Deliverables

The Deliverables applet provides a centralized location for all saved reports and exported files, such as spreadsheets and PowerPoint files. Located under the Reports button group, this applet allows users to view, edit/update, download, or upload existing reports or previously exported files. This applet also supports bundled saved deliverables known as digests. Digests combine multiple reports and/or Excel files into a single, downloadable file.

Users can also access the Create Exports applet via the New Exports button under the Data button group (Data > New Exports).

The Deliverables home screen

The Deliverables applet contains a grid displaying information about all exports, saved reports, and digests that have been created for a given survey. Users may view any of the reports by double clicking on the report's row in the table; this will bring the user to the applet in which the report was created and display a copy of the report. Double clicking on an export will download the export with the data from the last run time. Double clicking on a digest will take users to the Create Digest screen, which displays a grid of the deliverable files available and those included in the digest.

The menu bar of the Deliverables applet contains the Actions menu along with the New Export, New Digest, Upload, and Refresh buttons. The Refresh button allows the user to refresh the grid itself (but it does not rerun the data in the exports). For additional information on the Actions menu and the New Export and New Digest buttons, see below.

The Deliverables grid contains the following information.

Search filters

The Deliverables home page offers multiple methods by which users can search for reports, exports, and/or digests. Users may search either via the filter buttons or a keyword search field. By default, the Show All filter is active, and all deliverable file types are shown. Additionally, which deliverables are shown will depend on the user's permissions. For most users, only those from their same organization/email domain will be shown, unless they've been granted permission to view other files.

Note, filter buttons are only present if the respective report/export/digest exists. For example, if a digest does not exist in the saved deliverables, the Digests button will not be present.

The filter buttons may be used individually or in tandem, and can be combined with the keyword search field as well. When filter buttons other than Show All are selected, they turn white. Clicking on the Reports button effectively only shows files with the Report format (Topline, Crosstabs, Frequency, etc.). Similarly, the Exports and Digests buttons will only show their respective file types, "Excel" and "Digest", if selected.

Suppose for example that a report user wants to find the deliverables that include the word "Test" in the description, and only if the file type is a Report or an Export. They could then click the Reports and Exports buttons to search only those file types, and enter "Test" in the search field to keyword search the descriptions. Since the Created by me filter was not included, the results listing may include files that were created by other users with whom they share file access.

To disable a filter, either click it a second time or click Show All. To clear the keyword search field, click the X in the right corner.

Actions menu

The Actions button provides a series of functions for the Deliverables applet. Most options are available for all deliverable types. There are a few exceptions, which are explained further below. Rerun is only active for exports, and Download is active for exports, digests, and uploaded files. To activate the Actions menu, click on any of the rows in the grid, or the checkbox for the specific deliverable, then select the action to perform.

The following functions are available in the Actions menu: Edit Description, User Access, Schedule Email, Download, Rerun, and Delete.

Edit descriptions

The Edit Description option permits the user to alter how the file's description appears in the Deliverables grid. Click on the file that needs to be updated, then select Edit Descriptions from the Actions menu. A modal/pop-up will appear, prompting the user to enter a new description. After entering the new description, press OK to save.

User access

The User Access option allows users with the correct permissions to designate which users may access the report. Currently, survey Managers+ have the ability to grant access to other users. If not set, anyone with the survey role of Manager+ can view all reports; meanwhile all other users with lesser survey permissions can only see reports created by users within their same organization/domain. The modal is broken into three sections - Domain, which lists all domains from all users with access to the survey (with the exception of IntelliSurvey); Individuals, which lists all individual emails in alphabetical order; and Default, which is an un-editable section of users with permanent access to the report. Any users that already have access by default will be included at the bottom of the list, and their access cannot be removed. Lastly, a user must already have access to the survey to be added to the report. To provide access to a user, simply check the box next to the individual's domain or next to the individual's email.

Note that reports made while the survey is in Dev mode (development mode) or has yet to be published will be saved as "Dev only," which may affect visibility for some lower-access users. Additionally, if a report is saved while in Dev mode, new users cannot be added once permissions are set.

Click Save to continue.

Schedule emails

Clicking on the Schedule Email option brings users to the Schedule Email Report modal. This modal allows users to schedule sending emails with saved reports, exports, or digests to administrative users. Reports will always show real-time data, and are therefore populated with the latest data when sent. Exports and digests will automatically be rerun before being emailed so the respondent data is up-to-date.

The Frequency section of the modal allows viewers to select how to handle email reporting when the survey is Live, after the survey is Shutdown, and set the time(s) for when to email an updated version of the selected deliverable. Clicking the checkboxes in either of the first two frequency options activates the timing options to specify how the emails will be handled.

When the survey is in Live stage, emailed reports may be scheduled for the following times. If need be, these options can be combined.

• Recurring, on days – The user may click the checkbox(es) for the day(s) of the week on which an updated report should be sent. The specific time and time zone options can be defined in the next section.
• Once, on date – The date is selected from a calendar modal. The specific time and time zone options can be defined in the next section.
• Upon completes – The user may specify after how many completed surveys a new report should be created and emailed. Note that there may be up to a 30 minute delay between the time of the last completion and the time the report is emailed.

When the survey is in Shutdown stage, the user can specify to send the final report between one and seven days after the survey shuts down with the Send final email report option.

