-
A four-lens metrics system for Anaplan CoEs
Author: Marina Ketelslegers is a Certified Master Anaplanner and FP&A voice for Anaplan and AI passionate about CoE support, solution architecture, and training.
I’ve seen how Anaplan Centers of Excellence (CoEs) start with strong momentum. There’s enthusiasm, executive support, and a clear ambition to make connected planning work across the organization.
And yet, after the first implementations, many CoEs slow down. They become busy, but not necessarily more effective.
In my experience, the issue is rarely the platform or the people. More often, it’s the way metrics are used. Adoption numbers, incident counts, and delivery statistics are tracked, but they exist in isolation. They describe what happened, without clearly showing what the CoE can influence next or how to improve.
What’s usually missing is a consistent metrics system, one that distinguishes leading metrics from outcomes, and that makes the connections between them explicit. Metrics the CoE can actively impact, and that clearly show how design choices, enablement efforts, and prioritization decisions translate into adoption, platform health, and business value.
Anaplan makes this especially interesting. It is a software platform, but it’s also deeply business-owned. Many of the decisions that drive value, how models are designed, how users are enabled, how scenarios are used, sit much closer to the business than in traditional IT systems. That means metrics are not just something to report on; they are a practical tool to guide decisions that directly affect value and ROI.
What I recommend to my clients is not more metrics, but better-connected ones. A combination of quantitative and qualitative indicators, used as a system, that evolves as the CoE matures and helps teams move out of the “stuck” phase into sustained impact.
To support CoEs on this journey I personally think that there is no better tool then Anaplan itself. The four-lens CoE metrics framework is built around this idea. It looks at a CoE from four perspectives that naturally belong together: adoption and user experience, platform health, business value, and the operating health of the CoE itself. Each lens captures a different dimension of success, and none of them tells the full story on its own.
I break it down below, and also take a look at my video walk-through here — How I Built It: Center of Excellence App.
The four lenses of a CoE metrics system
* Adoption and user experience
: Are people actually using Anaplan to run their planning process, not just logging in? This lens moves from surface metrics (“who logged in”) to signals that users can complete tasks, run scenarios, and work independently with confidence.
* Platform health
: Can the platform reliably support that usage as it scales? Stability, performance, data quality, and integrations all shape user trust. When platform health erodes, adoption will follow, regardless of how good the original design or intent was.
* Business value
: Is Anaplan changing how decisions are made? Shorter cycles, better forecast accuracy, faster scenarios, and reduced manual work confirm that the CoE is converting adoption into tangible impact, operational and financial.
* CoE operating health
: Is the CoE itself set up to sustain and grow value? Capacity, prioritization, governance, enablement, and partner dependency determine whether the CoE can keep up with demand and invest proactively instead of firefighting.
No single lens tells the full story. Adoption, in my mind, is usually the primary driver of value, but it depends heavily on platform health and CoE operating health. In a good CoE, this forms a reinforcing loop: growing adoption → more pressure → robust platform and governance absorb that pressure → better experiences → deeper adoption → more value.
Maturity: How to read the same metrics over time
The same metric can mean very different things at different maturity stages, so it’s vital to pair the 4 lenses with a simple Foundational → Performance → Strategic maturity model:
* Foundational CoE: Focus on stability and clarity.
Metrics: “Are people using the platform at all?”, “Are high-severity incidents under control?”, “Is basic governance happening regularly?” Fluctuation is normal.
* Performance CoE: Focus on efficiency and scalability.
Metrics: “Where are bottlenecks in UX and delivery?”, “Is demand manageable?”, “Are we reducing dependency on the CoE through self-service and enablement?”
* Strategic CoE: Embedded in how the business plans and decides.
Broad adoption is assumed. The focus shifts to decision quality, scenario agility, realized value, and continuous evolution of planning capabilities.
Seen together, the lenses give you the structure, and maturity gives you the time dimension. This keeps metrics directional instead of becoming unrealistic targets that demotivate teams.
