Author:TechExcel co.Ltd
Date:

CustomerWise User Guide
Chapter 1 CustomerWise Concepts
1.1 Understanding CustomerWise
1.1.1 CustomerWise Projects
1.1.2 Base Projects
1.1.3 Subproject Management
1.2 Customer Support and Integration
1.3 CustomerWise Administration
1.3.1 System-level Administration
1.3.2 Project-level Administration
1.3.3 Administrative Accounts and Access Controls
1.4 Team Representation and Management
1.4.1 Account types
1.4.2 Team groups
1.4.3 Group folders
1.5 Incident and Event Management
1.5.1 Incident Management
1.5.2 Incident Workflow
1.5.3 Incident Escalations
1.5.4 Incident Routing
1.5.5 Incident Escalation
1.5.6 Event Management
1.6 Customer Management
1.6.1 Customer Web Portal
1.6.2 Tracking E-mail
1.6.3 Web Conversations
1.6.4 CTI Integration
1.7 Knowledge Management and Communication
1.7.1 TechExcel KnowledgeWise
1.7.2 Incident Knowledge Management
1.7.3 Automatic Knowledge Suggestion
1.8 Asset Management
1.8.1 TechExcel AssetWise
1.8.2 Asset Inventory Management
1.8.3 LANDesk and Microsoft SMS Integration
1.8.4 TechExcel AssetWise Discovery
1.9 Professional Services Management
1.9.1 Service Agreement Management
1.9.2 Professional Services Management
1.10 CustomerWise Add-On Modules
1.10.1 TechExcel CustomerWise LinkPlus
1.10.2 TechExcel FormWise
1.10.3 CustomerWise Wireless
1.10.4 TechExcel DownloadPlus
Chapter 2 CustomerWise Client Basics
2.1 Understanding the CustomerWise Client Workspace
2.1.1 Understanding the CustomerWise Web Client Workspace
2.1.2 List Panel
2.1.3 Understanding the CustomerWise Windows Client Workspace
2.2 Accessing Projects and Views
2.2.1 Logging Into Projects
2.2.2 Switching Projects
2.2.3 Switching Views
2.2.4 Web Client
2.2.5 Windows Smart Client
2.2.6 Reconnecting to CustomerWise Server
2.2.7 Reloading Data
2.2.8 Reloading Project Settings
2.2.9 Personalizing Login Settings
2.2.10 Exiting Projects
2.2.11 Web client:
2.2.12 Windows client:
2.3 Managing Incidents, Events, and Customers in the List Panels
2.3.1 Understanding Incident, Event, and Customer Filters
2.3.2 Incident Filters
2.3.3 Event Filters
2.3.4 Customer Filters
2.3.5 Refreshing the List Panel
2.3.6 Web client:
2.3.7 Windows client:
2.3.8 Filtering Incidents, Events, and Customers by Customer
2.3.9 Filtering Incidents and Events by Owner
2.3.10 Filtering Incidents by Submitter
2.3.11 Filtering Incidents and Events by Status
2.3.12 Personalizing the Owner and Submitter Filters
2.3.13 Sorting Incidents in the Windows Client
2.3.14 Sorting Incidents in the Web Client
2.3.15 Locating Records by ID Number or Keyword
2.4 Managing Incidents, Events, and Customers in the Detail Panel
2.4.1 Browsing Incidents, Events, and Customers in the Detail Panel
2.4.2 Reloading Incidents, Events, and Customers in the Detail Panel
2.4.3 Saving Incidents, Events, and Customers in the Detail Panel
2.4.4 Printing Incidents, Events, and Customers in the Detail Panel
2.4.5 Personalizing the Detail Panel
2.4.6 Tabs and Text Option
2.4.7 Text Only Option
2.5 Working in the CustomerWise Windows Client
2.5.1 System keyboard shortcuts
2.5.2 Incident management keyboard shortcuts
2.5.3 Printing CustomerWise Incidents
Chapter 3 Customer and Contact Management
3.1 Managing Customers in TechExcel CustomerWise
3.2 Managing Customers in the Customer List Panel
3.2.1 Filtering Customers by Custom Customer List Views
3.2.2 Defining Custom Customer List Views
3.2.3 Filtering Customers by Predefined Query
3.2.4 Sorting Customers in the Customer List
3.3 Managing Customers
3.3.1 Creating New Customers
3.3.2 Checking if Customers Exist
3.3.3 Understanding the Customer Change Log
3.3.4 Understanding Contact Statuses
3.3.5 Defining Contact Login Settings
3.4 Managing Subcustomers
3.4.1 Adding New Subcustomers
3.4.2 Editing Subcustomers
3.5 Managing Customer Contacts
3.5.1 Creating and Editing Contacts
3.5.2 Understanding Contact Statuses
3.5.3 Defining Contact Access Types
3.5.4 Defining Contact Types
3.5.5 Defining Contact Login Settings
3.5.6 Defining Contact Links
3.5.7 Deleting Contacts
3.5.8 Adding Notes to Contacts
3.6 Managing Customer Support Teams
3.6.1 Understanding Customer Team Assignment Rules
3.6.2 Assigning Customers to System Team Groups
3.6.3 Assigning Customers to Salespersons
3.6.4 Assigning Customers to Primary Support Engineers
3.6.5 Assigning Customers to Inside Sales Representatives
Chapter 4 Incident Management
4.1 Understanding CustomerWise Incident Management
4.1.1 Understanding Incident Workflow
4.1.2 Understanding Incident Management Privileges
4.2 Managing Incidents in the Incident List Panel
4.2.1 Understanding Incident Search Bar
4.2.2 Understanding Incident List Icons
4.2.3 Viewing Events in the Incident List Panel
4.2.4 Filtering Incidents by Subproject
4.2.5 Filtering Incidents by Customer
4.2.6 Filtering Incidents by Incident Workflow State or Incident Status
4.2.7 Viewing the Incident List by Incident Owner or Submitter
4.2.8 The Owner dropdown list
4.2.9 The Submitter dropdown list
4.2.10 Sorting Incidents in the Incident List
4.2.11 Prioritizing Incidents
