5 key things to look out for in BusinessObjects 4.3

SAP has completely redeveloped the front end of the platform, the BI Launchpad, to bring it in line with modern technology expectations and add more integration capabilities for SAP products like SAP Analytics Cloud. Many will agree this was long overdue – the last time the Launchpad had an overhaul like this, the iPhone hadn’t been invented, and tablets came from the pharmacy. Technology has changed immeasurably since then.

We have been migrating hosted customers onto the new platform since February 2021, and will continue to do so into next year.  So what can customers expect to see from the new version?

You’ll notice several changes, but here’s a list of 5 key things to look out for:

1) New homepage

SAP have listened to customer feedback and completely redesigned the new homepage to include all the features people use the most. You can now access all of your report folders, applications and favourites directly from the home screen, all at the click of a button.

2) Instances of all scheduled reports in one place

 With the new Instances menu, you can view all your scheduled reports in one place. Use the calendar to see what’s pending, what has already successfully run and view them all in one place without having to navigate between multiple folders.

3) Web Intelligence... where's my toolbar?

At first glance, Web Intelligence (Webi) looks quite bare. Where’s everything gone?

The developer toolbars, formatting menus, and even what used to be pop-up menus all now appear down the right-hand side. The same brilliant features and options are all here but it may take a little time to find their new home!

4) No more tabs

In previous versions, each document you opened would appear as a tab at the top of the screen. This has been replaced by a dropdown menu at the top-centre of the screen.

5) Icons, icons everywhere

With the demise of the toolbars at the top of the screen, all of these options have been incorporated into the sidebar. However, many of these used to be shown in writing and now appear as an icon – for example, the ranking function is now a trophy icon.

It may take a little time to familiarise yourself with where everything is now, but if you hover over the icons a tooltip will tell you what it is.

What next?

You’ll notice many more changes than the ones above and it may take a little getting used to.

We’ll be sharing more BusinessObjects features and top tips in the coming months but, as always, if we can help in any way please contact the MHR Service Desk, or if you’d like some training on the new features in 4.3, please get in touch with your Customer Relationship Manager.