Bulk Import Project Data

Miradi Share's Bulk Import tool allows Miradi users to add new or edited data to one or more projects from an external spreadsheet (e.g. csv or xls file). Multiple rows of data (hundreds of rows if needed!) can be copied from an external file and pasted directly into the online spreadsheet for import. 

The Bulk Import tool is only available to Miradi users with a Team Plan whose projects are managed within a Miradi Share program space. Learn more about the features available with Team Plans.

• Bulk Import tools in projects and programs
• Types of data available to Bulk Import
• Step-by-Step guide to using Bulk Import tools

Access Bulk Import tools in projects and programs

The Bulk Import tool is available under PROJECT ADMIN or PROGRAM ADMIN

In projects, Miradi users with Project Editor or higher permissions can access these tools under PROJECT ADMIN > Bulk Import. Use the Import Type selector to select the type of data you would like to work with. Learn more about the types of data available to bulk import.

At the program-level, Miradi users with Program Admin, Program Manager, or Project Editor or higher permissions can access the Bulk Import tool under PROGRAM ADMIN > Bulk Import. Miradi users can import project-level data for all the projects they have permission to edit.

NOTE: When using Bulk Import in the program space, Miradi users will only have access to the project data they have permission to access.

Types of data available to Bulk Import

Not all types of Miradi data are available for Bulk Import, but many are and we are adding new types of data all the time! As of August 2024, the following data can be created or edited using the Bulk Import tool. (Keep your eye on the What's New announcements as we add more data to Bulk Import.)

Elements of Factors

• • Activities - Add new Activities to Strategies or edit existing Activities
  • Goals - Add new Goals to Targets or edit existing Goals
  • Objectives - Add new Objectives to Results or Strategies or edit existing Objectives
  • Indicators - Add new Indicators to Targets, KEAs, Threats or Results or edit existing Indicators

Progress Updates

• • Activity Progress - Add new Activity Progress Reports or update the latest existing Activity Progress Report
  • Goals and Objective Progress - Add new % Progress Reports or edit the latest existing % Progress Report

Indicator Measurements - Add new measurement values or edit any existing measurement values for Indicators of Results or Targets

Indicator Classifications (Standard and Custom) - Classify Indicators or edit existing classifications of Indicators

• • Target and KEA Indicators 
  • Direct Threat Indicators
  • Result Indicators

Expenses

• • Expenses - Add new Expenses or edit existing Expenses
  • Expense Classifications - Classify Expenses or edit existing classifications of Expenses

Many of these Bulk Import data types have been added in the last few months, and we expect to add more in the coming months.

Step-by-Step guide to using Bulk Import tools

We provide a step-by-step guide here but note that for every type of Bulk Import, detailed instructions about how to import a dataset, including explanations of data fields that are required or optional can be found in Miradi Share by clicking on "Show more" under each Bulk Import Type.

Step 1: Download a template

Once you have determined the type of data you would like to work with (e.g. Progress Updates to Activities), decide whether you want to add new data or update existing data. Click on the appropriate link to download a template to work in Excel.

Step 2. Understand the template

Open the template in Excel (or another spreadsheet editor). The .xls template will include all the information you need to import your data back into Miradi Share.

It is important to note that most of the data in the template should not be edited. Miradi Share needs this information in order to properly import your new/edited data back into your Miradi project:

• Do not edit the System ID columns (shown in yellow in the example below). These are identifiers (IDs) created by Miradi and they can not be changed by you. If you edit them, Miradi will not know where to put your new data and will give you an error message when you try to import.

• Do not edit the parent information for the content you are editing (shown in orange below). For example, if you are adding or updating Activity Progress Reports, you should not edit the Project, Strategy, or Activity information. Miradi needs to know which Activity you are reporting on, and where it lives within your Miradi project.

Step 3. Add or edit your data

You are now ready to add or edit your data! In our example we are updating existing Activity Progress Reports. This means that the template you downloaded includes all the latest (or most recent) Activity Progress Reports (green columns below). This is the data you should be editing. (Note that you still should not edit the system ID in yellow. This is what Miradi  uses to find the progress report you want to edit in the online version of your project). 

If you were working with Add New Activity Progress Reports rather than Update Existing Progress Reports, the four columns with progress report data will be blank in the template you download. The spreadsheet is waiting for you to add your new updates!

You do not need to enter any information in the System ID column (yellow). Miradi will create that information when you import the data.

As you edit your spreadsheet, it can be helpful to color the cells you have edited so you know which data will need to be imported. In the below example, the edited data are in red. Note also that Excel has changed the format of the dates. That is not a problem; Miradi will know what to do when you import.

In this example we are reporting on Progress Status. You must use the terms that Miradi uses for status, e.g. On Track, Minor Issues, Completed, etc. If you forget the terms Miradi uses for Activity Progress Status, go to the Bulk Import page in Miradi Share, and double click in one of the cells in the Activity Progress Status to see your options.

Step 4 - Import your new / edited data!

Once you have added new data or edited the data in your spreadsheet template you are ready for import:

• Copy all the rows with edited or new data. Copy the entire row; not only the cells with edited or new data. It is OK to include blank cells and it is OK to include rows that have not been edited.
• Navigate back to the correct Bulk Import page. Click on the first cell in the upper left of the table and use CTRL+V to Paste your rows of data into the table.

Once your rows have been pasted in the table, you can make any final edits by double-clicking on a cell to edit. In the example below I am editing one of the dates. Note that the same rules apply in this table: Do not edit the system ID columns or any of the columns before the Progress Date column.

Now is a good time to check and see if you have properly entered the Status ratings. Any ratings that are not consistent with the Miradi Status language will not save a colored Status rating. In the example below, "Unknown" is not a Miradi term.

To change any incorrect terms, double click on the cell and use the dropdown menu to select the proper Status term.

Click IMPORT and wait for Miradi Share to tell you which rows have imported successfully (green) and which have errors (pink). In the example below, I unintentionally edited a system ID and Miradi Share has told me that there is an error with one of my rows.

To fix this issue I can find and fix the error in the row directly in the table and select IMPORT again, or I can CLEAR ALL and try pasting again only the rows that failed to import properly.