Why use Targets?
What if there was a way for you to view and track the essential metrics about the current and future sales trajectory of your users and teams based on their real-life past performance?
How about if, in that same view, you could instantly see how many Opportunities a user needs to create to be able to achieve their Target with the number calculated using their own individual win rate?
Would you be interested in being able to use evidence-based, clear and specific numbers to help manage the performance of your Sales and Business Development teams?
If you’re answering “Yes” (and who wouldn’t?!), you need to be using our new Targets.
Targets are designed to help you track the performance of users or teams (groups of users) using data from the Leads and Opportunities that they are working on in Pipeliner.
When you create a new Target, it will be pre-populated with data based on the historical performance of the selected user(s). Working within a draft Target, you can change values and see the immediate impact on predicted performance. “Activate” a Target to set it live within Pipeliner and then use it to monitor real-time performance.
Select the Target Type to focus on Revenue figures for Sales Users or Lead metrics for Business Development Reps
Focus on individual performance with User Targets or team performance using Group Targets. For example:
Create a quarterly revenue User Target for a salesperson to track their progress over that period
Create an annual revenue Group Target for the entire sales team to track the team’s performance over the course of the year.
NOTE: Targets is included by default for Unlimited Tier customers and is available as a paid-for add-on for customers on our other Tiers.
Overview
Each target consists of these essential parts:
Target value - whether pre-calculated or a custom value that you enter, this defines the upper limit of what should be achieved
Achieved value - based on the real Opportunity or Lead data that the user(s) created or updated within the time Period
Period - a start date and end date for the Target. Target will operate within this period
Assigned user - the user for whom the target is created ⤵
Target Type
A Target can be based on one of the three Target Types:
Revenue - looks at revenue amounts associated with Opportunities
Leads Qualified - based on the number of Leads qualified to become Opportunities
Leads Created - based on the number of Leads generated
Each type has its own predefined calculations.
Target Status
Draft - the Target is editable, tracking is off
Active - the Target is read only, tracking is enabled. An Active Target has one of the following states:
Not started - the Target Start Date is in the future
In progress - Start Date is in the past but the End Date is in the future
Finished - End date is in the past or it has been manually updated to Finished
Once a Target is Activated, it cannot be put back to Draft.
Creating a User Target
Click on the Analytics menu and select “Targets”
Click on the User Targets tab and then on the “Create New” button ⤵
Fill in the required information and click on “Create” ⤵
NOTE: you can add a Filter that will apply over the User data - for example, if you track Opportunities that are New Business vs Renewals using a custom field, you could set a Filter to base your Target only on New Business Opportunities.
In Period Type, you can choose “Calendar Year” or “Financial Year”, then select which Year you want the Target to apply. Finally pick the Period length from Yearly, Quarterly or Monthly.
NOTE: the Monthly period is not available if you choose Financial Year in Period Type
After clicking “Create”, a draft Target will be created for you and will be pre-populated with data predicted by the historical performance of the user ⤵
Clicking on the “Why are some data prefilled” tooltip gives you an overview of how this data is collected and calculated ⤵
In addition, each “i” gives you further details and the definitions of each individual value ⤵
Working with Draft User Targets
Once your User Target is created, you can change some of the Target settings by clicking on the three dots icon and choosing “Edit” or by clicking on the pencil icon ⤵
Click on “Save” to apply any changes.
KPI Metrics Panel
The KPI metrics in the left hand panel are pre-filled by the system to help you with the set up of the Target. ⤵
How are KPI values in the left hand panel calculated?
The system takes all the Assigned User(s) historical data from “today” for each KPI value and calculates their lifetime averages.
As you’re fine tuning the KPI values, you can instantly see the impact in the Target Summary values.
