SuiteAnalytics Workbook
Build executive dashboards, sales reports, and operational analytics in minutes — no SQL required.
Why Workbooks?
Your CFO needs a revenue dashboard by EOD. Your sales manager wants pipeline visibility. Your ops team needs inventory alerts. Workbooks solve all three.
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ THE WORKBOOK WORKFLOW │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ │
│ 📊 Dataset → 📈 Visualization → 📱 Dashboard │
│ (Your data source) (Table/Pivot/Chart) (Portlet) │
│ │
│ "What data?" "How to show it?" "Where?" │
│ │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
Real-World Use Cases
Case 1: Executive Revenue Dashboard
| Challenge | Solution |
|---|---|
| CEO wants daily revenue visibility across all subsidiaries | Single workbook with multi-subsidiary revenue pivot |
What you build:
┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ REVENUE DASHBOARD [This Month ▼] │
├──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ │
│ Revenue by Subsidiary Revenue Trend │
│ ┌────────────────────┐ ┌────────────────────┐ │
│ │ US Corp $2.4M │ │ ╱────── │ │
│ │ EU Ltd $1.1M │ │ ╱ │ │
│ │ APAC $890K │ │ ╱ │ │
│ │ ────────────────── │ │ Jan Feb Mar Apr │ │
│ │ TOTAL $4.4M │ └────────────────────┘ │
│ └────────────────────┘ │
│ │
│ Top 10 Customers Invoices by Status │
│ ┌────────────────────┐ ┌────────────────────┐ │
│ │ Acme Corp $340K │ │ ██████ Paid 78% │ │
│ │ GlobalTech $280K │ │ ███ Open 15% │ │
│ │ MegaInc $195K │ │ █ Overdue 7% │ │
│ └────────────────────┘ └────────────────────┘ │
│ │
└──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
How to build it:
| Step | Action |
|---|---|
| 1 | Create dataset from Sales (Invoiced) record |
| 2 | Add fields: Subsidiary, Customer, Amount, Date |
| 3 | Filter: Invoice Date = This Fiscal Year |
| 4 | Create 4 visualizations (pivot + 3 charts) |
| 5 | Add to dashboard via Analytics portlets |
Case 2: Sales Pipeline Tracker
| Challenge | Solution |
|---|---|
| Sales team can't see deal progression or stuck opportunities | Opportunity workbook with stage analysis |
What you build:
PIPELINE FLOW
─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
Prospecting → Qualification → Proposal → Negotiation → Won
$1.2M → $890K → $450K → $280K → $150K
(45 opps) (32 opps) (18 opps) (8 opps) (5 opps)
─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
STUCK DEALS (No activity > 14 days)
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Customer │ Amount │ Stage │ Days Stuck │
├─────────────────┼──────────┼──────────────┼────────────┤
│ TechCorp Inc │ $125,000 │ Proposal │ 21 days │ ⚠️
│ Global Systems │ $89,000 │ Negotiation │ 18 days │ ⚠️
│ Acme Solutions │ $67,000 │ Qualification│ 15 days │ ⚠️
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
Formula for "Days Stuck":
CURRENT_DATE - {lastmodifieddate}
Case 3: Inventory Reorder Alerts
| Challenge | Solution |
|---|---|
| Stockouts happening because no visibility on low inventory | Inventory workbook with reorder point highlighting |
What you build:
INVENTORY STATUS
─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
🔴 CRITICAL (Below Safety Stock) 🟡 WARNING (Below Reorder) 🟢 OK
12 items 28 items 340 items
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Item Code │ Description │ On Hand │ Reorder │ Status │
├────────────┼──────────────────┼─────────┼─────────┼─────────┤
│ SKU-1001 │ Widget A │ 15 │ 50 │ 🔴 ORDER│
│ SKU-1002 │ Gadget B │ 42 │ 50 │ 🟡 LOW │
│ SKU-1003 │ Component C │ 180 │ 100 │ 🟢 OK │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
Formula for status:
CASE
WHEN {quantityonhand} < {custitem_safety_stock} THEN 'CRITICAL'
WHEN {quantityonhand} < {reorderpoint} THEN 'WARNING'
ELSE 'OK'
END
Case 4: AR Aging Analysis
| Challenge | Solution |
|---|---|
| Collections team doesn't know which invoices to prioritize | AR aging workbook with customer risk scoring |
What you build:
AR AGING SUMMARY
─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
Total AR: $2,847,000
┌────────────┬────────────┬────────────┬────────────┬────────────┐
│ Current │ 1-30 Days │ 31-60 Days │ 61-90 Days │ 90+ Days │
├────────────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────┼────────────┤
│ $1,200K │ $680K │ $420K │ $310K │ $237K │
│ 42% │ 24% │ 15% │ 11% │ 8% │
│ ████████ │ █████ │ ███ │ ██ │ █ │
└────────────┴────────────┴────────────┴────────────┴────────────┘
TOP RISK ACCOUNTS
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Customer │ Total Due │ 90+ Days │ Risk Score │
├──────────────────┼────────────┼───────────┼────────────────┤
│ SlowPay Corp │ $156,000 │ $89,000 │ ████████░░ 85 │
│ CashFlow Ltd │ $98,000 │ $45,000 │ ███████░░░ 72 │
│ DelayedInc │ $67,000 │ $67,000 │ ██████████ 95 │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
Aging bucket formula:
CASE
WHEN CURRENT_DATE - {duedate} <= 0 THEN 'Current'
WHEN CURRENT_DATE - {duedate} <= 30 THEN '1-30 Days'
WHEN CURRENT_DATE - {duedate} <= 60 THEN '31-60 Days'
WHEN CURRENT_DATE - {duedate} <= 90 THEN '61-90 Days'
ELSE '90+ Days'
END
Quick Start: Your First Workbook in 5 Minutes
Step 1: Enable & Access
Setup → Company → Enable Features → Analytics → ✓ SuiteAnalytics Workbook
Then click the Analytics tab in navigation.
