Using the Data Tool
Everything you need to know about data, Scorecards, and KPIs in Ninety.
Table of Contents
The Data Tool
The Data tool simplifies setting up and managing your team’s Scorecard to keep track of goals on five levels:
- Organization-wide
- Leadership Team
- Departmental
- Teams
- Individuals
Reviewing the Data tool every week is a critical function of team meetings.
Primary Functions of the Data Tool
The primary functions of the Data tool include:
- Creating KPIs
- Customizing Scorecards
- Organizing Scorecards
- Editing KPIs
- Maintaining KPIs
- Goal Forecasting
- Removing KPIs
📖 Are you new to the Data Tool? Check out our introduction article here.
Operating Scorecards According to Your User Role
The functionality of the Data tool changes based on each user's role in Ninety. Click here for a basic understanding of user permissions for this tool.
Adding KPIs to Your Team's Scorecard
There are two ways to populate your team's Scorecard with KPIs:
- Creating brand new-to-your-organization KPIs
- Adding KPIs created and used by other teams
Creating New KPIs
- Click Data from the left navigation.
- Select a team from the dropdown.
- Choose a Scorecard (Weekly, Trailing, Monthly, Quarterly, or Annual).
- Click the plus sign.
- Click Create and Add a New KPI.
- Enter the title and other information.
- Click Save.
Adding Existing KPIs
- Click Data from the left navigation.
- Select a team from the dropdown.
- Choose a Scorecard (Weekly, Trailing, Monthly, Quarterly, or Annual).
- Click the plus sign.
- Click Add an Existing KPI.
- Search for and then click the Measurable you wish to add.
- Click Save.
Customizing Your Scorecards
To customize your team’s Scorecard
- Click Data from the left navigation.
- Choose your team from the dropdown.
- Click the gear icon on the right of the Filters bar.
Changing any of the Data tool settings affects all the team's Scorecards (Weekly, Trailing, Monthly, Quarterly, and Annual).
Hide Current Week
Hide the current week’s column from your team’s Scorecard by clicking the toggle to its active position.
A similar feature is available for the Monthly, Quarterly, and Annual Scorecard tabs.
Trailing Scorecard
With Trailing Scorecard enabled, you have an additional Scorecard tab in the Data tool: Trailing 4 & 13 Weeks.
Add pre-existing weekly KPIs to this tab to see real-time calculations of the Measurable over trailing 4 or 13-week periods. Each KPI's goal and scores are carried over directly from their weekly Scorecards.
To add a pre-existing Measurable to your Trailing Scorecard:
- Click Data from the left navigation.
- Select a team from the dropdown.
- Click the Trailing Scorecard tab.
- Click the plus sign.
- Click Add an Existing KPI.
- Search for and then click the KPI you wish to add.
- Click Save.
To populate all your team’s non-smart Weekly KPIs to your Trailing Scorecard:
- Click Data from the left navigation.
- Select a team from the dropdown.
- Click the Trailing Scorecard tab.
- Click the plus sign.
- Click Add all Non-Smart KPIs from Weekly Scorecard.
- Click Save.
Displaying the Average or the Total
You can choose to display the average or the total for each KPI.
To turn on or off the average or total column:
- Click the gear icon on the right of the Filters bar.
- Use the toggles to turn on or off a column.
If you have both columns on, you may want to disable one of the columns for a particular KPI. For example, any KPIs based on a percentage would only benefit from the average column, and some CSAT KPIs do not need the total column.
To turn on or off the average or total column on an individual KPI:
- Click on the KPI to open its details card.
- Click the toggle.
Measurable Total Column
Enabling the KPI Total column adds a column to all the team’s Scorecards to show the sum total of each KPI.
To change the number of reporting periods for the KPIs on a Scorecard, click the dropdown on the top right and choose your preferred option.
Measurable Average Column
Enabling the KPI Average column adds a column to all the team’s Scorecards to show the average score of each KPI.
To change the number of reporting periods for the KPIs on a Scorecard, click the dropdown on the top right and choose your preferred option.
KPI Status Color
When the KPI Status Color Indicator toggle in Data Settings is toggled on, a vertical, colored line appears on the far left of each KPI on the team’s Scorecard. The status color is based on each KPI's goal — often called its target.
🟩 Green indicates the KPI has been on track for the previous three reporting intervals.
🟨 Yellow indicates the KPI was off track at least once over the previous three reporting intervals.
🟥 Red indicates the KPI was off track for the previous three reporting intervals.
Changing the Start Day
Choose the start day for Weekly KPIs that best fits your organization.
There are two ways to change your Scorecard’s start day, changing it in the Data tool or changing it organization-wide through company settings.
To change it in the Data tool:
- Click Data from the left navigation.
- Click the gear icon on the right of the Filters bar.
- Click the KPI Weekly Start Day dropdown.
- Click a weekday.
Or, to change it in your company’s settings — which changes the start day for the whole organization in Ninety:
- Click your name from the bottom of the left navigation.
- Click Company Settings.
- Click the KPI Weekly Start Day dropdown.
- Click a weekday.
Changing the start day for your Scorecard’s reporting period affects all historical Scorecards.
Organizing Your Scorecards
Organize your Scorecards by dragging and dropping KPIs into the order that most benefits your team.
