Feature Overview
Introducing the new “Upload Widget” for data files in Unified Story! In this blog post, I’ll give you a look into the new planning widget that SAC has introduced. This widget creates a super easy way for users to upload data directly from a file into a story.
Do your planning users consistently ask if there’s an easy way to either copy/paste or upload data directly to a planning story – particularly from Excel? If you’ve ever faced this issue – then this update is a game-changer! Previously, there were several options you could have offered your users (export, copy/paste, Excel Add-In, etc.), but this new widget is the easiest and most efficient way to get your users’ data from a file into SAC. Now, you can add a widget to your story pages that allows users to select a file of their data and upload it – all it requires is setting up an upload template in your model and configuring the trigger.
For this update, you’ll now see an “Upload Jobs” section in the modeler as well as a type of planning trigger in the stories:
Upload Jobs in Modeler:
New Trigger in Stories:
Feature Explanation
This update enables end-users to upload data files directly into SAC. This functionality is achieved through a few easy steps. I’ll go through each of those steps as an admin and as an end-user and provide some best practices to help you seamlessly integrate this functionality into your process.
- Create at least one “Upload Job” in your model that is the format/mapping desired for your users to upload to.
- Do this through the “Data Management” section of your Model
- Similar to when you upload a file to a model, create any relevant transformations through the data wrangling piece, and set any preferences
- Select either “Update” or “Append” as the Import Setting. Note how this is different from a standard file upload, where you can do a clean and replace.
Note: You can create as many “Upload” templates as needed. For example, if different regions have different formats/templates in their current processes, you could create two different “Upload Jobs” for each region.
- Add a “Data Upload Starter” trigger to any relevant story and direct it toward the desired “Upload Job.”
- Like a data action trigger, do this through the insert menu in your story.
- Select the relevant model, “Upload Job,” and either allow the user to select a version to upload to or keep it fixed (see my best practice suggestions below!).
Note: Just like above, you can have different triggers that point to different Upload Jobs as needed for different teams, regions, etc.
That’s it! It’s as easy as 2 steps! Now, here are some helpful best practices that I recommend when implementing this process:
- Version/Data Control: Because this does enable users to upload data directly to the model, it is recommended to set up a unique Version and/or Audit Trail for the data. This will ultimately allow you more flexibility in reviewing the data and moving as necessary from there (if desired).
- Provide/Link to the Upload Template: In some cases, you might need a specifically formatted file. For example, let’s say your Cost Centers have leading zeros in their IDs. If not carefully formatted, these could cause a problem, as an Excel file might get rid of those leading zeros, which would then lead to a data mismatch when uploading to SAC. This could be as simple as adding a link to your story that goes to a SharePoint/Dropbox site where the basic template resides.
- Treat this as a planning input process: In other words, provide a template/instructions, have a table on the page that only shows the data they’ve uploaded, have a “confirm/finalize” data process, and have a final Report that shows them all of the data integrated. This may sound like a lot, but it’s a quick setup and makes for a much better User Interface and clarity around your data and process.
