WORK ORDER MANAGEMENT CENTER:
The Oasis CRM Support module is a very powerful tool for generating issues; tracking them through the process; invoicing customers; decrementing from support contracts; and helping to troubleshoot existing issues based upon previous solutions. The majority of the functions are accessed through the ‘Work-Order Management’ menu in the ‘Customer-Care Center’ dropdown.
There are three methods of generating a new support issue or ticket:
• Create from a sales order.
• A customer opens via the customer support portal
• Customer Service Representative (CSR) or dispatch opens directly from Oasis-CRM.
FROM A SALES ORDER
New tickets can be generated directly from a quotation once it has reached the “Sales Order” status. This is helpful when installation or on-site visits are sold as part of a quotation. Multiple tickets can be created from each sales order.
Select the sales order from the ‘Orders & Purchasing’ dropdown in the ‘Quotations & Sales-Orders’ menu. The ‘Sales Order’ tab will display quotes which are ready to create tickets. Click on the proper sales order to pull up the order. On the ‘Service/Scheduling’ tab there are dropdown boxes next to each item for associating to an existing support ticket, or creating a new ticket.
Choose ‘Create New’ from the Issue # pull down for each order item that requires a separate ticket, then press the ‘Commit Line Changes’ button to have the new issue number(s) generated. Issues will automatically default to the “unassigned service queue”.
CUSTOMER GENERATED TICKET FROM CUSTOMER SUPPORT PORTAL If you are using the Customer Care Support portal you can grant web access to your existing accounts. This will allow them to monitor their account on-line; check the status of existing support tickets; search the knowledge base; & open new support tickets. Each account is assigned their own login and password.
Customers login to your website and choose the ‘Customer Care Center’ dropdown, then select the ‘Report a new Issue’ button.
The customer chooses a contact to associate with the support issue & clicks the ‘Proceed’ button.
The customer verifies their current information; selects a product and/or service contract to be tied to the issue (if applicable); enters a brief description & details about the problem and requests an appointment (if applicable). The customer also has the ability to attach
documents to the service issue they are creating. Once they have completed the applicable information, press the ‘Submit Request’ button.
A new support issue is created. It is automatically opened in Oasis-CRM as “unassigned”. An email is automatically generated to the system admin email address as defined in System Setup ‘Company Information’ under ‘Master System Configuration’.
USER OPENS TICKET MANUALLY FROM OASIS There are 3 ways to generate a new issue manually from Oasis:
1. Employees can generate new tickets from the ‘Customer-Care Center’ dropdown by accessing ‘Work-Order Management’. All existing support issues for the Selected
Resource/Queue’s are displayed in this menu. Choosing the ‘Create Issue’ button displays a search box.
2. Select the ‘CRM Dashboard’ dropdown, choose the ‘New Items’ menu and ‘Enter a new Customer-Care Issue’. This will display the search box. There is also a quick link for ‘Create New Service Issue’ in the left panel of the Dashboard under the ‘Customer Service’ area.
3. Select the customer account through ‘Customer-Management’, choose the ‘service tab’ of the account` and press the ‘New Issue’ button.
Once you choose one of these methods to create an issue the same search window will appear, unless you are creating an issue from the account profile (option 3 above).
Type either the Company name or contacts last name & press search. The closest matching or “Sounds Like” accounts will be listed. The ‘more options’ button allows for more specific search criteria if needed (displayed in the image below). Select the correct customer from the list.
After selecting the appropriate account and contact the following screen will display:
Priority: A Priority level can be designated to supply information to the assigned technician as to the urgency of the issue.
Applied Towards Contract and Sales Order Reference: Valid (Active) Service Contracts or open Sales Orders existing for this account will be available for selection in the
dropdowns. If you wish to decrement time for this issue towards a contract it must be linked to the ticket.
Assigned To, Notify Technician, Backup Resource: The issue can be left as unassigned for dispatch at a later time or assigned to a particular technician, resource, or service queue as configured in ‘Resource Management’. If the ‘notify technician’ box is checked, an email will also be generated to that assigned technician informing them of the new issue logged to them. A backup technician can also be designated if desired.
Source: The source drop down is used to designate how the new issue was generated, such as an incoming email, phone call or website request.
Reason Code: The reason code is another drop down that designates what type of issue the customer is having. The options listed in this drop down are defined in ‘System Code Maintenance’ under ‘Support Ticket Cause’.
