Access to KPI Composer

  • Release version: Xanadu
  • Updated June 16, 2026
  • 2 minutes to read
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    Summary of Access to KPI Composer

    Access to KPI Composer in ServiceNow controls whether users can create, edit, or only view KPI Composer projects. It also determines which projects users can access and whether they can interact with underlying records or just the UI. Access is managed through user roles, project responsibilities, and sharing settings, either individually or combined.

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    User Roles and Their Access

    • KPI Composer Admin (snkpicomposer.admin or admin paviewer): Has full access to all KPI Composer components and projects, including underlying records. Can share projects, assign responsibilities, and associate KPI Composer definitions with Performance Analytics indicators and breakdowns.
    • KPI Composer User (snkpicomposer.user): Can only access projects they created or that are shared with them. They can share or assign responsibility for their projects but cannot link definitions to Performance Analytics entities. Additional Performance Analytics roles are required to implement KPI designs.

    Responsibility for Projects

    Users designated as responsible for a project can view and edit it, share it, and assign responsibilities. Their access is similar to that of the snkpicomposer.user role but does not require a specific role assignment. Responsible users are named within project properties and are expected to oversee and implement the project. Being a project creator does not automatically assign responsibility.

    Shared Project Access Levels

    • Edit Access: Equivalent to the access granted to responsible users or KPI Composer users, but does not imply responsibility. No specific role is required.
    • View Access: Allows reading design tabs, artifact properties, and definitions, plus use of viewing tools like search and filter. Users with view access cannot modify the project but can add journal entries.

    Practical Implications for ServiceNow Customers

    Understanding these access levels helps you control collaboration and security within KPI Composer projects. Assign roles and responsibilities thoughtfully to ensure users have appropriate permissions to contribute or review KPI projects. Use sharing settings to extend access without granting full editing or administrative rights, maintaining control over project oversight and implementation.

    The level of access to KPI Composer determines whether a user can create, edit, or only view a KPI Composer project. It also determines which projects a user can access and whether they can access the underlying records or only the UI.

    Access to KPI Composer depends on the following things, singly or in combination:
    • User role
    • Responsibility
    • Access granted during sharing

    Role-based access

    An admin can grant a user the role of a KPI Composer admin or user. A KPI Composer admin has the same privileges as a ServiceNow AI Platform admin for KPI Composer. A KPI Composer user does not automatically have access to all projects and cannot associate indicator or breakdown definitions with actual Performance Analytics entities.
    Table 1. User roles for KPI Composer
    Role Contains Description
    sn_kpi_composer.admin or admin pa_viewer
    • Full access to all components of KPI Composer, including records.
    • Full access to all projects.
    • Can share or assign responsibility for projects.
    • Can associate indicator and breakdown definitions with Performance Analytics indicators and breakdowns.
    sn_kpi_composer.user None
    • Can access only projects that they have created.
    • Can share or assign responsibility for projects they create.
    • Can access only the design tabs, artifact properties, indicator definitions, and breakdown definitions of those projects.
    • Cannot add Performance Analytics indicators or breakdowns to the respective definitions.

    A user with this role may have access to more projects based on responsibility or on projects being shared with them.

    The appropriate Performance Analytics roles are also necessary to implement KPI Composer designs in Performance Analytics.

    Responsibility for projects

    A responsible user has the following access to the projects they are responsible for:
    • Can view and edit the projects.
    • Can share or assign responsibility for the projects.
    • Can access only the design tabs, artifact properties, indicator definitions, and breakdown definitions of those projects.
    • Cannot add Performance Analytics indicators or breakdowns to the respective definitions.

    This level of access is equivalent to what the sn_kpi_composer.user role grants. It is also equivalent to having a project shared with edit rights. Responsibility differs first in being independent of any role. The second difference is procedural, not technical: Responsible users are understood to be in charge of oversight and implementation of the project. Even the creator of a project is therefore not automatically responsible for it.

    Responsible users are named in the project properties. Any user with edit rights can name responsible users. For more information about naming responsible users, see Define properties for a project.

    Shared projects

    Any user with edit rights can share a project. When you share a project, you grant one of two levels of access:

    Edit access
    This level of access is technically the same as the access of a responsible user, or a user with the sn_kpi_composer.user role. The first difference is that no role is required. The second difference is that there is no implication of responsibility to oversee or implement the project.
    View access
    A user with view access can read the design tabs, artifact properties, indicator definitions, and breakdown definitions of the shared project. They can use all viewing utilities, like search and filter. However, they cannot change anything in the project. The only thing they can add is a journal entry.

    For more information, see Share a KPI Composer project.