Saying Goodbye to the Old, Hello to the New: Navigating the Migration from Forms 1.0 & Dashboards 1.0

Nadia Lodroman • 16 April 2025

Listen to Tresora and Ledgeron's chatting about this blog post:

The Smart Move: Upgrading to Forms 2.0 & Dashboards 2.0 and the Critical Role of Testing

The Oracle Enterprise Performance Management (EPM) landscape is constantly evolving, bringing us more powerful and user-friendly tools to manage our critical financial processes. As part of this progress, we're announcing the upcoming decommissioning of Forms 1.0 and Dashboards 1.0 within Oracle EPM . The future of data input and visualisation in your EPM environment lies with the enhanced capabilities of Forms 2.0 and Dashboards 2.0 .


This transition promises significant advancements, offering improved functionality, a more intuitive user experience, and better performance. However, the journey from the older versions isn't always a direct path. Migrating your existing forms and dashboards requires careful planning, meticulous execution, and, crucially, comprehensive testing within your Oracle EPM ecosystem. This post will guide you through the key considerations for this migration and underscore why robust testing is not just recommended, but absolutely essential for a successful and stable transition.


Embracing the Evolution: The Advantages of Forms 2.0 & Dashboards 2.0 in Oracle EPM

Moving to the newer versions within Oracle EPM brings a wealth of benefits:

 

  • Enhanced Functionality: Forms 2.0 often provides more sophisticated layout options, improved data validation rules, enhanced grid capabilities, and potentially better integration with other EPM modules. Dashboards 2.0 typically offer richer visualisation types, more interactive features, and improved performance for analysing your EPM data.
  • Improved User Experience: Expect more modern and user-friendly interfaces for both designing and interacting with forms and dashboards, leading to increased user adoption and efficiency.
  • Performance and Scalability: The underlying architecture of the 2.0 versions is likely optimised for better performance and the ability to handle growing data volumes within your Oracle EPM system.
  • Alignment with Oracle's Roadmap: Migrating ensures you are on a supported platform that will continue to receive updates, enhancements, and align with Oracle's future EPM strategy.
  • Potentially Tighter Integration: Forms 2.0 and Dashboards 2.0 may offer tighter and more seamless integration with other Oracle EPM components, streamlining your overall processes.

 


Navigating the Migration Maze in Oracle EPM: Why It's Not Always a Straight Conversion


While the destination is desirable, the migration path within Oracle EPM can have its complexities:

EPM-Specific Architecture: The underlying data structures, metadata, and integration points within Oracle EPM are unique. Changes between versions can impact how forms and dashboards interact with Planning, Financial Consolidation and Close, Tax Reporting, and other EPM modules.

Business Rule Dependencies: Your existing Forms 1.0 and Dashboards 1.0 likely have dependencies on business rules, calculations, and workflows configured within your Oracle EPM environment. These dependencies might need adjustments or re-evaluation in the new versions.

Data Source Connectivity: Dashboards 1.0 might connect to specific data sources within your EPM system in a particular way. Dashboards 2.0 might require a different connection configuration or data model.

Security and Permissions: Security settings and user permissions applied to Forms 1.0 and Dashboards 1.0 need to be carefully reviewed and potentially reconfigured in the 2.0 versions to ensure data access remains appropriate.

Customisations and Integrations: If you have custom scripts, calculations, or integrations built around your Forms 1.0 and Dashboards 1.0 within the EPM ecosystem, these will almost certainly require thorough testing and potential modifications for compatibility with the new versions.

Report Dependencies: Dashboards 1.0 might be linked to specific reports within EPM. These links might need to be updated or reconfigured in Dashboards 2.0.


The Indispensable Role of Rigorous Testing in Your Oracle EPM Migration


Given the intricate nature of Oracle EPM and the potential for unforeseen issues, thorough testing is not optional – it's a critical safeguard for a successful migration . Insufficient testing can lead to significant problems within your financial processes:

Data Integrity Issues: Migration errors could corrupt or misalign critical financial data within your EPM system.

Broken Financial Processes: If forms used for data input in planning or consolidation fail, it can severely disrupt your financial cycles.

Inaccurate Reporting and Analysis: Dashboards displaying incorrect or incomplete EPM data can lead to flawed business decisions.

Integration Failures: Broken integrations with other EPM modules or external systems can cripple essential workflows.

Compliance Risks: Errors in financial data due to migration issues can lead to compliance violations and audit failures.

Loss of User Trust: A poorly executed migration that results in broken or unreliable tools will erode user confidence in the EPM system.


