How do I set up Secondary Dimensions to break out accounts by Department, Cost Center, or Location?
The Financial Data Model (FDM) maps accounts to your hierarchy using the Account as the primary dimension. But many enterprise clients need to split expenses or revenue by an additional context — like Department, Cost Center, or Location — to produce accurate, granular P&L views. Secondary Dimensions let you build those multi-dimensional roll-ups directly inside FDM, without any manual workarounds outside FloQast.
When do I need Secondary Dimensions?
You need Secondary Dimensions if your P&L or reporting structure shows the same accounts broken out differently depending on business unit or department. A common example: your OPEX section shows Parent Department A = G&A, Department B = S&M, Department C = R&D
Each contains the same set of expense accounts. That departmental breakout can't be achieved with primary account mapping alone.
How to create a Secondary Dimension Mapping Tab:
Enable Secondary Dimension Capability
To create a Secondary Dimension view, you must define which secondary dimensions are relevant for your grouping.
- Navigate to the Financial Data Model in Admin Settings(1) → Financial Data Model (2)
- Select your desired Dimension Grouping (3) and click Edit (4).
- Click the "+” Mapping Tab button (5) to launch the creation wizard.
Configure the Mapping Tab
Name the Tab: Use a logical name (1) (e.g., "OPEX" or "COGS"). Click Next.(2)
Tip: Use a name that reflects the business segment or population this tab will cover. You may create multiple tabs, each covering a different secondary dimension breakout.
Select Primary Dimension: Choose which accounts you want to further breakout by a secondary dimension. (e.g. Accounts starting with 6). You can add additional conditions (2).
Primary Dimensions may include:
Select Secondary Dimension:
Choose the additional dimension (1) (e.g., Department, Class) and select Done (2) add it to your secondary dimension. (e.g. Accounts starting with 6 need to be analyzed by the Department).
Note: The available options come from your ERP data source. Only dimensions that FloQast has synced from your ERP will appear here.
Map Multi-Dimensional Combinations
In the newly created tab, you will see concatenated Mapping Keys with your secondary dimension (1)
Once mapped, click Save and Publish (2) to make these groupings available in AI VA and Report Builder.
Note: Once you have created at least one secondary dimension, an "All" tab will appear. This tab provides a consolidated view of all account mappings across all your different tabs, making it easy to review your entire configuration in one place.
Best Practices:
- Maintain Logical Groupings: While there is no hard limit on the number of Mapping Tabs you can create, aim to group them logically by business segment or population to keep your financial data model intuitive.
- Plan Before Deleting: Keep in mind that deleting a Mapping Tab automatically returns all associated account combinations to the Primary Dimensions tab as Unassigned. Because this action cannot be undone, always verify the impact before confirming the deletion.
Troubleshooting / Known Issues
Q: What happens if I delete a Mapping Tab?
A: A warning modal will appear. If confirmed, all account combinations from that tab return to the Primary Dimensions tab as "unassigned."
Q: How does the system resolve conflicts?
A: FDM follows a strict priority order:
- Direct (Manual) Mappings
- Mapping Tab rules (top-to-bottom)
Q: Are there limits to how many tabs I can have?
A: While there is no hard cap, we recommend logical groupings to avoid "permutation
explosion" and ensure optimal performance
With your accounts mapped and hierarchy finalized, Up Next: Saving and Publishing your Dimension Grouping will ensure the AI Variance Analysis and Report Builder modules are ready for data exploration.
If you have additional questions, contact support@floqast.com.
🎓 Master FDM: Complete the interactive Centralizing and Configuring Financial Data in FloQast FDM course on FloQademy. It is CPE-eligible through the FloQast AI Variance Analysis & Reporting program.