Distribution Set Creator Excel Add-In

To extend the functionality of Financial Edge NXT, you can use additional applications created by Blackbaud, providers in the Blackbaud Partner Marketplace, someone at your organization, or approved external developers. These applications securely access your Financial Edge NXT data via the SKY API, so you can do more with your accounting efforts.

The Distribution Set Creator add-in is an application built by Blackbaud and is available in Microsoft's Office Store. You can use this to enter data in a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet which you can then submit as new distribution sets to Financial Edge NXT. This integration enables flexible data entry (in bulk) and saves time, especially when entering similar data.

To access the add-in from Financial Edge NXT, from the Solutions menu in the upper left corner, select Marketplace. An administrator must approve and activate the add-in, and confirm you have appropriate rights to access data in Financial Edge NXT. You can then download the add-in from Microsoft's Office Store.

Your organization's administrator must enable and activate the add-in under Manage in the Blackbaud Marketplace.

Once enabled, the add-in accesses your Financial Edge NXT data through the Blackbaud SKY API, and everyone at your organization — in respect to their security group's rights and permissions — can use it.

  1. Copy the following Distribution Set Creator add-in application ID:

    96db793a-2410-4702-88a3-63e27bcb4571

  2. Under Manage in the Blackbaud Marketplace, select Connect app.

  3. Enter the ID and select Connect.

    To notify your organization of the application, share its URL with users as necessary. You can access the URL from the add-in's overview page or when connecting the application.

You can access and download the add-in here, or use the Excel menu ribbon to access the Microsoft store.

  1. To download the add-in, from Microsoft Excel's menu ribbon, select Store. The Office Add-ins screen appears.

  2. Search for "Distribution Set Creator for Financial Edge NXT" and select Add.

  3. From Home, select Create Distribution Set. The add-in Welcome panel appears for you to enter your Blackbaud ID credentials and sign in. A confirmation page appears.

  4. Review the name of your Financial Edge NXT environment, and select Authorize.

    Tip: It's possible for multiple Financial Edge NXT environments to appear on this page. Your ability to view and select them depends on your permissions. For information, contact your organization's administrator.

    After the authorization is successful, the Distribution Set Creator panel displays on the right.

    Cash Management Distribution is selected by default on the panel, and related fields display in the Microsoft Excel spreadsheet. To switch, select Transaction Distribution.

    Tip: Because the Distribution Set Creator add-in accesses your Financial Edge NXT data through the Blackbaud SKY API, everyone at your organization — in respect to their security group's rights and permissions — can use it. You only need to download it once. After the initial download, each time you want to work with the add-in, select it from Blackbaud on your Microsoft Excel menu ribbon.

After you enter data in the Excel spreadsheet, submit it as new distribution sets for Financial Edge NXT. This integration enables flexible data entry (in bulk) and saves time, especially when entering similar data.

Note: When entering data in the Account number column and/or Project column, the cells must be formatted for text (not numbers) for the linking to work correctly.

  1. From the Distribution Set Creator panel on the right, Cash Management Distribution is selected by default and related fields display in the Microsoft Excel spreadsheet. To switch, select Transaction Distribution.

    Tip: As you enter data, note that when you enter values for fields such as Project ID, the Project description also populate.

    Warning: If you switch between distribution set types, any data entered in the Microsoft Excel spreadsheet is removed and you must enter your data again.

  2. Once data entry is complete, specify a distribution set name and select Create distribution set.

    Validation begins. If applicable, cells with errors are highlighted in red. Correct the data and select Create distribution set again.

  3. When your data has been successfully submitted, a confirmation toast displays. You can now view your distribution sets in Financial Edge NXT.

  • In the spreadsheet, enter data using the Financial Edge NXT columns and rows. To save time, you can use Excel macros or copy and paste data into the spreadsheet.

  • A single spreadsheet supports up to 1000 rows of distributions. While 1000 rows is the recommended maximum, it is possible to exceed 1000 rows. Keep in mind, if you exceed 1000 rows you could experience slower performance.

  • To make the spreadsheet larger as you enter data, drag the Blackbaud sidebar over to the right to extend your workspace. We recommend you not close the Blackbaud sidebar completely, because you will lose the auto-fill functionality.

  • If you need to save the add-in spreadsheet and come back to it later in Excel, select File, Save as.