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When working with demand forecasts in Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central, you can export the forecast to Excel, edit it, and import it back. This article explains how the import works and what your options are for updating the forecast, especially when several people contribute to the same forecast.
Exporting and editing the forecast in Excel
You start by exporting the forecast to Excel. From there you can modify the numbers yourself, or hand the sheet over to a salesperson or whoever is responsible for the forecast. Once the editing is done, you select the forecast you want to update and import the sheet back into Business Central.
Choosing how the import updates the forecast
When you import the Excel sheet, you choose how the data should be applied. There are three options for the import action:
- Delete existing forecast in the specific period, per item, per variant, per salesperson, and so on, and replace it with the imported values.
- Add to the existing forecast, so the imported numbers are added on top of what is already there.
- Add only the difference, so only the change between the existing forecast and the imported values is applied.
Collecting forecasts from multiple people
The “add only the difference” option is useful when several people contribute to the same forecast. If you send the forecast out to 10 different people and ask each of them to add their individual numbers, you import their changes using the difference action. That way only the difference each person added is applied, and the contributions build up correctly instead of overwriting each other.
Q&A
What options do you have when importing a forecast from Excel into Business Central?
You have three options. You can delete the existing forecast in the period and replace it, add the imported values on top of the existing forecast, or add only the difference between the existing forecast and the imported values.
How do you collect forecast input from multiple salespeople?
Send the forecast to each person and have them add their individual numbers. When you import each sheet, use the “add only the difference” action so that only each person’s contribution is applied, without overwriting the others.
Can you target the forecast import to a specific period or salesperson?
Yes. The delete action applies to a specific period and can be broken down per item, per variant, and per salesperson, so you only affect the forecast you intend to update.