For example, if you increase your expectation for the Average Opportunity Size, the number of Won and New Opportunities Needed will decrease ⤵
Working Time
You can see even more detail in the KPI Panel by enabling the Working Time option. Click on the toggle to switch on ⤵
You can now see (and enter your own) values for working hours and non-working days and the Target Summary panel will expand to include an analysis of hours both used and available based on the pre-calculated or edited engagement lengths for activities and Win or Lose outcomes ⤵
NOTE: You can continue to tweak the values in the left hand panel, as well as the Target settings, as long as the Target is in the Draft state. As soon as you Activate the Target, the values are all set to read-only.
Target Validation Bar
The colour-coded progress bar is an expression of “validity” of the Target value - i.e. is it realistically achievable based on the calculated metrics and past performance.
You’ll also see the Target value (as entered by you or as pre-calculated) and the Estimated Target (this is the pre-calculated value) as well as the ratio between them expressed as a percentage.
How is the Estimated Target calculated?
The system takes all the Assigned User(s) historical data from “today” and calculates their previous trends so it can predict values for a future Target Period.
In the image below, the Estimated Target is 73% of the entered Target ⤵
As you enter different Target amounts in the KPI panel on the left, the Target Validity bar will change to illustrate how achievable the value is ⤵
The colour-coding will change on a traffic-light system as you update the value ⤵
You can reset the KPI values back to the predictions by using the Reset arrow for an individual KPI or by clicking “Reload Estimated Values” at the bottom of the panel ⤵
Target Summary
The Target Summary shows Target Revenues across the selected periods as well as additional metrics designed to give a complete overview allowing you to set an achievable and realistic Target.
For example, if you set the Target to $300,000 for the year, you’ll immediately see how many New Opportunities need to be created each week, month, quarter and year. This will help you evaluate whether the Target is achievable for the Assigned User ⤵
Every metric calculation is unique and is based on the KPI values from the left hand panel - either the pre-calculated values or values that you edited. All those values are calculated per period type - week, month, quarter and year - to enhance the value of the overview.
Activating a User Target
When you’ve finished editing the User Target and are happy with the values and associated metrics for the Period, you need to Activate it to switch it on and enable Tracking. Click on the “Activate” button on the menu at the top if you’re inside the Target. ⤵
Working with Active User Targets
Activating a Target sets it to read-only and you’ll only be able to change basic values such as the Target Name or Description.
Tracking will be enabled so you’ll now see the Target data vs actual data and comparisons between them ⤵
The Target Validation progress bar is now the Target Performance bar and shows the Target Value vs the user’s Achieved Value and the percentage ratio between them.
In the Target Summary, you can expand or collapse the column for each period.
When collapsed, each column shows the Target calculated data on the left and the actual achieved data on the right with a visual indicator (green tick or red cross) to show if the metric is tracking in the right direction or not ⤵
Click on the chevrons to expand a column to see the Target Value, the Relative Target (the value that should have been achieved from the start of the period until today), the Achieved Value and the Difference (Achieved Value - Relative Target) ⤵
Click on a value in the Target Summary, to click through to a List View of the underlying data ⤵
The Performance Chart is now also available for each time period in the Target Summary ⤵
The Performance Chart shows a comparison between Target Revenues and Achieved Values over the selected time period. Hover over a point in the chart to see more details ⤵
Creating a Group Target
Click on the Analytics menu and select “Targets” ⤵
Click on the Group Targets tab and then on the “Create New” button ⤵
You can create your Group Target:
From Draft User Targets - create your Group Target by selecting from draft User Targets that you’ve already created. You’ll only be able to select from draft User Targets that are filtered by your selected Year and Period Type and your User Target cannot already be linked to another Group Target. Your new Group Target is created as a draft.
From Active User Targets - create your Group Target by selecting from active User Targets that you’ve already created. You’ll only be able to select from active User Targets that are filtered by your selected Year and Period Type. Your new Group target is created as active.
From users - create your Group Target by selecting individual Users. As part of your Group Target, the system auto-creates new User Targets for the selected Users and links them to the new Group Target. The Group Target is created as a draft target.
Complete the required information and click on “Create” ⤵
Working with Draft Group Targets
The Group Target value is an aggregation of all the included User Targets, so changes made to the one User Target will be rolled up to the Group Target.