4.2.12 Finding Incidents Using the Go To Command
4.2.13 Refreshing the Incident List panel
4.2.14 Personalizing the Incidents List Panel
4.3 Managing Searches in the Incident View
4.3.1 Managing Incident Quick Searches in CustomerWise Web
4.3.2 Managing Detailed Incident Searches in CustomerWise Web
4.3.3 Cancelling Detailed Incident Searches in CustomerWise Web
4.3.4 Managing Incident by Customer Searches in CustomerWise Web
4.3.5 Cancelling Incident-by-Customer Queries
4.4 Submitting Incidents in the CustomerWise Clients
4.4.1 Understanding the New Incident Page
4.4.2 Submitting New Incidents in the CustomerWise Client
4.4.3 Searching for Customers (Customer Quick Search)
4.4.4 Selecting Incident Templates
4.4.5 Defining Customer Incident Access on Incident Submission
4.4.6 Assigning Incidents to Project Members on Incident Submission
4.4.7 Adding Attachments to Incidents on Submission
4.4.8 Submitting Incidents by E-mail
Chapter 5 Event Management
5.1 Managing Events in TechExcel CustomerWise
5.1.1 Incidents and events
5.1.2 Understanding Event Workflow
5.1.3 Understanding Event Management Privileges and Access Controls
5.1.4 Event management privileges
5.1.5 Access Controls
5.2 Tracking Events in the Event List Panel
5.2.1 Filtering Events in the Event List Panel
5.3 Managing Events
5.3.1 Definable event types
5.3.2 Understanding Event Creation
5.3.3 Submitting Events
5.3.4 Submitting Automatically Created Events
5.3.5 New Section
5.4 Managing Co-Owner Events
5.5 Managing Power User Events
5.6 Managing Knowledge Management Events
5.7 Managing Events in the Event All Activities Page
5.7.1 Tracking Events in the All Activities Page Event List
5.7.2 Incident icons
5.7.3 Event icons
5.7.4 Filtering Events in the All Activities Event List
5.7.5 Sorting Events in the Event Tree of the All Activities Page
5.7.6 Selecting Event All Activity Display Options
5.7.7 Updating Event Properties
5.7.8 Editing Events in the Event Summary Panel
5.8 Managing Parent Incidents
5.8.1 Setting the Parent Incidents of Events
5.8.2 Creating Parent Incidents Based On Child Events
5.8.3 Tracking Events in the Calendar
5.8.4 Deleting Events
Chapter 6 Incident Linking Management
6.1 Understanding Incident Linking
6.1.1 Understanding Links and Link Types
6.1.2 Referential link types
6.1.3 Parent-Child link types
6.1.4 Viewing LInked Incidents in the Incident List Panel
6.1.5 Viewing Linked Incidents in the Links Incident Detail Page
6.1.6 The Link tree control
6.1.7 Searching for Incidents Based on Link Types
6.1.8 Understanding the Links Tab in CustomerWise Windows Client
6.1.9 Displaying Linked Incidents in the Incident List Panel
6.2 Managing Incident Linking
6.2.1 Linking Incidents in the Same CustomerWise Project
6.2.2 Deleting Incident Links
6.3 Editing Linked Incidents
6.4 Managing Broken Links
Chapter 7 Project Communication Management
7.1 Managing E-mail Events
7.1.1 Understanding E-mail Sent Events
7.1.2 Understanding E-mail Received Events
7.2 Communicating with Customers by E-mail
7.2.1 Creating E-mail in the E-mail Page of the Incident View
7.2.2 Creating E-mail in the Web Conversation Page
7.2.3 Creating E-mail Messages in the Customer View E-mail Page
7.3 Managing E-mail Announcements
7.3.1 Creating E-mail Announcement Events
7.3.2 Defining E-mail Announcements
7.4 Communicating by Web Conversation
7.4.1 Understanding Web Conversation Flagging
7.4.2 Submitting Web Conversation Responses
7.4.3 Printing Web Conversations
7.5 Communicating by Telephone (CTI Integration)
7.5.1 Understanding On-screen Caller ID
7.5.2 Making Outgoing Calls in CustomerWise
7.5.3 Answering Incoming Calls
Chapter 8 Search and Query Management
8.1 Managing CustomerWise Searches and Queries
8.1.1 Understanding the TechExcel Search Engine
8.2 Managing Incident Searches and Queries
8.2.1 Managing Incident Quick Searches
8.2.2 Managing Incident Queries
8.2.3 Keyword Search Conditions
8.2.4 Incident Description Search Parameters
8.2.5 Incident Current Status Search Conditions
8.2.6 Incident Time Search Conditions
8.2.7 Incident Other Search Parameters
8.3 Managing Event Searches
8.3.1 Managing Event Quick Searches
8.4 Managing Customer Searches and Queries
8.4.1 Managing Customer Quick Searches
8.4.2 Managing Customer Queries
8.4.3 Customer General Property Search Conditions
8.5 Customer Status and Type Search Conditions
8.5.1 Contact Search Conditions
8.5.2 Customer Asset and Support Plan Search Conditions
Chapter 9 Knowledge Management
9.1 Understanding CustomerWise Knowledge Management
9.1.1 Understanding Knowledge Items
9.1.2 Understanding Knowledge Management Privileges and Access Controls
9.2 Searching for Knowledge
9.2.1 Defining Keyword-Based Knowledge Base Queries
9.2.2 Understanding the CustomerWise Search Engine
9.3 Browsing for Knowledge
9.3.1 Tracking Knowledge in the Knowledge List Panel
9.4 Managing Documents
9.4.1 Making documents available to browsers
9.4.2 Making documents available to searches
9.4.3 Adding Documents to the Project Knowledge Base
9.4.4 Defining Document Keywords
9.4.5 Deleting Documents
9.4.6 Checking Out Documents
