Create Spotlight criteria

  • Release version: Zurich
  • Updated July 31, 2025
  • 2 minutes to read
  • Create Spotlight criteria to define when to weight a record, and the weight to assign.

    Before you begin

    Create a Spotlight group

    Role required: pa_spotlight or admin

    About this task

    Spotlight criteria define how to weight records based on specific attributes. Each Spotlight criterion is associated with a Spotlight Group.
    Spotlight criteria can refer to an indicator or can use a direct query to the facts table. The former criteria are called indicator-based criteria and the latter are called query-based criteria. The indicator for an indicator-based criterion must meet the following requirements:
    • It must be an automatic indicator.
    • It must be set to collect records.
    • It must be based on the same table that the indicator source of the main indicator is based on. This table cannot be a database view.
    • If the Spotlight group evaluates platform data, the indicator cannot use a scripted breakdown.

    A query-based criterion queries the same table that the indicator source of the main indicator is based on. The suitability of indicator-based and query-based criteria depends also on whether the Spotlight group evaluates platform data or snapshots of records. For more information, see Evaluating a snapshot or platform data.

    Some criteria may be more important than others and have a higher weight. Weight from multiple criteria is cumulative within a Spotlight Group. The score of a record is the total weight from all applicable Spotlight criteria in the Spotlight Group.

    If you have domain separation enabled:
    • When you create Spotlight criteria for a global Spotlight group, the criteria are created in the domain of the logged-in user.
    • When you create Spotlight criteria for a Spotlight group that is in a specific domain, the Spotlight criteria are created in that domain.
    Messages appear to inform you of the domain situation when you create Spotlight criteria. For more information, see Domain separation with Spotlight.

    Procedure

    1. In a Spotlight group record, locate the Spotlight Criteria related list and click New.
    2. Enter the Weight you want to assign to records that meet this criterion.
      Consider revisiting the Threshold value that is set in the associated Spotlight group. Optimize the weights of the Spotlight criteria of the group and the group threshold against each other.
    3. Select the Criteria Type to determine which records are assigned the specified weight.
      OptionDescription
      Indicator Select an Indicator to assign the weight to all records included in that indicator. Optionally, select one or two breakdowns and elements to limit the records to only those records with the specified breakdown element values.
      Query Set Filter conditions. The specified weight is assigned to all records from the facts table that match the filter conditions. The facts table of the main indicator of the Spotlight group is automatically selected.
    4. Click Submit.

    Result

    You have a criterion for a Spotlight group.

    Spotlight group with three criteria

    Consider a Spotlight Group with the following three criteria, all referring to indicators:
    • Open incidents not updated in 30 days, with a weight of 1000.
    • Reassignment > 3 times, with a weight of 800
    • Description is Empty, with a weight of 300
    In this example, an open incident that has been reassigned 4 times and has an empty Description field has a total score of 1100. This incident is prioritized above an incident that has not been updated in 30 days, which has a total score of 1000.

    What to do next

    Repeat the procedure to create as many criteria as are necessary. Then collect scores. See Collect Spotlight scores.