Adoption metrics: Beyond “who logged in”
First, get your technical foundation right: if you want to go beyond counts of logins, enable Anaplan Audit, assign Tenant Auditor access, and set up a way to store audit history (external store or reporting model) due to limited retention.
Read more here: Anapedia | Audit
* Active User Ratio (%) – Foundational* Question: Is the intended user base actually using Anaplan?
* Formula:
Unique active users in period ÷ Licensed users in scope × 100
* Why it matters: If the right personas aren’t active, planning continues in spreadsheets and shadow processes. As Active User Ratio rises, you typically see more process completion in Anaplan, fewer offline reconciliations, and the first visible cycle time and effort reductions.
* Data: Audit logs + user/license data.
* User Satisfaction Index (1–5) – Performance* Question: Do users trust Anaplan and find it useful?
* Method: Structured survey with a stable 1–5 scale; track by process/region/persona.
* Why it matters: Satisfaction is a leading indicator. Higher scores usually correlate with fewer workarounds, more consistent execution, and fewer repetitive support queries. Over time, that stability supports better forecast accuracy and scenario agility.
* Data: Survey results stored/visualized in Anaplan.
* UX Page Adoption Rate (%) – Strategic* Question: Are users following the UX journeys you designed?
* Formula:
Unique users opening a specific UX page ÷ Active users in scope × 100
* Why it matters: High page adoption means users follow standardized paths, which reduces variance, training effort, and friction. Low adoption explains why value stalls even when people “log in”: they avoid key pages and revert to offline steps. Improving page adoption is one of the most direct levers a mature CoE has to unlock more value.
* Data: Audit logs with UX page events.
Platform health metrics: Trust in the foundation
* Incident Volume (High Severity) – Foundational* Question: Is the platform safe to depend on during critical cycles?
* Definition: Count of incidents in period with “high” severity (e.g., Sev 1–2), optionally split by cause (integration/model/access/performance).
* Why it matters: High-severity incidents quickly destroy trust and drive users to offline workarounds. They typically show up as drops in satisfaction and UX Page Adoption.
* Data: ITSM/ticketing (ServiceNow, Jira, etc.), stored/visualized in Anaplan.
* Integration Reliability Score (%) – Performance* Question: Do data refreshes deliver on time and without errors?
* Formula:
Successful runs ÷ Total scheduled runs × 100
where “successful” = error-free and on-time.
* Why it matters: If data is late or wrong, the platform might be technically “up” but the process is broken. That erodes trust and adoption even if models are well designed.
* Data: Integration platform logs (Boomi, ADF, CloudWorks, etc.), stored/visualized in Anaplan.
* New Use Case Stabilization Time (days) – Strategic* Question: How fast do new models move from “launch turbulence” to steady state?
* Method:
* Define a platform baseline ticket rate (average weekly tickets for mature models over last N weeks).
* For a new use case, track weekly ticket rate from go-live.
* Metric: number of days/weeks until the new use case’s ticket rate returns to at or below the baseline.
* Why it matters: A shorter time-to-baseline protects trust and frees CoE capacity instead of creating long-term support drag.
CoE operating health metrics: Can the CoE keep up?
* Governance Compliance Score (%) – Foundational
* Question: Are key governance cadences happening as designed?
* Formula:
Governance activities completed ÷ Governance activities planned × 100
(e.g., CoE councils, steering, release notes, intake triage).
* Why it matters: Inconsistent governance leads to unpredictable releases, weak comms, and confused users. That erodes satisfaction and UX Page Adoption over time.
* Data: Calendars, minutes, intake/release records (or an Anaplan governance module).
* Backlog Size & Throughput (% closed) – Performance* Question: Is work flowing, or just piling up?
* Formula:
% Closed = Tickets closed in period ÷ Tickets opened in period × 100
optionally paired with average cycle time to close.
* Why it matters: A stuck backlog means pain points stay unresolved, UX improvements are delayed, and users lose patience.
* Data: Jira / ServiceNow / Azure DevOps, etc.