9.4.7 Checking In Documents
9.4.8 Locking Documents
9.4.9 Unlocking Documents
9.4.10 Tracking Document History
9.5 Managing Knowledge Topics
9.5.1 Creating New Knowledge Topics
9.5.2 Deleting Knowledge Topics
9.5.3 Linking Documents to Knowledge Topics
9.5.4 Linking HTML Paths to Knowledge Topics
9.5.5 Linking Existing HTML Links to Knowledge Topics
9.5.6 Deleting Knowledge Topic Links
9.5.7 Opening Knowledge Topic Links
9.6 Managing HTML Links
9.6.1 Adding HTML Links
Chapter 10 Customerwise Asset Management
10.1 Understanding Asset Management in the TechExcel CustomerWise Client
10.1.1 Understanding the CustomerWise Web Asset Tab
10.1.2 Asset tree list panel
10.1.3 Understanding the CustomerWise Windows Asset Tab
10.1.4 Understanding Asset Management Access Controls
10.1.5 Understanding Asset Operation Access Controls
10.2 Creating New Assets
10.3 Assigning Assets to Customers
10.4 Editing Asset Properties
10.5 Deleting Assets
10.6 Linking Assets to Incidents
10.7 Managing Asset Support Plans
10.7.1 Viewing Related Incidents
10.8 Managing Asset Locations
10.8.1 Defining Primary Locations and Secondary Locations
10.8.2 Creating New Asset Locations
10.8.3 Editing Asset Location Details
10.8.4 Deleting Asset Locations
10.9 Managing Asset Notes
10.9.1 Adding Asset Notes
10.9.2 Editing Asset Notes
10.9.3 Deleting Asset Notes
10.9.4 Attaching Knowledge Items to Asset Notes
Chapter 11 Customer Web Portal Management
11.1 Understanding the Customer Web Portal
11.1.1 Tracking Customer Web Activity
11.1.2 Tracking Customer Access in the Web Clicks Manager
11.1.3 Managing Events in the Web Clicks Manager
11.2 Managing Web and E-mail Announcements
11.2.1 Adding Announcements
11.2.2 Editing Announcements
11.2.3 Managing Web Announcements
11.2.4 Managing E-mail Blasts
Chapter 12 Subproject Management
12.1 Understanding Subprojects
12.1.1 Understanding Subproject Workflow
12.2 Using the Subproject Tree Panel
12.2.1 Filtering Incidents by Subproject
12.2.2 Sorting Subprojects in the Subproject Tree Panel
12.3 Creating and Managing Subprojects
12.3.1 Adding Subprojects
12.3.2 Managing Subproject Applicable Owners
12.3.3 Managing Subproject Workflow
Chapter 13 Import and Export Management
13.1 Managing Importing, Linking, and Exporting
13.1.1 Defining Structured Text Files
13.1.2 Field Delimiters
13.1.3 Text, Date, and Time Qualifiers
13.2 Importing, Linking, and Exporting Customers
13.2.1 Identifying CustomerWise Customer Data Fields
13.2.2 Customer Info field mapping
13.2.3 Linking Customers and Primary Contacts in the Base Project
13.2.4 Importing Customers From Base Projects
13.2.5 Importing Customer Accounts from Structured Text Files
13.2.6 Exporting Users to Structured Text Files
13.3 Importing and Exporting Contacts
13.3.1 Importing Contacts From Base Projects
13.3.2 Importing Contacts from Structured Text Files
Chapter 14 Service Level Agreement Management
14.1 Managing Service Level Agreements
14.1.1 SLA Management by Customer
14.1.2 SLA Management by Incident
14.1.3 Understanding Service Level Agreement Types
14.1.4 Understanding Service Level Agreement Management Privileges
14.2 Managing Service Level Agreements by Customer
14.2.1 Adding, Editing, and Deleting Customer Service Level Agreements
14.2.2 Renewing Customer Service Level Agreements
14.3 Managing Service Level Agreements by Incident
14.3.1 Tracking Incident SLA Response and Resolve Times
14.3.2 Response and Resolve Time Tracking
14.3.3 SLA Exceptions
14.3.4 Manually Applying SLAs Incident
14.4 Managing SLA Reports
14.4.1 Managing SLA Summary Reports
14.4.1.1 Group By Fields
14.4.1.2 List By Fields
14.4.1.3 Time Unit
14.4.2 Managing SLA Performance Reports
14.4.3 Managing Incident List with SLA Time Reports
14.4.3.1 Data Fields
14.4.3.2 Group By Fields
14.4.3.3 Sort By Fields
14.4.4 Managing Resolve Time Reports
Chapter 15 Document Template Management
15.1 Understanding Document Template Management
15.2 Managing Document Template Folders
15.2.1 Adding Document Template Folders
15.2.2 Deleting Document Template Folders
15.3 Getting Latest Versions of Document Templates
15.3.1 Installing the WordLink Add-in Module
15.3.2 Understanding the WordLink Tool Bar
15.3.3 Adding Document Templates
15.4 Managing Document Attachments Based On Document Templates
15.4.1 Managing WordLink Incident Documents
15.4.2 Managing WordLink Customer Documents
Chapter 16 Outlook Sync Management
16.1 TechExcel Outlook Sync Overview
16.2 Feature Summary
16.3 Requirements
16.4 System Administration Configuring TechExcel CustomerWise for use with Outlook Sync
16.4.1 Save Emails as Events Tab
16.5 User Configuration – Configuring TechExcel Outlook Sync
16.6 Using TechExcel Outlook Sync
16.6.1 Add an Outbound Email to CustomerWise
16.6.2 Add a Sent or Received Email to CustomerWise
16.6.3 Add an Outlook Task or Outlook Appointment to CustomerWise
16.6.3.1 Understanding the CustomerWise Outlook Toolbar
16.6.3.2 Synchronizing Events and Appointments
16.6.4 Synchronize CustomerWise Events to Outlook Appointments/Tasks
16.7 APPENDIX: Installing TechExcel Outlook Sync

