Read an Answer

Written by Uday Kumar Updated September 17, 2026 07:53

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.

An answer arrives as several parts. Knowing what each one is for is the difference between trusting a figure and checking it.

An answer with its analysis steps expanded above the narrative, a chart and the result table

Figure 1. A completed answer, showing the reasoning trace, narrative, chart, data table, follow-up questions and sources.

Parts of an answer

Each part earns trust in a different way, from the timed steps of the Reasoning trace to the caveats carried in the Narrative.

Table 1. What an answer contains

Part	What it gives you
Reasoning trace	A header such as Analyzed in 6 steps · 50.2s. Expanding it lists each step with its own timing.
Narrative	The answer in prose, including any caveat about the figure.
Reporting window	The period the answer covers, and whether a figure is point-in-time or trailing.
Chart	A visualization where one helps, such as your value plotted against a typical range.
Data table	The rows behind the figure, with a row count and paging controls.
Follow-up questions	Suggested next questions you can select instead of typing.
SOURCES	The data the answer drew on, named explicitly.
Data Stamp	A record of when the answer was produced and against what.

Check where a figure came from

Read the SOURCES section at the foot of the answer.

Sources are named in full, for example Workday — AP Vendor Bills and Metrics Studio — Days Payable Outstanding (DPO, Billed Basis).

Where a source names a Metrics Studio definition, the formula behind the figure is published in the catalog. See Metrics Studio Catalog.

Check the period

The answer states its reporting window. A single figure can combine two periods, for example a trailing 90-day billing denominator against a point-in-time payables balance

The window reflects your Default time range unless the question overrides it. If a figure covers the wrong period, check your preferences before reporting a fault. See User Preferences.

Export the data

The export controls differ in scope. Export all rows as CSV takes the full result set, while Export CSV takes only the table as shown. The chart carries its own export menu, separate from the table. It offers Export As PNG, Export As JPG, Export As PDF, Export As SVG, Export As CSV and Export As XLSX, so you can take the picture or the numbers behind it.

Table 2. Controls on a result table

Control	What it does
Export all rows as CSV	Downloads the full result set, not only the visible page.
Export CSV	Downloads the table as shown.
Copy answer	Copies the response.
Copy question	Copies the question you asked.
Rows per page	Sets how many rows load at once.
First Page, Previous Page, Next Page, Last Page	Move through a long result. The footer reports your position, for example 1 to 1 of 1. Page 1 of 1.

A whole analysis, its summary, chart and table together, can also be exported to Word or PDF in one action. That is separate from the CSV controls above, which take the result table only.

Give feedback

Select Give positive feedback or Give negative feedback.

Negative feedback can raise a support ticket, so a wrong answer reaches someone rather than being lost.

Scenarios

Table 3. What to do when an answer is not straightforward

Scenario	What you see	What to do
A step fails and retries	The trace shows the failure and the retry, each timed. For example, Computing metric failed is followed by the same step completing on the next attempt.	Nothing. A failure followed by a successful retry is not a reason to distrust the answer. A failure with no successful retry is.
The figure is implausible	SmartResearch says so in the narrative. Where a figure is implausible, SmartResearch says so: a DPO in the thousands of days comes back with the caveat that a healthy DPO is 30 to 60 days and that the result points to a data quality issue.	Treat the caveat as the answer. Review the underlying data before using the figure.
The table is empty	A row count of zero.	Check the instance, then your default entities and time range.
No sources are listed	The SOURCES section is absent.	Treat the figure as unverified and ask again.

SmartResearch states on every screen that it can make mistakes and asks you to validate responses. The reasoning trace and SOURCES exist so that you can.

Related information

For more information, see When an Answer Looks Wrong.
For more information, see Metrics Studio Catalog.