Qlik Connect 2025 – Qlik’s New Write Back Functionality Explained

At Qlik Connect 2025, Qlik unveiled their much-anticipated write back functionality, a welcome addition to their analytics platform, promising real-time collaboration and a streamlined data-entry experience. While this announcement marks Qlik’s entry into the world of write back capabilities, it’s clear their newly introduced functionality is designed for basic use cases. For businesses that require advanced collaboration, enterprise planning, and operational workflows, solutions like Vizlib and Fiplana provide an advanced path compared to Qlik’s new write back functionality.

This blog explores Qlik’s write back announcement, its limitations, how Vizlib and Fiplana enhance the write back landscape, and practical use cases where these advanced solutions help businesses unlock real value.

What Qlik Write Back 2025 Delivers

Qlik’s new write back functionality offers the ability to edit data directly within the Qlik Cloud environment, introducing a collaborative element to business analytics.

Key features include:

• Editable Tables: Users can enter or edit text, numerical values, and dropdown selections within tables inside Qlik Cloud apps.

• Real-Time Collaboration: Simultaneous edits by multiple users are supported, with real-time updates.

• No Reloads Needed: Seamless data updates without requiring a reload, reducing delays and enhancing productivity.

These capabilities signal a step forward for Qlik as they begin to address the increasing demand for interactive dashboards. However, there are significant gaps in their functionality for more complex, enterprise use cases.

Explore Qlik Write Back 2025 in detail on their announcement page.

Limitations of Qlik’s Write Back

While Qlik’s announcement is exciting, their functionality remains limited in scope, leaving some core needs unaddressed.

Here’s where Qlik’s write back functionality falls short:

• Cloud-Only Availability: Write back is limited to Qlik Cloud users, excluding Qlik Client-Managed environments where many enterprise customers operate.

• Short Data Retention: Data stored in Qlik’s write back layer is only kept for 90 days, creating challenges for businesses needing long-term data persistence.

• Basic UI and Features: The interface is confined to editable tables, lacking form-style entry options. Additionally, calculations, advanced field types, or workflow capabilities are unavailable.

• No Integration with External Databases: Qlik’s solution cannot write back to external sources or QVD files, limiting its integration with broader enterprise systems.

• No Planning or Workflow Capabilities: It is not designed to handle budgeting, planning, approvals, or automation.

These limitations mean that while Qlik write back is a good starting point for simple commentary use cases, businesses requiring advanced functionality will need to look elsewhere.

How Vizlib and Fiplana Take Write Back to the Next Level

Vizlib and Fiplana, part of insightsoftware's advanced solutions for Qlik, fundamentally enhance the write back experience, bringing capabilities that Qlik’s functionality lacks.

Here’s what sets them apart:

• Advanced Data Connections Unlike Qlik's limited write back layer, Vizlib and Fiplana can write back directly to external databases, ensuring seamless integration with enterprise systems. Additionally, they support writing data back to QVD, enabling compatibility with legacy Qlik workflows.

• Flexible UI Options With form-based entry, multi-type data fields, and dynamic input controls, Vizlib offers a user-friendly interface that adapts to complex planning and collaboration needs. Qlik’s table-only UI, while functional, pales in comparison.

• Long-Term Data Storage There’s no 90-day limit on data storage with Vizlib and Fiplana. Users can store and access their edited data for as long as needed, ensuring robust data governance and compliance.

• Enterprise-Grade Functionality Fiplana, an end-to-end planning solution, excels in budgeting, forecasting, version management, and collaboration workflows. These planning-focused capabilities are critical for larger enterprises but absent from Qlik’s offering.

• Proven Track Record Vizlib has been delivering write back functionality to Qlik users for over five years, demonstrating reliability and innovation through customer-tested solutions.

Discover what Vizlib can do for your business | Learn more about Fiplana and Qlik Planning.

Why Advanced Write Back Solutions Matter

The more interactive BI tools become, the more they shift from static analytics platforms to dynamic productivity tools. insightsoftware's write back solutions enable businesses to move beyond data observation to impactful action.

Practical Use Cases with Vizlib and Fiplana

Here’s how businesses use Vizlib and Fiplana to solve real-world challenges that Qlik’s write back functionality cannot address:

1. Budgeting and Financial Planning

   With Fiplana, businesses create detailed budget workflows that include approvals, version tracking, and real-time forecasting integrated directly within Qlik.

Write back isn’t just an added feature; it’s a necessity for enterprises aiming to turn insights into immediate, impactful action.

Get started with Vizlib today | Learn how Fiplana can revolutionize your planning processes.