CustomerWise User Guide

Chapter 1 CustomerWise Concepts

1.1 Understanding CustomerWise

TechExcel CustomerWise offers a complete solution for managinginternalhelp desk support—the support services that are offered to a company’s customers.

Using TechExcel CustomerWise, support organizations may optimize every aspect of their support processes.

• Managing support incidents and events

• Managing customers

• Maintaining a knowledge base as a support resource

• Tracking company assets

• Managing professional services

TechExcel CustomerWise provides a comprehensive, high-end solution that can be configured to match any internal support process.

1.1.1 CustomerWise Projects

CustomerWise uses the “project” concept to represent and manage company customer and support management processes. In CustomerWise, each project represents a distinct area of work and is controlled by a set of administrator-defined workflow rules.

There are two types of CustomerWise projects: base projects and work projects:

• A base project enables businesses to store and manage customer data.

• A work project enables businesses to manage specific activities related to internal help desk support.

Every customer base project may support one or more work projects.

Knowledge can also be shared among work projects. You can create a knowledge base so multiple support projects can all work together to build and share knowledge.

Although all support incidents are work project-specific, project members may share incidents (interproject copying) and events (global events) across work projects. (as well as global events.)

1.1.2 Base Projects

Abase projectis a tool for storing and managing the customer, asset, and knowledge data that is shared by multiple work projects. The base project acts as a centralized datastore for the work projects and enables them to freely share customer, asset, and knowledge data while maintaining their own incident and event data, team structures, and workflow rules.

1.1.3 Subproject Management

Subprojects organize the incidents tracked in a project into discreet subfolders to provide project teams with a clearer and more realistic view of the incidents managed in each project.

Generally, subprojects represent incidents that are grouped together based on incident types, incident ownership, serviced customers, or schedules. But subprojects may be used to organize support incidents by any criteria that is useful or meaningful to the support organization.

Every subproject is defined by s schedule —start and end dates, access controls, and parent-child relationships with the other subprojects. Every subproject may be the parent of multiple subprojects, which in turn are the parent of child subprojects.

1.2 Customer Support and Integration

There are two types of CustomerWise projects: base projects and work projects:

• A base project enables businesses to store and manage customer data.

• A work project enables businesses to manage specific activities related to internal help desk support.

Every customer base project may support one or more work projects.

Knowledge can also be shared among work projects. You can create a knowledge base so multiple support projects can all work together to build and share knowledge.

Although all support incidents are work project-specific, project members may share incidents (interproject copying) and events (global events) across work projects. (as well as global events.)

1.3 CustomerWise Administration

1.3.1 System-level Administration

System-level administrative tasks include the creation of CustomerWise base and work projects, the creation and management of CustomerWise user accounts and licenses, and the administration of CustomerWise system configurations.

System-level administrative tasks fall into three general groups:

• System-level project administrative tasks include the creation and maintenance of base projects and work projects as well as all CustomerWise site configurations.

• System-level user administrative tasks include the creation and management of user accounts and licensing, the definition of system team groups, and the creation and management of administrator account types.

• System-level tool administrative tasks include the installation of CustomerWise applications and modules, the configuration of the CustomerWise E-mail Server, CustomerWise Document Server, and TechExcel Search Engine, and all integration configurations.

All system level administrative tasks are managed by a system administrator—a licensed CustomerWise user that has been assigned a system administrator account type. A system administrator account type defines the privileges that are granted to that user in the CustomerWise site.

1.3.2 Project-level Administration

System-level administrative tasks include the definition of what is tracked in the project, how it is tracked, and who may track that data.

Project administration tasks may be broken into four inter-related areas:

• Project definition

• Incident definition and GUI customization

• Project member administration

• Workflow administration

1.3.3 Administrative Accounts and Access Controls

Both system and project-level administration tasks are controlled by account type-based access controls. The access controls that enable administrators to perform system-level and project-level configuration and customization tasks may be defined independently of one another enabling support organizations to create many different administrative accounts with different levels of access and power.

1.4 Team Representation and Management

Subprojects organize the incidents tracked in a project into discreet subfolders to provide project teams with a clearer and more realistic view of the incidents managed in each project.

1.4.1 Account types

TechExcel CustomerWise uses a account types to coordinate project members in project workflow and to implement security in CustomerWise projects. Anaccount typedefines the role of a user account—the privileges and responsibilities granted to that user—in a CustomerWise work project.

Every licensed CustomerWise user is assigned an account type in each work project. The account type defines the role that the user plays in that project. Project members that have different responsibilities in different projects may be assigned account types that reflect their role in each project.

In CustomerWise, all project-level access controls are assigned to account types and not to individual user accounts. Project members inherit privileges from the account type they are assigned in a project. A user may belong to many different projects and be assigned different account types in different work projects.

Project administrators may define any number of account types in a project and assign a unique set of privileges to each account type providing them with the flexibility to define many different levels of project security.

1.4.2 Team groups

A team group represents a group of project members that share a common set of responsibilities in a CustomerWise work project, but who do not necessarily share the same role or responsibilities.

Whereas an account type represents a specific role, team groups represent a team of project members that belong to the same work group, but have different responsibilities.

Using team groups, project administrators may organize project team members into smaller, more useful entities for the assignment of incidents, events, and customers.

If the project administrator defines a team group as an applicable owner in an event template, every member of that team group is deemed to be an applicable owners of every event that is based on that event template.

1.4.3 Group folders

The group folder concept reflects the fact that a support incident may belong to a group instead of an individual team member at a particular phase in its lifecycle. CustomerWise group folders store common support incidents and enable flexible and definable workflow control.

Group folders represent a kind of buffer between the a team group and the incidents assigned to that group. Each group folder is owned by a particular team and protected by access controls: View, Put, and Get privilege.

Only those project members with the appropriate account type may view incidents assigned to a group folder (Get), add incidents to a group folder (Put), or forward those incidents to another project member or group.

Group folders are particularly useful to administrators when they define project workflow and determine how tasks are distributed to project members in the project. Anything that may be assigned to a project member in the project may all be assigned to a group folder.

1.5 Incident and Event Management

Any disconnect between your customer facing teams and your development teams can reduce efficiency and productivity in your organization. If a defect is found, or an enhancement is requested, and it never makes it from your support team's system into your development system, your development team may miss an opportunity to resolve the issue during a regular product development cycle resulting in emergency patches, lower customer satisfaction and additional work for both teams. TechExcel's Integrated Development and Support solution allows you to optimize the important relationship between customer support and development without sacrificing the autonomy of either organization

1.5.1 Incident Management

The primary vehicle for managing and tracking support issues in CustomerWise are collections of data calledincidents. Eachincidentrepresents a particular task or set of tasks that must be managed by a support team. CustomerWise incidents are usually associated with an customer and one or more subtasks calledevents.
Every incident is represented by a unique incident ID, a description of the incident, an incident workflow state, a work description, and other dynamic properties. Most incident properties are fully customizable. Project administrators may define which properties comprise an “incident” on a project-by-project basis.
CustomerWise projects are fundamentally tools for creating, managing, and tracking incidents and related customers, events, and assets.
Incident management tasks include:
• Tracking incidents
• Creating incidents
• Forwarding incidents
• Closing and reopening incidents
The CustomerWise client GUI provides support teams with a central repository for viewing and updating all information about the incident. Project members can update incident details, add notes and note attachments, view incident history, or create links between related incidents.
Meanwhile, at any time during its lifecycle, project members may communicate with customers by web conversations, automated e-mail notifications, or personalized incident summaries by e-mail.

