Configuring the Initiative Workbook

The Initiative Workbook's layout decides which fields and items appear on it, at which stage, and how they're arranged. It's set up once for each initiative classification, or for each program in the Simple Model, and every initiative of that type uses it. This article covers enabling the Initiative Workbook and building its layout. For using it, see Initiative Workbook.

This article covers both the Advanced and Simple Models, and needs administrator access in the Advanced Model, or program administrator access in the Simple Model. The Initiative Workbook needs a stage gate process, since its layout has a section for each stage — see Configuring the Stage Gate Process.

Enabling the Initiative Workbook

Advanced Model

To enable the Initiative Workbook for an initiative classification:

1. Navigate to Administration > Classifications.
2. Click Edit next to the initiative classification.
3. Select the Initiative Workbook tab.

4. Turn on Enable Initiative Workbook.

   

5. Click Save.

   

The tab can't be used until the classification's stage gate process is enabled and the classification has been saved. For the classification's other settings, see Configuring Initiative Classifications (Advanced Model).

Simple Model

In the Simple Model, the program's Initiative Workbook is used by all its projects. To enable it:

1. Navigate to your program.

2. Open Configuration > Initiative Workbook.

   

3. Turn on Enable Initiative Workbook.
4. Click Save.

How the layout is organized

The layout is built on the same page, below Enable Initiative Workbook. It's laid out in sections, matching the parts of the Initiative Workbook:

• The stage gate — always at the top. It can't be changed, and nothing can be added to it.
• The initiative's properties — shown on every stage. It can only hold the initiative's own fields, such as its name, description, dates, owner, status indicators, and custom fields. These aren't included in stage gate baselines.
• The stages — one section for each stage of the stage gate process. Each is shown on the Initiative Workbook only while you're viewing that stage.

Adding widgets

To add a widget:

1. Choose the section from Section — the initiative's properties, or one of the stages under Stages.

   

2. Choose the widget from Widget. Use Filter Fields or Filter Widgets to find one in a long list.

   

3. Click Add Widget. The widget is added to the section.

Each widget can be added to a section only once. Heading and Sub Heading widgets can be added as many times as needed.

Available widgets

• Initiative fields — the initiative's name, description, dates, owner, ID, external ID, and status indicators.
• Custom fields — every custom field mapped to the classification. A Select Box's reference data is offered as separate widgets, each named Custom: followed by the reference data's name. See Reference data widgets.
• Benefits — the initiative's benefits of a classification, benefit totals, and the benefit ledger.
• Costs — the initiative's costs of a category, cost totals overall, by cost group, or by cost category, and the cost ledger.
• Measures — the initiative's measures, and the measure ledger.
• RAID items — all the initiative's RAID items, or only those of one classification.
• Tasks — all the initiative's tasks, or a selected set.
• Schedule — a compact version of the initiative's schedule.
• Resource demand — the initiative's resource demand.
• Heading and Sub Heading — text that breaks a section into parts.

Widgets for features that aren't enabled for the classification or program, such as the schedule, resources, or RAID items, aren't shown on the Initiative Workbook.

Reference data widgets

Where a Select Box custom field has reference data, such as a region for each site, each piece of reference data is its own read-only widget. It shows the value for the option chosen in the Select Box. For setting up reference data, see Custom Fields (Advanced Model).

A reference data widget can be added to a section only where its Select Box is also in that section, in the initiative's properties, or in an earlier stage. Otherwise, it's greyed out in the Widget list. Removing a Select Box from a section shows a warning first, and also removes the reference data widgets that depend on it. Reference data widgets can't be required.

Arranging widgets

In the layout, each widget is a block with its title. Its size and position are how it will look on the Initiative Workbook.

• Move — drag the widget to a new place in its section. A preview shows where it will go. Widgets can't be moved to another section.
• Width — a section is three columns wide. Where a widget has a resize handle, drag it to make the widget a third, two-thirds, or the full width. Which widths are available depends on the widget.
• Height — text area fields, the description, the schedule, and the ledgers have a handle at the bottom, to make them taller or shorter. Other widgets have a fixed height. Text that doesn't fit scrolls.
• Columns — some widgets, such as the task list, can be set to show particular fields, including custom fields. Choose between one and four. Clearing all of them returns the widget to its default fields.
• Remove — click its delete button. Removing a widget doesn't delete any data; it's just no longer shown in that section.

Headings

Heading and Sub Heading widgets break a section into parts, or hold text that doesn't suit a custom field. Their text is entered here, in the layout, and can't be changed on the Initiative Workbook itself. On the Initiative Workbook, the parts under a heading can be collapsed.

Totals widgets

Benefit and cost totals widgets show the initiative's totals for that section, with a variance between two of them. Each totals widget has its own settings, opened from its settings icon in the layout. To choose what a totals widget shows:

1. On the totals widget in the layout, click its settings icon.
2. Under Display Values, select the values to show: Total Plan, Total Actual, Total Forecast, and Variance. On cost totals widgets, Total Plan is Total Budget.
3. Where Variance is selected, choose the two values it compares.
4. To show a chart under the totals, select Enable Chart.
5. Click Save Layout.

The comparisons are, for benefit and cost totals widgets respectively:

• Plan vs Forecast or Budget vs Forecast — the forecast minus the plan or budget.
• Plan vs Actual or Budget vs Actual — the actual minus the plan or budget.
• Forecast vs Actual — the actual minus the forecast.

At least one value must stay selected, and Variance needs two. Only values the benefit classification or cost category records are offered. Comparisons that need a value that isn't selected are greyed out. Where no comparison has been chosen, a widget showing all three values compares the plan or budget with the forecast. Enable Chart is off by default, and the chart shows the variance only for Plan vs Forecast or Budget vs Forecast.

Requiring fields for a stage

Custom fields can be required for a stage, so that the stage's gate can't be requested for approval until they're filled in. To require a field:

1. In the layout, find the section for the stage.
2. On the custom field's widget, check Required.
3. Click Save Layout.

• Only custom field widgets can be required. A field that's marked Required on the custom field itself is always required, so it has no checkbox. Calculated fields can't be required.
• Required fields are marked with an asterisk, in the layout and on the Initiative Workbook.
• Required fields are only checked for initiatives that use the Initiative Workbook. Where an initiative's classification, or program, doesn't use it, approval can be requested without them.

For what happens when approval is requested with a required field blank, see Configuring the Stage Gate Process.

Saving the layout

Click Save Layout to save your changes.

For who can view and edit the Initiative Workbook, see Initiative Workbook.