The Data tool tracks the metrics that predict your business's success and keeps everyone accountable to meaningful numbers. However, not every user has the same level of access to create, edit, or manage Scorecards and KPIs.

This guide clarifies exactly what each user role can and cannot do within the Data tool, helping you set up the right permissions for your team.

Quick Reference: Who Can Do What?

*Managers can only access the KPI Manager for teams they're assigned to.

Understanding User Roles in the Data tool

Observer Role

What Observers Can Do:

• View Scorecard data for teams they're assigned to.
• See historical trends and weekly performance.
• Participate in meetings where Scorecards are reviewed.

What Observers Cannot Do:

• Update KPI values.
• Create or edit any KPIs.
• Access the KPI Manager.
• Make any changes to a Scorecard's structure or organization.

Why This Matters:
The Observer role is ideal for stakeholders, board members, coaches, or team members who require visibility into team performance but do not need to be responsible for updating or managing the metrics. They can see the pulse of the business without the ability to change it.

Common Use Case:
A board member reviews the Leadership Team's weekly Scorecard during quarterly meetings to track company progress without needing to input data.

Managee (Team Member) Role

What Team Members Can Do:

• Update existing KPIs they're assigned to on their teams' Scorecards.
• Enter weekly data for their own KPIs.
• View Scorecard data for their assigned teams.
• See if their metrics are on or off track.
• Add details to a KPI's details panel.

What Team Members Cannot Do:

• Create new KPIs.
• Archive or delete KPIs.
• Access Scorecards for teams they're not assigned to.
• Reorganize or structure Scorecards.

Why This Matters:
Team Members have just enough access to be accountable for their numbers without the ability to change the structure. This keeps Scorecards stable while ensuring everyone can report on their data.

Common Use Case:
A sales team member updates their weekly "Number of Sales Calls" KPI every Friday, but cannot create a new KPI that the team decides to keep track of during the Weekly Team Meeting.

Manager Role

What Managers Can Do:

• Everything Team Members can do.
• Create new KPIs for their teams.
• Edit KPI settings (title, goal, owner, frequency, data type).
• Add existing KPIs from other teams to their Scorecard.
• Organize and structure their team's Scorecards.
• Archive KPIs (preserve historical data while removing it from active view).
• Access the KPI Manager for the teams they manage.
• Assign KPI ownership to team members.

What Managers Cannot Do:

• Access Scorecards for teams they're not assigned to or managing.
• Make company-wide changes to KPI settings.
• Override restrictions set by Admins or Owners.
• Access the company-wide KPI Manager.

Why This Matters:
Managers have full control over the Data tool for their specific teams. This allows them to build, refine, and evolve their department's Scorecards without needing to request help from company Admins every time they want to add or adjust a metric.

Common Use Case:
A department head realizes they need to track "Customer Onboarding Time" to predict service quality. As a Manager, they can create this new KPI, set the goal, assign an owner, and add it to their team's Scorecard immediately.

Admin and Owner Roles

What Admins and Owners Can Do:

• Everything Managers can do.
• Access the company-wide KPI Manager.
• Use the KPI Managerto access and edit any team's KPIs.
• Delete KPIs permanently (as opposed to archiving).
• Implement structural changes to the organization of the Data tool company-wide.

What Makes These Roles Different:
These roles have unrestricted access to the Data tool across your entire company. They can see, edit, and manage every Scorecard, every KPI, and every piece of data — essential for company-wide oversight and strategic decision-making.

Common Use Cases:

• The company Owner creates a KPI for "Weekly Revenue" that appears on both the Leadership Team and Finance Department Scorecards.
• An Admin reorganizes how KPIs are categorized in the KPI Manager to improve reporting.
• A Coach reviews all departmental Scorecards to identify where teams need support with goal-setting or metric design.

Key Concepts: Permissions in Action

Creating vs. Updating KPIs

Creating a KPI means building a new KPI from scratch — defining what you'll track, setting the goal, choosing an owner, and determining frequency. This requires Manager-level permissions or higher.

