Audience: Power Users
User-defined fields are a way to categorize the contracts in your database. Out of the box, we include seven fields you may use when entering your contracts:
Auto-Renew
Contract Value
Counterparty Ref
Group Company Name
KPI Factor
Notification Period
Performance/Disputes
You can make these available or unavailable on your contract types as you require. More importantly, you can create your own user-defined fields to help your categorize, search for and report on your contracts. You can add these to any of your contract types and make them mandatory or optional on each contract type.
Formats of User-Defined Fields
A user-defined field can be in one of these formats:
text - with limited or unlimited characters
numeric - with further settings on number of decimal places, currency, etc.
checkbox; or
drop-down list - users can select one value from the list.
There is no "date" format offered, because "user-defined dates" should be set up as custom Dates instead. This allows you to add reminders and notifications to upcoming dates, if required.
Create a User-Defined Field
Go to the Contracts menu > Maintain User-Defined Fields
On the right-hand side, click New.
Enter the field name - up to 50 characters. The length is limited as this field name can appear as a column heading in your Dashboard and in reports.
Select a Business Unit.
Under Entry Mode select either Text field, Numeric Value, Drop Down List or Checkbox. The selection here will be reflected in the tabs at the top of the screen, eg "Text Field Settings", "Drop Down Items", etc.
Set the Display Width - either Automatic or Full Width. This determines how the field is displayed when a contract is in View or Edit mode.
Enter any User Help text to be displayed under the field. This is particularly useful if the field is to be made mandatory on any contract types.
If your organization sends courtesy reminders to Counterparties, this field can be included in such emails. Tick the box to include it, and under Counterparty Title, specify a custom label to be displayed to the Counterparty if you don't want to use the Field Name.
Go to the middle tab on your screen to specify settings for your text field, numeric value or drop-down - see details below for each section. If your entry mode is "Checkbox" there is no further information to be entered.
Click Save to save your new user-defined field.
Work through the steps below to Add a user-defined field to a contract type, otherwise your new field will not be visible on any contracts.
Text Field Settings
Set the maximum length. For a "single line" text field, you may have up to 100 characters. For "multi-line", set the field length to Unlimited.
Numeric Field Settings
You may specify number of digits, number of decimal places, minimum or maximum values, and number format: currency, percentage, whole number, etc.
Drop Down Items
If you field is a drop down list, the Drop Down Items tab allows you to set the values in the list. You may edit these values from time to time, as required.
Add a User-Defined Field to a Contract Type
Having created your user-defined field, you now need to add it to any contract types you wish to use it on:
Go to the Contracts menu > Maintain Contract Types.
Select a contract type and click it to Edit.
Go to the User-defined Fields tab. Any newly-created user-defined fields will be towards the bottom of the list.
Set your fields to be either:
- Unavailable - cannot be used on this contract type;
- Optional Unselected - available to be used, but only if accessed through Show/Hide Fields on a contract;
- Optional Selected - available to be used and visible on a contract.
- Required - visible and mandatory.You may reorder the fields as they appear in the contract screen using the Move Up button, or clicking the blue "item number" field to rearrange. If a field is set to Unavailable, you don't need to move it below fields that are Optional or Required.
Once you have all your fields set, and in the correct order, click Save on your contract type.
Back in the Contract Maintenance screen, click on any other contract types that require the new user-defined field(s) added.
