Objective Configuration Details

An Objective represents an overall performance goal that is defined by an executive. An Objective is a heading for a group of KPIs of different types that can represent different aspects of the goal.

Each aspect is measured by a different KPI type (for example: PC purchase time, and more). These KPIs provide values, trends, and statuses.

An Objective always shows the status of a performance goal, but does not display a performance actual value. In a typical Scorecard, Objectives show cumulative performance indicators that roll up the scores of KPIs. On a Scorecard, Objectives appear at the top level of a KPI hierarchy.

Objectives should be “SMART” (Specific, Measurable, Action-Oriented, Realistic, and Time Bound). This distinction makes it possible to know if you have met your objective.

Parent-child dependency:

An Objective is a parent unit for its KPIs. An Objective uses a specific rule for the calculation of its results. The rule is based on the child KPIs score results. The available parent-child rules are:

• BEST_CHILD – The parent Objective result corresponds to the highest score of its child KPIs score values.
• WORST_CHILD – The parent Objective result corresponds to the worst score of its child KPIs score values.
• WEIGHTED_AVERAGE – The parent Objective result is the average value of its weighted child KPIs score values.

Changes in the STUDIO have impacts on the display in Dashboard and EXPLORER. For details, see Synchronization of Changes in the Studio with Display in the Dashboard and the EXPLORER tab.

To customize the node:

1. Click the Studio button (top right corner) to open the Studio.
2. In the Active KPIs pane, select the relevant node. Its details are displayed in the Configuration Details pane.
3. Modify the node's details and click Save to save the changes.

1. Click the Studio button (top right corner) to open the Studio.
2. In the Active KPIs pane, select the relevant node. Its details are displayed in the Configuration Details pane.

3. You can also populate the node by adding or removing the following nodes:

   1. KPIs. For details, see KPI or Metric Configuration and Calculation Details.

      You might consider sharing KPIs between Objectives. For details, see Shared KPIs.

   2. KPI Breakdowns. For details, see KPI Breakdowns.

1. Click the Studio button (top right corner) to open the Studio.
2. In the Active KPIs pane, select the Objective whose calculation rule you want to configure.

3. In the right pane, in the Configuration Details tab in the Calculate using field, select one of the available calculation rules:

   • BEST_CHILD – if you want to base the Objective calculation of the child KPI with the best score.
   • WORST_CHILD – if you want to base the Objective calculation of the child KPI with the worst score.
   • WEIGHTED_AVERAGE – if you want to base the Objective calculation of the average of the child KPI's scores.
4. You can specify the weights of specific KPIs to increase their influence on the calculation.
5. Click Save to save your configuration and to perform the calculation of the Objective to reflect its changes in the Dashboard.

The calculation result of an Objective is based on its KPIs, so the Calculation Period of an Objective and of its KPIs must be the same. If an Objective has KPIs you cannot change its Calculation Period and you cannot change its KPIs Calculation Period directly. To change the Calculation Period of the Objective or of its KPIs, go to STUDIO:

1. In the Active KPIs, unassign the KPI from the Objective as follows:

   1. Right-click the KPI and select Delete.

   2. Select Un-assign this specific KPI from the Objective, and click Yes.

      The KPI is then moved to the Public Metrics and KPIs folder.

2. Change the Calculation Period of either the Objective or of the KPI to match.
3. Click the Objective and click Add KPI. Select the relevant KPI and click the arrow to move the KPI to Assigned KPIs, and click OK.

1. In the Active KPIs pane, select an Objective.
2. In the Configuration Details tab, in the Assigned KPIs section, click the Un-assign button for the relevant KPI. The KPI immediately disappears from the KPIs table.
3. To save the changes you must save the Objective by clicking Save.

User interface elements are described below (when relevant, unlabeled elements are shown in angle brackets):

UI Element	Description
Navigate to the source template	Moves the cursor to the template that was used to create the current Objective, in the KPI Library pane. The details of the template are displayed in the Configuration Details pane.
Save	Click to save the changes.
Discard	Click to discard the changes you have made since the last Save operation.
	Click to refresh the display.
General - Objective
Name	The name of the active Objective. Limitations: The characters: \ / : * ? " < > | are not supported. The maximum number of characters is 240.
Description	The description of the Objective. Limitations: The maximum number of characters is 1000.
Id	The ID number of the Objective. It is automatically assigned. This information is displayed only when in debug mode. To set the debug mode, click ADMIN > Settings > BA Settings, and in Debug Mode, select the Application Debug Mode setting.
Type	The type of the Objective. It is automatically assigned. This information is displayed only when in debug mode. To set the debug mode, click ADMIN > Settings > BA Settings, and in Debug Mode, select the Application Debug Mode setting.
Calculation Period	The calculation period of the Objective.  Since an Objective and its children must have the same calculation period, you can modify the value in this field only when the Objective does not have child KPIs or Objectives.
Calculate Using	The type of rule to use to calculate the Objective's score according to the scores of its children. You can select: Worst child. The Objective score is the worst score of all the KPIs assigned to the parent Objective (when the Objective has child KPIs) or of the Objectives assigned to the parent Objective. Best child. The Objective score is the best score of all the KPIs assigned to the parent Objective (when the Objective has child KPIs) or of the Objectives assigned to the parent Objective. Weighted average. The Objective score is the average of the scores of the KPIs assigned to the parent Objective multiplied by the relevant weights, or if the Objective has child Objectives, the average of the scores of the child Objectives multiplied by the relevant weights. When you select this rule in the Studio, an additional column (Weight) where the user can configure the weight of each child (Objective or KPI) for the weighted average calculation. When you select this value a note is displayed explaining what is weighted average.
Assigned KPIs. Lists the KPIs assigned to the selected active Objective.
Add KPI	Click to open the Assign KPI to Objective dialog box where you can assign the relevant KPIs to the current Objective. For details, see Objective KPIs.
<Table>	The table lists: Name. The KPIs assigned to the Objective. Weight. This column is displayed only when you select Weighted Average in the Calculate Using field in the General - Objective area. Enter the weight you want to use for the KPI in the calculation of the Objective score. You can click the Weight value in the Assigned KPIs table to open a box where you can change the weight. After you have changed the value of the weight, the Save and Discard buttons are enabled. To save the changes you must save the Objective by clicking Save. Click to unassign the KPI. The list of KPIs in the Assign KPIs area is immediately updated. The Save and Discard buttons becomes enabled. To save the changes you must save the Objective by clicking Save.
Additional Details
Additional Info	Lists the additional information available for the Objective. It can be links to BO or Xcelcius reports, external links, or links to Dashboard pages. The table includes: Name.The name of the link, the Dashboard page, the reports, or the name of the URL. URL. The hyperlink to access additional external information. Click the link to open the Edit Info Link dialog box where you can edit the selected additional information. For details, see KPI or Objective Additional Information. Click to delete the selected additional information.
Owner	The owner of the active Objective.  The list of available owners corresponds to the users that were defined in ADMIN > Users and Roles > User Management. For details, see Users and Roles - User Management
Add Info	Click to open the Add Info Link dialog box where you can add additional information for the Objective. For details, see KPI or Objective Additional Information.