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Reporting & Analytics · LessonBy , ServiceNow Trainer, 9 yrs · Published · ServiceNow · all levels

PA indicators and breakdowns

Snapshot data over time, define indicators and breakdowns, and avoid the collection mistakes that ruin trends.

Quick answer

Snapshot data over time, define indicators and breakdowns, and avoid the collection mistakes that ruin trends.

Key takeaways
  • PA stores history, reports show the present
  • Formula indicators derive rates from base indicators
  • Breakdowns must be planned before collection begins
  • Watch cardinality or collection time explodes

Why snapshots matter

A report shows the state right now. If a ticket closes, yesterday backlog disappears from the report. Performance Analytics collects a scored value on a schedule and stores it, so trends survive record changes.

Indicators

An automated indicator runs a query and stores a score per collection. Formula indicators derive a value from other indicators, for example reopen rate as reopened divided by resolved. Manual indicators exist for values that come from outside the platform.

Breakdowns

Breakdowns are the dimensions you slice by: assignment group, priority, category.

  • Keep breakdown cardinality sane, a breakdown by user creates thousands of series
  • Related breakdowns let you slice by a field on a referenced table
  • Historical breakdowns cannot be added retrospectively, plan them before collection starts
  • Data collection jobs should run outside business hours

Practice challenge

+0 XPStreak ×0
Question 1 of 2
What is the main advantage of an indicator over a report?

Frequently asked questions

Can we backfill history?
Only where the data still exists in a form the collector can read, for example historical closures. Snapshots of a state that has since changed cannot be recreated.
How often should collection run?
Daily suits most operational indicators. Hourly is rarely needed and multiplies stored rows.
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