Planning & Reporting

Workday Adaptive Planning for Managing Cash Flow

July 25, 2025 by Revelwood

This post continues our series on how we use Workday Adaptive Planning to solve problems. Each blog post focuses on a real-world client experience where Revelwood was presented with a unique or thorny problem. We’ll explain our approach to how we solved it.

Revelwood Client: A construction company that prides itself on building homes that “just feel right.” They build quality-made homes across Easter Pennsylvania, in Berks County, Chester County, Lancaster County, Lebanon County and more.

Problem: Managing Cash Flow

Scenario: Cash flow is one of the biggest challenges facing home builders. A home building company will get a down payment from a client, after which the construction company relies on bank loans per project to cover the labor and material costs until the home is finished and turned over to the new homeowner. It sounds simple – except when faced with variable costs for labor and goods, delays for materials and a multitude of new projects at various levels of completion. This company needed insight into how the increasing costs and delays impact any one project. They also wanted to understand how the sum of the current projects relate to cash flow and the company’s ability to sign contracts with new clients.

How We Helped: Revelwood integrated Workday Adaptive Planning with MarkSystems Home Builder Software. Revelwood built a cash flow model that incorporates detailed loan information. The cash flow modeling, analysis and reporting solution relies on data sets for “draws.” A draw schedule is a detailed payment plan that determines when a bank will disburse funds to the home building company. The company how has a sophisticated and comprehensive view of cash flow based on projects, payments and milestones.

Do you have a challenge you’d like to leverage Workday Adaptive Planning for? Reach out to us – we can help!

Read the posts in our series, How We Solve Problems Using Workday Adaptive Planning

How We Solve Problems: Improving the Performance of Workday Adaptive Planning

How We Solve Problems Using Workday Adaptive Planning

Using Workday Adaptive Planning for Headcount Planning

Using Integration to Hard Code Calculated Values

July 23, 2025 by Mary Luchs

While it’s super helpful to have the ability to lock your plan versions in Workday Adaptive Planning, it’s not a perfect solution all the time. A “locked” version will prevent users from entering new data or updating formulas, but the formulas themselves are not prevented from recalculating when the formula input values change. This becomes particularly problematic when we are using time modifiers in our formulas.

The most common example I encounter is when we’re using some sort of trailing average calculation to populate a budget. For example, if you’re creating a 2026 budget with trailing 12 month average calculations for your operating expenses, those 2026 values will continue to change until 2025 is closed. While there are many formulaic ways around this, I like the option to use an Adaptive data source integration to hard code the values and prevent future changes to the data.

Using an Adaptive data source integration works really well when we are using shared formulas, since they are natively able to be overridden. You can manually override these formulas by typing over them in a cell on a sheet in Adaptive, but you might not know that you can override them through an import as well. A general overview of the process is as follows:

Adding a new source to your Adaptive data source for the data you want to hard code (You will need to create a “Workday Adaptive Planning” data source as a planning data source if this hasn’t been done yet. A helpful walkthrough of this step can be found here).
Creating a Planning Data Loader that takes that formulaic data from the staging table and pushes that same data back into the same data intersections as hard coded values.
Running that loader for the version and time periods you want it to run for. Running the loader is what triggers the formula overrides.
As the last step, lock the version you pushed into so that the hard coded values that were integrated cannot be changed in the future.

Once this loader is set up, it can be easily reused by changing the versions and the time periods it’s being run for. It is a great process to have in your back pocket for preventing changes in your budget versions.

Revelwood is an award-winning, Platinum Solution Provider for Workday Adaptive Planning. We build solutions for the Office of Finance that minimize your risk by seamlessly incorporating business analytics into your everyday thinking. By combining the software with our best practices and out-of-the-box applications, we help businesses achieve their full potential with Workday Adaptive Planning.

Scheduled Report Notifications with Attachments

July 16, 2025 by Revelwood

In today’s fast-paced business environment, timely access to critical financial and operational data is essential. Workday Adaptive Planning offers a powerful feature—Scheduled Report Notifications with Attachments—that ensures key stakeholders receive the right information at the right time, without the need for manual intervention.

