Simpler formulas

Hi Brenton,

In terms of simplicity, which calculations are you finding the most complex?  The Modano content doens't rely on mega-modules (as template-based modelling tends to), so the logic should be as simple as possible in any one instance.  

One aspect that makes things slightly more complex might be the historical-forecast structure - where each calculation looks to determine if it's a historical period (and then gets a historical figure) or a forecast period, in which case it performs a forecast calculation. If you're finding the historical-forecast formulae more complex, then perhaps construct a forecast-only model and get to grips with those calculations first.  

Also, using the "Amounts" modules can also make things simpler as there are few data transformations, so much less complexity.  I always recommend people start with the amounts modules when they're first understanding the flows of data.

More broadly, any calculation change that you make to a module will remain in that module (as with any Excel formula-creation) and you'll be able to insert that module directly into other workbooks (or alternatively you can upload it to your own content library, associated with your account).

Lastly, Traverse is very handy for understanding complex formulae - under the Build tab / Auditing / Traverse - will allow you to look at the precedents of each part of a calculation.  Super useful!

Cheers

James