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Building a Report

A step-by-step walkthrough of the report builder in Stax.ai CX: choosing a dataset, adding columns, summarizing values, filtering, saving, and exporting.

Written by Andrew Flowers

Overview

A report answers one question about your data. "Which plans are missing census?" "How many open tasks does each admin have?" "What did we collect per client last quarter?" You build a report by choosing a dataset, dragging fields onto the report, and filtering down to the records you care about.

This article walks through the whole process, start to finish.

Before you start

  • Reporting must be enabled for your team. If Reports does not appear in the sidebar under Home, contact your account manager.

  • You need edit access to create or change a report. With view-only access you can open and export reports, but the New report button and the edit options are hidden.

Step 1: Create the report

  1. In the sidebar, go to Home > Reports. The reports list opens.

  2. Click New report.

  3. Enter a Report title. Use something a teammate would recognize, such as "Open Compliance Tasks by Admin".

  4. Choose a Dataset. This is the kind of record each row will represent: Plan, Tasks, Companies, Employee Census, and so on.

  5. Click Create. The report builder opens with your dataset loaded.

Tip: Pick the dataset that matches the row you want. If you want one row per task, start from Tasks. If you want one row per plan with task counts on it, start from Plan.

Step 2: Understand the builder

The builder has two halves. On the left is Data and values, the list of every field in your dataset plus any related data you can pull in. On the right is a live preview of your results.

Between them are four shelves. You drag fields onto a shelf to tell CX what to do with them:

  • Columns are the fields you want to see, and the fields you want to group rows by.

  • Values are numbers you want summarized, such as a sum or a count.

  • Filters narrow the report to the records you care about.

  • Computed holds any columns you build with a formula. See Report Formatting and Calculation Options.

Use Search fields at the top of the field list to find a field quickly. Long field lists are paged, so click Load more fields if you do not see what you expect.

Step 3: Add your columns

  1. Find a field in the left panel.

  2. Drag it onto Columns. The preview updates as soon as you drop it.

You can drag a field straight onto the preview area instead. CX routes it for you: numbers go to Values and get summed, everything else goes to Columns.

To reorder columns, drag the chips within the shelf. To remove one, use the remove control on the chip.

Pulling in related data

Below your dataset's own fields you will see Related data sections. These are records connected to your dataset. A report on Plan can reach the company that owns the plan. A report on Tasks can reach its project.

Each related section tells you how the connection behaves:

  • N-1 means each of your rows has exactly one match. Adding these fields adds columns without changing your row count.

  • 1-N means each of your rows can have several matches, such as the contacts on a company. CX does not duplicate your rows. It lists the matching values together inside the row, separated by commas.

The builder shows a plain-English line telling you what a row represents, such as "Each row is one company." Watch that line as you build. It is the fastest way to catch a report that is not counting what you think it is counting.

Step 4: Summarize with Values

Drag a number onto the Values shelf to summarize it. CX adds SUM by default. Click the chip to change the summary to AVG, MIN, MAX, COUNT, COUNT DISTINCT, or MEDIAN.

Adding anything to Values changes how the report works:

  • With fields on Columns, the report groups by those fields. One row per unique combination.

  • With nothing on Columns, you get a single row summarizing the whole dataset.

For example, put Assignee on Columns and COUNT of tasks on Values, and you get one row per admin with their task count.

Important: A report can use Values or Computed columns, but not both at once. If you try to add a summarized value to a report that has computed columns, CX asks you to remove the computed columns first.

Step 5: Filter the results

  1. Drag a field onto the Filters shelf.

  2. Click the filter chip. The Configure filter dialog opens.

  3. Choose an Operator. The options depend on the field type. Text fields offer choices such as "is equal to", "is one of", and "contains". Number fields add "greater than", "between", and similar. Date fields offer "is after", "is before", "between", and "relative date".

  4. Enter the value or values.

  5. Click Apply. The preview refreshes.

A "relative date" filter asks for an Amount and a Unit of Days, Weeks, Months, or Years. Use it for filters that should stay correct over time, such as tasks due in the next 30 days.

Important: A filter that is missing a value is ignored. The report runs as though the filter is not there, which can make your results look broader than you expected. Finish every filter you add, or remove it.

The full list of operators for every field type is in Report Formatting and Calculation Options.

Step 6: Adjust how the table looks

Click Table options above the preview to set the default sort, number alignment, date and time formats, and text wrapping. These settings save with the report, so everyone who opens it sees the same thing. Details are in Report Formatting and Calculation Options.

Step 7: Save the report

  1. Check the report name at the top. Rename it if needed.

  2. Click Save report. You will see a confirmation and the Unsaved changes badge clears.

If you leave the builder with unsaved work, CX warns you before you lose it.

You're all set. Your report is now saved for your whole team.

Working with a saved report

Open a report from the Reports list to view it. From the report view you can:

  • Search report results to find a row without changing the report.

  • Click More and choose Refresh query to re-run against the latest data.

  • Click More and choose Edit report to reopen the builder.

  • Click More and choose Duplicate to copy the report as a starting point for a new one.

  • Click More and choose Archive report when it is no longer needed.

Tip: Duplicate before you experiment. Reports are shared with your team, so editing one changes it for everyone.

Exporting to Excel

  1. Open the report.

  2. Click Export report. You will see an "Export started" message and CX opens the export page.

  3. The status moves from Queued to Running to Complete. The file downloads automatically when it finishes.

  4. If you need it again, use the Download link on that page.

Exports are Excel files named after the report. Download links expire, so if a link stops working just run the export again.

Important: The on-screen preview shows up to 500 rows. An export includes the full result, up to 500,000 rows. If your report looks like it stops at 500 rows, export it to see everything.

Changing the dataset later

You can switch a saved report to a different dataset, but the fields do not carry over. CX warns you that the columns, values, filters, computed columns, and table options will be removed. Your report name is kept. If you are not sure, duplicate the report first.

Related articles

  • Dashboards and Reporting Overview

  • Report Formatting and Calculation Options

  • Building and Sharing Dashboards

  • Exporting Data to Excel

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