A Strategic Testing Framework for Your Oracle EPM Forms & Dashboards Migration


To ensure a smooth and reliable transition within your Oracle EPM environment, implement a comprehensive testing strategy:

 

  1. Detailed Inventory and Impact Analysis: Begin by meticulously cataloging all your existing Forms 1.0 and Dashboards 1.0 within Oracle EPM. Analyse their purpose, data sources, dependencies on business rules and other EPM components, and user base. Identify critical forms and dashboards that require immediate and extensive testing.
  2. Dedicated EPM Test Environment: Establish a non-production Oracle EPM test environment that is a close replica of your production environment, including data, configurations, and security settings. This is crucial for isolating testing and preventing impact on live financial processes.
  3. Comprehensive Test Case Development (EPM Focus): Create detailed test cases that specifically address the nuances of your Oracle EPM setup:
  • Form Testing:


  • Data input and submission across different scenarios relevant to your planning or consolidation processes.
  • Validation of business rules triggered by form submissions.
  • Integration with EPM workflow processes.
  • Data storage and retrieval within the EPM database.
  • Security and access controls.


  • Dashboard Testing:

 

  • Connectivity to relevant EPM data sources (e.g., Planning cubes, Financial Consolidation cubes).
  • Accuracy of data displayed based on underlying EPM data and calculations.
  • Functionality of interactive elements (POV changes, drill-downs) within the EPM context.
  • Performance when accessing and displaying large volumes of EPM data.
  • Integration with EPM reporting tools (if applicable).
  • Security and data access restrictions.

 

  4. Phased Testing Approach: Implement testing in stages, starting with individual forms and dashboards, then moving to integrated workflows and scenarios within your EPM processes.

  5. Key User Involvement (Business Process Owners): Engage your finance and accounting teams, who are the primary users of these forms and dashboards. Their user acceptance testing (UAT) is critical to ensure the migrated tools meet their business needs and integrate seamlessly with their daily tasks within Oracle EPM.

  6. Regression Testing within EPM: After any fixes or adjustments, conduct thorough regression testing to ensure that changes haven't negatively impacted other EPM functionalities or introduced new issues within the migrated forms and dashboards.

  7. Performance and Load Testing (EPM Data Focus): Evaluate the performance of the migrated forms and dashboards when dealing with typical and peak volumes of EPM data.

  8. Detailed Documentation: Document your entire testing process, including test cases, results, and any issues encountered and resolved. This documentation will be invaluable for future maintenance and troubleshooting within your Oracle EPM environment.

 


Planning for a Successful Oracle EPM Evolution


Migrating from Forms 1.0 and Dashboards 1.0 to their 2.0 counterparts in Oracle EPM is a crucial step towards leveraging enhanced capabilities and ensuring your EPM environment remains modern and efficient. However, within the complexities of Oracle EPM, thorough testing is not just a best practice – it's a fundamental requirement for a successful transition. By understanding the potential pitfalls and implementing a strategic and comprehensive testing framework tailored to your Oracle EPM ecosystem, you can navigate this evolution with confidence, minimise disruptions to your critical financial processes, and fully realise the benefits of the new versions. Don't treat testing as an afterthought; it's the cornerstone of a smooth and reliable upgrade in your Oracle EPM journey.

Bridging the Divide: Understanding Dimension Alignments in Oracle EDM

by Nadia Lodroman • 29 April 2025
Oracle Enterprise Data Management Cloud enables you to compare and align dimensions across multiple applications. If multiple applications that are supposed to have the same dimension information are managed independently, there is a high risk of misalignment between the applications. Misalignment can occur when certain nodes are present in one application but not in another, or when nodes with the same name exist in both applications but serve different purposes.

Closing with Confidence: The Essential Role of Oracle Account Reconciliation in Financial Consolidation