1.5.2 Incident Workflow

Workflow rules enable project managers to define and track the flow of work between individuals and teams.

Workflow is a business process used to manage the tasks that compose a project. A well-defined set of workflow rules enable an organization to perform tasks in an efficient and repeatable manner.

Incident workflow rules enable project administrators to define rules for managing the incidents and events that are managed in each subproject and for determining which project members and customers are applicable to a subproject and its incidents and events.

• Project workflow determines the lifecycle of CustomerWise incidents. Project administrators may define workflow settings once in TechExcel CustomerWise

processes.

• Incident routing enables administrators to define rules for automatically assigning incidents to appropriate project members based on the incident attributes and project member skills and workload.

• Incident escalation enables administrators to define rules for automatically escalating incident statuses if the due date has passed or if no progress has been made in several days. Project administrators may also enable e-mail notifications for all escalations.

1.5.3 Incident Escalations

CustomerWise incident notification enables support teams to ensure that all appropriate stake holders are notified (by e-mail, pager, or mobile phone) whenever incidents are created, updated, or closed in a CustomerWise project. CustomerWise incident notification is based on administrator-defined incident notification rules. Incident notification rules consist of triggers, conditions, actions, and subscribers.

CustomerWise enables administrators to manage bothpush e-mailandpull e-mailfor each incident notification rule using subscription rules. Project administrators may mandate that certain project members receive incident notifications for certain incidents while others mayopt inoropt outof individual subscriptions. Project administrators may also mandate that certain project memberneverreceive incident notifications based on incident notification rules.

1.5.4 Incident Routing

Incident routing is an optional feature that enables administrators to define rules for automatically routing CustomerWise incidents to project members based on administrator-defined routing rules.

Incidents may be automatically routed and assigned to project members based on one of four sets of criteria:

• Based on project member workloads

• Based on project member skill levels

• Based on a formula that is based on the workload and the skill level of potential targets

• Based on availability— administrators may optionally mandate that a user must be logged into a project to be subject to routing rules.

1.5.5 Incident Escalation

CustomerWise incident escalation enables project teams to ensure that support incidents do not “fall through the cracks” by ensuring that project teams are automatically notified if insufficient progress is made on CustomerWise incidents during a defined time period.

Escalation actions include reassigning the incident to a new owner, changing the progress state of the incident, or even automatically generating e-mail notifications. incident escalation

Project teams may be notified by e-mail, pager, mobile phone, or personal folder based on an administrator-defined escalation schedule. If still no action is taken, incidents may be automatically reassigned to another project member, group, or group folder.

1.5.6 Event Management

TechExcel CustomerWise tracks day-to-day business activity as events. Events represent the “to do” items that project members must perform in the course of processing incidents.

Every event is either an incident-specific event or a general event.

As incidents progress through the incident lifecycle, changing workflow states and owners, events may be attached to those incidents to support multi-tasking, track daytoday activities, and enhance incident workflow.

Typical events include calling or receiving a call from an customer, customer requests for equipment, an online meeting or visit to a site, receiving or sending e-mail, or approval from management.

Events in views

Project members may manage and track events in the Event view of the CustomerWise client. Events may also be managed in the Incident view, Customer view, and Calendar view. Most events are the child of a parent incident, are associated with a single customer, and owned by a single CustomerWise project member, and may be managed based on these relationships.

1.6 Customer Management

CustomerWise administration is process of installing, integrating, and configuring a CustomerWise site—an implementation of CustomerWise components, applications, and modules, and of customizing that implementation and its projects to support their internal business processes.

TechExcel CustomerWise is designed to be extremely flexible so that businesses may quickly implement and define tools that enable them to run their business. TechExcel CustomerWise system administration and project customization tasks require no programming. All CustomerWise configuration, customization, and administrative tasks may be managed in the CustomerWise Admin client using point-and-click tools .

The CustomerWise model is designed so that businesses may configure CustomerWise projects to support business processes rather than changing their business to fit the limitations of the application. All projects, incidents, events, and customers are fully customizable so that support organization may track the data that is important to them.

As we have seen, administrators may create as many or as few projects as are needed to manage and track their business and each project may be defined by unique incident, event, and workflow definitions.

In addition, all access controls are defined on a project-by-project basis. CustomerWise users may log into and work in many different projects, be assigned a unique account type, privileges, and responsibilities in each project using a single CustomerWise license.

CustomerWise administration is managed at two levels: the system level and the project level.

1.6.1 Customer Web Portal

The TechExcel Customer Web Portal is a secure, interactive Web site providing controlled access to a centralized communication hub and to support processes.

• The Customer Web Portal enables customers to submit and edit incidents through the Internet.

• The Customer Web Portal enables customers to view their incidents and event.

• The Customer Web Portal enables customers to access FAQs, upgrades and patch info, product documentation.

• The Customer Web Portal enables customers to search the knowledge base, download documents or software, and read whatever news or announcements administrators have determined they should see based on their role.

• The Customer Web Portal enables customers to conduct Web conversations with CustomerWise project members.

The Customer Web Portal is composed of six views. Each Customer Web Portal view displays tools that enable customers to manage incidents, view reports, interact with CustomerWise personnel, or customize their personal information or preferences.

Whenever problems do arise, customers may easily search the knowledge base for information that is specific to their particular incident saving time and reducing overall support costs. The Customer Web Portal enables customers to access helpful hints, upgrades, patch info or any other information an administrator believes is relevant based on their customer type or products purchased.

The Customer Web Portal may be fully integrated with TechExcel DownloadPlus, enabling your users to download software or documents based on their profile.

1.6.2 Tracking E-mail

Communication by e-mail between support engineers and customers is represented in CustomerWise project by e-mail events. Events represent the subtasks that must be performed before an incident can be resolved and closed.

Events are generally the children of a parent incident and represent a task that must be performed within an incident workflow state.

One of the most common events in CustomerWise projects to send or receive e-mail from an customer. All e-mail events are instances of an administrator-defined event template belonging to one of three event types:

• The E-mail Sent event type represents a set of business rules for managing e-mail sent to an customer from a CustomerWise project member.

• The E-mail Received event type represents a set of business rules for managing e-mail sent to a project member from an customer.

