How do I track KPIs on a Shorter Loop dashboard?

KPIs are the numbered tiles at the top of a dashboard. Each one tracks a single metric over time: a current value, an optional target, and a history you can chart.

What are the two tile states?

What does an empty tile look like?

A dashed border, "Your trend starts here / Add your first value to watch it grow", and two actions:

Action	What it does
Enter value	Opens the metric editor so you can type a number
+ Connect	Opens the connect / API reference panel for wiring up a data source

What does a live tile show?

Element	Meaning
KPI-7	The KPI's unique ID. Click it to open the connect / API reference
108 %	Current value and unit
↗ +2 vs prev	Change since the previous recorded value. Green ↗ up, red ↘ down
Sparkline	The trend, once there are at least three values

Hovering a tile reveals its actions:

Icon	Action
✎	Edit the metric
🔗	Connect — opens the API / source panel
✕	Delete the metric

What does a fully populated dashboard look like?

The 2/5 live badge in the header counts how many tiles actually have data.

How do I add a KPI?

Click the + Add a KPI tile at the end of the grid ("Track another metric that matters"), or + Add KPI in the empty-dashboard state.

How do I enter or edit a value?

Enter value (or the ✎ icon) opens the metric editor.

Field	Notes
Title	Required, up to 255 characters
KPI Unique ID	Read-only, with a copy button. Use it in API calls
Unit	Free text up to 12 characters — `%`, `$`, `days`, `pts/wk` …
Benchmark	Your target value
or more / or less	Which direction is good. or more → higher is better; or less → lower is better
Time visualization	Turn on to render this metric as a chart
Add to dashboard	Whether the metric appears on the dashboard (shown only when editing from outside the dashboard)
Due date	Optional deadline for hitting the benchmark
Current value	The new reading. Each save adds a point to the history
Revision list	Every past value with its timestamp. Editing one shows Confirm changes with Ignore / Confirm
🗑 (header)	Deletes the whole metric
CSV / JSON	Bulk-import a series of values

Press Save to record the value.

How many values do I need before a trend appears?

Each save adds one data point. The tile's sparkline and the full chart need at least three data points — until then the KPI widget shows "Not enough data points for a graph (Required minimum 3)".

How do I see a chart?

Click a tile's sparkline to open a large trend preview.

In the KPI metrics widget you can also toggle between a line chart and a bar chart with the small chart icon.

Trend arrows next to the current value compare the two most recent readings: ↑ trending up, ↓ trending down, – no change.

How do benchmarks and status indicators work?

When a benchmark is set, the tile shows Current and Target side by side, plus or MORE / or LESS.

Situation	Indicator
Current equals the benchmark	✓ tick
Current is past a or less benchmark	⚠ alert
or more metric with a value	Value shown in the success colour
or less metric with a value	Value shown in the warning colour

Can I feed KPIs from my own systems?

Clicking + Connect or a tile's KPI ID opens a reference panel with a ready-made API recipe for pushing values in.

It includes:

the endpoint — POST /api/initiatives/{initiativeId}/kpi

required request headers (x-api-key: Bearer <token>, Content-Type: application/json)

a complete request-body example with your KPI's actual title, benchmark, unit, and due date filled in

a copy-paste JavaScript fetch example

notes — including how to attach a KPI to a backlog work item using artifact and artifactExternalKey

For pulling values from a third-party tool instead, see 11 · Connecting data sources.

How do I reorder KPIs?

Enter Edit layout and drag tiles by their handle. See 09 · Editing the layout.

How do I delete a KPI?

Use the ✕ on the tile, or the 🗑 in the metric editor's header. This removes the metric and its history.

How do I track KPIs on a Shorter Loop dashboard?

What are the two tile states?#

What does an empty tile look like?#

What does a live tile show?#

What does a fully populated dashboard look like?#

How do I add a KPI?#

How do I enter or edit a value?#

How many values do I need before a trend appears?#

How do I see a chart?#

How do benchmarks and status indicators work?#

Can I feed KPIs from my own systems?#

How do I reorder KPIs?#

How do I delete a KPI?#