What's New in Workday OfficeConnect 2026R1
At a glance
| Change | Audience | Action |
|---|---|---|
| View By ribbon command | FP&A end users | Read View By deep dive |
| Personal what-if scenarios | FP&A end users | Read Personal scenarios deep dive |
| Forced upgrade prompt at sign-in | All users + admins | See Check & Update Your Version |
| Broader Adaptive 2026R1 updates (Predictive Forecaster, Hubs, collaborative modeling security) | Adaptive admins (outside OfficeConnect) | Not covered here — see Workday docs |
The headline features
View By — open cell data in a separate sheet
A new ribbon command, View By, opens the underlying data behind any cell in a separate worksheet so you can manipulate it without breaking your main report. Useful for ad-hoc filtering and what-if analysis when you don’t want to touch the formatted template.
Read the deep dive: View By (2026R1).
Personal what-if scenarios
End users can now create their own what-if versions without involving an Adaptive Planning administrator. These personal scenarios are scoped to the individual, branch from a parent version, and don’t pollute the shared version list.
Read the deep dive: Personal what-if scenarios (2026R1).
The forced-upgrade prompt is back
Like every R1/R2 release, 2026R1 enforces an upgrade window. After the grace period (typically 30 days per-user / 60 days per-machine), the older client is blocked at sign-in until the user updates.
For IT admins managing rollout:
- Distribute the new MSI/EXE through Intune, SCCM, or your existing channel
- See Check & Update Your Version for the user-facing flow
- See Deploy Tenants via Registry for the IT-side install
What didn’t change
- The Reporting pane layout, Elements/Filters/Review tabs, and core formula structure are unchanged
- All existing reports built in 2025R1 or 2025R2 continue to work after the upgrade
- Write-back from 2025R1 is unchanged — see Enter Budget Data
Compatibility
| Environment | Status |
|---|---|
| Windows + Excel 365 (current build) | Fully supported |
| Windows + Excel 2021 (Office Standalone) | Fully supported |
| Mac + Excel 365 | Supported with platform caveats — see OfficeConnect on Mac |
| Excel for the Web | Not supported |
| Excel mobile | Not supported |
Result
After upgrading to 2026R1, you’ll see a View By button in the ribbon and (if your tenant administrator enables it) a Create Personal Scenario option in the Versions area of the Reporting pane.
Next steps
- View By (2026R1) — step-by-step usage.
- Personal what-if scenarios (2026R1) — when and how to use them.
- OfficeConnect Version Compatibility Matrix — which features arrived in which release.