Data Explorer: Should I Use It?

The short answer is “Not yet!” However, if you’re feeling particularly adventurous and want to give it a try, read on!

Data Explorer is an "out-of-the-box" reporting tool built by our vendor Eccovia. The drag-and-drop reporting tool currently includes some or all of the HUD data fields, but not Minnesota specific fields or calculations. The tool is available to users, however ICA has not fully reviewed or customized this tool yet for Minnesota, and therefore ICA is not yet able to respond to questions about why data fields or data results are or are not showing up in custom created report queries.  

Over the next several months (spring or summer 2025), once ICA has been able to recreate a good number of the custom reports Minnesota users depend on (like the Core report, and Returns to Homelessness report), ICA plans to do a full review of this Data Explorer tool, and carefully build it out in a way that will make using Data Explorer more user-friendly and more accurate for our users. We’ll also be providing documentation and training on how to use the tool. If you can wait until then, we advise you wait. If you want to try it out, and see what you're able to find compared to the numbers you'd expect, you are definitely welcome to!