Roadmap: Configuring the default view

What is it? 

The ITONICS Roadmap helps you to both master strategic planning and generate an overview across the innovation landscape over time.

This could include (a) future markets you identified to be attractive, (b) products and services you are working on to address that future (or existing) markets, (c) technologies you need to order to bring those products and services to market by developing them in-house or (d) working with start-ups, universities, and corporate partners.

Please note: This feature needs to be activated by ITONICS. Please contact your Customer Success Manager for further assistance.

Learn more about how:

How does it work? 

While your users will later have the option to customize the roadmap to their needs, you need to provide them with a default configuration. Roadmaps can be built across different entities, i.e., separate entities can be displayed on one roadmap.

Create a roadmap and its layers

Once the roadmap feature has been activated for you, navigate to the Settings Wheel > Roadmap > All Roadmaps. You can also create single roadmaps from the 'Create button' in the main navigation bar.

A form opens from which you need to complete the fields.

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A title, abstract, start, and end years are required information to enter. You can add an image and layers if you want to (optional).

To insert a high-level layer, hover over the Root field and click on the plus icon (1). You can type a new name for your layers and confirm by pressing ENTER or clicking Done. For any sub-layers, you may hover over the added (sub)layers and click on the plus icon again. To remove a layer hover over it again and click on the delete icon (2). Note: if you intend to remove a (sub-)layer at a later stage, you will be prompted for a confirmation in case that the respective (sub-)layer already contains elements.

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Following the above steps, you can go ahead and set up your layer structure for your roadmap. The below shows a best practice example connecting (innovation) projects with technologies and partners.

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From the Default color option you may optionally define a default color schema for the entity types (note that all entity types having the roadmap module enabled are listed) for the underlying roadmap. Per default, the Entity Color option is selected, which refers to the color defined per entity type in the entity configuration. Besides, you may select from the dropdown fields configured for the particular entity type, i.e. in this example the dropdown field “Recommended Action” to make use of the color configuration defined within field configuration of the particular field. An example could be using a dropdown field “Health Status” for the Project entity type and automatically color all project elements on the specific roadmap based on the respective value provided for the Health Status field, i.e. color green if “On Track”.

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Note that the default color schema defined for a particular element type may dynamically be adjusted within a roadmap session from the roadmap legend. Further, it is possible for permitted users to define an individual element-level color for a particular roadmap record. If an individual element level color is defined, it would overwrite the default color schema defined for the roadmap record's underlying entity type for this particular roadmap. If the element-level color of a particular roadmap record is removed again, the default color schema configured for the underlying entity type will apply again.

 

Press Save and Publish and let's start working with your first Roadmap.

Make sure to check the roadmap permissions within the system-level permissions.

Note: You can bypass the element visibility permissions, which control whether a respective user can see elements of an entity type on the roadmap, via the Enable full roadmap visibility option in the roadmap create/edit form. If checked, users will be able to see elements of all entity types on the roadmap, no matter their element visibility permissions, however, users will still not be able to redirect to the detail page of the respective elements, for which they have restricted visibility.

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You can access your new roadmap from the main navigation menu by hovering over the roadmap section.

Be aware that there is also the advanced option to create a roadmap from the Explorer module. However, note that this option must first be activated by ITONICS.

Sync start and end dates (between different roadmaps)

The ITONICS Roadmap module allows you to add the same content element (e.g., projects, products, technologies) not only to one single roadmap but on multiple different roadmaps simultaneously.

ITONICS Roadmap provides you with a feature that synchronizes the start and end date of an element across different roadmaps. If not enabled, users have to add the start and end date from the Roadmap tab. If enabled, the start and end date will be kept continuous across all the different elements, and the start and end date can be also set as a normal data entry outside the roadmap tab.

This feature could be used to perform one of the following use cases:

  • Your project affects multiple other activities on different roadmaps and is delayed by 2 weeks. Instead of maintaining and documenting this delay on every roadmap your project is listed on, you are simply adjusting the end date on your project and the project will update on every roadmap automatically.
  • The collaboration with an important scientific partner is delayed and cannot start unless the last pending approvals on the legal side are cleared. This affects different project teams from kicking off their projects, which causes an overall delay in the planned initiative. Instead of updating all activities on the different roadmaps manually, the system will maintain the update automatically.

