Planned Savings (Current Year) metric calculation

  • Release version: Australia
  • 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 represents the projected savings from pipeline projects currently in the Planned state—meaning these projects are 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 customers track expected savings from upcoming projects within a user-specified date range, typically the current calendar year.

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    Both the Planned Savings and Active Savings metrics use the Targeted savings field, but Planned Savings specifically applies to projects where work has not commenced.

    How the metric works

    • Pipeline state: Includes only projects in the Planned state.
    • Field used: Targeted savings (future savings goals).
    • Date range: User-defined, usually the current calendar year.
    • Proration: Applied based on overlap of project savings periods with monthly intervals.
    • Used in: The Savings by Type chart on the analytics dashboard.

    Difference from Hard Savings and Cost Avoidance

    • Hard Savings / Cost Avoidance: Reflect actual, achieved savings from closed or complete projects.
    • Planned Savings: Represents projected savings from pipeline projects not yet started, using the Targeted savings field.

    Calculation Method

    The Planned Savings metric is calculated by:

    1. Receiving a date range (e.g., January 1 to December 31).
    2. Dividing this range into monthly intervals.
    3. Identifying projects in Planned state with a non-zero Targeted savings value and savings periods overlapping each month.
    4. Prorating each project’s savings for the month based on the number of overlapping days and a per-day savings rate.
    5. Summing prorated savings for all qualifying projects each month.
    6. Aggregating monthly totals for a complete time-series dataset used in dashboard visualizations.

    Proration formula:

    Prorated Savings = (Targeted Savings ÷ min(Project Duration in days, 365)) × Overlap Days

    This formula caps the project duration at 365 days to handle multi-year projects correctly.

    Example Calculation

    For two planned projects during 2024:

    • PIPE-201: $180,000 Targeted savings, July 1–December 31 (184 days). Per-day rate is $978.26. Full overlap yields $180,000 Planned Savings.
    • PIPE-202: $500,000 Targeted savings, January 1, 2024 – December 31, 2025 (730 days capped at 365). Per-day rate is $1,369.86. Full year overlap yields $500,000 Planned Savings.

    Total Planned Savings (Current Year) = $680,000

    Practical implications for ServiceNow customers

    This metric enables customers to accurately forecast and track projected savings from pipeline projects scheduled for the current year. Understanding how proration works helps in interpreting savings reports, especially for projects spanning multiple years. The data feeds into analytics dashboards, providing actionable insights into expected financial benefits from planned initiatives, supporting better financial planning and portfolio management.

    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