• The E-mail Announcement event type represents a set of business rules for managing e-mail announcement events.

1.6.3 Web Conversations

The web conversation is a useful tool for communicating with customers. The Web Conversation page provides support project members a powerful tool for communicating with customers about their incidents.

The Web Conversation page features a rich text chat-like interface, with time stamped and logged data input. Customers may communicate through the Customer Web Portal.

Web conversations enable support team to see when customers add new web conversation to an incident. Incidents can be flagged in the Incident list so that the team members can easily spot them. Flagged incidents may also be displayed in thehome page of each team member. Team members may manually clear the web conversation flags by checking the Clear the New Customer Request check box on web conversation page and clicking the Submit button.

1.6.4 CTI Integration

Computer telephony integration, or CTI, is a technology that enables telephone and computer interactions to be integrated or coordinated.

TechExcel CustomerWise features CTI tools that enable support teams to improve customer support over the telephone by using a plug-and-play solution based on the CTI Data Connector (CDC) from Mirage Computer Systems. CustomerWise CTI integration introduces the following features:

• On-screen dialing of outgoing phone numbers from the TechExcel CustomerWise client improves support efficiency. Project members may dial customers by selecting phone numbers in the CustomerWise client.

• Automatic on-screen display of caller data for all inbound calls. PRoject members can immediately see who is calling and do not need to look up customer names and service history.

• On-screen caller ID of incoming and outgoing phone calls. CustomerWise CTI automatically matches incoming and outgoing calls with phone numbers stored in the base project.

1.7 Knowledge Management and Communication

System-level administrative tasks fall into three general groups:

• System-level project administrative tasks include the creation and maintenance of base projects and work projects as well as all CustomerWise site configurations.

1.7.1 TechExcel KnowledgeWise

TechExcel KnowledgeWise is a key component in the TechExcel CustomerWise Suite of service management tools. KnowledgeWise provides businesses with a single knowledge base through which they can manage and share information across CustomerWise projects.

The TechExcel KnowledgeWise distribution engine enables support organizations to enforce change management, security, and transparency to business knowledge and facilitates collaboration for distributed support organizations.

KnowledgeWise features include:

• KnowledgeWise enables all stakeholders across multiple projects to access and view the most recent version of all documents.

• The CustomerWise Knowledge view enables support teams to manage all project-related knowledge items (documents, HTML links, topics and attachments)including internal design documents, system requirements, user specifications, and test cases in a central repository.

• KnowledgeWise organizes documents by functional area. All documents are linked to an activity and all stake holders involved in that activity may quickly view all relevant documentation.

• KnowledgeWise features built-in version control tools that ensure that all project support teams no matter where they are in world always have access to the most up-to-date documents.

• KnowledgeWise provides support organizations with a secure repository for all for all project documentation. Access to all knowledge items is protected by privilege-based access controls. The ability of project members to view, edit, lock, check out, and check in protected files is based on their role in the planning project. Knowledge items include documents, HTML links, knowledge topics, and incident attachments.

The knowledge base is protected by account type-based access controls. Support organizations may define different levels of access for both support engineers and for customers.

1.7.2 Incident Knowledge Management

CustomerWise not only enables support organizations to manage and share company knowledge, it also facilities communication between support engineers in regards to specific incidents.

As we have seen, a support incident is a tool that enables support engineers to manage and track a specific support task. As such, each support incident serves as a centralized repository for storing, managing, and sharing information.

All incident-specific information is directly embedded in, or attached to, the support incident used to track the incident. incident-specific information may be managed and tracked in incident descriptions and work descriptions, incident histories, and incident notes and note attachments.

1.7.3 Automatic Knowledge Suggestion

Customers may access company knowledge items through the Customer Web Portal.

CustomerWise may automatically recommend knowledge items to customers and to project members. Knowledge items may be recommended to customers searching for knowledge items in the Customer Web Portal.

CustomerWise may recommend knowledge items to CustomerWise customers based on three different factors: the expert points assigned to user-defined keywords (expert keywords) that are assigned to knowledge items, user-defined relevance rankings (customer ranking pointsandteam member ranking points), and system-generatedclicking points.

CustomerWise weighs the relative weight of these three factors to determine which knowledge items are recommended to project members and customers based on the keywords they used for their knowledge search.

Support organizations may configure CustomerWise Recommendation engine to determine the relative weight given to each factor.

Knowledge items may be recommended to project members submitting incidents through e-mail.

The relevance of knowledge items to knowledge searches is based on the keywords that the customer or project member defines for that search. Three factors determine the relevance of those keywords to knowledge items:

• Expert keywords and expert keyword points

• Customer and team member ranking points

• Clicking points

1.8 Asset Management

System-level administrative tasks include the definition of what is tracked in the project, how it is tracked, and who may track that data.

Project administration tasks may be broken into four inter-related areas:

• Project definition

• Incident definition and GUI customization

• Project member administration

• Workflow administration

1.8.1 TechExcel AssetWise

AssetWise optimizes all aspects of project members asset-related processes, from detailed asset tracking by serial number, to purchasing, inventory tracking, service and repair, and product return management. It enables the customer support plan auto renewal to be possible by tracking and analyzing each support plan with a support status for every product project members customer has purchased.

AssetWise is designed to be tightly integrated with TechExcel CustomerWise and TechExcel CustomerWise and to enable members of those projects to perform basic operations from within the CustomerWise Windows or Web client applications.

AssetWise enables management to view and track all company assets so that they may better understand the IT environment, inventories, and IT spending.

• Track all company assets and related asset data including detailed location, inventory, and user information.

• Manage asset inventories, locations, and costs.

• Associate incidents, problems, and change requests with particular assets. The service team may associate an incident or problem with assets providing better impact analysis information.

Management may view asset locations and usage to aid in risk analysis of a proposed change. Optional asset discovery integration through AssetWise Discovery, LANDesk Management Suite, and Microsoft SMS enables businesses to automatically gather detailed asset data, monitor software usage, transfer files, and solve user problems.

1.8.2 Asset Inventory Management

AssetWise asset structures —called theAsset Inventoryin TechExcel CustomerWise and theProduct Catalogin TechExcel CustomerWise—facilitate the definition, management, and tracking of company assets.

An asset is any article—tangible or intangible—that requires management and tracking. AssetWise asset structures enable support organizations to organize assets into distinctasset categories—hardware, software, spare parts, licenses, keys, parking permits, office equipment, and so on— based on shared properties.