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To enable the synced roadmap date feature, go to the Settings Wheel > Entity Configuration > Entity Configuration and navigate to the entity for which you want to enable the synced roadmap date feature by clicking the Edit pen icon:

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Enable - if not already done - the Roadmap module for the element type of choice. Tick the checkbox Sync Roadmap Dates and click Save. In the field configuration, two new fields are added as roadmap sync dates. You can now adjust the field labels, tooltips, and help texts for both, the start date field and end date field, when you click on the pen icon. Note: The start and end date fields are mandatory by default.

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You can adjust the placement of the two new fields in the View and Form Configuration. You can also place them in group fields via the Group Field Configuration.

You can also use the start and end date with the Excel import/export, but also within a workflow, for example using the date value change or convert entity trigger type. Note: When changing the start and end date via Excel import, it will change start and end date for the respective element(s) across all roadmaps as they are in sync.

Every time the start or end date is changed from the following locations, all other start and end dates are automatically updated and synchronized:

  1. Editing the above-generated start date field or end date field via the Edit Element functionality.
  2. Updating the start or end date on the roadmap visualization with drag and drop.

Further points to consider when adding / editing an element with synced dates to a roadmap:

When adding an element with synced roadmap dates from the Visual Roadmap Editor (VRE), the start and end dates are updated for this element across all roadmaps. To avoid accidentally changing the dates on different roadmaps, the user has to select whether to overwrite the existing dates or apply the already set dates when adding the element to the roadmap via the VRE.

Note: This also applied to elements having synced roadmap date values assigned on creation that are overall placed on a first roadmap.

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Furthermore, if the “Update Roadmap” action includes any update of an element with synced roadmap dates, the system will ask for confirmation for the action, since potentially the placement of an element on other roadmaps is affected as well. Hereby, the system will prompt the user, while listing all the element roadmap records with synced roadmap dates that are affected by the current edit action. The user is then asked whether to go back to editing (1) the elements on the roadmap, whether to update the roadmap (3) with the changes applied (potentially affecting the same element’s start and end date on multiple roadmaps), or whether to remove the date synchronization (2) for the listed roadmap records.

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Clicking on Remove Sync will effectively opt the roadmap record of the particular element out of date synchronization on this roadmap. Navigating to the roadmap tab on the element’s detail page and editing the roadmap record, the roadmap record will now have the Use Custom Dates option checked, instead of the Use Synced Dates option. This means, that the Start and End Date fields are not controlled by the Synced Roadmap Dates feature anymore, but are adjustable, since this element is now not in sync anymore on the particular roadmap. However, the same element can still be in sync on other roadmaps, where the roadmap records will still have the Use Synced Dates option checked and the Start and End Date fields greyed out / not adjustable. Note that when switching back to the date synchronization by checking Use Synced Dates, the prior selected custom date values will be overwritten with the synced date values synced across the other roadmaps.

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Note: there is the option to activate a small indicator shown on the element bar on the roadmap visualization to indicate that the particular element, respectively roadmap record is controlled from synced roadmap dates, which must be activated by ITONICS.

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Creating own milestone types

There are default options provided in the Milestone Type dropdown, however, you can also create your own milestone types. Milestones are specific events at which you want to control the achievement of a particular task related to your content element put on the roadmap. 

To do so, go to the Settings Wheel > Roadmap > Milestone Types. On the Manage Milestone Type page, click Add Milestone Type and enter your information: title, choose the entity type(s) (multi-select), and upload an icon if you prefer. When ready, click Save and Publish

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You will then find your new milestone type on the 'manage milestone type' page. Furthermore, you can delete, archive, or restore milestone types from this list. Users can then use the defined milestone types for their content elements and roadmaps.

Once you have defined the entities for which you want to provide the milestone types, a milestone configuration is added to the configuration pages of the respective entity/entities. You will find this when you navigate via the Settings Wheel > Entity Configuration > Entity Configuration to a specific entity. Click on the Pen icon to go to the edit section. Then select Milestone Configuration and the Manage Milestone Configuration interface will open. 

