About Critical Numbers

Critical numbers are key performance indicators, or KPIs, that you can use to get a quick view of important statistics or track progress. Use critical numbers to answer questions like these:

How am I doing?
What should I be doing?
Where are things in jeopardy?

Critical numbers are based on stored procedure calculations or on IDO calculations. With the appropriate permissions, you can add critical numbers to forms. The system is designed to support both simple and complex critical numbers to meet a wide range of users and needs.

For example, within the IDO critical number definitions, you can quickly generate numbers based on this information:

The sum, count, average, minimum or maximum of a value
The Group By and Date Range properties
Comparisons with other properties on the form

You can see the details behind the critical number using an "enhanced drilldown" and do further analysis on issues you discover.

Where Critical Numbers Can Be Used

Critical numbers can also be added as widgets on a user's Start form.

Critical numbers can be surfaced as Infor Ming.le widgets, or used as widgets in the Infor Ming.le HomePages. Use the User Critical Number Selection form to configure this.

Critical Number Definitions

Before they can be used to display data on a form, critical numbers must be defined. Critical numbers are defined using the Critical Numbers Setup form. On that form, the basic process is to:

Specify a source for the data that is to be used.
Define how the critical number's actual value is to be calculated.
Determine whether you want to use Goal and Alert settings, and if so, how.
See About Critical Number Goals and Alerts.
Optionally, you can also include this information:
- Specify what critical number drilldowns are to be used when the user seeks more information about how the critical number was calculated and what it means.
  See About Critical Number Drilldowns.
- Determine what groups and users will have access to the critical number data, using critical number categories and individual user or group assignments.
  Viewing a critical number is controlled by the permissions set for the specific number. User or group permissions can be set for a category of critical numbers on the Critical Number Category form, or user permissions can be set for a specific number on the Critical Number Setup form.
- Define critical number parameters and how they will be used in critical number calculations and displays.
  See Setting Up a Critical Number Drilldown.
- Determine and set up filters to be used in retrieving critical number data.
  See Setting Up a Critical Number/Drilldown IDO Filter.
- Specify whether "snapshots" of critical number values should be captured whenever the critical number is queried for.
  See About Critical Number Snapshots.

For the complete procedure to define a critical number, see Defining a Critical Number.

Goal and Alert Settings

Critical numbers are color-coded to show their goal and alert status. These colors are used by default:

Red: The value of the number is in the alert or critical range.
Yellow: The value of the number is in the warning range.
Green: The value of the number is within the normal or ideal range.
Gray: The number represents an "informational" value only.

You can change these colors. Use themes to do this.

See About Themes.