Step 2: Create Dataset
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ NEW DATASET │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ │
│ 1. Click "New Dataset" │
│ 2. Select record type: [Transaction ▼] │
│ 3. Drag fields to grid: │
│ │
│ Fields Panel → Data Grid │
│ ┌────────────┐ ┌─────────────────────┐ │
│ │ □ Date │ drag → │ Date | Customer | $ │ │
│ │ □ Customer │ ════> │ ──── | ──────── | ─ │ │
│ │ □ Amount │ │ data | data | # │ │
│ └────────────┘ └─────────────────────┘ │
│ │
│ 4. Add filter: Date = This Month │
│ 5. Click "Save" │
│ │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
Step 3: Build Visualization
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Choose visualization type: │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ │
│ ┌─────────┐ ┌─────────┐ ┌─────────┐ ┌─────────┐ │
│ │ ═══════ │ │ ▓▓▓ ▓▓▓ │ │ ╱── │ │ ▓▓▓▓▓▓▓ │ │
│ │ ═══════ │ │ ▓▓▓ ▓▓▓ │ │ ╱ │ │ ▓▓▓▓ │ │
│ │ ═══════ │ │ ▓▓▓ ▓▓▓ │ │ ╱ │ │ ▓▓ │ │
│ │ TABLE │ │ PIVOT │ │ LINE │ │ BAR │ │
│ └─────────┘ └─────────┘ └─────────┘ └─────────┘ │
│ │
│ Drag fields to layout: │
│ • Rows: Customer │
│ • Columns: Month │
│ • Values: SUM(Amount) │
│ │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
Step 4: Add to Dashboard
Dashboard → Add Portlet → Analytics → Select your workbook → Done!
When to Use What
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ DECISION TREE │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ │
│ What do you need? │
│ │ │
│ ▼ │
│ ┌──────────────┐ ┌──────────────┐ │
│ │ Visual │ YES │ │ │
│ │ Dashboard? │────▶│ WORKBOOK │ │
│ └──────────────┘ └──────────────┘ │
│ │ NO │
│ ▼ │
│ ┌──────────────┐ ┌──────────────┐ │
│ │ Email │ YES │ SAVED │ │
│ │ Alerts? │────▶│ SEARCH │ │
│ └──────────────┘ └──────────────┘ │
│ │ NO │
│ ▼ │
│ ┌──────────────┐ ┌──────────────┐ │
│ │ Mass │ YES │ SAVED │ │
│ │ Update? │────▶│ SEARCH │ │
│ └──────────────┘ └──────────────┘ │
│ │ NO │
│ ▼ │
│ ┌──────────────┐ ┌──────────────┐ │
│ │ Financial │ YES │ REPORT │ │
│ │ Statement? │────▶│ BUILDER │ │
│ └──────────────┘ └──────────────┘ │
│ │ NO │
│ ▼ │
│ ┌──────────────┐ ┌──────────────┐ │
│ │ Complex │ YES │ SUITEQL │ │
│ │ Query? │────▶│ │ │
│ └──────────────┘ └──────────────┘ │
│ │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
Workbooks vs Saved Searches: Side-by-Side
| Scenario | Workbook | Saved Search |
|---|---|---|
| CFO wants revenue by region chart | ✅ | ❌ |
| Sales pipeline with stuck deals | ✅ | ⚠️ |
| Inventory below reorder point list | ✅ | ✅ |
| Email alert when invoice overdue | ❌ | ✅ |
| Mass update customer terms | ❌ | ✅ |
| Workflow condition check | ❌ | ✅ |
| 100K+ transaction analysis | ✅ | ❌ (timeout) |
| Ad-hoc data exploration | ✅ | ⚠️ |
Legend: ✅ Best choice | ⚠️ Works but not ideal | ❌ Can't do it
Starter Templates
Don't start from scratch. NetSuite includes 20+ templates:
| Template | Use Case |
|---|---|
| Sales (Invoiced) | Revenue analysis, customer spend |
| Sales (Ordered) | Order volume, booking trends |
| Procurement | Vendor spend, PO analysis |
| Inventory | Stock levels, reorder alerts |
| Manufacturing | Production costs, work orders |
Access: Analytics → Standard Workbook → Pick template → Save As (to customize)
What's Next
| Goal | Go To |
|---|---|
| Build your first dataset | Creating Datasets → |
| Master charts & pivots | Visualizations → |
| Create calculated fields | Formula Fields → |
| Optimize performance | Best Practices → |