Introduction
This feature allows you to enhance your Capabilities by adding custom data fields tailored to your organisation's unique needs. You can now include specific identifiers, link capabilities to business areas, or capture any other data that matters to you, beyond the existing, predefined fields.
How it works
The initial release of this feature is available upon request and requires configuration by the Learning Pool team. There is currently no self-service user interface for administrators to create or manage these fields.
Requesting a custom field
To get started, you will need to raise a request with our support team.
You will be asked to provide the following configuration for each custom field you require:
| Configuration | Description | Example |
| Field Name | The name of your custom field. This is what users will see on pages and in report exports. | 'Business Area' |
| Custom Field Reference | A unique identifier for the field. This is mandatory, must be unique, and is used to map the field when you import capabilities via a file. | 'business_area' |
| Field Type | Choose between a free text field or a predefined dropdown list. See the 'Field types' section below for more detail. | Text or Select |
| Mandatory | Defines whether a value must be entered for this field. This impacts validation in the front end and capabilities import. | Yes / No |
| Unique | Defines whether the value for this field must be unique for every capability, i.e., whether all capabilities must have a different value for this field. | Yes / No |
| Placeholder Text (optional) | Allows you to provide text that appears in the field to provide a hint or instruction to users. This is an optional fields and will accept any characters. | 'Select Business Area' |
| Filters | Choose whether a filter for this field should appear on the 'Capabilities' page, the 'Opportunities' page, both, or neither. | Capabilities page: Yes / No Opportunities page: Yes / No |
Field types
There are two types of custom fields you can create for capabilities:
- Text: This provides a simple text box where a user can input the desired text or data.
- Please note that at this time, minimum/maximum character limits and default values cannot be configured.
- Select: This provides a dropdown menu with a list of predefined options for users to choose from.
- During setup, you will need to provide the list of options you want to appear in the dropdown.
- If you need to add or remove options from the list later, you will need to raise a support request.
- Users can only select one option from the list.
- A default value is not configurable.
- The field will always appear as a dropdown menu; other formats like radio buttons or checkboxes are not available.
Custom capability field functionality in the platform
Once configured, your custom fields are fully integrated into the following areas of Skills Builder:
Creating and editing capabilities: The custom fields will appear on the 'Add/Edit Capability' pages for users to complete. Any user with permission to edit capabilities will be able to edit the custom fields.
Importing capabilities: You can populate custom fields for new capabilities and edit them for existing capabilities using the capability import. To do this, the Custom Field Reference will be used as the header name representing this field when importing capabilities via file. You will then need to update your import file to include the additional heading representing the custom capability field.
Filtering: If you have chosen to enable filters, they will appear in the filter sidebar on the 'Capabilities' and/or 'Opportunities' pages. Custom field filters will always be displayed below the standard filters.
Reporting: Custom capability fields are automatically included in the ‘Capability overview report’ export, once created.
FAQs
Q: How do I get this feature enabled for my organisation?
A: This feature is available upon request. For new clients, your implementation team can raise a request. Existing clients can raise a request via our support desk. The feature must be configured by our technical team as a self-service UI is not yet available.
Q: What types of custom fields can I create?
A: We support two field types: 'Text' for free text input and 'Select' for a dropdown menu with predefined options.
Q: Can I make a custom field mandatory?
A: Yes. When you request the field, you can specify if it should be mandatory and also whether the value entered must be unique for each capability.
Q: Can I use custom fields to filter for capabilities or opportunities?
A: Yes. For each field, you can choose to enable a filter on the 'Capabilities' page, the 'Opportunities' page, both, or neither.
Q: Will these custom fields be included in reports?
A: Yes, they are automatically added to the ‘Capability Overview Report’ export.
Q: How do I update the options in a 'Select' (dropdown) field after it has been set up?
A: To add or remove options from a dropdown list, you will need to raise a request with our support team. You cannot edit these values yourself within the platform.
Q: Can I provision data for custom fields via an import?
A: Yes. When setting up the field, we will agree on a ‘Custom Field Reference’. Use this reference as an additional heading in your capability import file to populate the field.
Q: Will there be a UI for me to create these fields myself in the future?
A: A self-service UI is not planned at this stage. Future development will be based on client demand and value.