KPI cells attach numeric targets to a board column. Once configured, the column header shows a green, yellow, or red pill reflecting whether the latest metric value is on target, at risk, or off track. During a session the facilitator can click the pill to see the exact value, target, and who owns the metric.
Northwoods Outfitters attached a delivery fill-rate metric to their Delivery column. When Priya sees a yellow pill on Monday morning she knows, before the team says a word, that last week's fill rate missed its 95% target.
Who can configure metrics
Creating, editing, and deleting metrics requires the rhythm.metrics.manage permission (owner, admin, or advisor role by default). Any workspace member can view metrics during sessions.
Step 1: Open the board and go to column settings
From Rhythm → Stand Up, open the board you want to configure. Click the Settings button (the gear or customize icon in the board header) to open the Customize lanes dialog.
Step 2: Add a metric to a column
Inside the dialog, select the column where you want to add a metric — for example, Delivery. Click Add metric and fill in the fields:
| Field | Required | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Name | Yes | e.g. Fill rate, On-time delivery % |
| Direction | Yes | Higher is better (e.g. fill rate) or Lower is better (e.g. defect count) |
| Target | Yes | The numeric value you're aiming for |
| Yellow threshold | Yes | Fraction of the target where status turns yellow (0–2). e.g. 0.9 = 90% of target |
| Red threshold | Yes | Fraction where status turns red. Must be less than the yellow threshold |
| Unit | No | Display label appended to the value, e.g. %, units |
| Owner | No | The member responsible for keeping this metric current |
Click Save to create the metric.
Example thresholds for a fill-rate metric (higher is better, target = 95):
- Yellow threshold:
0.90— turns yellow when actual < 95 × 0.90 = 85.5 - Red threshold:
0.80— turns red when actual < 95 × 0.80 = 76
Step 3: Enter the first value (manual source)
New metrics start with no value, so the column shows no RYG pill yet. To add the first data point, open the board, hover the column header, and click the pill area (or open column metrics from the settings dialog). Click Add snapshot, enter the actual value, and save.
The pill updates immediately to green, yellow, or red based on the value relative to your thresholds.
Step 4 (optional): Connect an automatic data source
Instead of entering values by hand, you can connect a metric to a live source. In the metric edit dialog, change Source from Manual entry to one of the available options:
| Source | What it tracks |
|---|---|
| Manual entry | You enter values on a schedule |
| Project completion % | Calculates completion across linked Execution projects |
| CRM pipeline value | Pulls total deal value from a CRM pipeline |
When a source is configured, the metric value updates automatically and the owner is prompted if the value is stale.
Updating a value (manual metrics)
For manual-source metrics, the owner should enter a fresh value at the start of each week (or your agreed cadence). The column header reflects the latest snapshot with a relative timestamp — for example, "47 / 50 units · 2d ago".
What comes next
Once boards are tracking KPIs, Stand Up sessions give the team an instant visual summary of health at a glance. To pull these metrics into a leadership review, link your board to a Team Sync with a department so the Scorecard segment auto-populates.