Collaborative Forecasts in Salesforce¶
4 min read
Collaborative Forecasts is the Salesforce functionality that enables the sales team to plan and predict their sales process and sales results.
Turning on and configuring Collaborative Forecasts in Salesforce is an essential prerequisite for using Revenue Grid forecasts and reports, which are built upon the relevant data retrieved from Salesforce.
1. Turn on Collaborative Forecasts¶
1.1. Switch to Lightning Experience as described in this article
1.2. Click the Gear (Setup Menu) icon in the upper right corner of the page to open Salesforce Setup menu
1.3. In the Quick Search box in the upper left corner, type "Forecasts Settings" to quickly find the necessary tab
1.4. Select Forecast Settings
1.5. If the Enable Forecast toggle is disabled, turn it on, so it's "Active"
OR
If Forecasts are already enabled, proceed with the next step
2. Create Forecast types¶
Forecast type is the configuration intended to display specific data from different standard and custom Salesforce fields in your forecasts. Refer to this Salesforce article for more information about forecast types and their configuration.
2.1. After enabling Collaborative Forecasts, you will see other sections appear on the page.
2.2. Under Available Forecast Types, click Create a Forecast Type
2.3. In the Create a Forecast Type pop-up window, click Start
2.4. Next, select the object to base your forecast type on from the drop-down list.
2.5. Select a measure for forecast, for example, Amount.
If your company groups its products by groups, select the checkbox Group forecasts by product family.
2.6. Click Next
2.7. On the next page, select the date type and click Next
The date type determines what date fields are used in forecast calculations.
2.8. Select the hierarchy which will be used for this forecast type
The selected hierarchy will be used to group forecasts.
2.9. You can add up to 3 optional filters. This is an optional configuration, you can omit it by clicking Next.
If you add such filters, only the data that meets all specified conditions will be shown in your forecasts.
2.10. Assign a name to the forecast type, the developer (API) name will be automatically prefilled.
2.11. On the You've set up your forecast type page, check your selections. If they are correct and match your needs, click Save
2.12. Customize the opportunity list and click Next.
Select the fields you want to appear in your opportunity list on the forecast page and add/remove them using the arrow buttons.
To add an item, select the required item in the left-hand box called Available Fields and click the right arrow to add it to the Columns in Opportunity List box.
To remove an item from Columns in Opportunity List, select the item and remove it by clicking on the left arrow.
In the right-hand column, you can also change the order of the columns using up and down arrows.
2.13. On the final setup screen, click Done to finish.
2.14. Next, the new forecast type will appear on the Available Forecast Types list. To start using it, you must activate it.
To activate the forecast type, click on the down arrow next to the Inactive status and from the drop-down menu select Activate.
Tip
If you need to show, hide, or reorder your forecast columns, refer to this article, for detailed instructions
3. Select Collaborative Forecast Rollup¶
You can select between two collaborative forecasts rollup options:
Single forecast category rollups combine the opportunities within each forecast category into separate forecasts for each category. It's a default rollup method.
Cumulative forecast rollups combine opportunities from multiple forecast categories into cumulative forecast categories.
Salesforce-recommended rollup method is the cumulative one. You can read more about the collaborative forecasts roll-up methods in this Salesforce article
3.1. On the Forecasts Settings page, find the section Manage Forecast Rollups
3.2. Click Edit
3.3. Select the preferred forecast rollup method
Important
Switching from one rollup method to another deletes adjustments for all active forecast types.
4. Set the default date range¶
The default date range is the date range for displaying the forecasts grid on the forecasts page. Refer to this Salesforce article for more detailed information about the date range. It’s recommended that the set default date range coincides with your company’s sales cycle.
4.1. On the Forecasts Settings page, find the section Choose a Default Date Range
4.2. Click Edit
4.3. Specify the preferred
- Forecast period
- Starting On
- Extending For
4.4. Click Save to apply the changes
5. Show Quotas¶
If you want the users to see their monthly/quarterly quotas and the associated information:
5.1. On the Forecasts settings page, find the section Show Quotas
5.2. Enable the Show Quotas checkbox
5.3. Click Save to apply the changes
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