Updating a KPI means entering data for an existing KPI. Any licensed user (Team Member or above) can update it with new values.

Why the Distinction Matters:
You want stability in what you're measuring (that's why only Managers and above can create KPIs), but you need flexibility in who can report data (that's why Team Members can update).

Sharing KPIs Across Teams

One powerful feature of Ninety's Data tool is the ability to share the same KPI across multiple teams. For example, "Weekly Revenue" might appear on the Leadership Team Scorecard, the Finance Department Scorecard, and the Sales Team Scorecard.

Who Can Share KPIs:
Users with Manager or higher permissions can add an existing KPI to one of their Scorecards. Here's how:

1. Navigate to the target team's Scorecard.
2. Click "New KPI" and select Add Existing KPI.
3. Search for the KPI you want to share.
4. Add it to the team.

Important:
When you share a KPI, all teams see the same data. If someone updates "Weekly Revenue" on the Finance Scorecard, that update appears on the Leadership Team and Sales Team Scorecards too.

The KPI Manager

The KPI Manager is a powerful tool for organizing, filtering, and managing all your company's KPIs in one place. It allows you to view KPIs by owner, team, status (active vs. archived), and more.

Who Can Access It:

• Admins and Owners can access the KPI Manager to view and act upon KPIs from any team across the organization.
• Coachs can also access the KPI Manager.

Why You'd Use It:

• Archive old KPIs that are no longer relevant.
• Reassign ownership of KPIs when roles change.
• Find KPIs to add to other team Scorecards.
• Clean up your My 90 personal dashboard.
• Review all active KPIs across your organization.
• Examine all KPIs owned by a specific user.

Common Scorecard Permission Scenarios and Solutions

Scenario 1: "I can't create a KPI for my team."

Likely Cause:
Your user role is set to Team Member or Observer.

Solution:
You need Manager-level permissions or higher. Contact your company Admin or Owner to:

• Upgrade your role to Manager for your team, or
• Have them create the KPI on your behalf.

Scenario 2: "I want to hide old KPIs without losing historical data."

Solution:
Use the Archive function instead of deleting. Archiving removes the KPI from your active Scorecard but preserves all historical data for reporting and analysis.

Who Can Archive:
Only Admins, Owners, and Coachs can archive a KPI, and only from the KPI Manager.

How to Archive:

1. Go to the KPI Manager.
2. Find the KPI you want to archive.
3. Click the three-dot menu next to it.
4. Select "Archive."

The KPI will be removed from your Scorecard but will remain accessible in the KPI Manager, with all its historical data intact.

Best Practices for Managing Scorecard Permissions

1. Start with Team Members, promote to Manager when needed

Don't give everyone Manager permissions by default. Start most users as Team Members who can update their own KPIs. Promote individuals to Manager when they need to create or restructure Scorecards.

2. Use Observers for stakeholders who need visibility, not accountability

If someone should see the data but not be responsible for updating or managing it (board members, external coaches, advisors), assign them the Observer role.

3. Assign clear ownership

Every KPI should have one — and only one — owner. That person drives the number and reports on it. Clear ownership prevents confusion about who is responsible for updating which metrics.

4. Review permissions quarterly

As your team grows and roles change, review user permissions at least once per quarter. Someone promoted to a leadership role may need Manager access. Someone who left a team may still have unnecessary access to that team's Scorecard.

5. Archive, don't delete

When a KPI is no longer relevant, archive it instead of deleting it. This preserves your historical data for year-over-year comparisons and ensures you can always look back at past performance.

Subscription Plan Requirements

Access to the Data tool depends on your subscription plan:

• Free Plan: No access to the Data tool.
• Essentials Plan: Full access to Scorecards and KPIs (with appropriate user role permissions).
• Accelerate Plan: Full access to Scorecards and KPIs (with appropriate user role permissions).
• Thrive Plan: Full access to Scorecards and KPIs (with appropriate user role permissions).

If you're on the Free plan and want to use Scorecards, you'll need to upgrade to at least Essentials.

Frequently Asked Questions