# ERP Report Rationalization Checklist > Source: https://netray.co/tools/erp-report-rationalization-checklist > Publisher: Netray (netray.co), AI and integration engineering for ERP and manufacturing systems. > Section: Free Tools ## Short answer A step by step checklist to find, review, merge and retire ERP reports without breaking anyone's month end. ## Category erp-operations ## Audience - ERP administrator - Controller - IT manager ## Tool **Kind:** checklist **Groups:** #### 1. Scope and inventory **Items:** **Text:** Name a sponsor from finance or operations, not only IT **Critical:** true Define the systems in scope: ERP, BI tool, shared drives **Text:** Export the list of standard, custom and scheduled reports **Critical:** true Collect spreadsheets and macros fed by ERP exports **Text:** Capture owner, frequency, run time and users per report **Critical:** true Pull last-run dates from the ERP audit or job log Record the underlying tables or data sources for each custom report #### 2. Usage review **Items:** **Text:** Flag reports with no runs in the last 12 months **Critical:** true Flag reports with one user and low frequency Identify near duplicates with different names Identify reports that exist only to feed another spreadsheet **Text:** Check for reports used only at quarter end or year end before retiring **Critical:** true **Text:** Note reports required by auditors, regulators or customers **Critical:** true #### 3. Owner decisions **Items:** Send each owner their list with a keep, merge or retire proposal **Text:** Set a response deadline and a default if there is no answer **Critical:** true Record decisions and reasons in the inventory Escalate disputes to the sponsor **Text:** Confirm replacement reports exist before retiring anything **Critical:** true #### 4. Consolidate and retire **Items:** Merge duplicates into one parameterized report **Text:** Standardize filters, date logic and KPI definitions **Critical:** true Test merged reports against old outputs for two periods Announce retirement dates and send a notice to users **Text:** Disable first, delete after a hold period **Critical:** true Archive report definitions and source code Remove retired reports from menus, roles and schedules #### 5. Governance **Items:** **Text:** Create an intake process for new custom reports **Critical:** true Require an owner and purpose on every new report Document KPI definitions in one place Schedule a yearly usage review Track report count, run time and user adoption as measures **Text:** Review report access against ERP roles **Critical:** true **Scoring Note:** Critical items protect you from retiring a report someone depends on at period end. Complete them before any deletion. ## Content **Intro:** ERP reporting grows one request at a time until nobody knows what is in use. This checklist walks through the inventory, the usage review, owner decisions, consolidation and governance so you can cut the list without surprises at month end. **Sections:** #### How to use the checklist **Body:** Work the groups in order. Start with scope and inventory, because every later decision depends on a complete list and a named owner for each report. Tick items as they are done, and export the progress to share with your sponsor. Items marked critical are the ones that prevent damage, such as retiring a report an auditor needs. You can run the whole process in a few weeks for a mid-size plant, longer for a multi-site group. #### The logic behind rationalization **Body:** The goal is fewer, better reports with named owners and common definitions, not just deletion. Usage data finds the obvious dead reports. Owner review finds the reports that look dead but run once a year. Consolidation then reduces maintenance, since fewer definitions mean fewer places to fix when a table changes in an upgrade. The same exercise reduces the migration workload if you later move ERPs. **Bullets:** - Inventory first, then usage, then owner decisions - Disable before delete - Standardize KPI definitions while merging #### Ways this goes wrong **Body:** Retiring reports that only run at quarter or year end is the classic failure, so check the calendar and ask the owner. Another is deleting without an archive, then finding a customer audit needs the logic. Teams also merge reports but leave the old menu entries, so users keep running the old one. Keep a communication log and a hold period, and review access, since old reports sometimes expose data that current roles should not see. #### Measuring success **Body:** Track the number of reports, total monthly run hours, the share of reports with an owner and the number of KPI definitions documented. A realistic first pass often removes a meaningful minority of reports and surfaces many duplicates, but results depend on how long the system has been in use. Report the saved hours and the reduced maintenance backlog to the sponsor, and schedule the next review for twelve months out. **Cta:** If the review is slowed by hand-sorting thousands of report definitions, Netray can help analyze usage logs and map reports to underlying tables, read-only and on your own infrastructure. **Faq:** #### What is ERP report rationalization? **Answer:** It is the review and cleanup of the reports an ERP produces: list them, check use, assign owners, merge duplicates and retire what is no longer needed. The aim is fewer reports with clearer definitions and lower maintenance. #### How do I know a report is safe to retire? **Answer:** Check twelve months or more of run history, confirm with the named owner, check for period end or audit use, and make sure a replacement exists. Disable first and delete only after a hold period. #### Who should lead the effort? **Answer:** A business sponsor, typically the controller or an operations leader, supported by the ERP administrator. IT alone cannot decide which reports the business needs. #### Does this help with an ERP migration? **Answer:** Yes. Every report you retire is one you do not have to rebuild, and the inventory with data sources becomes the starting point for the migration reporting scope. ## Search terms erp report rationalization, report rationalization checklist, retire unused erp reports, erp report cleanup, report consolidation checklist, erp reporting governance, erp report audit checklist --- Talk to an engineer: https://netray.co/contact?intent=erp_ai | Machine catalog: https://netray.co/agent/catalog.json