How Advanced Account Forecasting Works

Get Started with Advanced Account Forecasting

Watch this video to understand the capabilities of Advanced Account Forecasting.

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Forecasting Basics

Business forecasts include various key elements.

• Dimension: A dimension is a qualitative attribute that groups forecast data. For example, time period, product category, production location, business unit, and inventory location. In Advanced Account Forecasting, the columns in the forecast table represent forecast dimensions.
• Measure: A measure is a quantitative value, such as opportunity revenue, last year order quantity, and sales agreement quantity. In Advanced Account Forecasting, the rows in the forecast table represent forecast measures.
• Measure Group: A measure group is a collection of measures. In Advanced Account Forecasting, in the forecast table, users can select a measure group to view forecast values only for the measures in that measure group.
• Period Group: A period group is a collection of periods with a specified duration and the number of periods. In Advanced Account Forecasting, in the forecast table, forecast values are grouped by periods.
• Adjustment Periods: An adjustment period defines when users with a particular user profile can edit forecasts for a forecast set. Adjustment periods help various teams to fine-tune forecasts based on the latest insights and information. In Advanced Account Forecasting, users can edit forecasts only during the adjustment periods for their user profile.

Forecast Context and Forecast Set

A forecast context is the specific focus or basis for generating forecasts. For example, an account, a ship-from location, a country, or service territory. In Advanced Account Forecasting, a forecast context is represented by a record, such as an Account or Location record.

A forecast set is a set of forecast configurations for a particular business objective. For example, production forecasts that include forecasted quantity and selling price per unit for various products manufactured at a production location or sales forecasts that include the forecasted revenue and sales agreement revenue for various products sold to an account. A forecast set includes configurations such as dimensions, measures, measure groups, period group, adjustment periods, and measure calculation methods.

A forecast set use represents an association between a forecast context and a forecast set. In Advanced Account Forecasting, Advanced Account Forecast Fact Set Use records represent the association between forecast sets and forecast context records. Set use records link the specific context for a forecast with the configurations for generating the forecast. A forecast set use record page holds the forecast data for a specific business context.

Think of forecast sets as a modular set of configurations that you can use to generate different sets of forecasts for the same business context. Create forecast sets for each business unit, location, or any other business context.

How Forecast Values Are Stored

Forecast data, including measures and dimensions, is stored in forecast fact objects. A forecast fact record represents a set of forecast measure values for a combination of dimensions and a forecast set use. The data is stored in a forecast fact object based on the configurations of a forecast set. Forecast fact records are the source of the values that appear in the forecast table. Advanced Account Forecasting includes a predefined forecast fact object called Advanced Account Forecast Fact.

Fields in a forecast fact object represent different forecast values.

• Dimensions: Lookup fields in a forecast fact object represent dimensions. For example, a Product Category custom field with a lookup relationship to the Category object in the Advanced Account Forecast Fact object.
• Measures: Number or currency fields in a forecast fact object represent measures. For example, a Sales Agreement Actual Revenue custom field on the forecast fact object with data type as Currency in the Advanced Account Forecast Fact object.

You can use Advanced Account Forecast Fact object as-is, customize it, or create a custom forecast fact object. See Manage Your Forecast Fact Object for Advanced Account Forecasting.

How Forecast Measure Values Are Calculated

Advanced Account Forecasting offers users the flexibility to generate measure values in the same forecast set in different ways. You specify the calculation method of a measure when you add it to a forecast set. You can calculate forecast measures in these ways.

• Batch Process: Generated by an automated batch process, such as a data process engine definition.
• User-Editable: Specified by users or imported from external systems.
• Forecast Formula: Calculated by using forecast formulas. You specify forecast formulas for measures in forecast sets.

How Data Processing Engine Calculates Measures

Data Processing Engine (DPE) is an extract-transform-load (ETL) tool that generates values for measures with the Batch Process calculation method. DPE extracts data from the source objects, transforms the data, and writes the transformed data back into the forecast fact object. DPE helps you apply a consistent transformation logic to your forecasts at scale and offers the flexibility to customize forecast calculation logic based on the business objective of the forecasts.

The logic for transforming the data is stored in a DPE definition. Advanced Account Forecasting includes DPE templates that generate, regenerate, recalculate, or roll over forecasts. From these templates, you can create multiple definitions and customize the logic for specific forecast sets. You specify a set of DPE definitions for calculating forecasts in a forecast set with batch process-based measures.