* CoE Self-Sufficiency Index (%) – Strategic* Question: How dependent is the CoE on partners to evolve the platform?
* Formula:
Work delivered by internal CoE ÷ Total work delivered × 100
where “work” = enhancements, releases, backlog items, etc.
* Why it matters: At strategic maturity, higher self-sufficiency usually means faster iteration, more responsive enablement, and a better fit with business needs. At foundational stage, a lower index is acceptable; you expect it to grow as the CoE matures.
* Data: Backlog/release logs with a “delivery owner” field.
Business value and ROI: Making the case with evidence
Value metrics often fail not because value is missing, but because the method is fuzzy or keeps changing. To build credibility, anchor value on stable, auditable definitions.
* Cycle Time Reduction (days) – Foundational* Question: Are planning cycles actually faster than before?
* Approach:* Define clear, fixed “cycle start” and “cycle end” events.
* Track timestamps for each cycle (e.g., Forecast Apr-2026).
* Compare pre-Anaplan vs post-Anaplan or year-on-year.
* Why it matters: This is a timestamp problem, not an estimation problem. Shorter cycles directly reduce coordination loops, rework, and effort per cycle.
* Implementation: Keep a simple “Cycle Log” in Anaplan as the system of record, with gating so cycles can’t close without log updates.
* Forecast Accuracy Improvement (p.p.) – Performance/Strategic* Question: Are forecasts objectively more accurate over time?
* Requirements:* A frozen forecast snapshot (e.g., via Anaplan snapshot/freeze).
* A stable horizon definition (M+1, quarter-end, etc.).
* A fixed accuracy formula and actuals source.
* Why it matters: Better accuracy reduces avoidable cost (expediting, stockouts, last-minute changes) and improves decision confidence. The main risk is comparing moving targets or changing the horizon silently; treat major method changes as a re-baseline, not “improvement.”
A Practical ROI Formula for Anaplan
Define Anaplan ROI as:
ROI = (Total Benefits − Total Costs) ÷ Total Costs
Costs (annualized and scoped to the planning footprint):
* Subscription / license and vendor fees
* Implementation / change / expansion costs
* Run / operate costs (CoE FTEs, support, partner retainers, integration ops, etc.)
For benefits, start with two streams that are relatively easy to measure and audit. You can extend later to revenue and risk benefits.
* € Benefit (Hours Saved)
Hours saved per cycle × #Cycles per Year × Fully Loaded Hourly Cost × Realization Factor* Fully loaded hourly cost: standard rate from Finance/HR.
* Realization Factor: conservative % (e.g., 30–70%) to reflect that not all saved time immediately converts to cash.
* € Benefit (Forecast Accuracy)
Baseline Value-at-Risk × (Accuracy Improvement in p.p. ÷ 100)* Value-at-Risk here is not total cost or total margin. It’s the portion of financial performance exposed to avoidable inefficiencies from forecast error and credibly influenced by better planning (e.g., inventory, variable costs linked to pricing, marketing; sometimes logistics/penalties).
Then:
Total Benefits (€) = Benefit (Hours Saved) + Benefit (Forecast Accuracy)
ROI = (Total Benefits − Total Costs) ÷ Total Costs
With this in place, you can show a clear line from CoE metrics → process improvements → financial outcomes.
In addition to quantitative metrics it makes sense to combine them with a qualitative CoE maturity Self assessment by collecting a Survey results for CoE members.
Here is an example of such a survey:
A wholistic view on both types of metrics brings us to a CoE Maturity Score.
Final thoughts
With a structured metrics system, even a busy CoE can avoid getting “stuck” and keep moving toward strategic impact. The four lenses show what to measure; the maturity view shows how to read those signals over time; the ROI method connects it all back to value.
If you’re building or maturing your CoE, use Community resources, adapt them to your context, and keep your metrics practical and decision-oriented. Speaking as a Certified Master Anaplanner, that’s where I see CoEs sustain momentum and turn Anaplan into a core planning capability rather than just another tool.
