The following inventory of financial reporting software and tools assists employees and affiliate fiscal staff in determining which tools to use for the business processes they follow and the data they need to collect. Reporting tool best-practice use is largely predictable according to individual user roles, responsibilities, and data needs.
Learn more about the tools by selecting a tab below:
CU-DATA (COGNOS REPORTING SYSTEM) – m-Fin Reports
User applicability/data needs
How likely are departments to need this tool?
very likely
If you have general fiscal responsibilities at the University, you need to use the m-Fin reports in the Cognos Reporting System, CU-Data, to perform basic financial management tasks (financial review and reconciliation, budgeting, and forecasting).
Purpose/strengths
The Office of University Controller (OUC) has been charged with developing financial reports in CU-Data. The University’s official internal financial statements are all produced in CU-Data.
On an ongoing basis, the OUC designs and develops additional reports in CU-Data to suit the common financial management needs of campus departments. The m-Fin (management-financial) brand is used to distinguish the on-demand reports developed for this initiative. The m-Fin reports are Cognos technology, intended for internal CU use, drawn on financial data from the CIW, tuned for performance with reasonable run times, and developed with input from CU administrative financial data users.
Output
- Excel
- HTML
- CSV
Support
- m-Fin blog
- Financial Services & Solutions (FSS) team
- Learning resources
- Courses through the CPE Program
- Classes from the campus controllers’ offices
How to Get Access
You must have a fiscal role on a SpeedType – or have access to the PeopleSoft Finance System. Refer to the Quick Reference Guide on Access and Training Requirements.
For more information
Contact fss@cu.edu.
PEOPLESOFT FINANCE SYSTEM – PeopleSoft Query (PS Query)
User applicability/data needs
How likely are departments to need this tool?
somewhat
If you are a power user of financial systems at the University, you will find PS Query a valuable resource to fulfill your unique and specific reporting needs.
Purpose/strengths
PS Query is a flexible tool for extracting real-time data on an ad hoc basis in all of the PeopleSoft applications (FIN, HCM, etc.). Queries can be copied and shared between users.
Output
- PDF (only available for scheduled queries)
- Excel
- HTML
Support
- Online learning resources (step-by-steps guides) are available on the OUC website
- In-person courses are available through the OUC’s Continuing Professional Education (CPE) Program
How to Get Access
To use PS Query, you must have at least inquiry access to the PeopleSoft Finance System and you must specifically request Query capability. Refer to the Quick Reference Guide on Access and Training Requirements.
For more information
Contact OUCFinance@cu.edu.
COGNOS REPORTING SYSTEM – Cognos Query Studio
User applicability/data needs
How likely are departments to need this tool?
not very
If you have financial reporting needs at the University but do not require access to the PeopleSoft Finance System, you can use Cognos Query Studio to compile supplemental information outside of that provided in the Cognos m-Fin Reports.
Purpose/strengths
There are a few special reporting needs that make Cognos Query Studio a good reporting tool for users. For example, there’s an m-Fin Report that comes close to providing the data you need, but it’s not quite perfect. You’d like to have output that looks like a report (formatted, with subtotals, etc.). Perhaps you want to summarize something about a project for your sponsor (e.g., to support a bill). And – perhaps you don’t need access to the PeopleSoft Finance System for other tasks.
Like PS Query, Cognos Query Studio requires knowledge of underlying table structure. Unlike PS Query, Cognos Query Studio draws information from the CIW. (Note: Also unlike PS Query: In Cognos Query Studio, if a report requires that data be joined in a way not provided for by Query Studio table joins, then the report cannot be developed without intervention from OUC/UIS.)
Queries can be shared with other users.
Output
- Excel
- HTML
- CSV
Support
User support is available from the Office of University Controller.
How to Get Access
To use Cognos Query Studio, you must have a fiscal role on a SpeedType – or have access to the Finance System: refer to the Quick Reference Guide on Access and Training Requirements. You also need special set-up in the Cognos system.
For more information
Contact Sarju.Khadka@cu.edu..
PEOPLESOFT FINANCE SYSTEM – nVision
User applicability/data needs
How likely are departments to need this tool?
not very
If you are a power user of administrative financial systems in a major University department – specifically, a department with significant reporting needs such as the campus controllers’ office or the campus sponsored project office – you may want to use the nVision reporting tool to refine specialized queries into well-formatted reports.
Purpose/strengths
nVision is a Finance System (FIN) reporting tool for financial analysis of real-time data. PS nVision retrieves information from the PeopleSoft database and places it into a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet, in a form that helps convey the big picture, explore details, and make decisions. It selects data using ledgers, trees, and queries. The strength of this tool is that the reports are output directly to Excel and can incorporate graphs, pivots, and so forth.
nVision can also be used to run queries in a pre-formatted template. nVision reports can be scheduled as well as being run on demand.
Output
nVision provides complex formatted reports, in Excel-compatible documents, and includes the ability to drill down to additional detail.
Support
- Training can be arranged from the Office of University Controller
How to Get Access
To use nVision, you must have access to the PeopleSoft Finance System that specifically includes this capability. Refer to the Quick Reference Guide on Access and Training Requirements.
For more information
Contact OUCFinance@cu.edu.
ODBC Tools
User applicability/data needs
How likely are departments to need this tool?
not very
Users with specialized reporting needs across the University currently use a number of unsupported reporting tools that rely on ODBC (Open DataBase Connectivity). Among the most common of these tools are Access, Excel, Brio, Hyperion, and eThority.
ODBC tools are not supported by the Office of University Controller. It is therefore up to the individual user to decide which course of action to take: switch to a new tool or tools, or test their current tool(s).
Purpose
ODBC provides a connection to access data in the CIW. The connection is direct and may not be secure. The tools draw data from the CIW.
Output
Depending on the specific tool, reports may output as Excel, PDF, or HTML.
Support
ODBC tools are not supported by the Office of University Controller. Individual users are uniquely responsible for developing and maintaining their own reports, creating any necessary documentation, and delivering any in-house training.
How to Get Access
To gain access to the CIW, you need to submit the CIW Request form.