Asset management requires that support organizations track different kinds of data for different categories of assets. Hardware is managed and tracked differently than software. And software is tracked differently from licenses. Asset structure administration is serves a dual purpose:

• Asset structures define and organize company assets.

• Asset structures define the tools that project members use to manage assets in the AssetWise, CustomerWise, and CustomerWise clients.

• Asset structures determine how company assets are created, managed, and tracked in the AssetWise, CustomerWise, and CustomerWise clients.

1.8.3 LANDesk and Microsoft SMS Integration

Asset detection applications enable IT organizations to reduce hardware and software costs and to make informed decisions about their need for hardware and software by providing them with visibility of all IT assets.

TechExcel AssetWise features integration with Microsoft SMS or LANDesk through TechExcel AssetWise LinkPlus. AssetWise-SMS integration enables business to map assets with AssetWise asset templates, automatically synchronize automatically detected assets, and to assign and manage ownership of assets by customers in TechExcel CustomerWise projects.

TechExcel AssetWise IT auditing and inventory management solutions provide asset managers view to their entire network— from personal computers and servers, to network printers and switches, to personally-owned gadgets like PDAs, USB sticks, and MP3 players.

1.8.4 TechExcel AssetWise Discovery

TechExcel AssetWise enables support organizations to integrate their AssetWise asset management system with AssetWise Discovery, map automatically detected assets to AssetWise asset templates, and to schedule the automatic synchronization of asset data.

AssetWise-AssetWise Discovery integration provides support teams with greater control and flexibility to effectively manage their assets:

• Automatic transfer of automatically detected assets in TechExcel AssetWise using an NT service.

• Support for integrated AssetWise Discovery asset operations within the TechExcel AssetWise client, CustomerWise Windows client, or CustomerWise client.

• Management and tracking of asset detection operations as events in TechExcel AssetWise, CustomerWise, and CustomerWise projects.

• Linking of automatically detected IT assets to customer or customers and management of those assets in the TechExcel AssetWise, CustomerWise, and CustomerWise Windows clients.

• Enhanced asset management reports

AssetWise Discovery makes critical IT audit metrics available to key stakeholders throughout the company.

1.9 Professional Services Management

1.9.1 Service Agreement Management

In CustomerWise, support organizations may define, manage, and track many different levels of support services that are available to company customers.

Each customer support plan defines the guaranteed support schedules, response times, and resolution times that are offered to customers based on customer account types, incident types, and company assets.

Moreover, service agreements define rules for automatically escalating incidents if the response time is exceeded.

Using the CustomerWise Service Agreement Manager, support organizations may define service level targets and analyze service achievements and shortcomings.

Service teams may continually improve the quality of their services and increase customer satisfaction using built in service level monitoring, escalation, and notification features.

• Analyze incident and problem records and service level accomplishments

• Identify unacceptable service levels and unreasonable service promises

• Improve customer understanding and satisfaction

• Define multiple service levels based on user defined variables

1.9.2 Professional Services Management

TechExcel CustomerWise offers professional service management features including time and cost tracking and budget monitoring and control.

Support organizations may predefine prices based on the services offered (work types) or the customers served (customer type). When the service time is entered or calculated, the cost of the work is automatically calculated.

1.10 CustomerWise Add-On Modules

CustomerWise enables project administrators to define and represent their support organizations based on their job responsibilities and team membership and to implement project workflow and security.
All incident, customer, and knowledge management tasks in CustomerWise are controlled using a set of account type-basedaccess controls. The ability of project members to perform specific tasks may be controlled.
The account type-based approach provides administrators with greater flexibility to customize project workflow and security to meet their unique requirements and procedures.
• Account types
• Team groups
• Group folders

1.10.1 TechExcel CustomerWise LinkPlus

TechExcel CustomerWise LinkPlus provides support organizations with the means to integrate CustomerWise work projects with third-party or custom-defined business applications.

Using CustomerWise LinkPlus, businesses may write and retrieve incident and event data to and from CustomerWise projects, synchronize data between CustomerWise and other business applications, and integrate CustomerWise projects with third-party business solutions.

CustomerWise LinkPlus consists of a web service, a synchronization service, and a software development kit (SDK):

• The CustomerWise LinkPlus web service is a library of functions that enable businesses to integrate their CustomerWise support projects with third-party business applications to better manage customer, incident, and event data.

• The CustomerWise LinkPlus synchronization service is a service that enables the I-directional synchronization of data between TechExcel CustomerWise and other business applications.

• The CustomerWise LinkPlus SDK is a software development kit for creating and integrating custom applications that enable businesses to manage CustomerWise customer, incident, and event data though CustomerWise LinkPlus web services.

Using the Microsoft NET Framework as a foundation, CustomerWise LinkPlus provides businesses with the ability to integrate their CustomerWise support projects with third-party business applications to better manage their customer and incident data.

TechExcel LinkPlus enables bidirectional data synchronization between TechExcel CustomerWise and third-party applications and database servers.

• LinkPlus enables businesses to develop integrated custom applications that extend the power of CustomerWise customer incident, and event management to third-party applications.

• LinkPlus enables businesses to integrate their TechExcel CustomerWise projects with third-party business software. Organizations that have an existing customer management system or other business software may use LinkPlus to integrate that solution with TechExcel CustomerWise.

1.10.2 TechExcel FormWise

The gathering and managing business data is crucial to running a successful company—redundancy and inefficiency increase the cost of storing and maintaining business data.

TechExcel FormWise integrates customized online forms directly with TechExcel business processes enabling organizations to streamline data gathering, data tracking, and data storage.

TechExcel FormWise integrates seamlessly with TechExcel CustomerWise and TechExcel CustomerWise to enable support organizations to gather and manage information from customers and customers.

1.10.3 CustomerWise Wireless

CustomerWise Wireless enables support engineers, field service technicians, and even customers to access and manage support incidents using handheld PDAs.

All project customizations and configurations including project workflow rules are automatically reflected in CustomerWise Wireless.

1.10.4 TechExcel DownloadPlus

CustomerWise Wireless enables support engineers, field service technicians, and even customers to access and manage support incidents using handheld PDAs.

All project customizations and configurations including project workflow rules are automatically reflected in CustomerWise Wireless.

