Hi Steve, you've been with FastClose for a few months now. What's your view on FastClose compared to BAQs?

Great question. BAQs are definitely powerful, especially when integrated into dashboards. They let you grab any table, join them together, and dig into the data. But, and it's a big but, they require technical skills. You need to understand the Epicor data schema, know how to build joins, and have a good handle on SQL logic. That's not something most finance or operational teams have the time or expertise for.

This is where FastClose stands out. It eliminates the need for technical involvement. We provide over 100 out-of-the-box templates and solutions across all Epicor modules, finance, operations, inventory, sales, and more. That means users can simply open FastClose, select a report, and get the data they need. No technical setup. No waiting on IT. If you're an accountant or operations lead, you can get answers in minutes.

Furthermore, while dashboards in Epicor allow linked data sets for drill-downs, these links are fixed within the dashboard. Screen real estate becomes a limitation quite quickly. FastClose reports come with flexible drill paths that enable rapid data analysis, and these can be easily configured by the end user to take them anywhere in the Epicor data set.

That sounds great, but are there any limitations?

Every tool has its limits, but FastClose keeps pushing the boundaries. At its core, FastClose builds what we call a 'catalog', a set of best-practice templates designed to meet the most common reporting needs. Occasionally, a manager might request a very specific report that's not in the catalog, but that's not a problem. If it makes sense and could benefit others, the FastClose team quickly develops and adds it as a new shared template.

Effectively, we're building a library of best-of-breed operational reports, all of which are fully drillable, giving users the ability to go from high-level numbers to granular transactions in seconds. Some of the most popular reports include GRNI, Stock Reconciliation, and Sales & Margin Analysis.

We're also continuing to expand beyond Financials. For example, we're building operational reports to support other areas such as:

• Job Closing — identify jobs to be closed and flag any issues that need attention, with drill-downs to operations, issued materials, labour transactions, etc.
• On-Time In-Full (OTIF) Delivery Metrics
• Operational Load vs. Capacity Analysis

And that's just the beginning.

Thanks Steve, so FastClose empowers end users, removes dependency on IT, accelerates reporting, and delivers answers faster.

For any organization running Epicor that's still relying heavily on BAQs and dashboards, that's going to be incredibly powerful.