Who this is for. Anyone with SmartResearch access: analysts, managers and finance leads. Access. Included for everyone at an organization whose subscription covers SmartResearch, whatever their role. No permission needs to be assigned. See the Roles and Access Reference.
These questions cover what SmartResearch does, why numbers look the way they do, and what changed in the latest release. If your question concerns a figure that does not match an existing report, start at the questions on periods, currencies, and calculation basis, which explain most discrepancies.
General questions
What is SmartResearch and what does it do?
SmartResearch is a question and answer workspace for your finance data, covering accounts payable and accounts receivable. You type questions in plain language and it returns explanations, tables, and charts built from your connected system of record and the metric definitions in Metrics Studio. It reads data and does not change records in your ERP. For more information, see What SmartResearch Is
What types of questions can I ask?
Ask business questions in plain language. For example, ask what your current DPO is, which customers have the most overdue receivables, or what your working capital gap is. For more information, see What SmartResearch Can and Cannot Do.
Why did my question return no results?
The filters may be too restrictive, the connected data may contain no matching records, the field you asked about may not be connected, or the data may sit outside your entity scope. Rephrase the question, check your entity setting in User Preferences, then contact your administrator. For more information, see What Data SmartResearch Can Reach.
Metrics questions
What happened to the confidence score?
Metrics now show a Validated or Not validated status instead. The status describes whether the metric definition has been validated and saved, not how reliable an answer is. For more information, see Metric Validation Status.
What does Not validated mean?
The definition has not been validated against an instance, or its formula changed since it last was. Check the definition before you rely on results for an important decision.
Where did the metrics I used to have go?
The latest release replaced the previous catalog with a standard set of 24 metrics across Accounts Payable and Accounts Receivable. If you relied on a metric that no longer appears, recreate it as a custom metric. For more information, see Create or Edit a Metric.
Can I create my own metric?
Yes. In Metrics Studio, select Add Metrics and describe the measure in plain language. Metrics Builder drafts the name, description, formula, and category. Validate the draft against an instance and save it.
Can I change an existing metric’s formula?
Yes. Open the metric with Validate & Edit, edit the fields directly or use Refine by prompt, revalidate, and save. Use Version history to see what changed or restore an earlier version. For more information, see Create or Edit a Metric.
Questions about periods and figures
What period does a metric use?
Each metric’s period is built into its formula and stated in its description. Days Payable Outstanding, Days Sales Outstanding, and Spend by Category use the last 90 days. Overdue Payables uses 548 days. You cannot change a metric’s period without editing the metric. For more information, see Core Metric Catalog.
What does the Time range preference do?
Time range sets the default window for questions that carry no period of their own and are not answered by a metric that carries one. The default is Last 30 days. The window applied appears in every response. For more information, see User Preferences.
Why does one metric return several rows?
Sum-based metrics evaluate for each currency, so a multi-currency instance returns one row per currency. Currencies with no qualifying transactions in the period return no value rather than zero. Rate-based metrics return a single value.
Why does DPO or DSO not match my existing report?
Days Payable Outstanding, Days Sales Outstanding, and the Collection Effectiveness Index use a billed basis, which means invoiced and billed amounts rather than cost of goods sold or credit sales. When your report uses a cost of goods sold basis, the figures differ legitimately.
Why is my DPO an implausibly large number?
Days Payable Outstanding divides open balance by recent billed volume. When little has been billed in the metric’s window, the denominator approaches zero and the ratio becomes very large. This usually indicates a data loading gap or a genuine pause in invoicing. Check that recent bill data has landed before you treat the figure as a live signal.
Why does my colleague get a different answer to the same question?
Different entity scope or time range in User Preferences explains most differences. Permissions and recent metric edits explain most of the rest.
Practical questions
How do I export results?
Select Export CSV above the data table in the answer.
I do not see the data or features I expect. What should I do?
You may not have the necessary permissions, or the data may sit outside your entity scope. Contact your Auditoria administrator to verify your role and access.
How does SmartResearch handle data from multiple systems?
SmartResearch aggregates and normalizes data from the connected system of record and any configured external data sources. Every answer names the sources it used.
How do I manage or rename conversations?
Find the conversation under Chats or Recent, select the ellipsis icon, then select Rename or Delete. For more information, see Chats and Recent Conversations.
How do I get support?
Contact Auditoria Support. For more information, see Auditoria Support.
Related information
For more information, see Troubleshooting.
For more information, see What SmartResearch Can and Cannot Do.