How to visualize data with BSC Designer: signal icons
Intro
After all management operations are being described it needs every performance value to be visualized and understand. There are several automatic signal icons in the program aiming to make project’s management process easier by helping a manager to orient in a big company’s project and set proper priorities. The colors of those icons are quite understandable for everyone because the green-yellow-red scheme is used.
Signal icons are divided into:
- Schematic Clock Icons;
- Up and Down Arrows;
- Stop Lights.
Schematic Clock Icons
Schematic clock icons perform visualization function for such parameters as indicator’s values. Those little clocks are located before every indicator in the tree. It is no need for those icons to be set manually – when new indicator is created or imported it already has its own clock. While KPI’s values age being changed the “clocks” are transforming as well. A green clock icon showing about 1 o’clock means that the weight’s value of indicator equals “1”. Oppositely a full red one means that KPI’s weight set to “10”, the maximal number. To demonstrate clock icons’ changing 10 new indicators well be created with all different weights.
Every clock icon means different weight’s values of indicators
Up and Down Arrows
While the project’s values are updating using the Calendar function a little green and red arrows appeared for every item. Those arrows show the direction of every indicator’s, category’s and whole project’s performance changing comparing to the date it was updated before. In the article “How to manage time points with BSC Designer” changing values of indicators along 3 days took its place. Using that project’s example arrows icons could be shown. Selecting the 18th of November date green arrows could be found as well as red ones. Green arrows mean that yesterday’s performance value was lower than today’s. Oppositely red arrows mean that performance value decreased comparing to yesterday’s values. Both green and red arrows of KPIs could be directed up and down depending on the optimization direction of indicator.
Two of four categories decreased its performance but the whole project’s performance value increased
Stop Lights
BSC Designer allows usage of special stop lights which are located next to any item of the project’s tree. Let’s see what logic is used for different kinds of stop lights to be shown. Those icons depend on the current performance values of indicators, categories and the whole project. Stop lights could be green, yellow and red. “Good” performance values are marking with green light, red lights are for “bad” performance and yellow lights show that the performance is not “bad” already but is not yet “good”. Certainly both “bad” and “good” have its own performance percentage value. By default green lights are shown within the interval of 80 – 100, %%, yellow lights are for 21 – 79, %% and red lights are for 0 – 20, %%.
In opposite to other icons described in the article stop light’ settings could be changed by program’s user. At first some of the colors can be turned off in some case. It might be manager’s decision to find problems to be fixed so just red lights will be shown. To turn off and on stop lights click on “Tools” button in the top menu, select “Stop Lights” and mark or unmark red, yellow or green lights. And the second feature allows user to change any color’s intervals. In order to manage color intervals click on “Tools” -> “Stop lights” and select “Options” sign. A new dialog window will appear with two lines – one for Red light and one for Green. Drag sliders in both lines until the needed interval is chosen. As an example “0” – “34” interval will be set for red light, “35” – “90” for yellow one and “91” – “100” for green one. Those numbers mean performance percents of every item. Even if some indicators have score measure units or custom ones anyway it will be calculated into percentage value to show stop lights and to project’s calculations.
How to turn on or off stop lights
How to manage intervals
