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  3. SECTION VI: Reports

Report templates

A report template is the base for creating any number of reports. The system comes with a number of predefined report templates that can be used to create specific reports. For example, the Membership Report(Detail) template can be used to create a report that shows all members that have joined within the past quarter or another that shows all cancelled memberships this year.

Report vs. Search

The system has inbuilt search functionality that covers most scenarios, so it's important to know when to use a report and when to search. Reports are most useful when you need to see the same set of data regularly or in a chart or graph format.

The current report interface does not support most common batch actions such as Smart Group creation. This means that if you want to perform any action against a result set, it is better to use search rather than report.

However, in some cases reports are more flexible than searches. For example, reports allow you to change the columns displayed and in summary reports you can order by whichever display results you choose.

Report options

  • Run the report: you can Print Report so it is viewable in browser or you can generate a PDF or Export to CSV. All of these run the report once when you hit the button and allow you work with it.
  • Dashlet: if you make a report Available for Dashboard users can add this report to their dashboard. This is useful for information that you want to see on a regular basis, such as a list of new members, or donations this month, etc. In this case the report is run every time the dashboard is loaded.
  • Email: schedule a regular email of the report so that your finance office can receive a monthly email of all event fees received or your membership administrator gets a weekly email of overdue renewals.


Detail vs summary reports

Reports often come in pairs: one showing a summary and the other showing the detail. These reports can be linked, allowing users to see information at a glance with the option to drill down in a certain report for more detail.