Business users often export data from their ERP systems to Excel because it provides a flexible and intuitive platform for data analysis and visualization, when used wisely and securely.
While many business systems offer ad-hoc conversations to Excel, consider an enterprise-grade solution to manage and optimize this important process. The following are key attributes that define a great tool for extraction ERP and other business data to Excel.
1) Ability to automate creation of Excel Files from ERP data
Manually creating and updating Excel files is time-consuming and prone to errors. An ideal solution should provide automation capabilities to streamline this process, including scheduling automatic file generation at specific times, triggering Excel updates when certain new entries are being added or specific values changing in ERP database, and initiating Excel file creation based on updates to a designated directory or direct printouts from the ERP system.
Such features would integrate seamlessly into daily business operations, improving efficiency and accuracy while reducing manual intervention and possible errors.
2) Ability to deliver Excel Files with ERP data to multiple distribution channels
While automatic creation of Excel files is helpful, delivering of these files to the right stakeholders promptly and securely is crucial as well. An ideal solution should offer flexible delivery options, automatically or on demand. These delivery options include e-mailing files to predefined mailing lists, saving files to designated network folders, uploading files to FTP locations or shared folders for broader access, and posting files to other systems via APIs to ensure seamless integration.
These capabilities would ensure that the right people receive the right data in the right format, eliminating the need for manual interventions while maintaining a smooth and efficient workflow.
3) Ability to allow users to run ad-hoc reports and on demand reports to Excel files, anytime and anywhere
In today’s dynamic business environment, it is necessary to provide users with maximum control over running their reports into Excel, when it is needed, ensuring access to the most current data for timely decision-making without replying on IT people.
This on-demand use needs to be possible to end users through an intuitive interface with filtering results or directly embedded in the context of existing ERP workflows. Ad-hoc reporting needs to be intuitive and given to key users to easily export data to Excel.
4) Automatic conversion of canned ERP reports to Excel
You do not need to re-invent the wheel to get data into Excel from an ERP system. The pre-built (or “canned”) reports included with ERP systems are a valuable source of data. While ERP providers may offer an export feature for quick data extraction from open sessions, canned reports deliver more detailed and comprehensive information.
An ideal solution would allow these reports to be automatically converted to Excel with just one click, without the need to download to text or CSV, copy to local PC and manually use the Excel’s Text Import Wizard to load the file.
If some minimal setup is necessary for special complex reports, a one-time setup should be sufficient for each report layout, and system should seamlessly convert these reports after setup, including reports with sub-headers and sub-totals, enabling users to keep, remove, or pivot these elements into additional columns.
A solution would also manage complex formats, such as multi-line layouts and row-organized data, consolidating them into a single row in the resulting Excel sheet.
Most importantly, the system should ensure that all data is transferred accurately, preserving the correct data types, saving time and effort while delivering reliable results.
5) Advanced SQL Access for data extraction of ERP data to Excel
Accessing the ERP database directly is a powerful way to retrieve specific data, typically done using SQL language. However, you do not need to get weary with your query and a solution that simplifies this process will allow less technical users to access data and export it to Excel.
An ideal solution is a visual query tool that enables users to browse a list of databases and tables, drag and drop tables, connect them with all possible join options, and select the necessary fields, grouping and sorting with ease – all without requiring SQL coding expertise. A great help will be the possibility to preview the end-result by having a sneak preview of live data populated, as the query is being modified and refined.
If the tool can handle the meta-data, such as access to table names and table descriptions, this will allow for an easier way to write the define the extraction.
If the system can natively speak to the ERP database, this will be a great advantage. If your ERP system is Infor LN, Baan, Infor M3 or Infor CloudSuite, handling ERP-specific elements like text fields, enumerated fields and company numbers will allow for a seamless process and ability to work with multiple companies within the same database.
Additionally, in cases where data access is limited or slow—such as with Infor Cloudsuite – a data synchronization mechanism should be available. This would enable syncing data from the Cloudsuite data lake to a local or cloud database, making SQL-based data access faster and more user-friendly.
For users with SQL coding knowledge, you need the capability to easily write SQL queries on all databases. Such a tool should provide a friendly editor, timely error messages, and a preview of the data to make sure we do what we were planning to do. This capability can be useful for importing existing queries you already have from a different tool, and re-use them in your system of choice.
6) Provide instant access from within Excel to ERP users and non-ERP users
While some users have full access to the ERP system and the reporting systems, others do not have this access and only require specific reports or datasets. Instead of granting them licenses for this limited need, companies can use Excel as a front-end tool to provide data access to non-ERP users. Excel-based extracts can be configured to include only the necessary data, while having compliance with data security policies.