What Are Workday Adaptive Scheduled Report Notifications?

Scheduled Report Notifications in Workday Adaptive Planning allow users to automate the distribution of reports at predefined intervals. These reports can be sent via email with attachments, ensuring that decision-makers always have up-to-date insights without logging into the system manually.

Setting Up Scheduled Report Notifications with Attachments

1. First you must enable attachments with scheduled notifications by navigating to Administration in the Global Navigation and then General Setup. Under the Enable features list there will be an option to select “Enable attachments with scheduled notifications.” You will need to have administrative access to change this setting.

2. Next you need to make sure that proper permissions are granted in order to manage and access scheduled notifications with attachments. To do this navigate to Administration, then Permission Sets. Select edit on the permission set group that should have access to create scheduled notifications. Users must have the following permissions selected to be able to perform this task: Create Report Schedules, Send Attachments in Notifications, (Optional) Manage all Report Schedules, Download to ExcelBoth schedulers and recipients need this permission.

3. Now that the correct access has been set up to allow users to schedule notifications with attachments, let’s navigate to Reports under the Global Navigation menu to set one up. From here select a report that you’d like to send out as a scheduled attachment through email. (This must be a shared report).

4. Select the three dots on the right next to the report and select “Create Schedule.”
5. From here you can edit the schedule name and cadence of when it will be sent out

6. You can select a specific action you want the schedule to perform. From the options select “Send Report as Attachment.”

7. From here you will be prompted with a second set of options to select who to send the notification to, personalize the message, and set a password for the Excel attachment that will be sent.

8. After you have filled in all the required fields for the schedule select save. To see your saved schedules click on the schedules option under the reports and you will see a list of all saved schedules. From here you can edit or pause any saved schedules.
9. Now that your schedule is saved and active your selected correspondents will receive an email notification with an Excel attachment of the report. It is secured by the password you chose.

Workday Adaptive Planning’s Scheduled Report Notifications with Attachments streamline reporting workflows and enhance data-driven decision-making. By automating report distribution, organizations can ensure stakeholders receive actionable insights effortlessly, improving efficiency and strategic planning.

Planning, Budgeting, and Reporting: The Tech Sector’s Imperative for Modernization

July 3, 2025 by Revelwood

Today’s competitive technology industry relies on more than innovation in products and services—it requires innovation in how companies plan, budget, and report. According to a recent IDC study sponsored by Workday, technology organizations are feeling the pressure to modernize these core finance processes to stay agile and competitive.

The Cost of Outdated Finance Processes

The report highlights that manual finance processes, such as budgeting, forecasting, consolidations and reporting, are holding many tech companies back. These outdated methods are time-consuming, costly, prone to inefficiency and have the potential for human error. Over a third of surveyed organizations reported that slow, rigid, and siloed planning and budgeting processes prevent them from responding effectively to rapidly changing market conditions.

The result? Limited visibility into financial performance, constrained ability to pivot and delayed decision-making. These factors can erode competitiveness in a fast-moving industry.

The Call for Connected, Cloud-Based Planning

To address these challenges, tech firms are prioritizing investments in modern, connected cloud services. The benefits of this approach are clear:

Faster, data-driven decision-making: Cloud-based systems offer real-time visibility into financial, operational and external data, improving forecasting accuracy and business agility.
Streamlined planning cycles: With automation and AI-powered insights, companies can shift from static annual budgeting to dynamic, continuous planning.
Improved reporting and compliance: Modern platforms reduce reliance on manual data entry, minimize errors and accelerate time to close, moving toward the vision of a zero-day close.

Why Modern Planning Technology Matters Now

The IDC study found that 56% of technology leaders consider finance their top priority for modernization. This underscores the urgency to transform planning and reporting systems. Tech leaders recognize that without modern, configurable technology, they risk falling behind in operational efficiency, decision velocity, and profitability.

Key drivers behind this push include:

The need for more agile processes that can keep pace with evolving business models.
The pursuit of better customer satisfaction, as accurate forecasting supports reliable delivery and service.
A commitment to innovative business models that require adaptable financial frameworks.

