The SAP Analytics Cloud release for Q2 2023 was a big one with 54 Customer Influence requests delivered amassing more than 1300 votes. There is a lot to cover so let’s dive in.

Story Design & Analytics Designer

New Optimized Story Experience: Unification of Story and Analytic Application

The biggest news story for QRC2 2023 for SAP Analytics Cloud was the unification of stories and analytic application into one single artifact based on the optimized stack in SAP Analytics Cloud. The unification of these 2 artifacts covers 21 Customer Requests and more than 600 votes in total.

The optimized story experience is an evolution of the story that provides usability and performance improvements. Additionally, it is the strategic version for new story features. To learn more about the optimized story experience, check out this blog post by Anna Burkhardt.

Here is an overview of the new features part of this release:

• Unified Artifact for Both Story and App
• Integrated Design Time for Both Designer and Developer
• Unified Story Module and Landing Page
• Enhanced Custom Widget with Data Binding
• Widget Dynamic Visibility, Size and Position
• Unified Bookmark Workflow
• Flexible Theme and CSS Capability
• Vertical Filter Panel
• Linked Widgets Diagram
• Data Analyzer Integration
• Configurable Runtime Toolbar
• Configurable Widget Context Menu
• Last Refreshed Date and Time Support for Dynamic Text for BW live Data model
• Scheduling and Mobile Support

For a deeper overview and more details on the new Optimized Story Experience that unifies the story and analytic application, check out this blog post by Jie Deng.

User Collaboration

Live SAP BW – Support for Data Point Commenting

Our most voted item with 2 requests and 174 customer votes this quarter is the addition of Data Point commenting for BW. In tables built on SAP BW or SAP BPC live connection models, you can now add data point comments. If a data point has a comment it will be visualized by a comment indicator in the corresponding cell in the table. In order to read or change the comment the user has to click on the indicator. Alternatively, comments can be visualized in a separate column in the table. Comments cannot be changed directly in the table but from the same popup as in the case of the comment indicator. The popup also shows the (BW-) user that has last modified the comment and a time stamp. A history of all changes done on a comment is also available.

The comments are stored in BW in so-called document stores and the feature has to be enabled in the query. The comments are also shared with Analysis for Office. The feature is available for BW 7.50 on Hana and BW/4HANA.

Administration and Service Management

It’s been another big release for our Administrators with 16 Customer Requests delivered totally 350 votes.

Deactivate and Reactivate users

Administrators can now deactivate and reactivate users in the system. When a user is deactivated, they can no longer access the system and they do not consume a license. However, their content is retained and the user can be reactivated at any time. Covering 4 customer requests with combined votes of 154.

For more details, check out this blog post by Jimmy Yang.

Improved Usage Statistics

Another big topic covering 5 customer requests is enhancements to the Usage Statistics available in the System Overview. Usage Statistics provide users with valuable insights into how SAP Analytics Cloud is being used by addressing key areas to make data driven decisions and to optimize projects.

For more details, check out this blog post by Thomas Fery.

Increase of Content Network Storage Size to 2GB

The default Analytics Content Network (ACN) storage size has increased from 300MB to 2GB allowing users to transport more analytic content network packages.

Specific Page Titles

The updated SAP Analytics Cloud page titles now reflect the page content, instead of all page titles labelled as ‘SAP Analytics Cloud’. Users can easily distinguish between opened browser tabs, quickly navigate browser history, dropdown for open tabs, and manage bookmarks. Each page title is unique, letting users know which tabs are open without having to click on each tab.

File Repository – integration of planning artifacts

This topic covered a number of requests across both Administration and also Enterprise Planning. Users can now access data actions and multi actions in the file repository (Files). From the file repository, use the toolbar to perform actions such as moving, copying, or deleting your objects.

• Unified SAP Analytics Cloud Object Metadata Repository
  • An integration of those artifacts with the file repository will lead to a centralized place to manage all artifacts in one place and enable the available functionalities of the file repository to all resource types.
• Permission Management with Teams 
  • The integration of Data Actions and Multi Actions, with the file repository will allow to use the sharing functionality to manage permissions per team.
• SAP Analytics Cloud Workspace Drive Support
  • The workspace drive concept of the file repository can be fully leveraged to segregate business content into clearly separated content areas.

For more details please refer to these blog posts by Chen Nee Faulhaber:

• Integration of Data Action and Multi Action into File Repository (Part I)
• Integration of Data Action and Multi Action into File Repository (Part II)

Private Versions Statistics and Analysis

As part of the ongoing project SAP Analytics Cloud Content which helps administrators to answer various questions in regard to performance, housekeeping, usage and many more we introduce the new Story Private Versions Statistics and Analysis. It helps administrators and support to get an overview of the private versions that have been created in the SAP Analytics Cloud Tenant and covers the below customer requests:

• Admin Cockpit – Objects are restricted to 501 rows in tables
• Visibility of Model Resources Consumed such as data size, row counts, null records, etc
• Count of Transaction Records in new SAC Performance Reports

Check out this blog post by Thomas Fery for the latest update.