-
How I Built It: Center of Excellence App
Author: Marina Ketelslegers is a Certified Master Anaplanner and FP&A voice for Anaplan and AI passionate about CoE support, solution architecture, and training.
Hello Anaplan Community!
I’m sharing a short walkthrough of my Anaplan Center of Excellence (CoE) App designed to help new CoE leads set up their CoE with clarity and structure.
I show how you can use it to define your CoE charter, roles, and roadmap, and then manage success through a practical four-lens metrics system (Adoption, Platform Health, Business Value, CoE Health).
I also demo the recommendations page that turns metrics and a light self-assessment into a focused improvement plan.
If you’re starting a CoE (or refreshing one), I hope this gives you a strong, reusable blueprint.
Also, if you missed it, I published an article going into details on Center of Excellence Metrics here: A four-lens metrics system for Anaplan CoEs.
How I Built It: CoE App
https://play.vidyard.com/GdYJrc8VSSeMoU7NKqd7KG
Feedback from the Community is very welcome.
-
How I Built It: Rethinking scenario planning with Polaris
Author: Philipp Erkinger, Certified Master Anaplanner and Principal Solution Architect at Bedford Consulting.
Dear Anaplan Community,
The Anaplan Polaris Engine has brought a significant transformation in the way I construct and design Anaplan models. Over the past three years, I have had the privilege of working on numerous projects utilizing Polaris, which has provided a platform for experimentation and the exploration of innovative working methods. My objective has been to extend the boundaries of what is achievable, not only from a technical perspective but also in terms of business impact. Polaris empowers us, as Solution Architects, to completely reconsider our approach to model design and development.
Overview of the solution concept
This ‘How I Built It’ video presents a walkthrough of my approach to designing and implementing a concept for advanced scenario planning using the Polaris engine. The proposed solution enables planners to seamlessly switch between various scenarios, turn on and off model features (like long term planning), harness the natural dimensionality of Polaris at full scale, and manage model performance dynamically, all while ensuring the administrative process remains straightforward.
Let’s dive into how this solution was built and the benefits it delivers.
P.S.: For those who are new to Polaris, I recommend familiarizing yourself with the basics before viewing the video. Below are some helpful articles:
* Anaplan Polaris: A deeper dive into the Polaris Engine and model building techniques
* Unlocking the power of Polaris: A guide to efficient model building
'How I Built It' video
https://play.vidyard.com/TgiaWcPkiBJVH4WvTUSkkj
Questions? Leave a comment!
-
A reading list to broaden your abilities beyond Anaplan technical skills
Author: Tristan Colgate is a Certified Master Anaplanner and Managing Director at Fidenda.
It’s early January and, after a well-needed break over the holiday season, many of us will be returning to work with renewed energy and a desire to level-up our careers over the coming year. I hope this article gives some ideas for those of us who enjoy reading.
Whether you are working in-house at an organization implementing and supporting an Anaplan solution, or a consultant helping organizations do so from the outside, it’s important to develop skills outside of core Anaplan model building and solution architecture.
In my 25+ years of working with EPM technology, I’ve enjoyed reading around the subject to build up rounded skills that help me best serve my customers. In this blog, I’m glad to share some of the key resources that I’ve used in the past. I hope others enjoy some of these as much as I have.
By the way, the list is far from exhaustive and I’m always looking for new titles to read. Please share any recommendations in the comments.
Build a strong foundation of business domain knowledge
It’s important to have a sound grasp of the business process that your solution supports and be able to talk the same language as your business colleagues and customers. Topics like accounting and supply chain planning are vast and intimidating at first to those who haven’t either studied or lived and breathed them in business. The following are some great introductory texts to these large topics.
