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About Using the Periods Table in Forecasting

The Periods table includes lengths of time such as weeks, months, quarters, and years. While some organizations use standard calendar reporting periods, other organizations use fiscal reporting periods. Siebel Business Applications provide flexibility in this area, so organizations can set up periods that make sense for them.

Because forecasting often goes months or years into the future, it is important to establish periods not just for the current month or quarter, but for several quarters or years in advance. Ideally, create enough periods to allow at least a few months of forecasting without having to go back into the Periods table every time someone needs to forecast.

Generally, make sure periods are contiguous (for example, one period ends on January 31st and the next period begins on February 1st), and regular (for example, periods are whole calendar months or always go from the 15th of one month to the 14th of the next month).

Typically, the smaller lengths of time, such as months, fit into the larger lengths of time, such as quarters. The beginning of a month often coincides with the beginning of a quarter, or the end of a month coincides with the end of a quarter.

Table 3 illustrates how the periods defined for forecasting can look.

While there are many other ways to establish periods in Siebel Business Applications, contiguous, regular small periods, which fit nicely into the larger periods, are recommended. For information on how to set up periods, see the chapter that discusses ongoing administrative tasks in Siebel Applications Administration Guide.