Budgeting, Reporting & Business Intelligence

Manage custom data, take control of your key reports, analyse business performance, and integrate granular budgeting & forecasting into Sage 300

These Orchid modules empower you to take control of your business-critical data

Info-Explorer

Affordable BI with Integrated Analysis & Budgeting

  • Slice & dice live data within a single cube, with drill-through to Sage 300 data
  • Analyze business performance or prepare detailed budgets and forecasts, using the same tool
  • Budget with greater insight & detail, combining both actual and budget data
  • The familiarity of a spreadsheet-type layout, but without the limitations of spreadsheets
  • Get started with the free Info-Explorer Lite edition

Learn more →

Optional Tables

Custom Data Structures within your Sage 300 Database

  • No need to compromise decision making by relying on externally held data
  • Make your custom data available within Sage 300, where it can be readily shared and included in reports
  • View and manipulate data in Excel, then write it back to Sage 300
  • Combine with Orchid Info-Explorer for powerful, intuitive budgeting and forecasting

Learn more →

Data Views

Simplify Reporting of Sage 300 Optional Fields

  • Turn Optional Fields into columns for easy report writing
  • Create a View once, making it available to all report writers
  • Speed up report running through more efficient access to data

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Report Runner

Streamline the Setup, Execution and Distribution of Reports

  • Manages all your reports from different Sage 300 modules
  • Places them into separate central repositories for Crystal Reports and Sage 300 Financial Reports
  • Group your reports logically by function or process
  • Save report parameters to allow quick re-running

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Budgeting with Info-Explorer & Optional Tables

Use them together for feature-rich budgeting & forecasting capabilities

Optional Tables is particularly well suited to holding financial and non-financial data needed to support more granular, sophisticated budgets and forecasts.

  • Optional Tables budget data is stored in the Sage 300 database and backed up with your other financial data
  • Manipulate data in an Excel spreadsheet and write directly back to the Sage 300 database using the Optional Tables Spreadsheet Add-in.

Info-Explorer lets you pull data from multiple sources, including Optional Tables, into a cube.

You can then do detailed ‘slice & dice’ analysis, perform instant roll-up for a high-level view, or drill down into Sage 300 to see the detail.

  • You can perform top-down adjustments using a variety of spread methods
  • Use Info-Explorer’s Writeback feature to push data back into the Sage 300 database (or other compatible SQL/ODBC database)
  1. Use the Optional Tables Spreadsheet Add-in to build a detailed bottom-up budget at the level you need, e.g. Customer & Item rather than just GL level, and store it in an Optional Table 'Infoset' within the Sage 300 database.
  2. Pull both the Optional Tables budget data and Sage 300 actual sales data into an Info-Explorer cube, and perform slice and dice analysis.
  3. Within the cube make a top-down budget adjustment, using a spread formula to apply the change to Customer and Item budgets.
  4. Use Info-Explorer’s write-back feature to update both the Sage 300 GL budget and the Optional Tables detailed budget fields.

Budgeting:
Scenario Example

Testimonials

My client loves Orchid Info-Explorer. In their words, it has them ‘purring like a kitten'.

MARK BINKLEY, DATAQUEST SOLUTIONS, IL, USA

Within 2 days of purchasing Orchid Info-Explorer, every department was able to monitor the sales performance of more than 300 items to over 900 customers. We needed a system that sales reps could use easily, as well as provide the financial analytics for management to continually deliver shareholder value. Orchid Info-Explorer delivered on this...

CUSTOMER OF ACACIA BUSINESS SYSTEMS, SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA

In the words of my client, Orchid Info-Explorer is 'a game changer.' Since implementing it he is able to analyze more meaningful data in Sage 300 ERP on his own. Info-Explorer is now used in almost every department of the company with measurable results.

KEVIN GARTLY, SOLIDBIZ SOLUTIONS, EDMONTON, ALBERTA, CANADA

We will be getting more clients on Orchid's Information Manager, it is really fantastic...

PERCY MANGOZHO, ENVISAGE BUSINESS SOLUTIONS, ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA

I love the control and flexibility Orchid’s Report Runner gives my customers. My only regret is that I hadn’t taken the time to have a play with it sooner!

PAUL FIELD, NET@WORK, WINDSOR, ONTARIO, CANADA

Orchid Info-Explorer is the most rewarding query-based analytical tool for today's business controllers.

