Planned Savings (Current Year) metric calculation

  • Release version: Zurich
  • Updated March 31, 2025
  • 3 minutes to read
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    Summary of Planned Savings (Current Year) metric calculation

    The Planned Savings (Current Year) metric in ServiceNow tracks the projected savings from pipeline projects that are in the Planned state—meaning they have been approved and scheduled but work has not yet started. It uses theTargeted savingsfield to capture future savings goals set during project creation. This metric helps organizations forecast expected savings from upcoming initiatives within a specified date range, typically the current calendar year.

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    Both Planned Savings and Active Savings metrics read from the same Targeted savings field; the key difference is that Planned Savings applies to projects where work has not begun.

    Key Features

    • Metric Scope: Projects in Planned state with defined savings periods overlapping the selected date range.
    • Data Source: Uses the Targeted savings field representing the savings goal rather than actual savings.
    • Date Range: User-specified, often the current calendar year, split into monthly intervals for calculation.
    • Proration: Savings are prorated monthly based on the overlap of the project’s savings period and each month, using a per-day rate formula capped at 365 days.
    • Calculation Formula:
      Prorated Savings = (Targeted Savings ÷ min(Project Duration in days, 365)) × Overlap Days within month
    • Usage: Aggregated monthly savings feed the Savings by Type chart on the analytics dashboard for reporting and visualization.

    How Planned Savings Differ from Hard Savings and Cost Avoidance

    AspectHard Savings / Cost Avoidance YTDPlanned Savings
    Pipeline StateClosed CompletePlanned
    Savings FieldAnnual hard savings / Annual cost avoidanceTargeted savings
    What It RepresentsActual achieved savingsFuture projected savings

    Since planned projects are not yet completed, only the target savings are available for reporting, which is why the Targeted savings field is used.

    Calculation Process

    1. The analytics dashboard receives the selected date range and any filters.
    2. The date range is divided into monthly intervals.
    3. For each month, the system identifies Planned projects with savings periods overlapping that month and a non-zero Targeted savings value.
    4. For each qualifying project, the system calculates the per-day savings rate (capped at 365 days) and prorates savings based on the number of overlapping days in that month.
    5. Monthly prorated savings from all projects are summed to produce monthly totals.
    6. All monthly totals are aggregated across the date range to generate the Planned Savings metric displayed on the dashboard.

    Example

    For the date range January 1 to December 31, 2024:

    • PIPE-201 (Q3 Vendor Review): Planned savings of $180,000 over 184 days (July 1–Dec 31). Per-day savings = $978.26; total prorated savings for 2024 = $180,000.
    • PIPE-202 (Cloud Migration Savings): Planned savings of $500,000 over 730 days (Jan 1, 2024–Dec 31, 2025), capped at 365 days for calculation. Per-day savings = $1,369.86; prorated savings for 2024 = $500,000.

    The total Planned Savings (Current Year) for 2024 is the sum of prorated values: $680,000.

    Planned Savings (Current Year) shows the projected savings from pipeline projects in Planned state—projects approved and scheduled but not yet started. This metric uses the Targeted savings field to represent future savings goals.

    Planned Savings (Current Year) tracks savings expected from pipeline projects that have been approved but where work has not begun. The metric reads from the Targeted savings field, which holds the savings goal set during project creation.
    Note:
    Both Active Savings and Planned Savings read from the Targeted savings field. This is intentional — both represent projected or goal savings. The distinction is whether work on the project has started.

    Metric definition

    The following attributes define the Planned Savings (Current Year) metric:

    Attribute Detail
    Metric name Planned Savings (Current Year)
    Pipeline state Planned
    Savings field Targeted savings
    Date range User-specified (typically the current calendar year)
    Proration Yes — overlap-based proration
    Used in Savings by Type chart on the analytics dashboard

    How planned savings differs from hard savings and cost avoidance

    Aspect Hard Savings / Cost Avoidance YTD Planned Savings
    Pipeline state Closed Complete Planned
    Savings field Annual hard savings / Annual cost avoidance Targeted savings
    What it represents Actual achieved savings Future projected savings
    Note:
    Planned projects have not yet completed, so only the savings target is available. This is why the Targeted savings field is used instead of the Annual hard savings or Annual cost avoidance fields.

    How Planned Savings Are Calculated

    The Planned Savings metric is calculated month by month across the selected date range and then aggregated for the Savings by Type chart on the analytics dashboard.

    • Receive the date range: The dashboard passes a date range—typically the current calendar year—along with any active filters (such as department or category).
    • Break the range into monthly intervals: The system splits the full date range into individual month windows (for example, January 1–31, February 1–28, and so on through December).
    • For each month, identify qualifying projects: The system queries the pipeline project table for projects in Planned state where the project has a savings start date and a savings end date, the savings period overlaps with the month window, and the project has a non-zero Targeted savings value.
    • Prorate each project's savings against the month window: For each qualifying project, the system calculates the overlap between the project's savings period and the month window, then applies the proration formula. Per-day rate equals Targeted savings divided by project duration (capped at 365 days). Prorated savings equals per-day rate multiplied by overlap days.
    • Sum the monthly totals: The prorated savings for all qualifying projects in each month are added together to produce a monthly planned savings figure.
    • Aggregate across months: The monthly totals are combined into a time-series dataset used to render the Savings by Type chart on the analytics dashboard.

    Proration formula

    Prorated Savings = (Targeted Savings ÷ min(Project Days, 365)) × Overlap Days.

    Applied per month window across the selected date range.

    Example calculation

    The following scenario demonstrates how Planned Savings is calculated for two planned pipeline projects during the date range of January 1 to December 31, 2024:

    Pipeline State Targeted Savings Savings Start Savings End
    PIPE-201 (Q3 Vendor Review) Planned $180,000 Jul 1, 2024 Dec 31, 2024
    PIPE-202 (Cloud Migration Savings) Planned $500,000 Jan 1, 2024 Dec 31, 2025
    PIPE-201: Fully within the year (H2 project)
    • Project duration = 184 days
    • Overlap with range = 184 days (project falls entirely within the year)
    • Per-day rate = $180,000 ÷ 184 = $978.26/day
    • Prorated savings = $978.26 × 184 = $180,000.00
    PIPE-202: Multi-year project (365-day cap applies)
    • Project duration = 730 days — exceeds 385 days
    • Overlap with range = 365 days (full year 2024)
    • Per-day rate = $500,000 ÷ 365 (capped) = $1,369.86/day
    • Prorated savings = $1,369.86 × 365 = $500,000.00

    Final aggregation

    The final aggregation sums the prorated values:

    Pipeline Prorated Planned Savings
    PIPE-201 $180,000.00
    PIPE-202 $500,000.00
    Total Planned Savings (Current Year) $680,000.00