Siebel Performance Management Guide > Setting Up and Administering Performance Scorecard >

Working with the KPI Administration Screen

KPIs are defined using the Administration - Key Performance Indicators screen. Figure 9 shows the KPI Administration screen, its associated views, the link bar, and the Refresh, Synchronize, and Track buttons. Using the KPI Definitions list, the administrator defines a KPI and its attributes.

Key fields include the following:

• The Global Value field in the More Info form holds the current value for a Global KPI.
• The Global Employee Value field in the Global Employee KPI view holds the current value for Employee Specific KPIs.
• The Employee Objective KPI view holds the value of the KPI for that specific employee for that specific time period.

  Figure 9. Key Performance Indicators Administration Screen

Refresh and Refresh All Buttons

The KPI Value is derived from one of three sources. If the Update Method is Siebel Analytics, the Performance Scorecard application asks Siebel Analytics to retrieve the value for the KPI and return the value to the Siebel Data Model. This process is called Refresh. The refresh process uses a functionality called Analytics Data Load and occurs automatically on a scheduled basis defined by the update frequency. The workflows that are automated during installation handle the automatic portion of this process.

You can manually initiate the Refresh process for an individual KPI by clicking the Refresh button. Clicking Refresh All updates all the KPIs with Update Method of Siebel Analytics and can impact performance. Depending on how many KPIs you are refreshing, the process can take an extended period of time, typically one to two minutes for each KPI.

Synchronize and Synchronize All Buttons

The synchronization process for KPIs automatically occurs during the Refresh process with the Siebel Analytics Update Method.

To keep the Employee Objective KPI Values current, administrators can manually synchronize the value from the Global Employee KPI view or from the More Info view by changing the value in the Global value field using KPI Administration, and then clicking Synchronize. The Objective KPI value is updated in Employee Objective KPIs list view. Manual synchronization is performed for individual KPIs by clicking Synchronize, or using Synchronize All to synchronize all the KPIs at one time.

Synchronization only updates the value in the Employee Objective KPI view for KPIs associated with objectives in the current period that have Employee KPI Start Date earlier than the current date and an Employee KPI End Date after the current date.

Track and Track All Buttons

An organization's executives and managers track KPI trends using the charts in the Performance Scorecard view. The tracking frequency is defined for each KPI, and this value determines how frequently the application records the KPI value. For example, if managers want to see a weekly trend chart for a particular KPI, the administrator sets the tracking frequency to weekly.

You can manually track a KPI Value at a specific time using the Track button. Track All records the value for all KPIs. Depending on the number of KPIs, using Track All can impact performance. Using Track and Track All has no effect on the tracking frequency.

NOTE:  To see a history of values for a KPI, you must query the database directly. You can also configure a view to show a history of values for a KPI.

Performance Scorecard Reference includes figures that show the processes that occur when users click the Refresh, Track, or Synchronize buttons. The appendix also includes technical references.

Value Last Update Time Stamp

The Value Last Update time stamp shows the last time the KPI Value (either the Global Value or the Global Employee KPI Value) changed. The change can either be the last time the Refresh button was clicked for a KPI with an Update Method of Analytics, or the last time the automatic Refresh process took place. You can determine the next time the KPI Value is refreshed by adding the update frequency to the Value Last Update field. This field can be found in the Global Employee KPI view and the More Info view.

The Value Last Update time stamp also changes when an administrator manually changes the KPI Value.

Value Last Track Time Stamp

The Value Last Track time stamp shows the last time the KPI Value was recorded in history. You can predict the next time it will be tracked based on the tracking frequency and the Value Last Track time stamp. Clicking the Track button updates the timestamp.

Employee Objective KPIs View

This read-only view, used as a reference by administrators, shows all of the Employee Objective KPI records. The view lists each employee who has selected a specific KPI for a specific period, and how well the employee performed during that period. The value field is specific to the KPI for the employee for a specific time period.

To synchronize the overall KPI value with the employee objective KPI value for the current objective period, change the value in Global value field in KPI Administration and click synchronize. The Objective KPI value gets updated in Employee Objective KPIs list view. For manual KPIs, this is a required step. For KPIs that are updated using Siebel Analytics, synchronization automatically occurs when the KPI is refreshed from Siebel Analytics. (A manual synchronization is not required for a KPI that has an Update Method of Siebel Analytics.) For more information, see Refresh and Refresh All Buttons and Synchronize and Synchronize All Buttons.

Load History View

This view is useful when troubleshooting or auditing a KPI that has an Update Method of Siebel Analytics. Each time that specific KPI is refreshed from Siebel Analytics, the load history view records the following:

• Load errors. If load errors occur, these errors are listed.
• The number of rows loaded. For example, if you are expecting 100 employee rows to be loaded, but only 30 rows are loaded then you know that there may be a problem with the KPI Request in Siebel Analytics.
• The task start and end time. You can determine if the Siebel Analytics Server is spending an excessive amount of time on a specific KPI Request. You can also correlate the start and end time with the Value Last Update field.