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Anonymous's avatar
Anonymous
Not applicable
1 year ago
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Accessible Reporting - Convert Matrix to Table, using Calculation Groups?

Hi,   Our organisation work with individuals how use screen readers to understand our data. I want to replicate the following matrix as a table:     But I want to keep Month/Year in each c...
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  • v-venuppu's avatar
    v-venuppu
    1 year ago

    Hi Anonymous ,

    You are absolutely right to look for a more accessible alternative - however, DAX does not support dynamic column names in a calculated table. This means we can't label columns like "July", "August", etc. based on date logic.

     Instead, the best approach is to return rows with dynamic month labels and use a table visual, which is screen reader friendly.

    Here’s a simplified calculated table that does this:

    FlattenedClientReach =
    VAR MaxMonthID = MAX('01b: Calendar'[Month Year ID])
    RETURN
    SELECTCOLUMNS(
    ADDCOLUMNS(
    GENERATE(
    'AT - CLIENT REACH',
    VAR Client = 'AT - CLIENT REACH'[Client ID]
    RETURN
    FILTER(
    ADDCOLUMNS(
    '01b: Calendar',
    "ReachValue",
    CALCULATE(
    'AT - CLIENT REACH'[Measures - Client Reach],
    'AT - CLIENT REACH'[Client ID] = Client
    )
    ),
    '01b: Calendar'[Month Year ID] > MaxMonthID - 12 &&
    '01b: Calendar'[Month Year ID] <= MaxMonthID
    )
    ),
    "MonthName", FORMAT('01b: Calendar'[Date], "MMM YYYY")
    ),
    "Client", [Client ID],
    "Month", [MonthName],
    "ClientReach", [ReachValue]
    )

    If this post helps, then please consider Accepting as solution to help the other members find it more quickly, don't forget to give a "Kudos" – I’d truly appreciate it! 

    Thank you.

v-venuppu's avatar
v-venuppu
Community Support
1 year ago

Hi Anonymous ,

You are absolutely right to look for a more accessible alternative - however, DAX does not support dynamic column names in a calculated table. This means we can't label columns like "July", "August", etc. based on date logic.

 Instead, the best approach is to return rows with dynamic month labels and use a table visual, which is screen reader friendly.

Here’s a simplified calculated table that does this:

FlattenedClientReach =
VAR MaxMonthID = MAX('01b: Calendar'[Month Year ID])
RETURN
SELECTCOLUMNS(
ADDCOLUMNS(
GENERATE(
'AT - CLIENT REACH',
VAR Client = 'AT - CLIENT REACH'[Client ID]
RETURN
FILTER(
ADDCOLUMNS(
'01b: Calendar',
"ReachValue",
CALCULATE(
'AT - CLIENT REACH'[Measures - Client Reach],
'AT - CLIENT REACH'[Client ID] = Client
)
),
'01b: Calendar'[Month Year ID] > MaxMonthID - 12 &&
'01b: Calendar'[Month Year ID] <= MaxMonthID
)
),
"MonthName", FORMAT('01b: Calendar'[Date], "MMM YYYY")
),
"Client", [Client ID],
"Month", [MonthName],
"ClientReach", [ReachValue]
)

If this post helps, then please consider Accepting as solution to help the other members find it more quickly, don't forget to give a "Kudos" – I’d truly appreciate it! 

Thank you.

Anonymous's avatar
Anonymous
Not applicable
1 year ago

Hi v-venuppu ,

 

Thanks for this. While this solution does work, technically, it's not the best accessible experience for a user who uses a screenreader. If they want to compare 2 metrics - for example, Total Sales and Total Units Sold by month, they have to either sort the table by Month or by Metric Name. If they sort by Month they're able to compare metrics to each other for the month, but they can't get month on month easily. If they sort by Metric Name, they'll be able to see month on month change but not next to a comparable metric.

 

I'll check the suggestions blog to see if there's a request to make the matrix visual accessible. That would sort all this out.

 

Thanks for your help.

Mark