MARK CARSAN (CGA,CPA), BAASS BUSINESS SOLUTIONS, THORNHILL, ON, CANADA

Orchid's Extender, Info-Explorer and Information Manager Suite add-ons have taken Sage 300 to the next level. It's like Sage 300 on steroids!

NKOSIYABO SIBANDA, CCMA (THE COMMISSION FOR CONCILIATION, MEDIATION & ARBITRATION), SOUTH AFRICA

This is an impressive BI tool. I was pleasantly surprised by the automatic captions of raw Sage 300 fields. That alone was an instant time saver.

DANNY KOCISKO, KOCISCO INFO-SOLUTIONS INC., MONTREAL, CANADA

Learn More

Spotlight - Automated Reporting for Sage 300

Learn how to automate reporting for Sage 300 using Orchid's Process Scheduler, Report Runner, and Info-Explorer modules.

00:00 Introduction
00:31 Automated Reporting Overview
03:12 Report Runner Setup & Configuration
05:11 Process Scheduler Setup & Schedule
07:09 Run/Test the schedule
08:19 Schedule using Windows Task Scheduler
09:16 Summary
Users and business partners talk about Info-Explorer from Orchid Systems

Hear what users and business partners think of Info-Explorer from Orchid Systems.

Info-Explorer is a powerful, intuitive, yet affordable analysis tool that lets you explore data from Sage 300 (and other databases), providing insight to help you increase the performance of your business.
(Jun-2014)
Info-Explorer.com
Introducing Info-Explorer.com
We thought our powerful, affordable, versatile Info-Explorer BI tool deserved a wider audience, so we've given it a new home.
 
Top-Down & Bottom-Up Budgeting in Sage 300 - Demo

Anne demonstrates budgeting in Sage 300 using Orchid's Optional Tables Spreadsheet Add-in for Microsoft Excel, plus Info-Explorer Writeback.
(Jan-2020)
Spotlight - Budgeting (GL level)

Sage 300 budgeting at the GL level using Info-Explorer (with Budget Writeback) and Optional Tables (with Excel Add-in). This is the 1st of 3 budgeting scenario spotlights.
Spotlight – Budgeting (GL + Optional Field)

Sage 300 budgeting at the GL & Transactional Optional Field (e.g. Project Budgeting) level using Info-Explorer and Optional Tables. This is the 2nd of 3 budgeting scenario spotlights.
Spotlight – Budgeting (Sub-ledger level)

Sage 300 budgeting at the Sub-ledger level (e.g. Customer & Item budgeting) using Info-Explorer and Optional Tables. This is the 3rd of 3 budgeting scenario spotlights.
Dimensional Accounting with Sage 300 - Webinar

In our March 2022 Webinar, we show how you can achieve a highly granular view of your finances, while keeping your Chart of Accounts simple, by applying Dimensional Accounting principles to Sage 300.
Multi-Entity Analysis & Reporting - Webinar

In our November 2021 Webinar, Anne and special guest John Paterson show how Dingosoft FRS and Orchid Info-Explorer can be used, together or individually, for multi-entity, cross-database financial analysis and reporting with Sage 300.
Budgeting with Info-Explorer Writeback

Nathalie shows how the Writeback feature of Orchid's Info-Explorer can be used to support detailed budgeting in Sage 300.

0:00 Overview
2:52 Scenario 1 - Top down budgeting, copy Actual to Budget Set 1
12:18 Scenario 2 - Reduce all costs in a division
21:00 Scenario 3 - Budget by Customer and Item
31:00 Scenario 4: Rolling forecast, copy Budget set 1 to Set 2 and adjust
40:00 Summary
Worried Woman at Laptop
Budgeting in the new Age of Uncertainty
In today's world it sometimes seems the only certainty is constant and unsettling change. We look at the implications this has for the future of budgeting and forecasting, and Orchid products that can help.
 
Non Profit image
When the measure of success isn't found on the bottom line
Orchid loves contributing to the success of our end users. That’s especially so when their reason for being, and their measure of success, is about purpose rather than profit.
 
Rexdale Women’s Centre
With many programs running simultaneously, and ever more stringent reporting and transparency requirements, managing budgets with spreadsheets was no longer sustainable for Rexdale Women's Centre. Info-Explorer helped them to regain control, and focus on their clients.
Info-Explorer