A widget is one chart or summary on a dashboard. Choose it to answer a question, such as “How many jobs are vacant?” or “How much does this staffing cost?” Use dashboards explains how to add and arrange widgets.

Use Actions > Edit dashboard to select and order widgets. Use the controls on each chart to change its view. Filters saves the dates, departments, and job classifications for the selected dashboard.

Start with a few useful widgets. Check the selected date and department before comparing numbers from different pages.

Dollar trend widgets show a Period total for the selected dates, also included under Show details. Budget and compensation department/job-classification lists show a Shown subtotal for the rows displayed. Totals stay unavailable if any contributing amount is missing. Percentages, cost per FTE, and balances across dates are not added together.

Position widgets

Widget What it helps you understand
Workforce summary How many approved positions there are, how much is filled, and how much is vacant
Active FTE trend The approved amount of work at each period end
Assigned FTE trend The amount filled by employee assignments at each period end
Assigned employees trend How many different employees are assigned at each period end
Open FTE trend How much approved work is still unfilled
Excess FTE trend How much assigned work is above the approved position FTE
Vacancy aging How long the current vacancies have been open
Department staffing Which departments have the most unfilled FTE
Job classification staffing Which types of jobs have the most unfilled FTE
Reporting structure How many manager positions there are and how many positions report to them
Position staffing status Counts of vacant, partly filled, fully filled, and overassigned positions
Position change activity Approved position changes during the period and position work still in progress

Select Open vacancies to see each vacancy’s start date, age, and open FTE. Position reporting spans shows which positions report to a manager, directly or through others. Position change activity opens Changes in position control with the dashboard’s period and filters.

Use the parent dashboard link above the heading to return from vacancy or reporting details. For an individual person’s start and end dates, use Position Assignment History.

A person and an FTE are different measures. One half-time employee counts as one person and 0.5 FTE.

Budget widgets

Widget What it helps you understand
Budget summary Budget costs for the selected period: the whole approved position, its staffed part, and its vacancy
Budget capacity trend The whole approved budget cost for each period
Budget assigned trend The budget cost for staffed work in each period
Vacancy impact trend The budget cost of unfilled work in each period
Budget utilization trend The percentage of the whole budget that belongs to staffed work
Department budget Which departments have the largest calculated budgets
Job classification budget Which job classifications have the largest calculated budgets
Budget readiness How many positions have enough information to calculate and which still need setup
Budget versus actual The staffed budget compared with employee compensation

With January 1 through December 31 selected, Patient Services Coordinator’s whole budget is $70,000 plus $14,000 benefits = $84,000. Because Avery fills the whole position, staffed budget is also $84,000, utilization is 100%, and vacancy budget is $0.

Each cost on a trend covers the days included in that period. Partial periods include only the selected days, and changes within the period are included. Missing cost information remains unavailable.

Check Budget readiness before using a total. Missing rates or other required values keep the period total unavailable.

Compensation widgets

Widget What it helps you understand
Compensation summary Employee cost for the selected period, assigned FTE, and cost per FTE
Compensation trend Employee cost for each period
Assigned FTE trend The assignment FTE included in the compensation result
Average cost per FTE trend Calculated compensation divided by the included assignment FTE
Department compensation Which departments have the largest calculated employee costs
Job classification compensation Which job classifications have the largest calculated employee costs
Compensation readiness How many positions have enough pay information to calculate
Actual versus budget Employee compensation compared with the staffed budget

For a full-year range with the original salary unchanged, Avery’s $60,000 salary plus $12,000 benefits estimate = $72,000. At 1.0 FTE, the average cost per FTE is also $72,000.

Compensation widgets calculate from the pay, assignments, hours, and adjustments for the selected period. They do not show payroll payments, deductions, or withholding. Open Employee pay to review an individual salary or hourly rate.

If any required information is missing, the affected position’s cost can be blank. Compensation readiness counts positions with complete or missing information during the selected period. Choose Review missing information to see the related issues for that period and your selected departments and job classifications. Budget readiness works the same way. Scheduling a review leaves the information incomplete, so the position remains in the missing-information count. One issue can affect several positions, and one position can have several issues; the Issues list labels those counts separately.

Compare budget and compensation

Budget versus actual and Actual versus budget require access to both financial areas for the same departments. Both calculations must be ready.

They compare the budget for staffed work with employee compensation. For Avery:

  • Staffed budget: $84,000.
  • Compensation: $72,000.
  • Budget variance: $84,000 − $72,000 = $12,000 Under budget.
  • Variance percentage: $12,000 ÷ $84,000 × 100 = 14.29%.

If compensation is higher than budget, the difference is negative and the widget says Over budget.

