Anders holds the key to better-looking financial reporting with Power BI

Do You Want a Better Way to Present Your Financial Data in Power BI? Anders Aano and His Software Have the Solution for You.

“I’ve always tried to find tools to reduce manual work throughout my life, both at school and in all the jobs I’ve had. Doing things over and over again is a killer for me,” says Anders Aano with a laugh, speaking eagerly.

“So, I spend time figuring out how to automate things as much as possible. This way, I can use my time on other important tasks and what’s fun. What can I do? How can I use this better? I’m always thinking about the potential for improvement.”

Headhunted

That’s exactly why the 34-year-old economist was headhunted by Profitbase AS a year and a half ago. Before this job, he was a project manager at Altus Intervention, a financial advisor for the City of Stavanger, and an advisor for the County Governor of Rogaland. Now he sits as the product manager for Power BI visualizations created by Profitbase AS, specifically the Financial Reporting Matrix software. Financial Reporting Matrix is an add-in, meaning it only functions within Power BI.

“I remember thinking the job ad looked incredibly exciting, but I didn’t apply because I have great respect for those who are experts in Power BI – and I didn’t consider myself to be at that level. The more you know, the more you see what you don’t know because you start to see what is possible and the high level you can reach,” he says lightheartedly.

A few weeks later, however, the economist, educated at the Norwegian School of Economics, was contacted about the job. This time, the opportunity was too tempting to pass up, especially since it allowed Anders to work right at the intersection of his favorite fields – finance and IT.

“It’s incredibly interesting, and if I were to educate myself again now, I would probably go down the IT path. There are so many possibilities, especially when it comes to simplifications and improvements,” says the product manager.

And this is where his “baby,” as he calls it, comes in: “Financial Reporting Matrix is, in itself, a way to present data. It is a visualization for Power BI.”

Flexibility, Flexibility, Flexibility

“In Power BI, you have many ways to visualize data. We have created our own variant where you can present it in a matrix form. The matrix form itself isn’t unique, but what makes it special is that we’ve included a number of additional features. These features can be added on top, giving you the flexibility you need to create the financial statements you want.”

“Can you give some concrete examples of these additional features?”

“The features we offer for flexibility include adding rows and spaces, changing text and background colors, and adding overlines or underlines wherever you want in a very simple way.”

“In one sentence, how would you summarize it?”

“Our program provides a familiar visual expression with a neat layout and design.” There’s a brief pause.

“And it’s incredibly time-saving. I have to add that. We have customers in 48 countries, on all continents. We have quite a few customers in South America, America, Germany, France, and Norway.”

The World as a Market

Since Anders started the job in April 2021, sales of licenses have only increased. “We have customers in 48 countries, on all continents. We have quite a few customers in South America, America, Germany, France, and Norway. We’re also starting to gain a good number of customers in Australia,” explains the product manager.

And with such a customer portfolio, there’s only one thing to do:

“I have meetings both in the evenings and at night! If I have a meeting with someone in Australia, I either get up in the middle of the night, go to bed very late, or get up extremely early,” he says with a laugh, and continues:

“I have to plan the meetings. When my children wake up is harder to plan. It often goes like this: now I need to put the kids to bed, and then I can take a meeting. And if someone asks if we can have the meeting a bit earlier, I say, ‘Sure, but you might hear the kids in the background and they might storm in here.’ But that’s how it has to be,” the father of three smiles.

“It’s been fine. I think things have loosened up around these issues during the pandemic because I’ve had meetings with people sitting in closets and such,” he laughs again.

“Not everyone is equally set up for working from home, and I think the threshold for what is acceptable has changed. I think that’s great. You get to know people a bit better that way.”

For Anders, meeting people is another important part of the job.

“I really enjoy talking to people and helping customers as best I can. It’s incredibly rewarding and exciting to hear how they use the software. In fact, that’s how our software, Financial Reporting Matrix, came about. A customer came to us and asked if we could help them. And after a lot of work, we made it happen,” he explains.

“Being a problem solver is one of the best things. Listening to the challenges customers have and then being able to help them.”

Problem Solver with Team Spirit

In addition to Anders at the product manager helm, there are three other people working with him on products for Power BI. Anders sees himself as a kind of interpreter, a bridge between customers and developers. He is also used to teamwork through soccer, which he plays with his friends in his free time.

“I used to play central midfield. Now you’ll find me as a fullback. That’s what happens when you get older – the younger ones do the running,” he laughs.

Like on the soccer field, work life is also about making each other look good. Anders finds it particularly rewarding to hear from people who have tested demo versions and come back to the meeting a few days later, thrilled. He can also be inspired by the ideas and thoughts customers have.

“Being a problem solver is one of the best things. Listening to the challenges customers have and then being able to help them,” he says earnestly.

“I remember one time in particular when I was in a customer meeting over Teams. Not a single word was said during the presentation by the people I was meeting with, and I thought they didn’t like it. But when I asked directly, it was the complete opposite – they were thrilled to finally find a product that could help them. They had just been sitting silently, listening intently. Moments like that make the job truly meaningful for me,” the product manager smiles.

“And what types of customers do you have for Financial Reporting Matrix for Power BI?”

“We have all sorts. There are family businesses. There are consultants. There are large corporations. That’s also very exciting to me.”

Preparing for the Future

A year and a half into the job, Anders has had time to reflect on what he thinks so far.

“It’s incredibly fun. It’s a nice mix of many different tasks that I’m responsible for. I have product responsibility from A to Z, and sometimes marketing ideas, sales, support, and development. It’s very varied, and I can somewhat control what my day consists of. What I really like is that sales mostly come through customers contacting us and asking, ‘Hey, can we get a demo?’ I show them what they can achieve. If they’ve used it themselves, they often come with questions or cases: ‘We’ve used it this way and that, but we don’t understand what to do here.’ Or ‘I’m stuck here.’ Or ‘We also want to do this and that, is it possible?’ Instead of me just showing generally what can be done, I show specifically how to address their challenges. I think that’s really fun. It’s very soft-selling; I show what they can do, and if they like it, they buy it.”

“How are license sales going?”

“Of the major customers we’ve been in contact with, none have canceled yet. Sales in the online store are steady, so it’s heading in the right direction. That’s great.”

So far, the matrix for Power BI is the product, but Anders hints that there are more exciting things on the way.

“One of the things we’re researching now is whether you can export the financial report you’ve created with our product to a file. Many people want that.”