by Nadia Lodroman • 29 April 2025
The Financial Consolidation and Close (FCC) process. Just the acronym can evoke a mix of urgency and perhaps a touch of anxiety for finance professionals. The pressure to deliver accurate and timely financial statements is immense, and the path to consolidation is often fraught with complexities – multiple entities, diverse accounting standards, intercompany transactions, and the ever-present risk of errors. In this high-stakes environment, having the right tools isn't just helpful; it's essential. And when it comes to ensuring the integrity of your consolidated financials, Oracle Account Reconciliation stands out as a true game-changer. Often operating behind the scenes, it's the unsung hero that empowers finance teams to close their books with confidence. The Perils of a Reconciliation-Light Approach Imagine navigating the FCC process relying heavily on spreadsheets and manual methods for account reconciliation. The picture isn't pretty: A Time Sink: Countless hours spent manually matching transactions, investigating discrepancies, and chasing down supporting documentation. Error-Prone: The risk of human error skyrockets when dealing with large volumes of data and manual data entry. A misplaced decimal or a missed transaction can have significant downstream impacts. Limited Visibility: Gaining a holistic view of the reconciliation status across different entities becomes a cumbersome task, hindering proactive issue resolution. Control Gaps: Without standardized processes and automated workflows, maintaining strong internal controls over financial reporting becomes a significant challenge. Audit Headaches: A lack of a clear audit trail and well-documented reconciliations can lead to increased scrutiny and potential findings during audits. These challenges not only strain your finance team but also increase the risk of inaccurate financial statements, potentially damaging your organization's reputation and bottom line. Oracle Account Reconciliation: Your Fortress of Financial Integrity Enter Oracle Account Reconciliation, a robust solution designed to streamline, automate, and enhance the critical process of verifying account balances. Its integration within the Oracle EPM Cloud ecosystem, particularly with Oracle FCC Cloud Service (FCCS), creates a powerful synergy that transforms the consolidation and close process. Here's how: A Single Source of Truth: Oracle Account Reconciliation provides a centralized platform to manage all reconciliation activities, eliminating the chaos of scattered spreadsheets and disparate systems. This unified view provides unparalleled control and visibility. Automation that Empowers: Say goodbye to tedious manual matching. Intelligent auto-matching rules can reconcile high volumes of transactions in seconds, freeing up your team to focus on investigating exceptions and analyzing variances. Workflow automation ensures reconciliations follow predefined approval processes, enhancing efficiency and accountability. Unlocking Data Accuracy: By systematically identifying and resolving discrepancies, Oracle Account Reconciliation significantly improves the accuracy and reliability of the underlying data that feeds into your consolidated financial statements. This builds trust and confidence in your reported results. Real-Time Visibility and Control: Dashboards and real-time reporting provide a clear overview of the reconciliation status across all accounts and entities. You can easily identify bottlenecks, track progress, and proactively address potential issues before they impact the close timeline. Standardization for Consistency: The platform allows you to enforce standardized reconciliation processes, templates, and formats across the organization, ensuring consistency and compliance with internal policies and regulatory requirements. A Robust Audit Trail: Every action within Oracle Account Reconciliation is meticulously tracked, providing a comprehensive audit trail. This simplifies audits, enhances transparency, and provides clear evidence of your reconciliation processes. Seamless Integration: The tight integration with Oracle FCCS ensures a smooth flow of data, eliminating manual data transfers and reducing the risk of errors. This synergy streamlines the entire consolidation and close lifecycle. The Tangible Benefits: Closing Faster, Closing Stronger Implementing Oracle Account Reconciliation as a cornerstone of your FCC process translates into significant advantages: Accelerated Close Cycles: Automation and efficiency gains directly contribute to a faster and more streamlined close process, freeing up valuable time and resources. Reduced Errors and Restatements: The focus on accuracy minimizes the risk of errors in your financial statements, reducing the likelihood of costly and reputation-damaging restatements. Strengthened Internal Controls: Standardized processes, automated workflows, and clear accountability enhance your internal control environment over financial reporting. Enhanced Transparency and Accountability: Real-time visibility and defined responsibilities foster greater transparency and accountability within the finance function. Improved Audit Readiness: A robust audit trail and well-documented reconciliations make audits smoother and more efficient. Optimised Resource Allocation: By automating manual tasks, your finance team can focus on higher-value activities like financial analysis and strategic decision-making. Conclusion: Embrace Reconciliation Excellence In the complex world of Financial Consolidation and Close, accuracy and efficiency are paramount. Oracle Account Reconciliation isn't just a tool; it's a strategic enabler that empowers finance teams to navigate the complexities with confidence. By embracing a robust reconciliation process powered by Oracle, you can move beyond the limitations of manual methods, strengthen your financial integrity, and ultimately, close faster and stronger. Ready to transform your FCC process and unlock the power of confident closing? Explore the possibilities that Oracle Account Reconciliation offers and take the first step towards a more efficient, accurate, and controlled financial close.

Oracle ARCS: Format Rules vs. Profile Rules

by Nadia Lodroman • 27 April 2025
In Oracle ARCS, rules can be a powerful tool to automate and enforce reconciliation processes. Both formats and profiles can utilize rules, but they function at different levels. Understanding the difference between them is crucial for effective implementation.
Show More