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Reporting - Then and Now

The new Reports functionality is Generally Available in Production as of the June 2021 release. For customers who are currently using Legacy reports, below are several key differences to keep in mind.

Note: There will not be any migration from legacy reports to new reports. The two features are extremely different, and there really is no way to convert old into new. We have provided some instructional help - see Transitioning to New ReportsReports CookbookReporting - Then and Now, and Reports Overview.

Key Differences between Legacy and New Reports

# Feature/Difference New Reports Legacy Reports
1

Permission to see the top-level Reports tab

Users must have permission to view at least one report in order to see the top-level Reports tab. The new Requests feature works the same way - users must be able to view at least one request in order to see the top-level tab.

See Report Teams/Permissions for more information.

The Reports top-level tab was visible to all users, regardless if they had permission to view any reports.

2

'Topic' - all reportable fields for an entity and its related field entities

 

Every report is based on a single 'Topic' that is the primary focus of the report data and must be selected. Each Topic corresponds to a reportable entity or key feature in PPM Pro, such as portfolios, projects, timesheets, and so on.

Once a Topic is selected, such as 'Project', then all reportable fields for that entity and all of its related fields/entities will be available for reporting, such as fields for projects, tasks, issues, resources, and so on.

Legacy reports require that both a 'Category' and a 'Report Source' be selected in order to identify what reportable fields are available.  

Different Report Sources provided different sets of fields. So users had to know which fields went with which report source before they created the report.

3

'Scope' - one report that can be run at multiple levels

Every report will automatically be available at the top navigation link Reports list such that users with appropriate permissions can view, edit, and run from there. Optionally, users can select 'Scope' options for where else they would like the report to appear.

The list of available Scopes is determined by the Topic that was selected; the list of scopes will always be "containers" for the Topic, as well as the Topic entity itself. For example, for a 'Project' Topic, the available Scopes will be Project, Division, Department, and Organization. Selecting any of these Scope options will make the report available in that entity's Reports list. This means that you can create a single report and make it accessible in various Reports list locations. When the report is run from one of these Report lists, the scope will automatically be set to that entity. 

Legacy reports require that a 'Target' be selected in order to identify what entity Reports list the report will appear in. To have a report available in more than one entity Reports list, the user must create a different report and choose a different Target each time. For example, to be able to run the same report at both the Organization and the Portfolio levels, the user must create a report with Target 'Organization' and then recreate the report with Target 'Portfolio'.

4 Single report output type per report, many more output types

Every report has a single 'Type' that must be selected and determines what the report output will be. While you are designing, you can switch between Types to find the visualization that you like best. For example, you can see whether you prefer a column, bar, pie, or donut visualization for your report. These visualizations are much more modern and appealing than the Legacy visualizations. There is no option to switch between visualizations while viewing a report; to have two different visualizations for the same report data, you will need to create one report, then copy it and change to the other visualization.

There are currently the following report Types, with others still to be added over time:

  • Area: Basic
  • Area: Stacked
  • Bar: Basic
  • Bar: Stacked
  • Bubble
  • Column: Basic
  • Column: Stacked
  • Combination: Area, Chart, Line
  • Combination: Stacked Area, Stacked Column, Line
  • Crosstab
  • Donut
  • Gantt
  • Heatmap
  • Line
  • List: Basic
  • List: Stacked
  • List: Time Series
  • Pie: Basic
  • Pie: Crosstab
  • Spiderweb
  • Tile

Each report can have a default 'Output Type' and up to 5 other Output Types that they can design and allow the user to switch between while viewing the report. For each of the selected Output Types, the user must select the fields and options; basically it is the same as creating a unique report for each selected Output Type, but all are contained within a single report. The default Output Type is shown when the report is rendered and knowledgeable users can toggle to other Output Types while viewing the report.

There are 6 report Output Types:

  • List
  • Crosstab
  • Bubble
  • Column (with Horizontal and Vertical orientation options)
  • Gantt
  • Pie
5 WYSIWYG report designer - real time preview with sample data

The new report designer opens in its own tab so that users can take advantage of as much screen real estate as possible. It includes a Preview pane that allows you to immediately see how the report will render as you select data and options. For List reports, you can interactively select display options withe the Preview area list columns.

The Preview pane displays sample data so that its performance is snappy and you do not have to wait for rendering. To see actual report data, there is an option to run the report which opens the report in another tab.

To see how a report will render based on selected data and options, the user must run the report and view it in a separate window.

6 Field search

Users can search for reportable fields by typing field titles (full or partial) and browsing search results.

There is no ability to search for fields.
7 Display options

The report designer includes additional display options based on the report Type, allowing you to control the report appearance for headings, sub-headings, data, and other elements. These options include font, font style, font size, and location.

There are options based on Output Type, but these do not include font, font style, and font size.
8 Changing Scope and Filters at runtime and when viewing the report

You can optionally configure if you would like the user to be able to change the report Scope and its filters at runtime and when viewing the report. Further, filters can be ad hoc or saved; you do not have to create and save filters separately from a report, you can use saved filters or configure with ad hoc filters as you like.

For example, even if a report is run from the top-level Reports list (and is therefore run at an organization level) and with a specific filter such as all active projects, you can allow the user to change the Scope (say to a single project) and filters (say to active projects) in an initial runtime modal and when viewing the report. If you do not specify to change these at runtime, a runtime modal will not even appear; the report will just render given its configuration/relevant Scope and filters.

A runtime modal always appears given the specified Target level and with the ability to select a single saved filter. There is no ability to change the Target or filters while viewing the report.

9 Reports List organization

The new reports includes a 'Group By' option which allows a user to organize their reports by Owner, Topic, Type, Created By, and Last Modified By. Users can also just have an ungrouped list. The reports list includes an ad hoc filter control at the top and all columns are sortable.

The Legacy reports list includes an ad hoc filter control at the top and all columns are sortable.