To drag and drop KPIs
- Click the Drag and Drop toggle on.
- Hover over the KPI you want to move.
- Click and hold the 12 dot icon on the far left of the KPI's row.
- While holding the click, move your cursor to drag the KPI up or down.
To add line breaks between groups of KPIs
- Ensure the Drag and Drop toggle is on.
- Hover over the bottom KPI of an identified group.
- Click the bolded line icon on the far left of the KPI's row.
Editing or Changing KPIs
While editing KPIs, all changes are saved automatically.
To edit an existing Measurable
- Click Data from the left navigation.
- Select a team from the dropdown.
- Click on the KPI you wish to edit.
- Change any of the following details:
- Title
- Description
- Unit of measurement
- Goal information
- KPI owner and their Seat
- Make it smart
📖 Read this article to learn more about smart KPIs.
Maintaining Your KPIs
All licensed users can be assigned (own) KPIs and input data for any of their team's KPIs. You can input scores for your KPIs from the My 90 page or the Data tool page. Your My 90 workspace shows all the KPIs you own across every team.
To add scores in My 90
- Click My 90 from the left navigation.
- Scroll to the Scorecard section.
- Type in your scores to the corresponding KPI and reporting period cell.
- Click the Period Interval dropdown to access your Trailing, Monthly, Quarterly, and Annual Scorecards.
To enter scores using the Data tool
- Click Data from the left navigation.
- Choose a team from the Team dropdown.
- Click another Scorecard tab to switch away from the Weekly Scorecard.
- Locate the KPI.
- Type the score in the reporting period cell.
Adding Notes to a KPI's Entry
All licensed users can add notes to KPIs. Having notes available to provide extra context for a KPI's progress over time helps save time in meetings by having documentation readily available.
To add a note to a KPI
- Click Data from the left navigation.
- Choose your team from the dropdown.
- Choose a Scorecard (Weekly, Trailing, Monthly, Quarterly, or Annual).
- Click the magnifying glass on the top left of an individual cell on a KPI's row.
- Write your notes.
- Click Save.
Editing any instance of a KPI changes it on every Scorecard.
Customizing a KPI's Goal for One Reporting Period
You can create a custom goal on a KPI. Similar to forecasting, custom goals allow users to account for absences, holidays, and other exceptions.
To customize a KPI's goal for a single reporting period:
- Click Data from the left navigation.
- Choose a team from the Team dropdown.
- Click the magnifying glass in the top left corner of a KPI's reporting period cell.
- Write a custom goal or add a note.
- Click Save.
Goal Forecasting
Goal Forecasting allows you to plan ahead. Companies that have busy or slow seasons can use this feature to keep goals on track and note their forecasted seasonal goals.
Creating a Goal Forecast doesn't change the entire goal, only the goal for the specified timeframe.
A common example is to account for Team Member vacations. If Sarah, who is responsible for authoring articles, is going to be out for two weeks in May, you can create a forecast of 0 new articles with a note of "Out of Office." This keeps Sarah's KPI on track and accurate during her vacation. Once the two weeks are up, her goal automatically goes back to the set number of articles per week.
Creating a Goal Forecast
You must have Manager or higher-level permissions to create or edit a Goal Forecast. We recommend filling in the Notes section of a forecast so you can see why the goal was changed from its normal Scorecard.
- Click Data from the left navigation.
- Choose a team from the Team dropdown.
- Click the graph icon from the filters bar.
- Click a reporting period on a KPI's row.
- Click the paper icon to add a note.
- Click anywhere else on the screen or tap the enter key on your keyboard to save.
- Once the forecast is added, it automatically displays on the Scorecard.
Removing KPIs
There are two ways to remove a KPI from a Scorecard.
- Permanently delete a KPI
- Remove a KPI from a single Scorecard
Permanently Delete
Only a KPI's owner can delete it.
- Click My 90 from the left navigation.
- Right-click the KPI you want to delete.
- Click Delete KPI from Scorecard.
- Click I understand… Delete anyway.
Deleting a KPI removes it from each Scorecard it's on, any Processes it's linked to, and your Vision if it's used there.
Remove from a Scorecard
You can remove a KPI from a Scorecard from the My 90 workspace or the Data tool.
- Click on the KPI you want to remove.
- Click the three dots at the top of the popup.
- Click Remove KPI from Scorecard.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What does it mean to own a KPI?
To “own” a KPI means to be accountable for its success. Each KPI's owner has their profile picture featured on the Scorecard. KPI owners should create an Issue about their KPI whenever it’s off track, needs updating, or has consistently surpassed its target.
How do I change a KPI's owner?
There are two ways to change a KPI's owner:
- Click the KPI to open its details card.
- Click the profile photo on the top right of the card.
- Hover over a Seat from the dropdown.
- Click one of the users who occupy that Seat.
Or:
- Click the KPI to open its details card.
- Click the KPI Owner dropdown toward the bottom of the details card.
- Choose a Team Member.
- (Optional) Select the relevant Seat from the Seat dropdown if this user sits in multiple Seats.
How do I add the trailing Scorecards?
To add a Trailing Scorecard for your team:
- Click Data from the left navigation.
- Choose your team from the dropdown.
- Click the gear icon on the right of the Filters bar.
- Click the Trailing Data toggle on.