* Frank Wood’s Business Accounting by Wood and Sangster. I often wonder whether I should have taken an accounting qualification earlier in my career. Instead, I read this book, which gives a fantastic introduction to the topic for the uninitiated. If you’re delivering Anaplan solutions to finance teams there is a base level of accounting knowledge that you must have. This book gives you that and more. Amazon link
* Financial Planning and Analysis and Performance Management by Jack Alexander. Once you have the accounting fundamentals under your belt, it’s time to focus on one of the departments most likely to be able to benefit from Anaplan, FP&A. This book dives deep into the topic and gives a comprehensive overview of the key drivers of business performance, and how FP&A teams analyse those in support of business decision-making. Amazon link
* Group Accounts – a European Perspective by Pierce and Brennan. With Anaplan’s acquisition of Fluence and the availability of the FCR App, it is now important to understand the nuances of group reporting, otherwise referred to as financial consolidation. Consolidation projects are heavy on knowledge of technical accounting and it is essential to have the base knowledge this book provides before embarking on one. Note: it is written from a European perspective and US GAAP has some different concepts. Amazon link
* Supply Chain Management by Sunil Chopra. For anyone unfamiliar with this topic, this book provides a great introduction. Chopra takes the reader from basic principles and there are links to online resources including Excel models showing how the different concepts work. Reading this will give you the background knowledge to have meaningful conversations with supply chain practitioners in your business or customer. Amazon link
* It is not a book, but I can’t recommend highly enough subscribing to Secret CFO here. There’s a newsletter each week unpacking in nerdy detail a different topic relevant to the role of the CFO. I have found that this has helped me understand in better detail the CFO role and what keeps them up at night, so that I can better help them.
Sharpen your soft skills
I sometimes joke that the easy part about any Anaplan project is the bit where we get to sit down and build the solution. On a serious point, everything that happens up to that point is where the hard yards are because it all involves working with other people; whether that’s influencing a senior team to make the investment in Anaplan, or working with business stakeholders to understand their requirements and guide them through the design of a solution. This requires soft skills, and there several books that are very helpful here.
* The Trusted Advisor by Maister, Green & Galford. To wield influence and get things done in an organization it is essential that you build a reputation as someone who can be trusted to impart advice. This book takes the reader through important soft skills such as active listening in that pursuit. Amazon link
* The Five Dysfunctions of a Team by Patrick Lencioni. Whether we’re building an Anaplan Center of Excellence or working in a project team alongside business stakeholders, it’s important to not take team dynamics for granted. This is a particularly compelling book because it uses a story of a team and how they evolve to introduce the author’s model of what makes an effective team. You don’t need to be a leader to read the book — it’s equally useful if you work as part of a team. Amazon link
* Good to Great by Jim Collins. This book is about how you build a great company, but this can be scaled down to how to build great teams. It focuses on the important of having clarity of purpose, the right people in the team, a focus on identifying and facing down challenges, the importance of continual improvement, discipline and tracking progress. Reading this book gave me inspiration feeding into how I built our Anaplan consulting firm and could equally apply if you’re building an internal Anaplan COE. Amazon link
What would you add to my list? Leave a comment, and happy reading!
-
2026 certificate maintenance for Certified Master Anaplanners
The 2026 Certified Master Anaplanner Program has begun, and there is incredible opportunity for 2026 Certified Master Anaplanners (CMAs) to demonstrate their thought leadership, technical expertise, Anaplan championship, and mentorship capabilities across the entire Anaplan ecosystem.
At their core, a Certified Master Anaplanner is someone who elevates others across the Anaplan ecosystem through the many ways they share their expertise. This includes mentoring others, sharing community perspective and technical architecture thought leadership, demonstrating innovative solutions, providing product feature insight, ideating and inspiring others in the Anaplan Community to help define the future of the platform, leading CoE development, building innovative roadmaps to scale the platform for business decision-making, and championing Anaplan in the competitive market.
Engagement zones
The 2026 CMA contribution activities list is attached to this post and available for CMAs to download:
Download the list of 2026 Contribution Activities
2026 CMA Contribution Activities.pdf
Each contribution activity is mapped to four engagement zones to help articulate how Certified Master Anaplanners are driving impact within the Anaplan ecosystem. As mentors, thought leaders, Anaplan Champions, and technical experts, Certified Master Anaplanners play a critical role in elevating the broader ecosystem and driving value through the ways they share their expertise.