KPI values in the left hand panel at the group level cannot be modified - they are calculated as an average from all User Targets.
The Target value can be edited when it is Unlocked. When it is Locked, the Group Target value is synchronized with the included User Targets and vice versa.
Click on one of the included User Targets to modify the values including the KPIs ⤵
Click on “Save” to save any changes and when ready, “Activate” your Group Target.
Working with Active Group Targets
Your active Target is now set as read-only and tracking is enabled. You can click at the Group level in the leftmost panel to get an overview of the whole Target or select an individual User Target from the list to see how the User is tracking against their individual Target. ⤵
You can click on the chevron to close the leftmost panel ⤵
In your Active Group Target, you can choose additional Performance Charts for a better overview of the whole Target and individual contributions to it ⤵
The Target List
User Targets List
The User Targets tab shows all active and draft User Targets. Within the list will also be User Targets that are included in a Group Target.
Group Targets List
The Group Targets tab shows all active and draft Group Targets. You can expand or contract the list to also show individual User Targets that are included in a Group Target ⤵
Target Columns
Name (Target’s name which is editable)
User - Assigned User for the Target
Type (Group or User)
Target
For an Active target, this field shows the set Target value and the Target Progress as a % (Target vs Achieved Value)
For a Draft target, it displays the set Target value and the Estimated Target as a % (Target vs Estimated target)
Status - one of Draft, In Progress, Not Started, Finished
Owner - the user who created the Target
Period - the applied date period
Days left - shows the number of days remaining in the period
NOTE: you can sort the grid by clicking on each column header.
Target Actions
Once you have selected a Target, you can use the menu buttons or the options from the dropdown on the right hand side to Open, Edit, Activate/Finish, Copy or Delete the Target.
The actions available to you depend on:
the current status of the Target (e.g. if it’s In Progress or Not Started, the option will be Finish whereas if it’s Draft or has been manually finished, the action will be Activate)
Your User rights as set by your Admins in the Admin Module>Units, Users & Roles>Roles tab. For example, if you have read-only access, you will not be able to Create new Targets or Delete if you have no deletion rights.
NOTE: an Active target will be automatically finished when the Period ends, but can be manually finished at any point using the Finish option - e.g. when the Target is achieved earlier or it becomes apparent that it will not be achieved and a new Target is required. A manually finished Target can be reactivated again as long as the current date is within its Period.
Searching for and Filtering Targets
Type into the Searchbar to search through the text fields within the grid or click on the Filter button to filter by Period, Owner, Target Type, Target Status, and for User Targets, also Group Target (find Group Targets that a User Target is included in) ⤵
Using Targets within Pipeliner
Opportunity Pipeline View Target
From the main Opportunities menu, in the Pipeline View, click on the gears icon to open up the Power Panel and select the Target Tab. In Target Selection, the user can now select the user or group target ⤵
and see the Target values within the pipeline ⤵
NOTE: a user with disabled access to the Targets in the User role is still able to see their own Targets in the Target tab
Target Values in Forecast Quotas
From Analytics>Forecasts, when setting a Quota for an individual in Forecast Setup, you can now select “Quota from Target” to select a Target for that User and populate the Quota values based on that Target. ⤵
For more information on Forecasts, click here.
Managing Access Rights to Targets
Unlimited Tier customers who have access to the Common Record tab within User Role set up, will be able to assign rights to Targets for each User Role ⤵
Write - User can see all targets and create and edit owned targets
Read-only - User can see all targets but cannot edit
Admins can also allow Deleting of Targets allowing Users to delete Targets they own or deleting any Target.
If you don’t have access to Advanced Permissions, access to Targets can be switched off completely in the Features tab.
Enabling the Targets Module for non-Unlimited Tier Customers
Targets is a paid for, on-demand module in the Automation Hub for customers who are not on our Unlimited Tier. Please contact your Account Manager to discuss adding to your subscription. ⤵
NOTE: Targets is enabled by default for all customers on our Unlimited Tier.