Performance League Handicap System & Larger Account Maps - Dec 6 Feature Update
We've been back at it with another enhancement to performance leagues based on your feedback as well as some streamlining on the accounts screens on the Outfield mobile apps. First up, we learned that there are times when your reps compete against each other on unequal grounds, such as a part-timer competing against a full-timer or an experienced employee with a very large quota competing against a newbie with an initially small quota. To handle these types of scenarios, we have implemented a new mechanic that is inspired by the game of golf.
Handicapping
For over a hundred years, golf has made use of handicapping to allow players of widely varying skill levels to compete against one another on a more even playing field. For example, a golfer with a handicap of 6 means that the average of this golfer's previous rounds was 6 over par. So if this golfer shot 4 over par, that is comparable to a golfer with 0 handicap shooting 2 under par. Side note: this criteria changed from the average of the previous 5 rounds to the previous 3 rounds starting in 2020. Anyway, we were inspired by golf handicaps to allow admins on Outfield to even the playing field among your reps if you'd like. Since there is no concept of "par" in CRM, the simplest way to implement a handicap system in Outfield is with point multipliers. Here's how it works...
You can edit your team member handicaps as an admin in the Outfield web app from the Performance+ Settings page using the More button in the bottom left of any performance role. This will take you the Team Member Handicaps page for that performance role where you can set a point multiplier for each team member (the default is 1.0). For example, if a team member works half-time, you might consider setting a multiplier of 2, which will double their points and make it a fair fight when they compete against full-timers.
Handicap multipliers can also be useful when you have widely varying quotas, new employees vs experienced employees, or any other situation where you need to make the competition more fair.
Larger Account Maps
Outfield has always had a full-screen option on our maps on the web app. But for a while now we have been discussing how to better incorporate larger maps on our mobile apps. In the latest release on both iOS and Android we have launched a solution.
By splitting the list and map into separate screens, we have been able to better optimize each for its intended purpose. Additionally, account search now works more seamlessly on each screen, the screen loads faster when you tap into the section from the side menu, no need to scroll the list all the way to the top anymore when you want to see the map, and of course the map is now much larger.
Other Notable Highlights
- You can now optionally add a position number to your team member's goals so you can ensure they show in a particular order, e.g. most important one first.
- When you populate your driving route from your calendar, you can now pick any day as opposed to only today.
- The account maps on the Outfield mobile apps now have a satellite view option
- We are constantly working to improve speed and reliability. Last month we were able to improve recurring calendar events to more efficiently handle when you create them by the many thousands.