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Variables

Objective

After completing this lesson, you will be able to create variables

Variables

Variables are placeholders used in a rule in place of a Territory, Fixed Value, Rate Table or Lookup Table. Without variables, you would have to create a separate rule whenever one Position uses a different value than another.

Let’s look at an example of the use of variables in a plan. In the image below, we have a single compensation plan with a set of rules. Our two Sales Reps, Terry and Amy, can both use the plan even though each has different territories, rates, and bonus amounts. We do this by inserting variables in the rules, where they act as placeholders.

Use the following steps to include Variables in your plans:

Create or import Compensation Elements such as variables and fixed values.
Create a Variable for each type of Compensation Element.
Add the Variable in place of the Compensation Element in the Rules.
Assign the Variable to a Compensation Element on the Plan, Title or Position level in the Compensation Plan details.

Exercise: Create Variables

Business Example:

In this exercise, you will use Variables as placeholders for Territories, Fixed Values, and Rate Tables in our plan. We will need a Variable for each type of Compensation Element we created in the previous lab, using the following table as a guide.

ExerciseStart Exercise

	Type	Variable	Default
Sales Territory	Territory	TV_Sales_Territory	None
Quarterly Bonus	Fixed Value	FVV_Quarterly_Bonus	None
Commission Rates	Rate Table	RTV_Comm_Rates	RT_Commission_Rates

Steps

Create a Territory Variable.
1. From the Compensation Elements menu, select Variables.
2. Select the Create icon
3. Select Territory in the Type drop down menu.
4. Leave the default effective dates.
5. Select OK.
6. Type TV_Sales_Territory for the Variable Name.
7. Select Create.
Create the Fixed Value Variable for the Quarterly Bonus:
1. Select the Create icon.
2. Select Fixed Value in the Type drop down menu.
3. Leave the default effective dates.
4. Select OK.
5. Type FVV_Quarterly_Bonus for the Variable Name.
6. Set the Return Type to Currency.
7. Leave all other fields at the default.
8. Select Create.
Create the Rate Table Variable for the commission rates and set it to default to the Rate Table we created in the previous lab.
1. Select the Create icon.
2. Select Rate Table in the Type drop down menu.
3. Leave the default effective dates.
4. Select OK.
5. Type RTV_Comm_Rates for the Variable Name.
6. Set both the Input Type and Return Type to Percent.
7. In the Default field, select RT_Commission_Rates.
8. Select Create.

Best Practices for Variables

Always set a default for each variable.
If you don’t have a default compensation element, create a "dummy" element with a null or false value and set this as the default.
Always use a variable in a rule instead of referencing the compensation element directly. This will make your plans more scalable.

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