We recommend building your CIO Assistant tenant in the following order.
1. Initialize Your Master Data
Start by setting up clean master data — this foundation ensures the accuracy and reliability of all future operations and reports.
- Companies: A default company is already created under the tenant name you provided. You can keep it, rename it, or remove it and create new ones.
- Departments: Add departments — these will be useful later for allocations.
- Suppliers: Create your first suppliers.
- Chart of Accounts: Load a preconfigured chart of accounts or create your own from scratch.
- Analytics Categories (optional): Set up analytics categories if you wish to track data with more granularity.
💡 While it’s possible to rush through these steps, we recommend taking the time to enter complete and accurate information.
High-quality master data is key to ensuring the assistant’s usability and the precision of your reports.
2. Create Your First Operational Data
Once your master data is ready, move to the Operations tab to start recording your expenses.
- OPEX Entries: Create your first operating expense. The only mandatory fields are Product Name, Supplier, and Account.
After saving, additional workspace tabs — Budget, Allocations, Tasks, and Relations — become available.
Budget is where you record actual expenses (past, current, or planned). Budgets are versioned by year.
Allocations allow you to assign expenses to one or more entities in your organization.
These two features form the core of CIO Assistant!
CAPEX Entries: Create your first capital expenditure. Only the Description field is required. Once saved, you’ll be able to access the Budget and Allocations tabs.
Contracts: Use contracts to track agreements and renewal dates, and link them to OPEX entries. CIO Assistant will automatically remind you when a contract is due to expire.
Tasks: Tasks can be linked to any type of record. For example, you can assign a task to a colleague related to a specific OPEX entry. Tasks include due dates and are easy to monitor.
⏱️ It’s usually best to build your OPEX list gradually throughout the year, as expenses occur.
However, if you already maintain a list elsewhere, you can use the CSV import feature to speed up the process.
3. Explore Your Reports
Once you’ve populated your master and operational data, it’s time to enjoy the results!
Head to the Reporting page to explore the different report types and see your data come to life.
Now that you’re familiar with the basics of CIO Assistant, let’s dive into the individual apps in more detail — there are plenty of helpful features and time-saving tricks waiting for you!