Why I love TM1 and Planning Analytics from Jarrod Rodney

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Jarrod started his career as an Accountant who used VBA programming in Excel to improve and automate processes… that was until he was introduced to TM1. Jarrod has been using TM1 for over 16 years, and is now applying his knowledge to improve the systems at News UK. Despite being in the industry for over a decade, he is still finds room to grow and improve as a Developer. Recently he had undergone the Cubewise EDU TM1 Developer Credential and successfully received his digital badge. Throughout his journey as a TM1 Developer, Jarrod enjoys that there has “never been a dull moment“.

I have had the pleasure to work with Jarrod at News UK and appreciated his meticulous development style, so I wanted to share his journey.

What motivated you to get into TM1?

I was doing a lot of automation in Excel and when I started at News they were in the process of choosing a product to help replace their Excel based management accounting system and one of the products was TM1, the others were SAP BW and Microsoft Analysis Services. TM1 won hands down, there was no competition.

What was your professional background before getting into TM1?

Systems Accountant helping clients improve their reporting and automating/streamlining their systems. Before this I was an auditor recommending accounting software for clients and assisting them with automation and set up.

When did you get your first light bulb moment using TM1?

Accountants love Excel and I was just so excited that I could use my Excel skills with TM1, taking automation to another level.

What functions of TM1 attract you more than others?

The power of TI (TurboIntegrator), Rules and MDX, and now there is REST API. There is just nothing that you can’t achieve with TM1.

How did you become a TM1 Developer?

As part of my role at News, I had to takeover the development and support of the Management Accounting System, so learnt by doing.

Share a memorable project/technical achievement in TM1

Just seeing the look on user faces when you press ‘F9’ on a report or click an Action Button, and their data refreshes or report is created which used to take hours to finish / run. Plus the speed of development is great compared to other products.

What advice would you give to those who want to become TM1 Developers?

Persevere, plan and engage the users. Ensure that the requirements are clear and remember that using TM1, you can do anything and more importantly there is always more than one solution to any problem. So listen to colleagues and clients and sometimes take a step back and think outside the box.