Metric Builder overview

Learn how to access a simple and familiar interface to build your unique custom metrics.

The Metric Builder page on Drivetrain is where you can create new metrics from your datasets.

It's designed to help you build custom metrics from the data sources you connected to Drivetrain.

Navigating the Metrics page

The metrics page lists all the metrics created.

To quickly look for metrics, there's a search bar and sort by filters available on the top-right of the page. Watch the short video below to get a quick overview of this page.

Organizing your metrics

Users can organize metrics into pre-defined or create new categories. This makes it easier find key metrics faster.

Create a metric category

1. Go to the Metrics page

2. Click on the + icon next on the left pane

3. Enter a category name and click Create

Rename a metric category

1. Go to the Metrics page

2. Hover over the metric category to edit, click the vertical ellipsis (⋮), and click Edit

3. Enter the name and click Save

Add metrics to a category

1. Go to a metric

2. Click on the category pillbox next to the metric name

3. Select a metric category from the dropdown

4. Click Save

Until a metric category is chosen, all metrics will be in the Unassigned category (default).

Any metric created will be listed under the All category.

Delete a metric category

• Go to the Metrics page

• Hover over the metric category to edit, click the vertical ellipsis (⋮), and click Delete

• In the Delete category popup, click Delete

Deleting a metric category does not delete the metrics listed under it. They will be moved to the Unassigned category.

All and Unassigned categories cannot be deleted.

Accessing metric builder

There are three ways to access the Metric Builder page.

Click on the tabs to explore each method.

Via the left sidebar

1. Click on the Metrics icon on left sidebar to access the Metrics page.

2. Click on + New metric.

Editing a metric

1. Click on the Metrics icon on left sidebar to access the Metrics page.

2. Click on the metric you desire to modify from the metrics catalog/list shown.

Via the Data page

1. Click on a dataset from the Data page.

2. Click on + New metric.

This will load the dataset automatically in the configuration panel of the Metric Builder page enabling you to create the metric from the dataset chosen faster.

Understanding the Metric Builder interface

The Metric Builder interface provides a couple options to create metrics:

1. Calculate using dataset.
2. Calculate using formula.

Calculate using dataset

The Calculate using dataset interface should appear familiar if you've used pivot tables in Microsoft Excel. Just as in Excel, you can use the Metric Builder to summarize, group, count, sum, average or use a custom formula on a dataset in just a few clicks.

The calculate using dataset interface is split into three sections.

• Dataset preview
• Configure metric
• Metric summary

Dataset preview

This is where you can view the dataset selected in the Configure metric section.

The preview is limited to display a maximum of 200 rows.

You'll have access to all datasets connected to Drivetrain from your ERP, CRM, HRIS, billing and invoicing systems, data warehouses, BI tools, Google Sheets, and any other dataset you've uploaded/connected.

You can show/hide the columns shown by clicking on Columns link in the top right.

The columns selected here enable you to view the underlying data associated with that metric in Reports.

Configure metric

This is where you can build your custom metric via your datasets by using a familiar pivot table interface (with a few differences), or by using plain-English formulas. You can also update the number formatting here.

The Configure metric section has several sections and contains the following elements similar to an Excel pivot table interface.

Component
Rows
Columns
Value
Filters
Summaries

If you select the Formula option, the components described below will be hidden.

The below mentioned components are part of the pivot table view and hence available only on selecting the Dataset option.

Value: Select the dataset column name followed by the calculation method to summarize the table by. The supported calculation methods (i.e. aggregation functions) are:

• Sum of

• Count of rows in

• Average of

• Cumulative sum of

• Cumulative count of

• Count of unique rows in

Note: You can add only one value here.

Rows: If you want to analyze the metric by the various dimensions available in the dataset, you can add them as Rows.

Adding rows is optional. It helps in splitting the metric to surface trends quickly.

Columns: Select from a list of time-based dataset columns to display the summarized metric values.

Adding columns is optional. Add a column if you want to compute and view your metric values across the chosen time period.

Drivetrain automatically groups the values by each month for the time period selected.

Filters: This is an optional value you can add to filter the metric by specific values of dataset columns available.

Time Summary: This component is shown only if Columns has been added. The function chosen will be used to aggregate the data across time (quarterly, half-yearly, and yearly).

Format tab

This tab provides options to customize how the metric values are displayed.

Option	Description
Type	Choose from Number, Currency, or Percentage data types. 25 currencies are currently supported:
Represent as	Choose from Full number, Thousands (K), Million (M), or Short number. Full number: Displays the rounded up integer value. See examples below: (actual value >> displayed value) • 1678.2 >> 1,678 • 321.91 >> 322 • 987654321.99786 >> 987,654,322 Thousands (K): Displays the rounded up value in thousands, appended with a "K" at the end. See examples below: (actual value >> displayed value) • 1678.2 >> 2K • 321 >> 0K • 1567980.19 >> 1,568K Millions (M): Displays the rounded up value in thousands, appended with an "M" at the end. See examples below: (actual value >> displayed value) • 88380 >> 0M • 588380.19 >> 1M • 50567980.19 >> 51M Short number: Drivetrain automatically chooses the best option from the above. See examples below: (actual value >> displayed value) • 980.19 >> 980 • 1980.19 >> 2K • 901980.19 >> 902K • 1901980.19 >> 2M
Metric direction	Define the goal direction for a metric, such as Higher is better or Lower is better. This is useful for stakeholders to interpret metrics during variance analysis or on charts (KPI or scorecard) where the growth percentage (%) is indicated relative to the previous period's value. Example: For metrics such as expenses, the goal direction should be set to Lower is better, while for metrics such as revenue, the goal direction should be set to Higher is better. This helps stakeholders easily comprehend changes in values and provides clarity in interpreting metrics like expenses.
Decimals	Define the number of digits to be included after the decimal between 0 and 4.
Blanks	Choose between 0 (default) or blank options to display blank or missing numbers. Note: The blank option will not display a value on the cell.
Zero	Choose between 0 (default) or - options.
Negative	Choose between (1234) (default) or -1234 options.

Metric summary

The Metric Summary allows you to instantly view the calculation outputs as you configure your metric.

In the top right, you have the option to define the Time period and Roll up.

You can break down a metric by up to three dimensions in this view (equal to the number of dataset columns selected in the Rows component). However, this does not restrict you from drilling down into a metric added in a report by any of the column names in that dataset. The limitation of three dimensions is only to keep the metric summary table accessible to verify the computed values.

Calculate using formula

You can also define metrics using a formula. You can input both numbers and functions to assign or calculate values.

Jump to this section on how to create a metric using formula for a step by step description.

FAQ

How to create a metric?

You can create a metric from a dataset or by using formula.

Refer to the following sections to learn more:

• How to create a metric from a dataset
• How to create a metric using formula

How to create a new category for metrics?

Organizing your metrics into categories makes it easier to manage and navigate them. Follow these steps to create a new category:

1. Go to the Metrics Page and click + icon on the Categories pane.

2. Enter a category name.

3. Click Save to add it to the list.

Learn how to rename a category, assign a category to a metric and delete a category in the Organize your metrics section.