Goals Management in Dynamics CRM 2011 – Goal Metrics 1

Colin Maitland, 17 December 2012

In my previous blogs I have written about Goal Charts in Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011. In my next few blogs I will be writing about Goal Metrics.

I will use an example of counting the number Phone Calls successfully completed and the number of follow-up Appointments scheduled by Telemarketers.

In Microsoft Dynamics CRM, Goal Metrics are the measurement component underlying the configuration of Goals. Goal Metrics define, at the lowest level, the “what” and the “how” of measuring the actual verses in progress against a Goal Target.

The following screenshot shows the default list of Goal Metrics provided with Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011. These will be described in more detail further on in this blog.

 

The configuration of Goal Metrics includes the definition of the Metric and the definition of one to three related Rollup Fields.

The Metric defines the Name and Metric Type. The Metric Type may be either Count or Amount. Count should be used when you want to count the number of records selected by the Goal Metric. Amount should be used when you want to sum the amount of a selected field within the records selected by the Goal Metric. For example, you might use a Count Metric to count the number of Paid Invoices or an Amount Metric to sum the Total Amount of Paid Invoices.

When using an Amount Metric you must also select an Amount Data Type. This may be Money, Decimal or Integer depending on the type of value being measured in the selected field(s).

 

Rollup Fields are used to define which records and what field values are to be selected to calculate the measurement.

Three types of Rollup Fields may be defined for a Goal Metric. These are an Actual, In Progress and Custom. The two most commonly used values are the Actual and the In-Progress values. The Actual value is a measure of what has been achieved. The In Progress value is a measure of what is in progress. For example: the number of Phone Calls made (Actual) versus the number of Phone Calls scheduled (In Progress). In this example, the Custom value might also be used to measure either the number of Phone Calls cancelled or the total number of phone calls completed (both Made and Cancelled).

Which records are selected by a Rollup Field is determined by three criteria. These are the Source Record Type, Source Record Type State and Source Record Type Status. For example: for successfully completed Phone Calls these would be Phone Call, Completed and Made respectively. The use of the Source Record State and Source Record Status criteria is optional.

The following is a description of the pre-defined Goal Metrics in Microsoft Dynamics CRM 2011.

• No. of Cases. This measures the count of Resolved Cases, aggregated by Case Modified On date. This Goal Metric only measures the Actual value. When Goals that use this Goal Metric are displayed on a Goal Progress chart only the Actual value will be displayed against the Goal Target.

  

• No. of Product Units. This measure the decimal amount of Opportunity Products. The In Progress value is the sum of the quantity of Opportunity Products for Open Opportunities aggregated against the Opportunity Estimated Close Date. The Actual value is the sum of the quantity of Opportunity Products for Closed Won Opportunities aggregated against the Opportunity Actual Close Date.

  

• Revenue. This measures the money amount of estimated and actual revenue of Opportunities. The In Progress value is the sum of Estimated Revenue for Open Opportunities aggregated against the Estimated Close Date of the Opportunity. The Actual value as the sum of Actual Revenue for Closed Won Opportunities aggregated against the Opportunity Actual Close Date.

 

For both the No. of Product Units and the Revenue Goal Metrics the Actual and the In Progress values are measured. When Goals that use these Goal Metrics are displayed on a Goal Progress chart both the Actual and In Progress values will be displayed against the Goal Target.

When defining and working with goal metrics it is important to understand the difference between count and amount Goal Metrics and the concept of Actual vs. In Progress Rollup Fields. It is also important to understand the options for defining a Rollup Field.

In my next blog I will be providing a step-by-step walk-through and explanation for creating two Goal Metrics. One to measure Phone Calls made, and the other to measure Appointments scheduled, by Telemarketers.