Data Exploration

Styling Templates

In Data Analyzer users can now use a template as styling option for tables. Currently the default and basic templates are supported. Additionally, you can set alternating rows.

Scale / Unit / Currency Position

For SAP BW data sources, users can now set the following options in the data analyzer styling panel: Scale, Unit, or Currency Position. Choose whether the options should be displayed in the data cells, row header, or column header.

Data Integration

Ability for Multiple Schedules per Import – Distinguish Imports from Schedules

The Data Import Service is an open API that allows users to import fact and master data to SAP Analytics Cloud. Along with its Data Export Service counterpart, the Data Import Service offers bi-directional data flows, helping users:

• Export data out of SAP Analytics Cloud models
• Perform advanced operations using external engines, custom logic, proprietary machine learning algorithms
• Import enriched data to SAP Analytics Cloud models
• Consume that data in SAP Analytics Cloud planning and analytical workflows

Enterprise Planning

Data Actions – Integration of Allocation Design Time

There have been a number of customer influence requests around the topic of Allocations including:

• Allocation – Edit Step
• Ability to use Alternative Hierarchies in Allocations Definitions
• SAC Allocation Management

In QRC2 2023 in the allocation step of data actions, users can now create a structured allocation directly from the data action designer. The structured allocation step allows users to configure all known options including the addition of allocation rules. This update provides better integration of structured allocation into data actions, resulting in only one design time. Modification of existing allocation steps possible, thus, no recreation necessary to change configuration

Changing Hierarchies in Allocation Step of Data Actions

In the allocation step of data actions, users can now choose non-default hierarchies for source and target dimensions. Creating hierarchies specific to your allocation scenario allows you to define an efficient and easy-to-maintain set of allocation rules.

Data Actions – Monitor admin role

Staying with Data Actions, in this quarter we are introducing new privilege ‘Data Action Monitor Administration’ for the data action monitor. This privilege provides authorization rights for full monitoring rights of the data action monitor to non-planning admin users. A user can be assigned Read or Manage permission.

If a user has Read or Manage permission for Data Action Monitor Administration, they can now view all data action jobs, including the name, trigger source, and model data. Additionally, if a user has Manage permission for the data action monitor administration and Execute privilege for the data action, they can cancel data actions that were triggered by other users.

Users assigned the planning admin role have this privilege by default for backward compatibility.

Data Action Monitor – Handling data actions triggered from multi actions in calendar

Users can now also view data actions that are part of a multi action executed by the calendar task in the Data Action Monitor.

Multi Actions – Data Locking Step

Users can now add data locking steps to protect data from unwanted changes via Multi Actions either from a story, calendar, or the App Designer. Multi actions with data lock step simplifies workflow for planners to only one action for the complex process. Users will have the ability to lock data after the execution of specific calculation logic (i.e. data actions, allocations, predictive forecasts).

Plan Process Management – Enhanced Deletion of Calendar Events

Owners of calendar events can now delete events and remove them from the calendar of any involved people. When a process is removed, a list of affected events will pop up for review for more guidance and quality control. This will ensure there are less distractions from already removed and therefore irrelevant events in the calendars the users involved.

For more details on calendar events, see Work with Calendar Events You Created.

Mobile Analytics

Unified story experience – mobile support

With the analytic application integration for the optimized story experience, the ability to leverage the following new and improved functionalities on mobile devices:

• New responsive reflow design with basic story features such as overlap widgets, live device preview, and responsive rules for mobile devices, widget positions, size, and visibility
• Ability to view content created using this new experience on the Safari browser
• Access to content created using Canvas pages on mobile devices
• Improved mobile previews
• Advanced features such scripting, custom widgets, and themes

Mobile Support for Canvas Layouts and Advanced Mode

The SAP Analytics Cloud mobile application now supports new responsive layouts, canvas layout and advanced features. This is supported for iOS and Android.

Users can leverage the following new and improved functionality on mobile devices:

• Canvas Layouts, New Responsive Layouts and advanced features (i.e., scripting, theme/CSS, etc.) are now supported for Mobile
• Users now have the option to disable the mobile app toolbar in embed mode for iOS Safari
• Widgets can now be overlapped and widgets can also be resized to appear side by side

Customer Influence Portal

Finally, you can get the full list of all requests for SAP Analytics Cloud in the Customer Influence Portal. Here you can have your say by adding your own ideas and requests for new features in SAP Analytics Cloud.

Our customer requests Open for Voting have now over 3200+ requests so get in raise your requests and cast your votes to have your say.

If there is an area that is of particular interest to you for example Data Exploration, you can narrow your search to just these requests using the filter bar.

We want to continue hearing from you so get voting!