The Email Options section allows users to input the details to include for each email. Note that both the Subject text field and Message text box include default text, but that the From text field requires input. The Recipients text box will default to including the report creator, but multiple recipients may be specified. Users may also elect to send a test email to themselves by checking the box below the Recipients text box. Once the details of the email(s) have been saved, the test version of the report will be sent to the scheduler of the email. 

Note that if a deliverable already has previously scheduled emails set up when the Schedule Email option is selected, the user will be shown the current scheduling for emails. If need be, the details may be amended and resaved.

Downloading deliverables

Selecting the Download option will allow viewers to download a copy of a deliverable file if the file type is an export, digest, or uploaded file (Excel or PowerPoint), while others require the user to view the report and download from within the reporting applet. Export and digest deliverables automatically download when selected. An uploaded file will prompt the user to confirm the desired filters first. Then a modal will appear to let the user know that the file is being downloaded.

Be sure to rerun an export first so that the file will include the most up-to-date respondent data. 

Rerunning exports

Exports need to be refreshed to show the most up-to-date respondent data. To update an export file, use the Rerun option. Once clicked, users will receive a notification that the export is being rerun and the file's status will change to "In Progress".

When the system has finished rerunning the export, a notification will let the user know the export has been updated and is available for download. Click the Download button to download the updated file. If the notification disappears or if the user leaves the screen, the file can be downloaded by clicking Actions > Download.

Deleting deliverables

The Delete option deletes the deliverable from the survey. A confirmation modal will appear to verify the deletion before officially removing the file. 

Users may also delete multiple files at once by clicking the checkboxes to the left of each item. The confirmation modal will list all of the selected items so the user may verify their selections first. Users can delete a mixture of file types together as needed.

Creating a new export

To create a new report export, click the New Export button next to the Actions menu. This will bring the user to the Create Exports screen.

First, select which file type to download from the File Type dropdown menu. The default file type is Excel 2007 files, but there are several other types users may select as well.

Next, use the Field Selector menu to specify which fields (variables and/or questions) to use within the export. The menu defaults to All Questions and Record Data, but users may also select All Questions, By Chapter, By Field Type, or select a subset of variables/questions by selecting Individually.

After selecting the fields required for the export, use the Record Selector to specify which records to include. Options included here are for Completed records, IDs, Date/Time, or Data Cut; these options may also be combined if need be. If a data cut is required for the export, users may either select an existing data cut from the Data cut dropdown menu/field or create a new one, either in the lower text field or via the Expression Builder modal by clicking on the Wrench icon.

If need be, users may also select from a list of Advanced Export Options for additional file formatting options. 

The following options are available:

After selecting all necessary options, click Next to continue.

On the next page, users will see the results for compiling the export. If the export is successfully compiled, they will be able to click the Download file button. Users are also encouraged to enter a description/name for the export in the Description text field and Save Export for rerunning in the future.

If the export settings need to be altered, click the Adjust file button to return to the previous page. Note, once the user leaves this screen, the export will be finalized and cannot be adjusted again.

Creating a new digest

Digests can be a useful way to package various deliverable files into a single file for download and/or emailing. To create a digest, click on the New Digest button. This will bring users to the Create Digest screen. A list of all deliverable files that can be included in the digest will be displayed on the left in the Available Deliverables grid.

To add files to the digest, click and hold on a file's row in the Available Deliverables grid, then drag and drop it in the Include in Digest grid. Files must be added one at a time, and the file name will no longer appear in the Available Deliverables grid once it's added to the Include in Digest grid. Files can be dragged over and inserted in any order and can be reordered as needed within the Include in Digest grid. If a file has been added that should not be included in the digest, it can easily be dragged and dropped back into the Available Deliverables grid.

Users are required to provide a name or description of the new digest in the Description text field. The Continue button will be active when a description has been entered. Once a description and all necessary deliverable files have been included, press Continue.

Users will then be taken to a final screen that will show the results of creating the digest. If any errors occur, a Back button will appear and be active, and the user will have to return to the previous screen to reconstruct/re-submit the files required to create the digest. If the digest is successfully created, users may press Done (or Deliverables) to return to the Deliverables home screen, or continue creating digests by pressing the Create another Digest button. 

Uploading a report

Users may upload previously exported Topline Excel or PowerPoint files to be repopulated with new data or redefined via alternate data cuts. Custom reports can also be uploaded so long as the source of the data comes from the comments in the cells in a Topline Excel or PowerPoint file. To learn more about the advanced customizations, see Customizing and uploading Excel reports.

To upload a report file, click the Upload button in the Deliverables menu bar. The Upload Report Template modal will appear, prompting the user to select a file to import. Only files with "xlsx" and "pptx" file extensions are accepted.

Enter a new name for the file in the Description field, then click Upload to finish uploading the file. Once  uploaded, the file will appear in the Deliverables grid on the home screen.

To repopulate the report's data and add a new data cut, double-click on the uploaded file in the Deliverables grid, and the Generate Excel File or Generate PowerPoint File modal will appear, depending on the uploaded file type. From here, users may use the Record Selector to redefine which respondent records to use. Click Generate to run the new data for the report.

A final modal will appear to let the user know that the updated Excel or PowerPoint file has been generated. To download the updated file, go to Actions > User Access.