Build a value driver

Reflects the product as of 2026-06-10

This guide walks you through the Value Driver Studio — one editor for creating and refining the formulas that power your business cases. New here? Read What is a value driver? first.

Three ways to start

Open Value Drivers in the sidebar and click "+ Build value driver". You'll be offered three paths:

Describe it — the fastest path. Write the benefit in plain language:

"Our remote access tool reduces the need for on-site technician dispatches. Each dispatch costs $150–$300 and takes 2–4 hours…"

Val drafts the whole driver — name, inputs, formula, defaults — for you to review and edit. Uses 1 AI Generation.

From a solution — pick the solution this driver supports and click "Generate driver candidates". Val proposes a handful of driver ideas for that product; tick the ones you want and Serre creates them in bulk. Any that land without a finished formula show an "Incomplete" badge in the library — open them and click "Finish setup".

Start from a blank driver — full manual control.

The Studio, section by section

What is this driver?

Name it in buyer language ("Dispatch cost avoidance"), pick a value category (cost reduction, productivity, risk, revenue…), and write a description. The description is saved with the driver — and Val uses it for context, so a good one makes every later AI assist sharper.

Inputs

Add a row per variable the formula needs. Each input has a label ("Dispatches per month"), an auto-derived key (dispatches_per_month), a type, a unit, a display format, and a default value that pre-populates every new business case.

Formula

Write the annual value as plain arithmetic over your input keys — click a variable button to insert it:

dispatches_per_month * cost_per_dispatch * deflection_rate * 12

The operators are + − * / and parentheses. As you type, a live preview shows the annual value at your defaults, with the step-by-step trace — if the number looks wrong here, it'll look wrong in front of a buyer, so tune it now.

Applies to solutions

Tick the solutions this driver belongs to, or leave all unchecked to make it portfolio-wide.

Refining with Val

Click "Ask Val" to open the copilot. Tell it what to change:

  • "Tighten this formula — is the economic shape right?"
  • "Make the defaults more conservative"
  • "Add a ramp-up factor for year one"

Val applies changes to the editor only — nothing saves until you do, and Val remembers the conversation, so follow-ups work. Each request uses 1 AI Generation; saving is always free.

Save it

The checklist in the sidebar tracks completeness: identity, at least one input, a valid formula, every referenced variable defined. When it's green, click "Save to library".

Editing a driver that's already in use

If a driver appears in existing business cases, the Studio tells you — for example, "Used in 5 business cases." Your edits apply only to cases that add the driver from now on; existing cases keep their frozen numbers. That's the snapshot guarantee — see What is a business case?.

Finding drivers later

The library searches by name, description, or formula — so you can find every driver that uses cost_per_dispatch. Filter by solution with the "All solutions" dropdown.

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