Importing and Exporting Forecast Information

This chapter explains how users can export forecast information and import and export revenue information. It also discusses the administrative task that is required to update predefined mappings when the display name of a field in the Revenues screen is changed or a new field is added.

This chapter includes the following topics:

Scenario for Importing and Exporting

This scenario gives one example of how you can use importing and exporting of forecast and revenue information. You can import and export differently, depending on your business model.

A sales manager at a large company is working on a presentation. The sales manager plans to export data from both the Revenues screen and the Forecasts screen into Microsoft Excel so that current revenues and forecasts can be used in a presentation. Later that week, the sales manager is given new revenues in the form of a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet and imports it into Siebel Forecasting.

The company’s forecast administrator learns that the display name of a field in the Revenues screen changed and that a new field was added. As a result of this change, the administrator now needs to update the mapping in the Revenue Import process.

Exporting Forecast Data (End User)

Users can export forecast data from the Forecasts screen. To export forecast data, complete the steps in the following procedure.

To export forecast data

Navigate to the Forecasts screen.
In the Forecasts list, drill down on the forecast information you want to export.
In the Details view, select the forecast detail item or items you want to export, click the menu button, and then click Export.
In the Export dialog box, set up the export rules and click Next.
In the File Download dialog box, click Open to open this file from its current location or click Save to save this file to your computer.
The file is opened or you have to save it to a location on your computer depending on your instructions.
Close the Export dialog box by clicking Close.

Importing Revenue Data (End User)

Users can import modified revenue files back into the application. To import revenue date, complete the steps in the following procedure.

To import revenue data

Navigate to the Revenues screen, then the List view.
In the Revenues list, click the menu button, and then click Import.
In the Import dialog box, click Browse next to the Input File field to select the file you are importing.
In the Choose File dialog box, select the file you want to import and click Open.
In the Import dialog box, from the Input Format field, select the format you prefer: Comma Separated Text File or Tab Delimited Text File.

Caution: Be sure that the file you are importing is saved in the same format you select from the Input Format field.
In the Input Source field, select Predefined Mapping.
From the drop-down list beneath the Input Source field, select Opportunity Revenues or Default.

Note: If you originally exported the revenues from the Revenues view in the Opportunities screen, select Opportunity Revenues. If you originally exported the revenues from the Revenues screen, select Default.
In the Conflict Resolution field, select the preferred method to use if the import encounters a conflict between records: Reject Import Record, Overwrite Existing Record, or Create Additional Record.
Click Next:
1. If the import was successful, click OK.
2. If the import was unsuccessful, click Back.

Note: Any blank data fields you import into revenues remain unchanged in an import. If you want the blank records to be imported as 0 values, then you must replace each blank with a 0.

Exporting Revenue Data (End User)

Users can query data on an ad hoc basis in the Revenues screen. The resulting records can then be exported in a variety of formats. To export revenue date, complete the steps in the following procedure.

To export revenue data

Navigate to the Revenues screen, then the List view.
In the Revenues list, locate the revenue information you want to export.

Note: If you are exporting files into more than one file format type, you must perform separate exports for each file type.
In the Revenues list, click the menu button, and then click Export.
In the Export dialog box, set up the export rules, and then click Next.
In the File Download dialog box, click Open to open this file from its current location or click Save to save this file to your computer.
The file opens or you have to save it to a location on your computer, depending on your instructions.
Close the Export dialog box by clicking Close.

Caution: Do not select Visible Columns when you export revenue data, otherwise you cannot import that same data back into revenues. Instead, export All Columns and import those same All Columns when you return data, as these map to the Default Predefined Mapping.

About Updating Predefined Mapping in the Revenue Import Process

Whenever a display name of a field in the Revenues screen is changed or a new field is added, you must update the mapping in the Revenue Import process.

Updating a Display Name

When a user changes the display name of a list column of the applet, you must also update this new name for the Import Field Column. For example, if a user changes the Revenue Analysis List Applet List Column Upside display name to Best Case, you must make the following changes in Siebel Tools:

Import Object, Revenue, Import Source (In Revenue's case is Default), Import Field Map, find the corresponding field (Upside), Import Field Column, and then change column to Best Case.

Updating a New Field

When a user adds a new field to the Revenue Analysis List Applet, you must also add that field as an Import Field column.

After adding the field to the Revenue Analysis List Applet, add the new field to Import Field Map under the corresponding Import Source. You must also specify the Import Field Column of this field (this is the display name of the list column in the list applet).

Note: Make sure the Import Field Column of the import field is the same as the Display Name of this field in the List Column defined in the List Applet, if you want to first export and then import it.

After making changes in Siebel Tools, you must submit the changes to the Siebel runtime repository.