The Path Forward for Tech Companies

To compete effectively, technology companies must:

Replace manual processes with automated solutions that simplify complexity and reduce time to insight.
Standardize business processes across the enterprise to enable consistency, compliance, and faster decisions.
Prioritize continuous planning and forecasting to ensure resilience in the face of change.

Those that invest in these capabilities will not only enhance their financial operations but also position themselves for sustained growth and competitive advantage.

Revelwood is dedicated to helping the Office of Finance succeed through the strategic use of technology. For 30 years we have partnered with CFOs and FP&A leaders to modernize and transform the Office of Finance. Our approach is to focus on success, speak business first and to leverage best-in-class technology that suits your organization’s unique needs. We partner with leading technology providers to build best-in-class solutions for our clients.

More from our FP&A Done Right Series:

Introducing the FP&A Done Right – The Podcast

From Static to Dynamic: How Businesses Can Embrace Agile Planning, Part 2

From Static to Dynamic: How Businesses Can Embrace Agile Planning, Part 1

Workday Adaptive Planning Tips & Tricks: Replacing Nested If-Statements With The Use of SWITCH Formulas in Workday Adaptive Planning

July 2, 2025 by Cameron Burke

When writing out formulas in Workday Adaptive Planning, it is common to come across multiple conditions that require complex logic to calculate correctly. Many model builders rely on nested “if” statements to handle these scenarios, often resulting in a very long formula. As the number of conditions increases, these nested “if” statements quickly become difficult to read, maintain, and debug.

The “SWITCH” function is a great solution to offer a cleaner and more structured way to write this same logic. Let’s explore the benefits of using SWITCH formulas and compare them to the traditional nested “if” statements.

Consider this example

We’ll start out simple. Imagine you are creating a formula to calculate the price per doctor’s appointment, depending on different offices. Appointments cost $300 at office 1, $275 at office 2, and $250 at office 3.

In a traditional “if” statement, the formula might look something like this:

iff(this.Office.code = “Office 1”, 300,

iff(this.Office.code = “Office 2”, 275,

iff(this.Office.code = “Office 3”, 250, 0)))

How a SWITCH Formula Works

While this “if” statement isn’t too long, a SWITCH can clean it up a bit. Here’s how it would look:

SWITCH(this.Office.code,

“Office 1”, 300,

“Office 2”, 275,

“Office 3”, 250, 0)

The first value in the formula is what you want to compare against the list of values that follow. In this example, the office code is the value we want the formula to look for. Next, the values of office codes are listed, followed by their respective appointment costs. This formula essentially reads the exact same logic as the “if” statement: if the office is office 1, the appointment cost is 300; if it’s office 2, then 275, and if it’s office 3, then 250, and if it’s none of those, then 0.

Now let’s add some more complexity.

Consider this example

Imagine you are creating a formula to calculate the price per doctor’s appointment, this time dependent on both different offices and different doctor types. Dentist appointments cost $300 at office 1, $275 at office 2, and $250 at office 3. Let’s say orthodontist appointments cost $250 at office 1, $300 at office 2, and $350 at office 3…. and so on for multiple combinations of doctor type and office number.

In a traditional nested “if” statement, the formula might look something like this:

iff(this.Doctor_Type.code = “dentist” and this.Office.code = “Office 1”, 300,

iff(this.Doctor_Type.code = “dentist” and this.Office.code = “Office 2”, 275,

iff(this.Doctor_Type.code = “dentist” and this.Office.code = “Office 3”, 250,

iff(this.Doctor_Type.code = “orthodontist” and this.Office.code = “Office 1”, 250,

iff(this.Doctor_Type.code = “orthodontist” and this.Office.code = “Office 2”, 300,

iff(this.Doctor_Type.code = “orthodontist” and this.Office.code = “Office 3”, 350,

0))))))

While this formula does work, it is:

Difficult to read
- Repetition can make it hard to follow the logic.
Hard to debug
- If one condition is incorrect or an additional condition needs to be added, finding the right spot can be frustrating.
Error prone
- Long nested formulas are more likely to contain syntax or logical errors.

