Cell Linking to Sheet Summary Field

Michael Lockwood
Michael Lockwood ✭✭✭
edited 12/09/19 in Smartsheet Basics

I like the function of the Sheet Summary but what I am curious on is how would one link a cell to one of those Values.  Also how do we see the historic values for these fields?

Answers

  • Andrée Starå
    Andrée Starå ✭✭✭✭✭✭

    Hi Michael,

    1. Do you want to link in the same sheet or from another sheet?

    Can you describe your process in more detail and maybe share the sheet(s) or some screenshots? (Delete/replace any confidential/sensitive information before sharing) That would make it easier to help. (share too, andree@getdone.se)

    2. Unfortunately, it's not possible at the moment to see any cell history, but it's an excellent idea! (it might be possible in the Activity Log)

    Please submit an Enhancement Request when you have a moment.

    I hope that helps!

    Have a fantastic week!

    Best,

    Andrée Starå

    Workflow Consultant / CEO @ WORK BOLD

    work-bold

    SMARTSHEET EXPERT CONSULTANT & PARTNER

    Andrée Starå | Workflow Consultant / CEO @ WORK BOLD

    W: www.workbold.com | E:andree@workbold.com | P: +46 (0) - 72 - 510 99 35

    Feel free to contact me for help with Smartsheet, integrations, general workflow advice, or anything else.

  • What I am really going for is to do my counts in the Status Summary and then use something like that in a Dashboard as either a Metric or a chart. 



    What I am doing instead is from my main sheet what I have done is created another sheet for Metric and then doing the Sums or Counts in that grouping them by what I want.  I can then use the data as either a Metric value or a Chart Value in a dashboard.

     

    At the end of the day I am working to create a template set that has a folder structure for sheets, reports, dashboards and project plans to use for our team.  I know of Control Center but I think the cost is not something management is okay with.

  • Andrée Starå
    Andrée Starå ✭✭✭✭✭✭

    Ok.

    Depending on your specific needs and use case, it could be possible to keep everything in the summary section.

    Can you describe your process in more detail and maybe share the sheet(s) or some screenshots? (Delete/replace any confidential/sensitive information before sharing) That would make it easier to help. (share too, andree@getdone.se)

    SMARTSHEET EXPERT CONSULTANT & PARTNER

    Andrée Starå | Workflow Consultant / CEO @ WORK BOLD

    W: www.workbold.com | E:andree@workbold.com | P: +46 (0) - 72 - 510 99 35

    Feel free to contact me for help with Smartsheet, integrations, general workflow advice, or anything else.

  • Hi Andree,

    I am trying to achieve something similar to Michael. I've read most of the help guides and forums, but there is no guidance on how to reference a summary field from a different sheet.

    Scenario: I have 20 project plans (created from a template), with each project plan containing summary fields (e.g. "Not Started Count", "In Progress Count", etc.)

    Objective: trying to create a portfolio level dashboard where I simply sum-up all statuses (not started, in progress, complete) across all the 20 sheets, then present it as a single figure. Also I am trying to do so to take advantage of the summary fields within each sheet without having to re-type the same countif functions which is already set in the summary fields. I know both approaches will still require an aggregate data sheet.

    Is this possible?

    Or do I have to bite the bullet and replicate the countif function into an expression that will go over many lines. Just frustrating I am keen to use Summary Fields vs having totals embedded directly in a sheet, but no point if I can't reference them outside of its own sheet.


    Cheers

    Hsiung

  • Andrée Starå
    Andrée Starå ✭✭✭✭✭✭

    @Jinn Luu

    Hi Hsiung,

    Unfortunately, it will not work with Sheet Summary because at the moment it's not possible to link Sheet Summary information outside of the sheet it's in, but it's an excellent idea!

    Please submit an Enhancement Request when you have a moment

    There are a couple of workarounds, and the best depends on your specific needs and process.

    • You could use rows with the metrics.
    • You could have it collected on one row, so it's easy to include in the Sheet Summary, but also to cell-link to a so-called roll-up or Master Metric Sheet
    • Use a so-called Master Metrics Sheet to collect all metrics as needed through cell-links or/and cross-sheet formulas

    Would any of those options work/help? Which one do you prefer?

    I hope that helps!

    Be safe and have a fantastic week!

    Best,

    Andrée Starå

    Workflow Consultant / CEO @ WORK BOLD

    ✅Did my post help or answer your question or solve your problem? Please help the Community by marking it as the accepted answer/helpful. It will make it easier for others to find a solution or help to answer!

    SMARTSHEET EXPERT CONSULTANT & PARTNER

    Andrée Starå | Workflow Consultant / CEO @ WORK BOLD

    W: www.workbold.com | E:andree@workbold.com | P: +46 (0) - 72 - 510 99 35

    Feel free to contact me for help with Smartsheet, integrations, general workflow advice, or anything else.

  • Earl Tessmer
    Earl Tessmer ✭✭✭✭

    Hi,

    I was following the dialog but really didn't see what I was looking for. So if I could.

    Can one link the value of a sheet summary field to another sheet field? In my case I am looking to link it back to another sheet. The link cell to another sheet feature does not allow me to choose a sheet summary field.

    Thanks

  • Earl Tessmer
    Earl Tessmer ✭✭✭✭

    Sorry for the trouble. I did go back and find my answer!

  • Andrée Starå
    Andrée Starå ✭✭✭✭✭✭

    @Earl Tessmer

    Excellent!

    Glad you got it working!

    SMARTSHEET EXPERT CONSULTANT & PARTNER

    Andrée Starå | Workflow Consultant / CEO @ WORK BOLD

    W: www.workbold.com | E:andree@workbold.com | P: +46 (0) - 72 - 510 99 35

    Feel free to contact me for help with Smartsheet, integrations, general workflow advice, or anything else.

  • I want to link a summary field to an existing field in the SAME sheet. For example, I want to summarize on "Owner" and if I change the owner in any row, I want that row to automatically move to the new summary section. Is this possible?

  • Andrée Starå
    Andrée Starå ✭✭✭✭✭✭

    Hi @JLS

    I hope you're well and safe!

    Not sure I follow. Can you elaborate?

    I hope that helps!

    Be safe, and have a fantastic week!

    Best,

    Andrée Starå | Workflow Consultant / CEO @ WORK BOLD

    Did my post(s) help or answer your question or solve your problem? Please support the Community by marking it Insightful/Vote Up, Awesome, or/and as the accepted answer. It will make it easier for others to find a solution or help to answer!

    SMARTSHEET EXPERT CONSULTANT & PARTNER

    Andrée Starå | Workflow Consultant / CEO @ WORK BOLD

    W: www.workbold.com | E:andree@workbold.com | P: +46 (0) - 72 - 510 99 35

    Feel free to contact me for help with Smartsheet, integrations, general workflow advice, or anything else.