas (such as column sums and row sums) so that when a user enters a value, the totals are calculated. 
 
Then I distribute this large number of Excel files to my users, who enter data in Excel and send me back their completed files.
 
For each file I receive, I have several options:
 1 - Save it with a specific name in a specific folder (I’ve linked an ODBC source to this Excel file); then run an IT process that reads this ODBC SQL
2 - I place it in a specific folder and run a PowerShell script (thanks ChatGPT) that converts it to CSV and immediately runs the corresponding TI procedure.
 
Of course, the other option is to subscribe, for a certain number of months per year, to a large number of users. (I think it is possible)
 
Kind regards,
Philippe
 

Related Content