The Solution: a SWITCH Formula

Workday Adaptive Planning’s SWITCH function would work much better to create a formula handling multiple conditions like this. A switch formula relaying the same logic could look something like the following:

SWITCH(this.Doctor_Type.code,

“dentist”, SWITCH(this.Office.code,

“Office 1”, 300,

“Office 2”, 275,

“Office 3”, 250,

“orthodontist”, SWITCH(this.Office.code,

“Office 1”, 250,

“Office 2”, 300,

“Office 3”, 350,

)

How it Works

The first value in the formula is what you want to compare against the list of values that follow. In this example, the doctor type is the first value we want the formula to look for.

For doctor type “dentist,” we have another SWITCH embedded, this time looking at the office code.
Next, the values of office code are listed, followed by their respective appointment costs.
This formula essentially reads the exact same logic as the nested if: if the doctor type is dentist AND the office is office 1 (the second SWITCH looks for office code after the doctor type), the appointment cost is 300; if it’s dentist and office 2, then 275, and so on!
Then, once all of the offices are listed under the “Dentist” SWITCH, the same is written out for orthodontists, with the respective offices and price per appointment.

Why SWITCH Is Better

Improved Readability
- SWITCH formulas are cleaner and easier to read. The logical flow is clear: first check the Doctor_Type.code, then check the Office.code. Each block is neatly separated, making the formula less overwhelming.
Easier Maintenance
- Adding or modifying conditions is much simpler with SWITCH. For example, if a new condition for “Office 4” needs to be added, you can insert it directly into the relevant block without reworking the entire formula.
Reduced Errors
- With SWITCH, there’s less nesting and fewer opportunities for syntax errors (e.g., missing parentheses). Each condition is self-contained, making the formula more robust.
Logical Separation
- The SWITCH function inherently separates different parts of the logic into manageable sections. In the example above, you can clearly see separate blocks for “dentist,” and “orthodontist,” which improves clarity.

Real-World Benefits for Model Builders

As a Workday Adaptive Planning model builder, using SWITCH formulas can save you significant time and effort, particularly when:

Handling complex logic with many conditions.
Working on models that require frequent updates or changes.
Collaborating with other team members who need to understand your formulas.

Switching to SWITCH will make your models easier to maintain and improve overall performance. While nested “if” statements have their place, they can quickly become unwieldy as your formulas grow in complexity. The next time you’re faced with a complex decision tree in your model, give the SWITCH function a try. You’ll wonder why you didn’t make the switch sooner!

Introducing the FP&A Done Right – The Podcast

June 26, 2025 by Revelwood

We’ve launched a podcast! FP&A Done Right – The Podcast.

In the first episode of FP&A Done Right – The Podcast, we set the stage for a transformative journey into the evolving world of Financial Planning & Analysis (FP&A). This episode serves as a primer, introducing you to the podcast’s mission: to demystify FP&A and provide actionable insights for FP&A leaders.

The Importance of Modern FP&A

FP&A leaders play a critical role in strategic decision-making. In an era marked by rapid technological advancements and economic uncertainties, traditional financial planning methods are no longer sufficient. Modern FP&A requires agility, real-time data analysis, and a forward-thinking mindset.

Key Themes and Takeaways

1. Embracing Technology: The episode underscores the necessity of integrating advanced tools and technologies into FP&A processes. By leveraging platforms like Workday Adaptive Planning, finance teams can enhance forecasting accuracy and operational efficiency.
2. Strategic Collaboration: Effective FP&A isn’t confined to the finance department. We discuss the importance of cross-functional collaboration, ensuring that insights and strategies align across all business units.
3. Continuous Learning: The Office of Finance is evolving rapidly. FP&A leaders should focus on ongoing education and adaptability. Staying updated with industry trends and best practices is crucial for sustained success.

Episode one lays a solid foundation for future discussions, promising deep dives into topics such as scenario planning, budgeting for SaaS businesses and successful financial performance management implementations. Listeners can anticipate a blend of trends, success stories and practical tips. FP&A Done Right – The Podcast is a valuable resource for finance professionals seeking to navigate the complexities of modern financial planning. By combining strategic insights with real-world applications, the podcast aims to empower its audience to drive meaningful change within their organizations.

