Summary
An assessment template decides which evaluations a Tech Assessment runs, and how much each evaluation counts toward the Overall Score. There are twelve evaluations in total, and the standard template uses eight. Two templates can therefore score the same technology on different things. Check which template a run used before you compare it to another.
Build your own template to record what your institution weighs in a decision. You select the evaluations you want and set a weight for each one. The template then scores every assessment you run against it the same way.
When to use
You want to know which evaluations a specific assessment ran, or why two assessments cover different ground.
Your institution weighs one area more heavily than the standard template does.
You screen disclosures for a specific program, and only some evaluations apply to it.
You want assessments you can compare across a portfolio rather than read one at a time.
You have adjusted weights on a finished assessment more than once and want that balance to apply by default instead.
Before you begin
Find Tech Assessment in the sidebar under Mission Control.
Every Tech Assessment user can create templates and share them with teammates. There is no separate permission to request.
Decide which evaluations matter for the decision you are making. For what each one asks and how it is scored, see Evaluations: scope, limits and rubrics.
Weights are percentages and must total 100% across the template. Work out roughly how you want to split that before you start.
You cannot edit a template FirstIgnite supplies. To change one, duplicate it and edit the copy.
Step-by-step instructions
Choose a template for an assessment
The Context step shows the template at the top when you create an assessment, with its name and description. You can change it there.
Select Change Type.
A list opens under the heading Select assessment type. It shows every template you can use, with your current one marked.
Select the template you want.
The header updates to the template you picked. The rest of the build does not change.
Continue through the build.
The assessment runs the evaluations and weights from the template you had selected when you generated it.
The template picker open on the Context step, listing the available assessment templates each with a short description, plus the options to create a new template or manage existing ones.
Create a template
The template picker holds both template screens. Select Change Type, then New Template to start a blank one, or Manage Templates to see the templates available to you.
Select New Template.
The template form opens on Details.
Enter a Template Name.
The name is required. You and your teammates will see it in the picker, so name it after the decision the template supports.
Enter a Description if you want one.
The description is optional and appears under the name in the picker.
Turn on Share with team if teammates should be able to run assessments with this template.
Your teammates then see it in their own list, tagged Shared by and your name. Only you can edit or archive it.
Select Next: Select Evaluators.
Select the evaluations to include.
The chooser groups them so a long list is easier to scan, and each group header shows how many of its evaluations you have selected. Use the search field to find one by name. Select View Evaluation Criteria on any evaluation to read what it assesses.
Select Next: Configure Weights.
Set a weight for each evaluation you selected.
Total Weight updates as you type. Select Distribute Evenly to split 100% equally across your selection. Move weight from there to where you want it.
Select Save.
The template becomes available in the picker straight away. Save stays unavailable until Total Weight reads 100% and every selected evaluation has a weight above 0%.
The Weights step of the template form, showing each selected evaluation with an editable percentage, the running Total Weight, and the Distribute Evenly control.
Edit a template
You manage templates inside Tech Assessment. Manage Templates sits in the header of the Tech Assessments list page, and also inside the template picker on an assessment.
Select Manage Templates.
The Assessment Templates screen lists every template you can use.
Open the actions menu on the template you want, then select Edit.
The template form opens on Details with your current selection loaded.
Change the name, description, sharing, selected evaluations, or weights.
Select Save.
Editing changes new assessments only. Assessments you have already generated keep the evaluations, weights, and Overall Score they ran with.
Work from a template you cannot edit
FirstIgnite's own templates carry a Default tag. Edit and Archive are unavailable on them, so copy one and change the copy.
On Assessment Templates, open the actions menu on the template you want, then select Duplicate.
The template form opens with the original's evaluations and weights loaded, and its name marked as a copy.
Change the name, the selected evaluations, and the weights.
Select Save.
A template a teammate has shared with you behaves the same way. Duplicate is the one action available to you on it. Only the person who created a template can edit or archive it.
Tips
Put the balance you want into a template rather than adjusting a finished assessment. A template scores every future disclosure the same way, so you can compare two assessments to each other. Adjusting one finished assessment gives you one result that you cannot compare to any other. For how to adjust one result, see Editing weights after an assessment.
A template with twelve evaluations spreads weight thinly, so no single evaluation moves the Overall Score much. If one area decides your outcome, include fewer evaluations and give that one a larger share.
Select Distribute Evenly first, then take weight off the evaluations that do not affect your decision. That is quicker than typing twelve numbers that have to total 100%.
Keep a screening template and a diligence template rather than one template you keep editing. Editing changes what future assessments measure, so results from before and after an edit are harder to compare.
Archive templates you have stopped using. Show archived lists them again, and Restore puts one back.
Common issues
Save is unavailable on the Weights step. Total Weight has to read exactly 100%, and every selected evaluation needs a weight above 0%. The form tells you which of the two is wrong.
Edit and Archive are unavailable on a template. The template is either one FirstIgnite supplies, tagged Default, or one a teammate created and shared. Select Duplicate and edit your copy instead.
A template is missing from Change Type. You may have archived it. Select Manage Templates, turn on Show archived, and select Restore on the template. A template a teammate created appears only if they turned on Share with team.
Missing Evaluators. Some evaluations sit under our previous version of Tech Assessment (pre-version 2.0). A template built before the current evaluation set carries evaluations that FirstIgnite no longer offers as new choices. They still run. Replace them with current evaluations when it suits you.
Two assessments of the same technology show different evaluations. They ran against different templates. Each assessment shows the evaluations its own template selected. For how to read them, see Read your assessment results.
Frequently asked questions
Does editing a template change assessments I have already run?
No. An assessment keeps the evaluations and weights it ran with. Editing the template changes what the next assessment measures.
Can I change the template after an assessment has started?
No. The template is fixed when you generate the assessment. Run a new assessment against the template you want.
How many evaluations should a template include?
Include enough to cover the decision. Keep the number low enough that each evaluation's weight is large enough to move the Overall Score. The standard template uses eight of the twelve. For what each evaluation asks, see Evaluations: scope, limits and rubrics.
Can I delete a template?
You can archive one, which removes it from your template list. Archiving only stops the template appearing for new assessments. Assessments you already ran against it stay fully viewable. Select Show archived to see archived templates and Restore to bring one back.
Can everyone on my team use a template I create?
Only if you turn on Share with team. Teammates can then run assessments with it, but only you can edit or archive it.
Are all twelve evaluations available on Basic?
Yes. Basic and Premium offer the same templates, and the evaluations you can put in a template do not depend on your tier. For the differences between the tiers, see Basic and Premium: what changes.