Frank can hand you almost any report you ask for: a table, a list, a written summary, or a chart. But not all of those can be saved and set to repeat on their own. Knowing which is which upfront saves you from asking Frank to schedule something it can't.
The Three Ways to Get a Report
There are three places a report can come from, and each works differently.
A conversation. Ask Frank a question, and you'll get an answer in whatever shape fits best: a table, a bullet list, a paragraph of analysis, or a chart. This is the fastest way to get a one-off answer, but the conversation itself can't be turned into something that refreshes and re-emails on a schedule.
A Custom Report. Only a chart can be saved this way. When Frank gives you a chart in a conversation, you'll see an Add to Report button below it. Click it, set a refresh schedule, and that chart will update itself and email whoever's on the list, on the cadence you choose. Tables, lists, and text summaries don't have an Add to Report option, because a Custom Report is chart-only. Watch how to create a custom report.
A CFO Briefing. For anything else you want repeated automatically, text, a table, a full write-up, or a mix of all three, set up a CFO Briefing instead. Choose a preset or build a custom one, and Frank will open a new conversation on your schedule, pull the numbers, and email you a summary with a link to the full analysis. For the full setup walkthrough, see Setting Up CFO Briefings.
Which One to Use
A quick way to decide:
Want a chart that updates itself? Use a Custom Report.
Want text, a table, or a written analysis that updates itself? Use a CFO Briefing.
Just want the answer right now, with no repeat needed? Ask Frank directly in a conversation. There's nothing to save.
A Mix-Up to Watch For
Every so often, Frank will tell you a table or text-based report has been "saved," even though there's no Add to Report button available for that kind of content; only charts get one. If that happens, nothing was actually saved on Frank's end, whatever the message said.
Our product team is aware of this and is working to prevent it. In the meantime, if Frank suggests saving a report that isn't a chart, use a CFO Briefing to deliver the same content on a schedule instead.
Summary
Ask Frank in a conversation for a quick, one-time answer. Turn a chart into a Custom Report when you want it to refresh and email itself automatically. And use a CFO Briefing for everything else you want on a schedule, including full written analysis, tables, and lists.