Unlock a New Era of Investor Reporting: Scalable, transparent, and built for growth
April 25, 2025
Unlock a New Era of Investor Reporting: Scalable, transparent, and built for growth
Investor reporting is a key function for asset managers. It is crucial for maintaining trust, displaying transparency, compliance with regulatory requirements, and aiding stakeholder decision-making. In furtherance of this goal, asset managers need a tool that can generate accurate reports in a timely fashion while also being readily adaptable to changing circumstances. While smaller organizations can function on spreadsheet-based solutions for generating these reports, as an organization grows it will increasingly demand more scalable and standardized (yet flexible) tools.
Enter Enterprise Performance Management (EPM) Solutions
Enterprise Performance Management (EPM) platforms like Anaplan can serve as a cloud-native planning and forecasting platform that handles large and complex data sets with rigor, speed and precision, all while allowing for flexibility where required. Anaplan allows for real-time data integration from multiple sources (e.g., Investran, SAP, NetSuite, Snowflake, etc.) to accelerate report generation times.
Anaplan’s collaboration features allow multiple users to work on different portions of the same report (e.g., team member A can work on revenue forecasting while team member B works on operating expense planning) or the same portion of a report for different funds or departments (e.g., team member C works on capital expense planning for IT, while team member D does the same for Operations). Different scenarios can be considered for calculations as well (e.g., a high-, medium- or low-interest rate forecast, each using a different prediction of the LIBOR or Federal Reserve prime rate over time). Additionally, all the above has each of the data loads and manual entries tracked, including the complete history of the user and timestamp for each change.
Figure 1: Anaplan UX Page
Beyond its web interface, Anaplan also offers Anaplan XL Reporting (AXL), a powerful Excel plugin that enables direct access to Anaplan’s multidimensional data modules. AXL blends cloud server-backed calculations with Excel’s native functionalities, enhanced by AXL’s own custom Excel functions optimized for deep data access (even beyond Anaplan alone), all while maintaining user security permissions.
With features such as automatic formatting, report bursting, and advanced calculation capabilities, Anaplan XL Reporting delivers enhanced flexibility, control, and efficiency- all within the familiar Excel environment.
Figure 2: Anaplan XL Reporting file
Ready to Elevate Your Reporting?
Discover how Anaplan and Anaplan XL Reporting can revolutionize your investor reporting.
Contact Alpha Alternatives below to schedule a consultation. We look forward to helping you streamline your reporting processes and drive strategic decision-making with confidence.
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References:
1. Anaplan and EPM Tools Overview:
“Why the Future of Financial Planning is in the Cloud” (Anaplan Blog)
This article outlines the advantages of cloud-based EPM tools like Anaplan in financial planning and performance management.
2. EPM Tools vs. Excel: Transition Challenges:
“The Pros and Cons of Using Excel for Financial Modeling” (CFI – Corporate Finance Institute)
This resource discusses the limitations of using Excel for complex financial modeling, supporting the necessity of robust EPM solutions like Anaplan.
3. Benefits of Anaplan for Financial Calculations:
“Anaplan for Finance: Get Ahead of the Curve” (Anaplan Case Studies)
Provides insights into how Anaplan enhances financial calculations and reporting efficiency.
4. Integration with Excel:
“How To Use Anaplan XL To Unlock the Power of Excel Integration” (Anaplan Blog)
This article delves into the integration capabilities of Anaplan XL, allowing users to seamlessly incorporate Excel methodologies while working in Anaplan.
5. Flexibility and Reporting Opportunities:
“Transform Your Reporting Process: Best Practices” (Anaplan Blog)
Discusses how to enhance reporting processes with EPM tools and the additional flexibility these platforms provide over traditional Excel-based methods.
6. Case Studies Showcasing EPM Implementations:
“Customer Success Stories” (Anaplan)
A collection of case studies demonstrating how different companies have successfully implemented Anaplan and realized significant benefits.