Each engagement zone is important to the Certified Master Anaplanner community, the entire Anaplan ecosystem, and the Anaplan Community. Highlighting these zones is intended to help you easily align your experience and interests with activities that best suit where you want to make impact. CMAs are encouraged to focus on a primary engagement zone or pursue a blend of activities across zones — with the opportunity for some to complete activities in all four engagement zones during 2026.
Contribution activities will continue to be reviewed and updated throughout 2026 to reflect evolving priorities and areas of impact across the Anaplan ecosystem.
Contribution activities will continue to evolve throughout 2026, with new opportunities introduced regularly to reflect where Certified Master Anaplanners can have the greatest impact. This list will be refreshed at least quarterly, giving CMAs ongoing ways to engage, contribute, and be recognized for the value they deliver across the Anaplan ecosystem.
CMAs are encouraged to check back regularly and plan contributions early to take advantage of new opportunities as they are introduced.
Certification maintenance requirements
Certified Master Anaplanners are expected to actively contribute throughout 2026 and must meet two requirements to renew certification for 2026. These requirements remain consistent with prior years.
Contribution activity requirement
* Complete contribution activities totaling 400 points by December 15, 2026.
* The full contribution activity requirement is due in December; however, CMAs are strongly encouraged to show progress or have a communicated plan in place by the mid-year check-in.
* To support proactive planning and visibility, a mid-year check-in will be conducted between June and July 2026, with 200 points completed or confirmed by July 31, 2026 through planned, communicated activities
* CMAs are encouraged to report contribution activities as they are completed rather than waiting until deadlines
Technical (recertification exam) requirement
* Pass the proctored Certified Master Anaplanner recertification exam by December 31, 2026 (the exam must be passed, not just scheduled)
* The study guide and recertification exam will be available beginning July 8, 2026
* Recertification exam details are available in the 2026 Recertification Information resource
* CMAs should review the Recertification Exam Registration Instructions course in the Anaplan Academy CMA Program Maintenance learning path, which includes step-by-step guidance and the required registration code
Important clarification on recertification exam timing
The Certified Master Anaplanner recertification exam is required every two years. For 2026, the following applies:
* Certified Master Anaplanners who did not take the proctored recertification exam in the prior year — including Japanese-language learners awaiting the release of the Japanese exam and individuals who were granted a one-year extension due to extenuating circumstances — will need to complete and pass the proctored recertification exam in 2026.
* Certified Master Anaplanners who took and passed the proctored recertification exam to renew certification for 2026 have fulfilled the technical requirement for the two-year cycle.
* Newly certified Master Anaplanners in 2025 or 2026 have two years from the date of their initial exam before their first recertification exam is required.
If you are unsure if you need to take action to fulfill the technical requirement in 2026, please contact MasterAnaplanners@anaplan.com for confirmation.
Program terms, conditions, and contact information
Certified Master Anaplanners are responsible for remaining informed of the program policies and requirements that govern certification maintenance and participation.
Please review the 2026 Certified Master Anaplanner Program Terms and Conditions.
Please download and review the 2026 Certified Master Anaplanner Program Terms and Conditions
2026 Certified Master Anaplanner Terms and Conditions.pdf
CMAs must also ensure their contact information remains accurate and up to date, including the email address associated with their Certified Master Anaplanner Program participation. Changes to employment or email address should be addressed promptly to avoid disruptions to program communications.
For guidance on updating your email address, including temporary updates during employment transitions, DO NOT CREATE A NEW ACCOUNT. Instead, email the Academy help desk (academy@anaplan.com) to request an update to your learner and Community email address.
If you are a Certified Master Anaplanner who has any questions about the requirements for annual certification maintenance, your status, or how to engage, please email MasterAnaplanners@anaplan.com
If you are interested in the Certified Master Anaplanner Program and wish to learn more about how to become a Certified Master Anaplanner, please review the resources here.