Read Positions compared to see which positions were included. A comparison that leaves out positions with missing information is incomplete.

When a value is unavailable

Check the date, department, your access, and whether the calculation has finished. A blank means the value is unavailable, not zero.

On position, budget, and compensation dashboards, Calculating dashboard… means results or comparisons for your selected dates are still being prepared. Widget titles stay visible while you wait, and results appear automatically. Data may be out of date means earlier results remain visible while newer results are prepared; check the displayed dates and wait before using them for a recent change. A green Updated check appears when the dashboard results are ready. Some results unavailable means the calculation finished but required information is missing; review the information links instead of waiting for another refresh. Calculation failed means the calculation needs attention; follow the recovery guidance or contact your administrator.

Follow a missing-information link to the record that needs fixing. Use Issues, budget and pay troubleshooting for the next steps.

Compare with rule targets

A workforce rule marked Include in budget comparisons can supply the budget for an FTE measure. Dollar widgets link to the matching rules so you can review each rule’s own period. When exactly one budget matches, the summary shows its requirement, the amount above or below budget, and whether the target is met directly beneath that measure. Follow the rule name to review the comparison. There is no summary setting to apply.

The rule must match the measure, departments, job classifications, and selected date. For example, a position FTE budget belongs beside Active FTE; an assigned FTE budget belongs beside Assigned FTE. A department budget cannot cover a total for several departments. Dollar requirements are not plotted as FTE targets. Review dollar budgets in Rules and budgets, where each rule keeps its own date or measurement period.

If several budgets match a measure, the card asks you to review the rules. Keep one rule marked Include in budget comparisons for that measure and set of records when you want an automatic comparison. Other rules can remain available in Rules and budgets, with their existing warning or blocking responses. Budgets are never added together or chosen by name or creation order.

Matching FTE trend charts show dashed Budget target markers. Each marker uses the rule version effective on that period’s final included date, including a partial final period. Changing the chart period or cadence updates those dates. For example, a budget changing from 200 FTEs to 220 FTEs on July 1 appears as 200 at the June point and 220 at the July point.

An inactive or expired budget leaves a gap. Markers compare individual dates; they do not represent spending accumulated during a month. Use Show details for each date’s target and comparison.

The whole trend must have one matching budget rule; that rule can have dated versions. If different rules would supply different parts of a trend, review the rules before using a single budget comparison. If results are missing, incomplete, or do not match the dates and records being compared, FTE Tree does not show a passing comparison or a chart marker.

Add Rules and budgets through Actions > Edit dashboard to see named requirements together. Choose All rule targets or Budget targets, then Apply. Read the departments and dates shown for each rule. An organization-wide rule still checks the whole organization. A rule for a complete budget period still checks that whole period, even when the dashboard shows fewer departments or dates. The displayed Dates checked include the last covered day. Multiple requirements remain separate rows. Large comparisons show an initial set of rows; Run a check includes all matching rules.

Changing a dashboard does not change what happens when a requirement is unmet during submission, approval, or the saving of approved changes. Run a check reviews the matching rules and lets you save a full evaluation. See Run and save a workforce rule check. Budget utilization continues to mean staffed budget divided by budget capacity.

Form choices

Use this reference to choose form values. Available choices depend on the task, selected date, and your access.

Widgets

Choose the measures that answer your question, then arrange their order. Available widgets depend on the work area and your access.

Position widgets describe capacity, staffing, and vacancies. Budget widgets describe planned cost; compensation widgets describe actual compensation. A missing financial value is unavailable rather than zero. Use the widget sections above to check each measure before comparing it with another work area. Combine a summary with the trends or breakdowns needed for your decision. Date-based summaries and period trends answer different questions; check each widget’s date or period before comparing its values.

Optional practice: read staffing, budget, and pay together

For exercises that change records, use a separate practice organization and complete the preparation below.

Practice steps and checks

Open the example position for January 1, 2027 in each dashboard area.

  1. In position control, read one full-time position filled by one full-time employee.
  2. In Labor budget, select January 1 through December 31 and read $84,000 budget for the full year.
  3. In Compensation, select the same date range. With the original salary unchanged all year, read $72,000 employee cost for the full year.
  4. Open the records behind a widget and check the position and date.
  5. Use the financial comparison widget, if available, to read the $12,000 difference.

The budget and employee cost answer different questions and should not be added together. After the July 1 raise, the annual cost at that date is $75,600, leaving $8,400 of the annual budget. The full-year dashboard includes 181 days at $72,000 per year and 184 days at $75,600 per year: ($72,000 × 181 + $75,600 × 184) ÷ 365 = $73,814.79. Against the full-year $84,000 budget, the remaining amount is $10,185.21.