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Some fields are already listed, which you can configure by clicking the edit icon. You can not, however, delete any of these. To familiarize yourself with how to add new or existing fields, see the article Field Configuration. 

Go to View Milestone Configuration to adjust the order of the fields that are displayed on the milestone preview. You can open the preview by pressing the title on the milestone bracket. 

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From the Form Milestone Configuration, you can drag and drop the fields according to your preferences. It affects the create/edit milestone popup.

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Creating own roadmap connection types

When drawing a roadmap connection, a user may optionally choose from roadmap connection types to set for the respective connection between two elements or an element and a milestone. To utilize the roadmap connection as a more informative dimension on the roadmap, you can pre-configure different roadmap connection types to use on a particular roadmap when setting up a connection.

To do so, navigate to the Settings Wheel > Roadmap > Roadmap Connection Types.

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On the Manage Roadmap Connection Types page, click Add Roadmap Connection Type and enter the required information: title, choose the line style, define a color, and select one or multiple roadmap on which the respective connection type shall be available for selection. Note that if for a particular entity type no roadmap assignment is configured yet, the connection type will not be available for selection. When ready, click Done.

Optionally, you can make use of the toggle option to synchronize a connection type across all roadmaps. If checked and subsequently saved via Done, the system automatically adds the particular connection type to all existing roadmaps, and ensures that it will be synchronized to any newly created roadmap in the future. If unchecked again, then any prior roadmap selected in the Roadmaps selection field would be again selected, once the change is confirmed via Done.

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You will then find your new roadmap connection type on the 'Manage Roadmap Connection Types' page. Furthermore, you can delete or edit connection types from this list. Users may then make use of the configured roadmap connection types when drawing a roadmap connection from the roadmap visualization, or adding from the roadmap tab of an element.

Deleting and editing roadmap scenarios

Your users can create their own roadmap scenarios, i.e., different versions of a roadmap if you allow them to do so. You can globally manage all existing roadmap scenarios by navigating to the Scenario Manage Page via the Settings Wheel > Roadmap > Scenario Records. Here all roadmap scenarios are listed by showing the following information:

  • Title - name of the scenario
  • Roadmap - which roadmap is this scenario created for
  • Status - different scenarios might be “Active” or already “Merged”
  • Created - creation date of the scenario
  • Created By - the user that created this scenario
  • Visibility - who can access this scenario
  • Actions - only delete is possible here

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Managing roadmap snapshots

Roadmap snapshots allow you to save different states of your roadmap for later reference and backup purposes. Whenever there are major changes on your Roadmap you should take snapshots for proper documentation and later reference. 

Note: When merging a Roadmap Scenario, a snapshot is taken automatically to document the previous state of the Roadmap before merging the roadmap changes from that scenario. The automatically created snapshot names follow the following convention: [yyyy-mm-dd hh:mm>] Snapshot before merging scenario <scenario name>.

The Application Owner is able to take snapshots of all existing Roadmaps with one click by navigating to the Settings Wheel > Roadmap > Roadmap Snapshots and clicking on the Create Roadmap Snapshots of all Roadmaps button. The system creates a snapshot for each existing roadmap with the following name: [yyyy-mm-dd hh:mm] Backup Snapshot.

All snapshots across all existing roadmaps can be found and managed via the Settings Wheel > Roadmap > Roadmap Snapshots. Here, all roadmap snapshots are listed showing the following information:

  • Snapshot name - name of the snapshot
  • Roadmap - which roadmap does this snapshot belong to
  • Created At - creation date of the snapshot
  • [Coming soon] Created By - the user that created this snapshot

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Additionally, you can search for individual snapshots, change the sorting options and delete obsolete snapshots.

You can explore all taken snapshots of a specific roadmap by navigating to the Roadmap Settings (of the specific roadmap) > Snapshot > Show all snapshots. The system will present all taken snapshots on a timescale which can be used to explore all existing snapshots.

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To access all your snapshots, click on show all snapshots. You will see that a second timeline now opens at the end of the roadmap with a list of the snapshots and a time indication.

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