Selecting Series for Charts

This article explains how to select series for charts and tables in Model Reef.

You will learn:

• What types of series you can plot.

• How to pick variables, drivers and categories as chart inputs.

• How to keep chart definitions clean, consistent and reusable.

Charts in Model Reef always visualise time series that already exist in the model.

---

1. Supported series types

You can usually select the following series types for charts:

• Individual variables.

• Categories and subcategories (for example Revenue, COGS, Staff, Opex).

• Aggregate categories (for example Total Operating Expenses).

• Drivers and Data Library series.

• Selected financial statement lines (for example EBITDA, Net Income, Cash balance).

• Custom formula based series, defined in chart configuration where supported.

All of these represent time series aligned to the model's periodicity.

---

2. Selecting variables

1

Open the chart configuration panel

Open the chart configuration where series are managed.

2

Add a new series slot

Create a new series entry in the chart.

3

Choose Variable as the source type

Select "Variable" for the series source.

4

Find the variable

Search or browse for the variable by name, category or branch. The chart then plots that variable's values for the active scenario and period selection.

---

3. Selecting categories and aggregates

1

Add a new series and choose Category or Aggregate category

Create a series and set its source to a category or an aggregate category.

2

Pick the category

Select the category to show (for example Revenue or Staff).

3

Optionally restrict by filters

Optionally restrict the category by branch or other filters if available. The chart uses the sum of all variables in that category for each period.

This is useful for high level revenue, cost and profit views.

---

4. Selecting drivers and Data Library series

1

Add a series and choose Driver or Data Library entry

Create a series and select "Driver" or "Data Library entry" as the source.

2

Search by name

Locate the desired driver or data library series using search.

3

Select the relevant series

Choose the series to include. This is useful when you want to show relationships between assumptions and outcomes on the same chart.

---

5. Mixing series types in one chart

You can mix series types in a single chart, for example:

• Revenue (category) vs Headcount (driver).

• Cash balance (statement line) vs Debt balance (category).

• EBITDA (statement line) vs Capex (category).

When combining series with different units, consider chart types that separate scale visually or use multiple charts for clarity.

---

6. Best practice

To keep charts clear and maintainable:

• Use consistent naming for variables and categories so they are easy to find.

• Limit the number of series per chart to what can be interpreted at a glance.

• Use separate charts for fundamentally different scales or concepts.

• Reuse the same series definitions across dashboards for consistency.

This helps reviewers understand key patterns without visual noise.

---

Related articles

• Editing Driver Time Series

• Importing Series

• Data Library Mapping

• Build Cross Branch Drivers & Dependencies