7) Capability to extract data from multiple data sources to Excel
The data you need inside Excel may be from multiple data sources so you get a complete and accurate picture of business operations. Instead of copying and pasting different sheets and using VLOOKUP’s to join them inside Excel, an ideal solution should enable users to structure and consolidate data seamlessly before sending it to Excel, and allow access to diverse sources, such as canned reports, database connections, Excel files, CSV, JSON, and more.
An ideal solution would be able to export data from the ERP system directly into an existing Excel sheet located on a network drive, append data to an existing sheet or send results to multiple sheets at once in a single Excel file. This will allow organizations to maintain continuity in their reporting workflows, enabling the generation of accurate, real-time insights while leveraging existing templates.
Additionally, this solution would allow for the creation of structured Excel files with pivot tables, graphs, and dashboards, automatically updating data as needed to deliver dynamic, high-quality visualizations with minimal effort.
8) Capability to enhance and transform ERP data before sending it to Excel
Raw data is rarely ready for analysis or reporting as-is. To ensure data is usable, accurate and meaningful, transformation is often necessary, and any solution should include tools for preparing, cleansing and transforming data.
Ideally, you need an intuitive, visual interface that allows you to drag and drop tables from multiple sources, reorder and rename fields, remove unnecessary columns, change data types and add calculated fields. If needed, an intuitive scripting language should allow to write formulas with ease.
For making complex data preparation tasks accessible to non-technical users, you need a way to preview a subset of real data in a tabular grid layout as it is being transformed.
For advanced transformations on tabular data, you would want to use SQL language, allowing for efficient joins, sorting, grouping, aggregation, and filtering. This would further streamline operations.
By simplifying data preparation, you will be able to save time, enhance productivity, and ensure high-speed performance for even the most complex data processing tasks.
9) Inject ERP Data to an Existing Excel File or template
You need to have the capability to export data to an Excel file with multiple sheets. While “export to Excel buttons” in business systems produce a new Excel file with one sheet (Sometimes it produces an old xls file or similar). When this is the case, users may manually copy and paste the originated data to their multi-sheet structured Excel files, which may cause errors.
An ideal solution would be able to export data from the ERP system directly into an existing Excel sheet located on a network drive, append data to an existing sheet or send results to multiple sheets at once in a single Excel file. This will allow organizations to maintain continuity in their reporting workflows, enabling the generation of accurate, real-time insights while leveraging existing templates.
Additionally, this solution would allow for the creation of structured Excel files with pivot tables, graphs, and dashboards, automatically updating data as needed to deliver dynamic, high-quality visualizations with minimal effort.
10) Send certain key consolidated values calculated from ERP data to Excel
An ideal solution should go beyond simply exporting tabular data to an Excel sheet. It should enable the extraction of meaningful insights by preparing consolidated key values and performance indicators directly from ERP data.
To achieve this, the solution should offer advanced capabilities, such as calculating custom metrics and seamlessly planting these calculated values into spreadsheets. This would save time and minimize manual errors.
The process of calculating these values should be straightforward, ideally supported by an intuitive scripting language. Such a tool would make it easy to create, test, and implement complex formulas with minimal effort.
With these features, businesses could generate accurate, actionable insights quickly and efficiently, enhancing decision-making and reducing the need for manual calculations.
11) Traceability of extractions of ERP data to Excel
You may be required to have the ability to track and document the flow of data throughout the entire process of extracting data from the ERP system, manipulating it and then sending it to Excel, to ensure transparency, reproducibility, and accountability in development and data processing.
If you have these requirements, you need capabilities to trace the origin, transformations, and movement of data across different stages before it is finally sent to Excel. You need to be able to capture logs, execution history, and errors for debugging and auditing and ensure the results can be replicated using the same input and configuration. Traceability might even be required for maintaining records to meet regulatory and security requirements at certain companies.
12) Secure and Role based access for the extraction process from ERP to Excel
Having different features without proper controls will not be sufficient. Ensuring data security and a robust permission system is crucial for organizations to control access to the ERP database and exporting to Excel. A comprehensive user management system is essential for centrally managing access to databases, schemas, and services. This approach minimizes risks by ensuring users interact only with data and functions relevant to their roles, preventing unauthorized access and unintended modifications.
NAZDAQ has served over one thousand companies worldwide since 1999 with solutions that integrate ERP systems with Excel. It offers B2Win Suite, which covers the 12 features mentioned in this article.
B2Win Suite automates the process of fetching data from multiple data sources, preparing, cleansing, and transforming it to create structured, enterprise grade Excel sheet. By automating the entire process, it enhances operational efficiency, minimizes manual errors, and enforces robust data controls. As ad-hoc and on-demand Excel extraction is also needed in many cases, traceability capabilities help you track this process.
B2Win Suite works in conjunction with ERP and other business systems and strongly integrates with Infor CloudSuite, Infor LN, Baan and M3.
