-
Collapse / Expand Hierarchy Functionality in Modules and UX Grids
In current standard grid modules and UX Grids you can't Collapse & Expand hierarchies of Lists/Line Items/Sublist like you can do in Excel (see below). Considering that sometimes hierarchies can be huge or you want to Collapse one part but Expand another - it would be good to have such functionality
-
How do I show only those line items which have non zero values for list and time dimension?
I want to see only those line items which are not equal to zero from a hierarchy list subset in a module dimensioned by time as well.
I am looking forward to create a line item which I will apply as a filter to the module.
I have 15+ line items but the filter should only show those line items from the list subset for every list subset item which are having values <> 0 across the time horizon if any week is non zero.
-
Five new Anaplan features you may not be using
Author: Misbah Ansari is a Certified Master Anaplanner, Anaplan Community Moderator & Community Boss, and CEO/Founder at Miz Logix.
Anaplan has come a long way as part of its product development. We have seen so many features being released over the past few years which has not only helped Anaplan carve a place for itself in the market among its competitors, but is being called out as a leader by most of the third-party surveys. But did you know that there are some features which are priceless and still go unnoticed?
Here are some of the latest features that Anaplan released in the past few months which has made a difference in how we approach our model development.
* Move Pages across Apps
We all have been there when we complained about having to duplicate the changes on the dashboard, first in the lower environments for testing and then to Prod App (only once the tag has been pushed to Prod Model). Now, you can just move the page from one app to another ideally by duplicating the page in the app of lower environment (QA/Test/Pre-Prod), make required changes on the page and push/move the page to Prod App. Note that there are other factors that need to be taken into consideration as well while working on this, like App management (single vs multiple), UX page access, removing the redundant pages etc.
* Assign landing page to the roles
This feature comes handy while routing users to their respective landing pages. It is simple to set up and can be used to assign landing pages to multiple roles across multiple models in a single pane.
* Changing all occurrences in one go
It could be model builders’ savior when there is a lengthy and complicated formula written especially when there is a repetition of modules and line items used. You need to be in the formula editor mode and click on the key word/statement that you want to change, right click on it (or Press CMD+F2 or CTRL+F2).
* UX Page dependency data
Remember “Used in Dashboards” column in modules view which used to be mostly blank if you are not using Classic Dashboards and using UX? Well, there is good news for all the model builders. Recently, Anaplan has released a feature which is a game changer for model builders. Now model builders can see which UX pages are linked to each module, improving visibility into dependencies so that you can make informed decision about the modules. Note : This feature is only available in beta experience of modules view.
* Enforce unique naming in imports
Do you know that this feature can be used if there is a unique code in our data structure but not the unique names? Most of us straightaway think about numbered list if we have such a data structure. But if the naming convention of the list items don’t matter to you, this feature can be used in such cases. Make sure that the import is set on “Code Only” while setting up the import and “Enforce unique naming” flag is checked too. This will generate the names with appended “~1,2,3 etc. “in your lists: Note: Before using this feature, please talk to your solution architect about it as this can lead to performance issues if the data volume is high.
File:
Anaplan:
Let me know about if there is any feature that you think is priceless and went unnoticed or is not getting its due credit. Leave a comment!
-
Alternative of Rankcumulate
Is there an alternative to using RANKCUMULATE in Anaplan for cumulative ranking by group?
The model's performance is impacted due to the use of rankcumulate. I'm looking for a more efficient approach or best practice to achieve cumulative ranking within groups without degrading performance.
-
How I Built It: Chess in Anaplan
Author: Waleed Hakim is a Sr. Anaplan consultant.
Hi everyone!
I’m Waleed — a Senior Consultant working with enterprise clients to transform their planning processes through Anaplan. I've been in the Anaplan ecosystem for just under four years now, and while most of my time is spent solving complex business problems, I’ve always been drawn to Anaplan for something beyond that: its raw modeling potential.
I’ve always had a passion for puzzles and problem solving — it’s what keeps me excited in my daily role as a solution architect. Lately, I also found myself getting increasingly hooked on chess. One lazy weekend, a wild thought occurred to me: Would it be possible to build a functioning chess game on Anaplan?
Most would probably laugh off the idea — Anaplan is, after all, an enterprise planning platform. But to me, that was exactly why the challenge felt worthwhile. What followed was a two-week mini-journey of late-night builds and weekend sprints, ultimately resulting in something I genuinely didn’t think was possible at the outset: a fully playable chess game built entirely in Anaplan.
Below I outline an overview of the project, and then you’ll find the ‘How I Built It’ video.
The challenge
As you might expect, the biggest technical challenge was the lack of native loop structures in Anaplan. Traditional programming languages have FOR or WHILE loops — but in Anaplan, we don’t. This was particularly crucial because chess pieces need a "vision vector" to determine valid moves, check threats, and movement rules based on direction and distance.
I knew that without this logic, the whole build would fall apart.
The breakthrough came when I realized I could simulate vector logic using Time ranges combined with NEXT() and PREVIOUS() — essentially allowing me to mimic loop-based behavior within Anaplan’s calculation engine. That was my “aha” moment. Once that clicked, the rest of the model started to take shape.
Creative repurposing
I leaned heavily into Anaplan’s modeling tools in unorthodox ways:
* NEXT/PREVIOUS for loop logic to simulate vectors and check directions for pieces.
* Dynamic Cell Access (DCA) to restrict users from placing pieces on invalid squares.
* Conditional Formatting to create the checkered board, support multiple themes, and dynamically highlight valid move options.
* Image URLs to display actual chess pieces — a feature I had never used before.
* Smart Boolean logic that validated a move only when it was legal or a check was defended.
All of this came together into a playable experience that includes castling, en-passant, and even rules that prevent illegal moves when in check. There’s no explicit “checkmate” message yet — but the logic prevents further play until a check is resolved, so it’s functionally accurate.
What I learned
Besides picking up a few new tricks like embedding images in Anaplan and working with UX in unconventional ways, this project taught me something more important: that when you combine a love for problem solving with a willingness to experiment, you can stretch the platform far beyond what even you thought was possible.
This wasn’t just a personal project. It was a reminder of how creative thinking and Anaplan’s flexibility can lead to surprising results — whether you’re solving supply chain issues or just trying to make a knight jump over pawns.
I hope this story encourages others to stretch their imagination with Anaplan, whether for business or fun.
Check out the video!
https://play.vidyard.com/6mZZFfxeqA9QbJZqjtVhvj
Best regards,
Waleed Hakim
Check out all the 'How I Built It' tutorials here.
-
Data Hub Download for Level 2 Model Building Sprint 1
Hi Anaplan Gurus,
I working on Level 2 Model building Sprint 1 training. There is process step where Solution Architect asks for downloading Data Hub Model in your anaplan workspace. There is link provided in the activity to download the data hub for sprint 1.
On clicking the link, System lands me on the Anaplan Frontdoor landing page of my workspace, but does not download any Data Hub for Sprint 1. I have tried this step many times but each time there is no Data Hub downloaded.
Need your expert guidance on if I am missing any critical step here.
Thanks
Ravi