More from our FP&A Done Right Series:

From Static to Dynamic: How Businesses Can Embrace Agile Planning, Part 2

From Static to Dynamic: How Businesses Can Embrace Agile Planning, Part 1

The Hidden Value of Strategic Planning: Gaining Operational Efficiencies

Forecast Explanations in Predictive Forecaster

June 11, 2025 by Cameron Burke

With machine learning predictions, it can often be challenging to understand why certain forecasts were made. To bridge this gap, Workday has a new feature: Forecast Explanation in Machine Learning Predictive Forecaster. With this feature, you gain deeper insights into the factors driving your forecasted data through visual charts and explanatory text. Learn more about predictive forecaster itself!

Business Benefits

Understanding machine learning predictions is crucial for trust and decision-making. Forecast Explanation provides clear, visual representations that make it easier to review and analyze the key components influencing each forecast made by the predictor. This feature enhances transparency and enables more informed planning decisions.

Changes

In the Forecast section of new and edited forecasts, there will now be a new Forecast Explanation option. When you enable this feature, two key insights become available in the “Confidence Metrics” tab of the Forecast History page:

1. Contribution Breakdown of Forecast Components: A visual chart that displays how factors such as seasonality, trends, and residual components (when applicable) contribute to the forecasted values.
2. Forecast Explanation: A text description that clarifies the significance of each component of the chart.

These enhancements provide a more intuitive way to understand your forecast results. You can access the Confidence Metrics when you view the history of a completed forecast.

How to Enable Forecast Explanation

To turn on this feature for existing forecasts:

1. From the main menu, select Modeling.
2. Navigate to Predictive Forecaster.
3. Hover over a forecast in the list and select the More Actions menu.
4. Click the three-dot menu and select Edit.
5. In the Forecast section, check Forecast Explanation.
6. Select Run to execute the forecast immediately, or select Save to run it later.

How to Review Forecast Explanations

Once your forecast runs successfully:

1. Select Modeling from the main menu.
2. Hover over the forecast in the list and access the More Actions menu.
3. Click the three-dot menu and select View History.
4. Navigate to the Confidence Metrics tab to review the new visual breakdown and explanatory text.

What Happens If You Take No Action?

The Forecast Explanation option is available for all new as well as existing forecasts, but it must be enabled manually to access the insights.

What’s Next?

Workday is continually enhancing the Predictive Forecaster feature. In future updates, expect even more detailed explanations and additional charts to further clarify the factors influencing the data predictions.By enabling Forecast Explanation, you can leverage machine learning forecasts with greater confidence and clarity. Activate this feature today to gain a deeper understanding of your predictive models!

Transforming Financial Planning: How LEARN Behavioral Streamlined Operations with Workday Adaptive Planning

May 21, 2025 by Revelwood

We partnered with our client, LEARN Behavioral, on a webinar highlighting how multi-site healthcare organizations can benefit from adopting Workday Adaptive Planning. Here’s their story

LEARN Behavioral is a leading provider of autism services, specializing in Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) therapy and school-based programs. With multiple regional brands operating under the LEARN umbrella, the organization faced increasing complexity in managing its financial planning and analysis (FP&A) processes.

Challenges Before Workday Adaptive Planning

Prior to implementing Workday Adaptive Planning, LEARN Behavioral encountered several roadblocks in their budgeting and forecasting workflows:

Long Turnaround Times: The process of creating and updating budgets was time-consuming and inefficient.
Manual Excel-Based Templates: Reliance on spreadsheets led to errors, inconsistencies, and difficulties in consolidating data.
Lack of Insights Across Locations: With multiple sites operating under different brands, gaining a unified view of financial performance was challenging.

These challenges highlighted the need for a scalable and integrated solution to support LEARN Behavioral’s growth and operational complexity.

