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Juris Suite® Answer Center

Creating a Metric

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The Metrics section of Business Intelligence displays Juris pre-defined Metrics as well as the ability to create new Metrics. In creating a new Metric you can copy a Juris pre-defined Metric and make changes, or you can create one not based on an existing Metric. To create a new Metric, (SQL Query), you must be familiar with SQL, the Juris table structure and some knowledge of the Juris queries. Listed below is the method for creating a Metric. It does not include the Juris table structure nor information on SQL.

After you have decided on which Library the new Metric will reside, perform the following to create a new Metric:

  1. Highlight the appropriate Library and click the New button in the Metrics tool bar. You can also right click on the library and select New Metric.

  2. The Metric Information and Type Panel will be displayed allowing for the entry of the following:

    • Name - Enter a name for the Metric so it reflects the functionality or category for use. For this exercise, TestMetricNew will be entered.

      You cannot use spaces or special characters for the MetricName. The name must start with an alphabet.

    • Return Type - The Return Type refers to the type of information being queried. Select from the following:
      • String - A value that contains alphanumeric data. Example: Client Name, Timekeeper Name, Personnel Type.
      • Boolean - True or False or Yes or No value represented by 0 or 1 or 0 or -1. Example: Chart of Account/Sub-Account marked as active or inactive.
      • Decimal - The Decimal keyword denotes a 128-bit data type. Compared to floating-point types, the decimal type has a greater precision and a smaller range, which makes it suitable for financial and monetary calculations. Example: Collections this Month.
      • Double – The double keyword denotes a simple type that stores 64-bit floating-point values. 1 bit for the sign, 11 bits for the exponent, 52 bits for the fraction. Example: Current AR.
      • Int32 – Whole number with positive or negative values. No decimal places. Example: Days to Bill All.
      • Single - Precision floating point number, 32 bit. 1 bit for the sign, 8 bits for the exponent, 23 bits for the fraction.
      • Date Time – The date and time 5/15/2008 12:00:00.

      For this example, please select Decimal.

    • Description- Enter a brief description of the metric and what it does. For this example, enter Collections by Aging Group.

Selecting Metric allows you to utilize existing Metrics in a library.  This can be useful for creating a new Metric based on an existing Metric and manually adjusting it for a customized output. The changes to the Metric would only apply to the new one created and not the existing Metric. The adjustments would be made in the SQL pane. Since we are focusing on creating a new Metric, Select Metric will not be used.

Selecting a Query or Query Calculation - After you entered a name, and you are not manually creating a Metric in the SQL Pane, selecting a Query or Query Calculation is the next step. Selecting a Query allows for one query, selecting Query Calculation allows you to select a Query as well as add some basic calculation functions and choose a column in which to base the calculation on.

Using Select Query

To create a Metric using Select Query, perform the following:

  1. Click the Select Query button on the Tool ribbon.

  2. Click the ellipses button on the Retrieve Query Wizard window.

  3. Enter the search criteria in the Search Terms field. For this example, type collections.

  4. Click the Search button.

    You can view the data of the query by using the View Data button. You may be prompted to enter the Parameters associated with query being used. When you enter the data, and click the OK button, the query data based on the Parameters is displayed. This is useful to perform a quick check before you complete the Metric.






    You can also use the New Visual and New Text buttons to create new queries.

  5. Make the selection from the returned results and click the OK button. For this example, choose Collections by Aging Group.
  6. Select All under the Action section. Selecting All displays the query results within the Metric. Selecting Top allows you to adjust the Number of Rows to choose how many returned data sets you want to display in the Metric. For this exercise, use All.
  7. You can set the parameters of a Metric or leave the parameters blank and allows user input for the Metric. Leaving blank is especially useful for date range parameters. For the purposes of this exercise, leave the parameters blank.
  8. Click the OK button.

  9. The SQL pane will display the query that you picked. Using the Select Query method requires manual code entry and knowledge of the Juris tables. Making the appropriate SQL changes allows you to Execute the query.

To create a Metric using SelectQuery, perform the following:

  1. Click the Query Calculation button on the Tools ribbon.

  2. Click on the ellipses button on the Query Calculation Wizard window. This will launch the Select Query window to search for the appropriate Query.

  3. Click the Search button to return all of the Queries. For this example, select Account Balances as of Today. The Query Calculation Wizard window displays.
  4. Select an appropriate Action. Not all queries can utilize each of the Actions. Keep in mind the data you are wanting to retrieve and calculate before making the selection. You can choose from Sum, Average, Maximum, or Minimum. You can only select one. For this example, select Maximum.
  5. Select Return Type. For this exercise, select Decimal.
  6. Select UnbilledExpenseBalance in Choose Column section. This area allows you to select a specific column of data from the returned query.
  7. In the Set Parameters section, leave blank.
  8. Click the OK button.

  9. Add return result' at the bottom of the SQL in the SQL pane. You must do this for all Query Calculation Metrics.

    • Parameters - Add parameters for the metric. This is dependent on the type of the metric being added. The Parameters allow for user input for specific criteria, such as date ranges, personnel types, working timekeepers, etc. These would be additional Parameters to those in the query.

      Not all Metrics have Parameters.

  10. Click the Save button on the Metrics tool bar.

Next, Executing the Metric to test the integrity.