-
The new Anaplan IFP Apps: What you need to know
Author: Hardeep Dhuffar is a Certified Master Anaplanner at H8 Consulting.
A real-life look at the pros, cons, and what it means for finance teams
Finance teams are under more pressure than ever — faster forecasts, tighter budgets, endless scenario planning, and still somehow finding time to be “strategic partners.” Sound familiar?
That’s the world Anaplan’s new Integrated Financial Planning (IFP) apps are built for. These pre-configured planning models promise to take a lot of the heavy lifting (and spreadsheet madness) out of budgeting and forecasting. But are they really a game-changer?
What the new IFP apps are all about
Anaplan’s IFP apps are designed to help finance teams build a full planning environment — income statement, balance sheet, cash flow, revenue, OpEx, headcount, CapEx, and even long-range plans — without starting from scratch.
You can think of them as “plug-and-play” finance models. They’re pre-built with best practices, but still customizable. The setup is guided (so you don’t have to be a modelling expert), and you can be up and running in hours instead of months.
Plus, they’re fully integrated across the Anaplan platform — meaning you can connect to your ERP, HR, or other systems, and even ask AI-powered questions through Anaplan’s new CoPlanner tool.
Why teams are excited about it
* Faster setup, faster results: Instead of spending months designing a model, you can launch the IFP app and start testing scenarios almost immediately. For finance teams under pressure to deliver forecasts fast, that’s a big deal.
* Everything in one place: P&L, balance sheet, and cash flow all talk to each other. No more reconciling three different files or chasing version control in Excel.
* Scenario planning made easy: You can model “what-if” situations quickly — like what happens if sales drop by 10% or hiring slows down — and instantly see the impact across your financials.
* Flexible and expandable: Even though it’s pre-built, you’re not boxed in. You can tweak assumptions, add your own logic, and build out models unique to your business.
* Less time on admin, more time on insight: Because so much of the process is standardized and automated, finance teams can spend more time analyzing the numbers instead of cleaning them up.
Before you begin
For optimum success, consider the following points before diving in:
* You still need clean data: The app doesn’t magically fix messy source systems. If your ERP or GL data is inconsistent, you’ll need to sort that out first or risk carrying those issues into your new model.
* It’s cloud-only: Anaplan is 100% cloud-based. For most companies that’s fine, but if you’re in an industry with strict data controls or local hosting requirements, check the compliance boxes first.
* It’s not a full BI tool: IFP does reporting and dashboards well for planning purposes, but if you want deep visual analytics, you’ll probably still rely on something like Power BI or Tableau alongside it.
* Change management still matters: Even with a faster rollout, it’s still a big shift for finance teams used to spreadsheets. Training, adoption, and governance can make or break success here so take the time to do it right.
* Customization takes time: The templates get you 80% there, but if your business model is unusual or complex, you’ll need to invest time (and possibly consulting support) to tailor it.
* Consider the cost: Anaplan has always been a premium platform, and the new apps don’t change that. They can save time and deliver serious value; budget appropriately and demonstrate a strong use case to justify the investment.
Final thoughts
If you’re still managing planning through spreadsheets, the new Anaplan IFP apps are a big step forward. You’ll get speed, structure, and more visibility across your financials — and the ability to model scenarios quickly is a real game-changer for decision-making.
Like any tech, it’s not a magic bullet. The best results come when you’ve already got solid data foundations, a clear vision for how planning should work, and teams ready to adapt.
For many finance teams, though, this could be exactly what helps move planning from “monthly chore” to something genuinely strategic.
Conclusion
The Anaplan IFP apps make planning faster, smarter, and more connected — but success depends on how ready your people and data are to support it. Think of it as a powerful accelerator, not an instant solution.
-
How to be frugal when building inventory rollover
Author: Vinay Varadaraj Mirajkar is a Certified Master Anaplanner and Senior Solution Architect at Anaplan.