A Game-Changing Implementation

LEARN Behavioral adopted Workday Adaptive Planning to transform its FP&A capabilities. The implementation brought significant improvements, including:

Streamlined Processes: By automating data collection and reporting, LEARN drastically reduced the time required for budgeting and forecasting.
Enhanced Data Visibility: Centralizing financial data improved consistency and provided a single source of truth for decision-making.
Rolling Forecasts: The ability to maintain monthly rolling forecasts enabled greater flexibility and responsiveness to changes in the business.
Scenario Analysis: LEARN gained powerful scenario modeling tools to evaluate financial impacts and make informed decisions.

Empowering Operations with Data-Driven Insights

One of the most impactful outcomes of the implementation was empowering the operations team with direct access to financial data and dashboards. This self-service approach enabled managers to:

Monitor performance in real-time.
Identify trends and variances quickly.
Make data-driven decisions without relying heavily on the finance team.

Integration and Unified Systems

Another critical benefit was the seamless integration of billing, payroll, and financial data into a single platform. This unified system eliminated data silos, ensuring consistency and enabling better collaboration across departments.

Measurable Results and Future Outlook

Since adopting Workday Adaptive Planning, LEARN Behavioral has seen:

Reduced budgeting and forecasting timelines.
Improved accuracy and consistency in financial data.
Better insights to support growth and multi-site operations.

Looking ahead, LEARN Behavioral is well-positioned to continue scaling its services while maintaining financial discipline and operational efficiency.

LEARN Behavioral’s journey with Workday Adaptive Planning serves as an example of how technology can transform financial processes in complex, multi-site organizations. By streamlining workflows, enabling better data access, and enhancing forecasting capabilities, LEARN is now equipped to focus on its mission of providing high-quality autism services to families across the country.

Watch the webinar to learn more!

Workday Adaptive Planning Tips & Tricks: Editing Dimensions

April 16, 2025 by Revelwood

Both modeled and cubed sheets in Workday Adaptive Planning offer the ability to add dimensionality to the model to further enhance data visualization. Dimensions and their values are often needed to be updated and maintained. While this could be seen as an inconvenience, Adaptive offers a feature that enables the user to edit the dimension directly on a cubed or modeled sheet rather than having to navigate through modeling to the dimension home screen.

If you navigate towards the back end of your cubed or modeled sheet and press on column and levels, you will see your dimensions. Select the dimension you want to enable the feature on, and check the “Edit dimension on sheet” checkbox circled in red. Save your changes.

To use the feature, navigate to the front end of the sheet you are working on. Hover over the cell you want to edit under the correct dimension column, and click the drop down arrow. You will then hit the “Edit Dimension” button that is circled in red.

Next, the window below will pop up. Circled in red is the button to add a new dimensional value directly onto the sheet. This will also be updated on the main dimensions tab as well. Additionally, you have the ability to rename an existing dimension in this same window.

This feature is also available for text-selectors and follows the same process as dimensions.

Planning & Reporting

Read the posts in our series, How We Solve Problems Using Workday Adaptive Planning

Read more Workday Adaptive Planning Tips & Tricks:

What Are Workday Adaptive Scheduled Report Notifications?

Setting Up Scheduled Report Notifications with Attachments

Read more Workday Adaptive Planning Tips & Tricks:

The Cost of Outdated Finance Processes

The Call for Connected, Cloud-Based Planning

Why Modern Planning Technology Matters Now

The Path Forward for Tech Companies

More from our FP&A Done Right Series:

Consider this example

How a SWITCH Formula Works

Consider this example

The Solution: a SWITCH Formula

How it Works

Why SWITCH Is Better

Real-World Benefits for Model Builders

Read more Workday Adaptive Planning Tips & Tricks:

The Importance of Modern FP&A

Key Themes and Takeaways

More from our FP&A Done Right Series:

Business Benefits

Changes

How to Enable Forecast Explanation

How to Review Forecast Explanations

What Happens If You Take No Action?

What’s Next?

Read more Workday Adaptive Planning Tips & Tricks:

Challenges Before Workday Adaptive Planning

A Game-Changing Implementation

Empowering Operations with Data-Driven Insights

Integration and Unified Systems

Measurable Results and Future Outlook

Read more Workday Adaptive Planning Tips & Tricks:

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