Overview
Reports and dashboards transform your firm’s data into actionable insights. Whether you need to track client portfolios, monitor advisor productivity, or analyze business trends, these tools help you visualize the specific records that matter most to your practice.
Within Sentir, reports and dashboards leverage Salesforce’s native functionality. This means the platform provides a stable, proven foundation for your data analysis needs, though customization options remain within Salesforce’s standard capabilities. The Analytics page is the central hub in Sentir for creating, managing, and finding reports and dashboards. From here, users can search existing analytics content, jump into recently viewed items, and access content that has been shared with them or created by them.
For step-by-step instructions on building these tools within the Analytics page, see our articles on Understanding & Creating Reports in Sentir and Understanding & Creating Dashboards in Sentir.
- Accessing Analytics
- Analytics Features
- The For You Component
- The My Analytics Component
- Permissions & Sharing Model
- Common Tasks - Step by Step
- Frequently Asked Questions
- Additional Considerations
Accessing Analytics
To access the Analytics page within your Sentir app:
- Click the Navigation Menu at the top left of the screen.
- In the drop-down menu, select Analytics.
- In the left-hand navigation rail, select Home if not already selected. This is the default landing view and shows an aggregated, personalized snapshot of your analytics content.
Analytics Features
Vertical Navigation Rail
The vertical navigation rail on the left side of the page helps you quickly navigate between key Analytics pages. The following options are available:
| Item | Description |
|---|---|
| Home | Default landing view. Shows recent activity, shared content, and personal analytics in one place. |
| Browse | Opens a folder-based view of all analytics content the user has permission to see, organized by folder (e.g., Public Reports, Private Reports, or specific team folders). Use this when you know a report exists, but it hasn't appeared in your Recents or Favorites. |
| Favorites | Shows only the reports and dashboards you've favorited. Useful for pinning frequently-used items you don't want to hunt for. |
| Collections | User-defined groupings of analytics content, similar to a personal folder system layered on top of the standard folder structure. Click + next to Collections or the Create a collection link to start one. Collections are helpful for organizing reports around a project, client segment, or reporting cycle. |
The Create Button
The Create button in the top-right corner is your jumping-off point for creating reports, dashboards, and folders. When you select this button, a drop-down menu displays, giving you the following options:
- Report
- Folder
- Dashboard
Analytics Search Bar
A dedicated search field on the Analytics page reads "Search reports, dashboards, and more, then press Enter." This differs from the global header search in Sentir. Instead, it's scoped specifically to analytics assets (reports, dashboards, folders), making it faster and more precise for locating analytics content by name or keyword.
The For You Component
This component is designed to reduce time spent hunting for content by surfacing what's most relevant to the logged-in user. It is split into two side-by-side components, detailed below.
Shared With Me
The Shared With Me component displays reports and dashboards that colleagues have shared directly with you, or that live in folders you have access to, most commonly the Public Reports folder. Each entry shows:
- The report/dashboard name as a clickable link
- The folder it resides in as a clickable link to browse that folder
- A caret button to open a drop-down menu of quick actions, including Open, Edit, Export, Subscribe, Share, and Delete. The availability of actions depends on your permission level within your organization.
Created By Me
The Created By Me component displays reports and dashboards that you personally authored, regardless of which folder they're saved in. This is useful for quickly returning to work-in-progress reports, or dashboards you built for your own use or for distribution to others.
Both the Shared With Me and Created By Me components default to showing the three most recent items and include a View All button that expands the full list into a dedicated view.
The My Analytics Component
Located beneath the For You component, this component provides a detailed, sortable table of your recent and favorited analytics activity split across two tabs:
- Recents: Lists reports and dashboards you've personally opened, grouped by relative time period (e.g., "Last 7 days", "Last 30 days", "Older"). This is typically the fastest way to get back into something you were just working on.
- Favorites: Lists only the items you've starred as a favorite, independent of when you last viewed them.
Permissions & Sharing Model
Sentir's Analytics page inherits Salesforce's standard reporting security model:
- Folder-level permissions control who can view, edit, or manage a report/dashboard. Common folders include Public Reports (visible organization-wide), Private Reports (visible only to the owner), and custom team/role folders.
- Report/dashboard-level access is governed by the folder it lives in. Moving a report to a different folder changes who can see it.
- Row-level data security still applies underneath. Even if a user can see a report, it will only display records/rows they have permission to view under Sentir's sharing rules (e.g., an advisor may only see their own book of clients).
- Running vs. Editing are separate permissions. A user may be able to run and view a report's results without modifying its filters or layout.
If a user reports they can't see a report someone shared with them, check the folder's sharing settings and whether the underlying data's row-level security is hiding the results rather than the report itself.
Common Tasks - Step by Step
| Task | Steps |
|---|---|
| Find a specific report | Use the Analytics search bar and press Enter, or use the Browse option to navigate by folder. |
| Reopen a recently viewed report | Go to the Home page in Analytics, then to the My Analytics component. In this component, you'll see Recents; click the report title in this section. |
| Return to a favorite report quickly | Go to the Home page in Analytics and then select Favorites from the vertical navigation rail. |
| Organize reports into a project view | Click Create a collection in the vertical navigation rail, name it, and add relevant reports and/or dashboards. |
| Create a new report | Click Create in the top-right and then select Report. Choose a report type and then configure filters and columns. |
| Create a new dashboard | Click Create in the top-right and then select Dashboard. Then add components sourced from existing reports. |
| Mark an item as a favorite | Click the caret next to an item, then select Favorite. |
| Share a report with a colleague | Click the caret next to an item, then select Share or move it to a shared folder, such as Public Reports. |
| See everything shared with you | Select Home in the vertical navigation rail. Locate Shared With Me within the For You component. Click View All. |
| See everything you've created | Select Home in the vertical navigation rail. Locate Created By Me within the For You component. Click View All. |
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Why don't I see a report a colleague says they shared with me?
A: Check that the report is in a folder you have access to (e.g., Public Reports), and confirm the underlying record-level sharing rules aren't filtering out the data you'd expect to see.
Q: What's the difference between Recents and Favorites?
A: Recents is automatic and time-based (driven by your viewing activity). Favorites is manual and persists regardless of when you last opened the item.
Q: What's the difference between a Collection and a Folder?
A: Folders are the underlying storage/security structure for reports and dashboards (governed by admin/sharing settings). Collections are a personal, informal way to group items you use often, layered on top of folders. They don't change permissions.
Q: Can I tell what type of report something is before opening it?
A: Yes, check what type of icon appears next to the title. A clipboard is a report and a gauge is a dashboard.
Additional Considerations
As you implement reports and dashboards at your firm, keep these essential points in mind:
- Data accuracy depends on the quality of information entered into Sentir. Reports and dashboards can only work with the data available in your system. Establishing good data entry practices across your team ensures your reporting remains reliable and actionable.
- Performance can be affected by overly complex reports or dashboards with many widgets. If you notice slow loading times, consider simplifying your reports or reducing the number of widgets displayed simultaneously.
- Training helps your team get the most value from reporting capabilities. While the tools are intuitive, showing team members how to access, interpret, and act on report data maximizes the return on your configuration efforts.
- Regular review of your reports and dashboards ensures they continue to meet your firm’s needs. As your business evolves, periodically assess whether your existing reports still provide the insights you need or if new reports would better serve your current priorities.
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