Assessment Metric form for a category

Determines how to use the metric.

• Assessment : Non-scripted metric. Make the metric available as a question on an assessment questionnaire. The Assessment method is compatible with all data types except Duration.
• Script: Scripted metric. Obtain values by writing a custom script. The Script method is compatible with the Duration, Number, and Percentage data types.
• Default answer from field: This option appears only if you have selected an Assessment Metric Type that contains a table. The General tab adds two fields:
• Default answer: Select the default answer for the question. The list comes from the selected table.
• Ask question: Specifies when to ask the question: always or only if the default answer is empty.
• Default answer from script: The General tab adds a field:

Ask question: Specifies when to ask the question: always or only if the script does not contain a default answer. The script is defined on the Field Type tab.

Note: If you select a Data type that is incompatible with the selected Method, the system automatically changes the Method to the correct value.

Numeric value that represents the importance of this metric relative to other metrics in the same category. By default, the weight is 10. For weighting suggestions, see Weight Metrics and Metric Categories.

This field is visible and required unless the Data type is Date, Date/Time, or String. These data types are not included in results calculations.

Check box that makes the metric question mandatory (selected) or optional (cleared) on assessment questionnaires. Users cannot submit questionnaires until they provide valid responses to all mandatory questions, which display a red field status indicator.

This field is visible only if the Method is Assessment, the Depends on field is empty, and the data type is not Checkbox.

Check box that determines whether to include a Not Applicable answer option for this metric question on assessment questionnaires. Users can select Not Applicable if they do not have sufficient information to respond to a question or if a question does not apply to a particular assessable record. User responses of Not Applicable are excluded from results calculations.

This field is visible only if the Method is Assessment and certain data types are selected.

Setting used to make this metric a conditional question. Select an existing metric question from the list, which displays Checkbox, Choice, Likert Scale, Template, and Yes/No metrics of the same category as this metric. Then, use the Displayed when field to set the conditions that display this metric question on questionnaires. The system prevents the creation of recursive dependencies between metrics. For example, if Metric A depends on Metric B, Metric B cannot depend on Metric A.

This field is visible only if the Method is Assessment.

Answer options for the selected Depends on metric question that, when chosen on questionnaires, display this metric question.

This field is visible and required only if the Depends on field is set.

Check box that determines whether to present the answer options for this metric question in a random order. The order of answer options can influence users, which creates biased results. Randomizing answer options can help prevent this bias.

This field is visible only if a data type that requires metric definitions is selected.

Note: Randomizing answer options for certain questions can make those questions confusing for the person answering. In general, only randomize answer options that do not follow a logical order. For example, the following question is confusing when randomization is enabled:

Metric template to use for the metric question. A metric template is a set of predefined answer options.

This field is visible and required only if the Data type is Template.

Note: If another metric depends on this metric, you cannot change the template.

Plugin that contains the tables queried in the script. The system executes the metric script only if the plugin is active. The default available values are Asset Management, CMDB, Core, Cost Management, Procurement, and Software Asset Management. If the Method is Script, select a plugin.

This field is visible only if the Method is Script.

Note: An administrator may need to add more Define an option for a choice list of plugins to the field.

Setting that determines whether lesser or greater numerical values equate to a good score in assessment result calculations. Select Low if lesser numerical values are better, such as for a metric that measures the number of incidents for a vendor. Select High if greater numerical values are better, such as for a metric that measures user satisfaction on a scale of one to five. The default value is High.

This field is visible and required unless the Data type is Date, Date/Time, or String. The results for these data types are not included in results calculations.

Note: For information about how to set the scale definition for data types that do not require you to set a numerical value, see Data Types.

Lowest numerical value to be used as an answer option on assessments or as a scaled value in a scripted metric.

This field is visible and required only if certain data types are selected. If the data type is Choice or Likert Scale, this field is read-only and is set automatically based on the smallest metric definition Value.

Highest numerical value to be used as an answer option or scaled value.

This field is visible and required only if certain data types are selected. If the data type is Choice or Likert Scale, this field is read-only and is set automatically based on the largest metric definition Value.

Script that obtains the desired system information. This field is visible and required only if the Method is Script.

Note: Script can now only be edited by Assessment Admins. Survey Creators no longer have the ability to edit the script.

Lists all metric definitions, which appear as answer options for questions on assessment questionnaires. Click New to create a new metric definition.

This related list is available only if the Data type is Choice or Likert Scale.