Imbalance Checking

Imbalance Checking

If you see an 'Imbalance data' warning, it indicates that there is an imbalance in the balance sheet.


The cause of the imbalance could come from a variety of causes, so the first objective is to try and determine what could be causing the problem.

If you have multiple entities, the first thing to check is which entity has the imbalance on the Balance Sheet. If you have more than one entities with an imbalance in the 'Balance Checking' measure at the bottom of the Balance Sheet grid, pick the entity that has less transactions to start with.
The next thing is to identify whether the problem is being caused by actual period data or whether its a forecast data problem. Keep in mind that the period where the imbalance starts can potentially cause imbalance in subsequent periods.

Actual

Your actual data is coming from your Trial Balance data that is imported directly from your accounts system or using a comma delimited text file (CSV file). If the actual data is imbalanced it could be caused by one of the following:
  1. Source data problem
    1. check your source file in a Text editor to see if there are any special characters.
    2. check whether the TB balances (using Excel)
  2. Account classification problem
    1. Check the Balance Sheet model for the entity to identify the difference between Net Assets against Total Equity. It will be easier to narrow down the cause of the issue if you can see whether the problem is due to Asset, Liabilities or Equity.
    2. See whether the number difference was due to wrong account classifications, say Asset account incorrectly defined as Equity or P&L account incorrectly classified as BS account.
These issues are often related when you are using a CSV file to setup the system or import the TB. Normally if importing direct from your accounts system using the link provided for certain accounts systems, these problems should not occur.

Forecast

The RSF system should normally handle the balance properly. In case there is an imbalance in a forecast period it could be one of the following:
  1. Inherited from actual periods.
    1. If there is an imbalance in actual periods, we suggest you resolve the issue in the actuals first (as above) before trying to locate a problem in the forecast periods.
  2. Implementation problem.
    1. Check the Balance Sheet to see the 'Balance checking' number and see whether it matches a number in 'Movement' by 'Movement Type'.
In case the above cannot identify the problem, you may need to submit a ticket to the Rapidstart Forecast team for further assistance.