Report specification
Define the audience, purpose and contents of each report. Agree reporting periods, calculations and the level of detail before automating its preparation.
Automated Reporting
Recurring reports produced on a schedule or on request, from defined sources and layouts.
Replace the repeated exports, calculations and formatting behind a weekly or monthly report with a defined process for preparing and delivering it.
Overview
Recurring reports often require the same exports, calculations and formatting each week or month. Africube helps turn that work into a reporting process with defined sources, measures, layouts and delivery steps. We start with the output your recipients actually need, then work back to the information and rules required to produce it. The focus is a consistent report that can be prepared on the agreed schedule or on request, with clear checks and responsibilities.
Who it is for
- Finance teams preparing recurring management packs
- Operations teams producing periodic summaries
- Businesses assembling reports from multiple sources
- Managers who need consistent information at agreed intervals
Scope
Data preparation
Assess how the required information can be obtained from the agreed sources. Set out the preparation and checks needed before it is used in a report.
Reusable layouts
Develop report formats that fit your management structure. Bring tables, summaries and supporting detail into a consistent layout for the intended recipients.
Scheduled and requested output
Scope report generation around the business timetable. Define the schedule or request process, including which reporting period each run should cover.
Delivery and review
Agree where reports are delivered, who receives them and whether review is required first. Define how the team handles unavailable data or a report that needs correction.
How it works
A typical sequence; the configuration is agreed for each implementation.
Choose the report
Review the existing output and what recipients need from it.
Define the inputs
Agree data sources, calculations, periods and preparation rules.
Build the process
Create the report layout and agreed generation and delivery steps.
Check & introduce
Validate sample output and explain the operating and review process.
What you get
Report definitions and templates
Documented contents, calculations, periods and layouts for the reports in scope.
Report-generation workflow
The agreed process for preparing and producing each output.
Delivery and operating guidance
The schedule, recipient arrangements, review steps and handling of reporting issues.
What to prepare
Confirm the report audience, source systems, calculation rules and required output format. Scheduling, review, delivery channels and recipient access are agreed for the project. Reports depend on the availability and quality of their underlying information, so the scope also defines how updates and corrections are handled.
- A sample report or desired output
- Source files or systems and the current preparation steps
- Calculation rules, reporting periods and manual adjustments
- Recipients, review requirements and delivery timetable
FAQs
Can you automate a report we already prepare manually?
Africube can assess the existing report and the steps used to produce it. Provide a sample output, its source information and any manual calculations or adjustments so the proposed automation covers the actual work.
Can a report be reviewed before it is distributed?
A review step can be included in the requirements. Agree who checks the output, what they need to approve and how the report should proceed after that review.
Do we need a dashboard as well?
Not every reporting requirement needs one. Scheduled reports suit a defined information pack and audience. Dashboards are useful when users need to explore changing questions or inspect different views of the same data.
Related services
Any connection between systems is assessed and scoped separately.
Business Analytics & Dashboards
Dashboards that combine agreed measures with your operational records, using the reporting periods, filters and definitions your managers work with.
Explore Business Analytics & Dashboards
Sage Evolution Integration
Scope connections around your Sage Evolution or Sage Pastel environment: fiscalisation to the ZIMRA FDMS specification, reporting, and the operational workflows that depend on that data.
Explore Sage Evolution Integration
Business Process Automation
Turn repeatable operational processes into defined workflows, with triggers, rules, approvals and human decisions placed where they belong.
Explore Business Process AutomationTalk to us about Automated Reporting
Tell us about the systems you use today and the result you need.