Imagine you are modeling inventory projection in the classic engine with below assumptions:
* Large number of products and locations
* Planning horizon with daily buckets (let’s say 60 days)
This is very common in use cases such as production planning where planning at daily granularity is necessary, albeit for a short planning horizon.
Let’s consider a simple example to illustrate the use case:
* There would be ‘On Hand’ inventory of a certain combination of Product x Location (could be raw material, finished good etc). This would be fetched in Anaplan as part of source data.
* Consumption would be projected usage of that item for the future planning horizon. This would come from a previous planning step in the overall process.
Now, our goal is to project the inventory into the future periods by considering the On Hand inventory and consumption of each day.
Easy, quick, but dirty solution
A very easy approach that could be as taken is as shown below:
Here, the opening inventory for 1st Nov comes from source data (On Hand inventory) as shown below:
Closing inventory = Opening Inventory – Consumption
Opening inventory for 2nd Nov = PREVIOUS(Closing Inventory)
However, given the large number of products and locations with daily granularity, the model size could become very high, due to the fact that this construct needs at least two years of timescale in daily bucket (imagine you are standing on 31st Dec 2025, and you would need to do the projection for 1st Jan 2026. This amounts to 730 days, excluding any summaries).
The alternative
We can achieve the same results using a custom timescale (with some intermediate transformation with native time) using just the number of planning buckets needed, which in this case is 60 days.
Now, let’s explore the steps needed to build it.
Step 1: As a first step, we need a system module which maintains current date, which should be updated on a daily basis:
Step 2: In this step, we build a custom time list with below configuration:
* Numbered list with just the number of periods needed for planning (in this case 60)
* Display Name as a date, which is connected with current date so it is dynamic
This list will represent our planning horizon required for the use case:
Step 3: The next step is to create a time range which can have 60 periods (5 yrs x 12 months), as shown below. The purpose of this time-range will be to use it in an intermediate module where we can apply the PREVIOUS function.
Step 4: We then need to create mappings between custom time and Anaplan months so we can use these to perform LOOKUP operations when necessary:
Mapping 1: Anaplan months to custom time
Mapping 2: Custom time to Anaplan months
Step 5: Now, Let’s create the Inventory rollover module using custom time with the respective line-items as shown below:
Note:
* We import the consumption data directly into this module
* Also, opening inventory and closing inventory line-items are blank at this stage
Step 6: We then create another similar looking module, but with the time range ‘Anaplan months’
. This is the place where we do the magic:
* Consumption: We fetch this from CAL06 using the time mapping we created.
* Next, we know what is the starting period in this timescale, so that helps us bring the On Hand data in the Opening inventory line-item using the DAT04 module.
* We then subtract the consumption to get closing inventory.
* Closing inventory then becomes ‘opening inventory’ of the next day.
* In order to do this, we use the PREVIOUS function as this module has a native timescale.
The blueprint for this module is as shown below:
Note: Observe the Opening Inventory formula
.
And below is the rolling inventory we were looking for:
Step 7: The last step is to take these results back to the initial inventory module (CAL06) using the mappings as follows…
Below is the blueprint for reference:
And below is the result what we had been looking for:
In this way we could build an inventory rollover model which does not consume huge size by avoiding large number of unnecessary cells.
Questions? Leave a comment!
-
Did You Know? Anaplan Extensions
Author: Ahmed Brahim is a Certified Master Anaplanner and Senior Consultant at Atkan.
Hello Anaplan Community!
In this ‘Did You Know’ video, I’ll be going over the various Anaplan Extensions and covering:
* What Anaplan Extensions are
* The different add-ons available (Excel, Google Sheets, PowerPoint, etc.),
* Relevant use cases (when and why to use them)
* Key benefits for Anaplan users
Take a look so you can ensure you’re getting the most of Anaplan Extensions. Thank you for your time, and leave a comment with questions!
https://play.vidyard.com/So5c4poycHwnXjHbgfzW6n
Questions? Leave a comment!
……………
See more in the 'Did You Know' series here.
.png){kind=icon}
