Custom Graphing: Single CU or PG + Composition Pie/Bar

My dear Padawan, I'm so glad you have expressed interest in being a Custom Graphing Jedi Master. Let us begin our training with the "Single Credit Union or Peer Group" section of Peer 2.0.

I am going to begin out of order, tackling the 2 composition charts in the middle first. They are the easiest to understand.

Say you want to look at current composition of your loan, share or investment portfolio (or that of your "competitor"--another CU or a peer group). Composition: Pie and Composition: Bar display the same information, just in different formats. Pies are traditional but honestly not nearly as easy to interpret as bar charts which make it very easy to see the relative size of each component. Let's do an example using the Loan Portfolio and the Pie chart.

First, click on the Pie image and Peer will take you to the Account Selection screen. Now, type in the formulas you want to include in the pie chart and the titles you want shown on the legend.
a396+a397 = unsecured debt
a385+a370+a002 = auto loans & leases
a703+a386= mortgage loans
a698 = other

(Not sure how to figure out account codes? That's another entry all together...click here.)


For now, keep "Just show selected comparisons" checked. I'll explain the other option in a minute.

Select "Preview" or "Save." Preview puts it in your Temporary Displays, Save will prompt you to select a folder in which to save it. Done.
Ok, 3 things to play with.

1. By default, the graph is showing the actual $ values. If you'd rather see the %, simply use the Data Format drop down.


2. Change your mind and would rather see the bar chart? Select Type--> Bar.

Hmm....bar charts should always sort largest to smallest...I'll have to submit a fix.

3. Want to look at one of your other comparisons? Simply use the drop down menu on the chart to change. Your primary and all of your comparisons will be on the list.


Ok, this brings us back to the radio buttons on the Account Selection Screen:

These radio buttons dictate what comparisons will be shown on the drop down menu on the chart (#3 above). If you just want to see your primary & comparisons, leave the top option selected. If you want to look at the individual credit unions that comprise your peer group comparisons, go ahead and add the second button. The only problem: your drop down menu will be mighty long depending on how big your peer group is.

Share your custom peer groups

Peer 2.0 comes with 10 standard (ie. asset-based) Peer Groups already built-in. Usually though, credit unions build a custom peer group against which to benchmark their performance (isn't this the reason you bought Peer after all?). Rather than make every analyst on your team go through the effort of re-creating the Peer Group, simply share the one you already built! Here's how.

(Assumption: You've already created the Peer Group). Go to the Peer Groups menu and Select Share.

Here you will see a list of Peer Groups available in your desktop version of Peer. Select the one you wish to share with others (Peer will show you the credit unions in the group in the window below).

Now, you have a couple of options. If you want other analysts to import the Peer Group into their version of Peer, select either Export .p2p (this exports the .P2P to a location of your choice) or Email (which attaches the .P2P file to an email message in your default email program). Done!

Want to import a Peer Group someone else created? On the Peer groups menu, select Manage OR from the File Menu select Import --> Peer Groups. Either way, you'll get a new window with one option being Import. Click on it.

Find the .P2P file you received from someone else (I assume here you already saved it somewhere). Click Open and you will be prompted to name and save the Peer Group.

Done!

How to share custom graphs with others (and import someone else's)

A .crc file is a way for Peer users to share custom displays (graphs, charts, tables) they created in their desktop version of Peer with other users. This way, users save time and energy by eliminating the needless duplication of effort. Here's how to create and share a CRC file.

First, I'm going to start with the assumption that you already have created custom graphs that you want to share. (Not sure? Go to My Displays in the left sidebar and check).

Now, to export the graphs is easy. Simply go to the File menu (top left as usual) --> Export --> Custom Displays. Select the folder of graphs you wish to export from the list on your screen. You have 2 options: Export, which will save the file to your desktop or anywhere you designate (a shared drive for example); or Email, which will open your default email browser with the .crc file as an attachment. Done!

Want to import graphs from someone else? I assume they sent you a .crc or you downloaded one from www.p2psoftware.com. Save the .crc somewhere you can find it (your desktop, for example). Now, simply go to File --> Import --> Custom Displays. Click Browse to find the file you just saved. Name it and click on Import. Done! These graphs will be saved under My Displays in the left navigation.