Customer Ref #: An optional Customer Reference Number field is available & can be used if the customer opening the support issue must record some kind of authorization for opening the issue.
Due By: Due Date is available; this is the promised issue resolution date for the customer. If the issue has a service contract attached that has been defined with a ‘first response by’ this field will automatically populate.
Issue Summary: The issue summary is a brief description of the problem. Issue Detail: The open text box at the bottom provides room for a more detailed description of the issue.
Product Link(s): The Product Link allows the ability to attach a specific product associated with the issue. Only products set up on the accounts product tab are displayed.
Service Contact Information: The information displayed in this area is automatically populated based on the particular contacts address as designated in the contact screen under the account profile for the particular person.
Click the Create Ticket button & all information is saved; an issue number is created & displayed on the screen.
Once a support issue is opened it must be assigned to a resource for completion & closing. To access the list of all open issues select the Customer-Care Center drop down, Work-Order Management menu. On the left panel is a list of all the resources and queues this particular user has selected for viewing. To add to or take away resources or queues from the list shown click the “Choose Who I See” hyperlink.
Write this down!
The security settings defined for a particular resource may prevent viewing or modifying other resources service issues.
All ‘Unassigned’ issues can be viewed at the top of this list of resources with a total number of issues following. Clicking on the name will filter the list for only that resources’ issues. A name filter will show at the top of the screen in parenthesis next to the ‘Customer-Care Center’ title line as depicted below. Click ‘Refresh/View All’ to view or sort by all resources. To see details of a particular support issue click on the issue number.
Note: When using the left panel to search for issues, remember to first select ‘Refresh/Show All’ to search across all resources or your resource filter will limit your search to tickets assigned to that resource only. Queries: The options displayed here all the user to user to filter on all issues based on specific criteria as designated by that link.
Options: Use the options in the left panel to perform sorts on issues by items such as priority, due date, technician, and account. If ‘Preview Item Detail’ is set to ‘Yes’ you will see the issue detail for each ticket displayed on the screen.
Once the particular issue is located click on the ‘issue number’ to bring up the issue detail screen:
The left panel allows for update or modification to the Issue assignment by selecting the ‘Edit View’ link. From the edit view you may also select the appropriate ticket status, priority source and cause code, as well as attach an active support contract that may apply to services.
There are two methods, depending on what works for your business processes, to assign new issues to a particular resource:
1. Simply assign the primary resource from the dropdown list in the ‘Assigned To’ field. You may also assign a backup resource as well. Click ‘Save Changes’ to assign the issue. No email notification will be sent using this method.
2. To ‘Dispatch’ the issue click on the ‘Assigned To’ button. This allows for
notification to the technician via email and notes to that technician that may apply to the issue. The dispatch feature can also be used to assign issues based on different service “regions”. If using this feature fill in the appropriate information and click the ‘Finalize Dispatch’ button to save and assign.
IF A TICKET IS ASSIGNED TO THE WRONG ACCOUNT AND/OR CONTACT:
Use the left panel and access the ‘Bill-To’ menu. Click the ‘Change Button and select another account and/or contact using the search screen. Note: you may have to collapse some of the other options in the panel to access the Bill-To menu and Service-To menu as they are located at the bottom.
Next from the left panel access the ‘Service-To’ menu. The new contact will appear as an option to select in the window. Click on the required Service to person and address. The ‘Service-To’ Select button is used to display a specific contact service address if different then the main company address. Use the ‘Select button’ in this area to bring up a window of all available addresses for the account and contact. Otherwise, you may manually enter a service-to address.
Updating & resolving the support issue could involve many different functions: Knowledge Base Search; Inventory Parts Entry; Service (Time) Entry; Scheduling technician time or on-site visits, recording Communication Entries and printing Work Orders. We will discuss each of these items separately as well as describe other features of an issue. Each of these functions can be used multiple times on the same support issue, or not at all.
ACTIVITIES MENU
The ‘Activities’ menu in the left panel is a valuable tool for “working” an issue. The ‘Normal’ and ‘Edit’ Views will toggle the main service issue information. In some cases it will be necessary to use ‘Edit View’ to reach and edit certain areas of the issue described below.
KNOWLEDGE BASE SEARCH
Once you have accessed the support issue in ‘Edit View’ the third tab is ‘Knowledge Base’. Clicking on this tab will search the knowledge base for any documents matching key words in the Summary description of the issue to assist with resolution.
