SAP Smart Business KPIs

SAP Smart Business separates the definition of a KPI from the way each role sees it:

1. KPI: the measure to watch, taken from an analytical data source and represented by a single value such as an amount, a quantity or a percentage.
2. Evaluation: a role-specific view of the KPI, with input parameters, dimension filters, a target, thresholds and a trend. One KPI can carry several evaluations.
3. Tile: a KPI tile on the SAP Fiori Launchpad shows the current value of one evaluation, with its description, trend and deviation from target.
4. Drill-down: clicking the tile opens the app configured in the evaluation, either the generic SAP Smart Business drill-down app or an app built with the Analysis Path Framework.
5. Action: from the drill-down, users navigate to transactional apps with the context they selected.

Example: Alder Manufacturing's purchasing team watches purchase order value against a target, drills into Cedar Office Supply and opens the related purchase orders. SAP Smart Business KPIs therefore implement an insight-to-action chain, not just a number on a tile.

In SAP S/4HANA, every KPI definition rests on an analytical OData service that exposes an ABAP CDS view with aggregation. Elements annotated with a default aggregation become measures; the remaining non-text elements become dimensions for grouping and filtering. Further annotations add formula and exception aggregation.

In SAP Business Suite on SAP HANA, the same framework read SAP HANA Live views through XS OData services instead. The modeling approach is the same; the data layer underneath differs.

Two consequences follow. First, a KPI can only measure what the CDS model exposes, so missing measures are a modeling task, not a tile setting. Second, CDS access controls still apply, so two users can see different values on the same KPI tile. SAP Smart Business KPIs are only as correct as the analytical model and authorizations behind them.

SAP originally delivered a set of modeler apps, including Create KPI, Create Evaluation, Configure KPI Tiles, Configure KPI Drill-Down and KPI Workspace. SAP's SAP S/4HANA documentation now states that all SAP Smart Business modeler apps are deprecated and replaced by Manage KPIs and Reports (F2814).

Manage KPIs and Reports is described as a single place to create analytical applications from KPIs, reports and stories that launch from the SAP Fiori Launchpad, with an integration to SAP Analytics Cloud. SAP-delivered KPI apps continue to use the generic drill-down: the Purchase Order Value and Scheduling Agreement Value app (F1378), for example, is listed with the SAP Smart Business generic drill-down app as its UI technology.

The framework concepts of KPI, evaluation, tile and drill-down remain in use; whether KPIs built with the older modeler apps need rework depends on the release, so check the SAP Help Portal for yours. What changed is the design tool for SAP Smart Business KPIs, not the runtime pattern.

1. Too many KPI tiles on one page. Each tile calls the back end for current values; SAP recommends limiting such tiles to the essentials.
2. Hidden filters in evaluations. An evaluation restricted to one company code looks like the whole company to its viewers. Name evaluations after their filters.
3. Duplicate definitions. Two KPIs with similar names but different measures produce conflicting numbers in meetings. Assign an owner to each KPI definition.
4. Treating a wrong value as a data error. Check the user's authorizations and the evaluation's filters before opening a data-quality incident.

Most SAP Smart Business KPI problems are governance and filter problems, not technical defects.