Create forecasts using row model

Use forecasting with a row model to project future values for row-level drivers and evaluate their impact on related rows and KPIs.

For example, you can forecast revenue, expenses, and other key drivers. Modify the forecasted drivers to explore different assumptions and analyze their cascading impact across the model.

This involves:

• Creating a row model to define relationships between drivers and calculated rows.
• Use Forecast to create forecast values and see how changes flow through the model.

Use cases#

You can use forecasts with a row model to

• Project future performance: Forecast business drivers and outcomes for upcoming periods.
• Build driver-based forecasts: Use historical or current values as a starting point and adjust individual drivers based on business assumptions to see the impact on KPIs.
• Perform rolling forecasts: Update forecast periods as new actuals become available and reforecast future periods.

Prerequisites#

Before you create a forecast:

• Make sure the planning sheet uses a standard date hierarchy, such as Year > Quarter > Month.
• Make sure the row model is configured with the required drivers and calculated rows. To learn how to create a row model, see create a row model.

Create a forecast#

Consider the following P&L (Profit and Loss) row model to forecast 2026 values.

1. Go to Model > Forecast.

2. In Basics, enter the forecast measure name and set the date range for the forecast period as Jan 2026 - Dec 2026. Select Next.

3. Configure the Closed Period settings to populate values for locked periods.
   • Configure as: Select Link to Measure to populate the forecast values from an existing measure.
   • Source Measure: Select Actuals to use the actual values for the closed periods.
4. Select Next.

5. Configure the Open Period settings to pre-fill the 2026 forecast values using the 2025 actuals.

• Configure as: Select Data Input to allow users to enter and modify forecast values.
• Default Value: Select Measure to use an existing measure as the default value and initialize the forecast values.
• Measure: Select Actuals measure for default values.
• Under Pre-fill Open Periods, configure the range to copy the 2025 actuals to the 2026 forecast as follows:
  • Copy from: Select Actuals.
  • Target Range: Select Jan 2026 – Dec 2026 as the target.
  • Operation: Select Period Range to map each period in the source range to the corresponding period in the target range.
  • Source Range: Select Jan 2025 – Dec 2025.

6. Select Save.

The forecast measure is created for the row model. Review the generated forecast values and modify the open-period values as needed.

Analyze the forecast in a row model

After creating the forecast, use the row model to analyze how changes to forecast drivers affect related rows. For example, changing Revenue or Purchase expense can flow through the defined row relationships and affect Profit and other KPIs.

You can enter values at any period level, such as the Year total or individual Quarter cells.

The following image shows how a change in revenue for Q1 affects the quarter-level profit and flows through to the overall profit.

The following image demonstrates how reducing purchase expense increases profit.

This approach lets you combine forecasting with driver-based row modeling to evaluate future performance and understand the cascading impact of different assumptions.

Next steps#

After creating a forecast, you can take your analysis further by creating scenarios to simulate different assumptions without changing the base plan.

Create scenarios, adjust key drivers, and compare outcomes to identify the scenarios that best support your planning decisions. To learn more, see Perform scenario analysis in the row model.