SCHEDULE
The schedule tab located in the ‘Edit View’ on an issue allows the technician to see any currently scheduled appointments for this issue. It will also allow for creation of an appointment associated with this issue and will search for possible scheduling conflicts. Scheduled appointments also appear in the ‘Normal View’ under ‘Task Items’.
INVENTORY/NON-INVENTORY PARTS ENTRY
Inventory part usage is recorded by clicking the ‘Add Parts/Supplies’ link from the left panel. The following Inventory Research screen appears:
Choose the appropriate part to apply to the issue or use the Add New Part # button to insert items that do not exist in the system. (Note: security setting may disable this function
If the issue has an assigned contract attached and the ‘Applied Towards Contract’ radio button is marked as yes the cost of this item will be applied to and time deducted from that contracts parts/supplies totals. If there is no contract or this radio button is marked as a no the item will be considered billable to the customer and be included in the ‘Invoice’ tab. SERVICE (TIME) ENTRY
Service and Time Entries are recorded using the ‘Record Service Time’ link located in the left panel. This is used for recording billable items such as on-site services, telephone services or self service web portal responses to and from a technician. Service Entries are recorded on invoices and can be applied to contracts.
Entering Start and End dates & times will automatically calculate Billable time. A description for the entry is required & displays on invoice details (depending on system default settings). Select the appropriate place of service & billing rate from the drop-down. The service rates displayed are related to the rate schedules assigned to the contract attached to the issue. Under Advanced Options, you may select the ‘show all’ radio button from the Rate List field to show all service items entered in Inventory Maintenance.
The Advanced Billing Options allow for billing after-hours rates, overriding the set billing rate, adding a surcharge and choosing whether or not to deduct this service entry from the contract that the issue is attached to. If the issue has no contract attached the service entry will not be deducted from the contract.
If the Customer account and contact is configured for web access the ‘Post Response on Customer Portal?’ allows for technicians to communicate to a customer using the self-service portal. The technician can post the service entry and choose the ‘Yes’ radio button to send an automatic email notifying the customer contact to which the issue is assigned that the issues has a response. The email will contain a link directing login to the portal to review the issue response. The customer can also post a reply back using the self service portal which will send an automatic email to the technician assigned.
In the left panel, the contract details are displayed for coverage information when attached to the issue as well as the Bill-To and Service-To information.
COMMUNICATION ENTRY (PHONE CALL/EMAIL/ONSITE OTHER) On a service issue select the Phone Call/Email link in the activities panel to record a communication entry such as a phone conversation, note entry or to send an email that is related to this issue. Items recorded as a communication entry are not able to be deducted from contracts or made “billable”. Communication entries are not shown on invoices or posted to the customer-care self service portal.
Select the appropriate tab to record the communication entry: Phone Call, Email, On-Site/Other
Select Save Entry when completed.
Of Note: all communications entered on an account either attached to an issue or not are
displayed and recorded in the ‘Communication’ tab on the customer account. If the communication is related to an issue the issue number is referenced.
EVENTS
Both Service Entries and Communications can be viewed on the issue’s ‘Events’ tab when in ‘Edit View’. When in ‘Normal View’ they are displayed under ‘Activity History’ and
‘Communication History’. They can also be edited and deleted by “drilling down” on the ‘type’ for that item or using the options area.
PRINT WORK ORDER
The ‘Print Work Order’ button located at the top right of the screen in either ‘Normal’ or ‘Edit’ Views allows the user to print out a work order at any point, during intial assignment, while working an issue or after closing an issue. This can be used to take on a site and includes any parts and supplies and service entries. Use the ‘select template’ drop down to select the appropriate work order form that you wish to use. Oasis-CRM comes with a pre-defined ‘standard form’ template. POP-UP blockers must be disabled to view and print a work order.
INVOICE
The invoice tab located in ‘Edit View’ will give a summary and total for the service issue that will be invoiced. Service applied to contracts will show in this tab as well as a total balance due for any amounts either not applied to contract or overages to the contract. This
tab should be reviewed for accurate billing prior to closing the issue. Once the issue
PRODUCTS
The products tab within ‘Edit View’ allows you to view or link products associated with this service issue. Products displayed in the drop down are defined in the account’s ‘Products’ tab.
ATTACHMENTS
The attachment tab on an issue is available to upload any supporting documentation desired. Attachments can be added from the ‘Attachments’ tab in ‘Edit View’ or from the Activities panel in either view. Once uploaded and saved, they can easily be viewed within ‘Normal View’ under the ‘Document Attachments’ heading.
