Skip to tutorial content
Rate module 4.0/5 (1)

Indicators & Scorecards

3 min read
On this page

In this lesson, you will learn:

  • What an indicator (KPI) is
  • How scores are collected over time
  • What breakdowns, targets, and scorecards are

1 Numbers with a memory

A report tells you “52 incidents are open now“. But is that good or bad? Were there 80 last month, or 30? To know, you need numbers that remember. That’s what indicators do. 🧠

Key term: Indicator (KPI)

A number you measure again and again, like “number of open incidents”. KPI means Key Performance Indicator.

Key term: Score

One value of an indicator on one day. A scheduled job collects scores, usually every night.

2 Breakdowns, targets, and scorecards

A scorecard for the indicator Number of open incidents. A line shows daily scores over 30 days, going down from 80 to 52. A dashed target line sits at 50. A note shows it dropped by 28 in 30 days, so it is improving. Below, a breakdown by assignment group shows Service Desk 24, Network 15, Hardware 9, and Database 4.
Figure 1. A scorecard shows the scores, the target, the trend, and breakdowns.
Word Meaning Example
Breakdown Splits an indicator into groups Open incidents by assignment group
Target The value you’re aiming for No more than 50 open incidents
Threshold A value that triggers an alert Warn if open incidents go over 70
Scorecard The page that shows an indicator’s scores, trend, target, and breakdowns The “open incidents” scorecard

📝 Note: Indicators come from Performance Analytics. Some ready-made indicators are included in every instance, but creating many of your own usually needs a license.

3 How it works

  1. An admin defines an indicator: what to count, from which table, with which filter.
  2. A data collection job runs, usually every night, and saves one score.
  3. Day after day, the scores build a history.
  4. Scorecards and dashboards show the trend, and compare it to the target. ✅

💡 Good to know: Because scores are collected on a schedule, a new indicator starts with no history. Admins can run a historic data collection to fill in past days.

⭐ Remember: Indicator = what you measure. Score = one day’s value. Breakdown = split by group. Target = your goal.

4 Let’s try it: read a scorecard

  1. In Platform Analytics, open the KPI or Indicators library.
  2. Open a ready-made indicator, like number of open incidents.
  3. Find its trend, any target, and its breakdowns.
  4. Pick a breakdown, like Assignment group. Which group has the most?

5 Quick recap

  • An indicator (KPI) is a number measured again and again
  • A score is collected on a schedule, building history
  • Breakdowns split scores by group. Targets set goals
  • A scorecard shows scores, trend, target, and breakdowns
  • Indicators come from Performance Analytics

6 Check yourself

Think of your answer first. Then tap to check.

1 You want to see open incidents split by team. What do you use? Show answer

A breakdown by assignment group.

2 A new indicator shows no history. Why? Show answer

Scores are collected on a schedule, so history builds from the first collection. Historic data collection can fill in past days.

3 What does KPI stand for? Show answer

Key Performance Indicator.

Nice work! You finished this lesson. 🎉

Was this lesson helpful?

Have a question or doubt?

Ask here and get help from instructors and fellow learners.

0 / 300

Only logged-in learners can post.