Goals Management – Adding Stretch Targets To Personal Goal Progress Charts

Colin Maitland, 29 October 2012

Previously I wrote about some of the predefined charts available in Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 for monitoring Goal Progress. These charts cannot be recreated or modified using the Chart Designer in Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011. In this blog I will be providing instructions for modifying the Goal Progress charts so that in addition to displaying the Target, they also display the Stretch Target as shown by the red square in the image below.

  

In Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011 Stretch Targets may be defined in addition to Targets. These are targets set for users, teams of departments that though achievable, stretch beyond what is normally expected to be achieved. 

Stretch targets can be defined by completing two simple steps: 

1. For the Goal Metric that will be used by any Goals for which you want to define Stretch Targets, select the Track Stretch Target option.

  

2. For any Goals for which you want to define Stretch Targets set the Stretch Target value.

 

When customising an existing Goal Progress chart you have the option of either replacing or keeping the original chart. If keeping the original chart, you also have the option of either adding your customised chart as personal or as a system chart. 

In the following example, I will describe the steps for creating a new personal Goal Progress chart based on an existing system Goal Progress chart. In my next blog I will describe the steps for creating a new system Goal Progress chart based on an existing system Goal Progress chart. In both cases the new chart will have the Stretch Target value added to it. 

1. From the navigation pane in Microsoft Dynamics CRM, select Sales, Goals.

2. From the Goals area, expand the Charts area and then select the Charts tab.

3. From the Charts area, select the Goal Progress (Money) chart.

4. From the Charts tab, click Export Chart.

  

5. When prompted to Save the chart, choose instead to Save As and save the Goal Progress (Money).xml in a location of your choice.

6. Using Windows Explorer, locate your saved copy of the Goal Progress (Money).xml chart and make a copy of it. E.g. Name the copy, Goal Progress (Money) Stretch Target.xml.

7. Using an XML editor, or using Notepad, open the Goal Progress (Money) Stretch Target.xml file.

8. Locate the <name> tag below the <visualizationid> tag and change the name to Goal Progress (Money) Stretch Target.

9. Locate the <description> tag below the <name> tag and change the description to Shows the actual and estimated revenue against the target and stretch target.

 

10.     Locate, and if required expand, the <datadescription> section and add the following entry to the <entity name="goal">

<attributename>="stretchtargetmoney"/>

and  in the  <category> section add the entry below:

<measurecollection>
        <measure alias="stretchtargetmoney"/>
</measurecollection>

 

11. Locate, and if required expand, the <presentationdescription> section and add the following entry to the <series> section as shown below:

<Series ChartType="Point" MarkerStyle="Square" Name="Stretch Target" MarkerBorderWidth="4" MarkerBorderColor="255, 0, 0" MarkerColor="255,255,255" MarkerSize="8">
<SmartLabelStyle Enabled="True" />
</Series>

  

12. Save and close the Goal Progress (Money) Stretch Target.xml file.

13. From the navigation pane in Microsoft Dynamics CRM, select Sales, Goals.

14. From the Goals area, expand the Charts area and then select the Charts tab.

15. From the Charts tab, click Import Chart.

  

16. When prompted, browse to and select the Goal Progress (Money) with Stretch Target.xml file and then click OK.

 

17. If a Duplicate found prompt is displayed, click Keep Both.

  

18. When the Import Chart prompt is displayed, click Import.

  

19. The chart will now be imported. Click Close when finished.

  

The updated Goal Progress chart, showing the Stretch Target value, will now be available in Microsoft Dynamics CRM as a personal chart.

  

If desired, you can complete the same steps for the Goal Progress (Count) chart except you will need to use the following values for the name and description:

<name>Goal Progress (Count) Stretch Target</name>
<description>Shows the actual and estimated count against the target and stretch target.</description>

… and the following values for the attribute name and measure alias:

<attributename>="stretchtargetinteger"/>

<measurecollection>
        <measure alias="stretchtargetinteger"/>
</measurecollection>

The Series Chart Type section remains the same as for the updated Goal Progress (Money) chart: 

<Series ChartType="Point" MarkerStyle="Square" Name="Stretch Target" MarkerBorderWidth="4" MarkerBorderColor="255, 0, 0" MarkerColor="255,255,255" MarkerSize="8">
<SmartLabelStyle Enabled="True" />
</Series>

In my next blog I will describe how to import these updated charts as system charts rather than as personal charts.