SALES ORDER
If a sales order is attached to the issue the sales order drop down located in ‘Edit View’ at the top of the screen will display or allow you to attach one if desired. The Sales Order tab located also in ‘Edit View’ will display the details of the particular sales order selected from the drop down.
OUTSOURCING
The outsourcing tab is used to assign or “outsource” a service issue to a 3rd party or vendor (sub-contractor). Choose the ‘Select’ button to manually search for the particular vendor to outsource this issue or select from the ‘Vendor Matches” displayed at the bottom (if
properly configured).
Select the ‘Create Purchase Order’ hyperlink if you wish to issue a purchase order for this work order to the vendor. Once a purchase order has been issued it will be shown as a hyperlink in this area for quick reference and receiving (NOTE: to create a bill/item receipt from the vendor in your accounting software the PO must still go through the receiving process). This will allow you to create a purchase order and create a bill to the vendor for products or services performed for the customer. Purchase orders will show the “Ship-To” address for the customer and can be emailed or printed. A service entry (Record Service Time) will still be used separately to invoice the customer for your charges or to apply to any service contracts.
NOTE: Purchase Order entries do not automatically create entries for parts or services onto the work order/service issue.
Additionally you have “vendor matching” functionality. For vendor matching you must properly configure Oasis as described below:
1. Under ‘System Code Maintenance in ‘Industry Type Codes’ define all of the markets/industries for the types of services you would provide to customers.
2. Under ‘System Code Maintenance’ in ‘Support Ticket Cause’ define the specific causes and attach/relate the proper industry from the drop down to that cause.
3. Review all vendor accounts and define an industry for the type of business or work they perform. This must be done on the account and contact level. The industry is defined in the ‘market’ field in the ‘Sales/Marketing & Service Settings’ window of the ‘Account’ and ‘Contacts’ tab.
Important Note: If you wish to use the distance between vendors and customers both the vendor and customer account both the account and contact addresses must have the
‘address verification’ performed in Oasis. This will populate the latitude and longitude fields that are used to calculate distances between accounts and vendors when using the
Once properly configured, when a specific cause code is assigned to an issue and you go into the outsourcing tab all vendors that have an assigned industry that is also associated to that cause code will be displayed for selection. Valuable information such as distance to the customer, phone numbers and address will also be displayed for that vendor. The distance is calculated based on the latitudes and longitudes automatically assigned by Oasis for a valid address in the account profile.
An example of how this would be used:
Your customer, Sherwood Industries, needs plumbing repairs. In system code maintenance you have first defined an ‘Industry Type Code’ of “Plumbers”. You then defined a ’Support Ticket Cause’ code of “Plumbing”. To that cause code you attach the industry of
“Plumbers”. You then go to each of your plumbing vendors and assign an industry of “plumbers” in the ‘Market’ field in the ‘Sales/Service & Marketing Settings’ window on the account tab. You have also performed address verification on both the account address and contact addresses.
A service ticket for Sherwood Industries is created for plumbing repairs and a cause code of “plumbing” is assigned. You then access the Outsourcing tab to locate the appropriate vendor to repair this issue. Click the specific vendor account number to outsource the issue.
Use the drop down to select the appropriate cause code to tie to the service issue.
Once the issue has been resolved to the customers satisfaction & all entries have been made the issue is ready to be closed. Accounting should review the Invoice Tab prior to closing the issue for accuracy.
Choosing the ‘Close This Issue’ link located in the ‘Activities Panel’ displays the following:
The Customer Closeout #; Customer Reference #; & Customer PO # fields are all optional. The Invoice Total will be displayed also.
Enter details about the issue resolution in the text box provided. These notes are for internal use only & do not display on invoices.
The final option during closeout is if you would like to ‘Create a Knowledge Base Article’. A knowledge base article will be created using the ‘How was this issue resolved’ content. Once the issue is closed it can be accessed from the customers Service Tab on their account. The issue can also be Re-Opened from the Work Order Management center when a search by issue number is performed. Customers using the self service portal can also view closed tickets and re-open them. Re-opened issues are automatically assigned to the ‘assigned resource’ at the time the issue was closed.
To manually reopen an issue locate the issue by issue number through the Work Order Management Menu or through the Service tab under the Account Profile. Once the issue is located, select ‘Edit View’ . A ‘Re-Open Issue’ button will be located next to the ‘Status’ field.