Chapter 2 CustomerWise Client Basics

2.1 Understanding the CustomerWise Client Workspace

Businesses may deploy CustomerWise using any combination of Windows and web clients.

CustomerWise Web may be used as a stand-alone product or in tandem with the CustomerWise Windows client uniting internal and external development teams. All data is completely synchronized in real time to the central CustomerWise database.

The procedures required to manage incidents in the web client are essentially the same as the procedures required to perform similar tasks in the CustomerWise Windows client.

2.1.1 Understanding the CustomerWise Web Client Workspace

The CustomerWise web client is a “thin client” that enables project team members to view, manage, and track incidents, events, and customers through the Internet using a web browser.

The client workspace organizes project data in multiple web pages calledviews. A view is an interface that displays and organizes data in the client workspace. Each web page is designed to track a specific type of data—incidents, events, customers, and reports—and features tools that enable the user to process the work items in view.

The primary views for most project team members are the incident, event, and customer views. These views share a common layout and set of tools for managing and tracking project work items.

Figure 2-1: Customer List Panel in CustomerWise Web Workspace

The workspace of the incident, event, and customer views is organized into panels and control bars.

In CustomerWise, a control bar is a graphic element that organizes a set of commands and controls that enable the user to navigate between views and projects, perform incident, event or customer management tasks, or filter or search for records based on its properties.

2.1.2 List Panel

The list panel displays high-level information about work items (incidents, events, or customers) in a tabular list of columns and rows. The list panel is a tool for identifying records that share properties in common.

Three controls bars are displayed in every CustomerWise view .

View Bar The view bar displays navigation buttons that enable project members to switch between all CustomerWise web pages. The Menu bar appears in all CustomerWise web pages.

Tool Bar:The tool bar displays command buttons that enable project members to perform tasks within a specific page. The controls displayed in the Tool bar are specific to each page.

Search Bar:The Search bar contains controls that enable project members to filter the data displayed in the page. The Search bar is displayed in the Incident List page, the Detail page, the New page, and the Report page.

List:The list panel displays high-level information about work items (incidents, events, or customers) in a tabular list of columns and rows. The user may view detailed information about a single work item (incident, event, or customer) by selecting that record in the list panel.

The user may view detailed information about a single work item (incident, event, or customer) by selecting that record in the list panel.

2.1.3 Understanding the CustomerWise Windows Client Workspace

The CustomerWise Windows smart client is a web service-enabled client that enables project managers to view, manage, and track incidents, events, and customers.

The client workspace organizes project data in multiple views. Each view is designed to track a specific type of data—incidents, events, customers, and reports—and features tools that enable the user to perform tasks in that view.

The three primary views in CustomerWise are the incident view, event view, and customer view. These views are all organized into panels (list panel and detail panel) and bars (the menu bar, tool bar, and action bar).

Figure 2-2: CustomerWise Windows Client Workspace

Each view displays tools and controls that enable the user to process the work items managed in that view.

The CustomerWise Windows client workspace is organized into two distinct panels:

List Panel:The list panel displays high-level information about work items (incidents, events, or customers) in a tabular list of columns and rows.

Detail Panel:The detail panel displays detailed information about a single work items (incident, event, or customer) in a series of tabbed pages.

Menu Bar:The view bar displays navigation buttons that enable project members to switch between all CustomerWise web pages. The Menu bar appears in all CustomerWise web pages.

Tool Bar:The tool bar displays command buttons that enable project members to perform tasks within a specific page. The controls displayed in the Tool bar are specific to each page.

Action Bar:The action bar displays command buttons that enable the user to “forward” a work item to another workflow state or owner. The controls displayed in the action bar depend on the workflow model employed in the project—transition-based or state-based.

2.2 Accessing Projects and Views

The CustomerWise web client is a “thin client” that enables project team members to view, manage, and track incidents, events, and customers through the Internet using a web browser.

The primary views for most project team members are the incident, event, and customer views. These views share a common layout and set of tools for managing and tracking project work items.

Figure 2-1: Customer List Panel in CustomerWise Web Workspace

The workspace of the incident, event, and customer views is organized into panels and control bars.

2.2.1 Logging Into Projects

CustomerWise implements project-level security by assigning a unique username, password, and account type to every project team member. The username and password enable the CustomerWise system to identify, control, and track the changes users make to the project data.

To access CustomerWise projects, the user must enter a valid login name and password in the CustomerWise Login page The password is that user’s personal key to the DevSpec system and its projects. Passwords provide accountability for all transactions and other changes to project data and enable the organization to ensure that only authorized individuals may access and change project data.

Every user is assigned an account type that defines the role and responsibilities of that user in the project.

To log into projects in the Windows client:

1Select the CustomerWise icon in the Windows Start menu By default the CustomerWise icon is displayed in the CustomerWise Client folder. The CustomerWise Login dialog box appears.

2Enter the user name in the User Name edit box.

3Enter the password in the Password edit box. Every project member is assigned a unique user name and password by the project administrator. Project members may change their password in the User Preferences page.

4Select a web service in the Web Service dropdown list.

5Select the OK button. The Select Project to Login dialog box appears.

6Select a project and click the OK button. The project is displayed in the client.

To log into projects in the web client:

1Select the CustomerWise Web for Support Team icon in the Windows Start menu. By default the CustomerWise Web icon is displayed in the CustomerWise Web folder.

The CustomerWise Login page is opened the web browser. CustomerWise projects may be managed using the Microsoft Internet Explorer, Firefox, and Netscape Navigator browsers.

2Enter the user name in the User Name edit box.

3Enter the password in the Password edit box.

Every project member is assigned a unique user name and password by the project administrator. Project members may change their password in the User Preferences page.

4 Optional: To open the web client in a new window or tab, select the Pop Up New Browser Window check box.

The option is handled differently in each supported web browser.

• In Microsoft Internet Explorer a new window is opened.

• In Firefox a new tab is opened.

5Select the OK button.

2.2.2 Switching Projects

The Switch Project command enables project members to exit one project and open another project without logging out of CustomerWise.

Using controls in the Home page, project team members may quickly switch between projects and view open incidents in each projectThe CustomerWise web client Home

Figure 2-3: Home Page in CustomerWise Web Client

page may be personalized to display information that is important to you. In addition to active projects, the Home page may display:

•Project List

•Incident List

•To Do List

•Team Member Menu

•Calendar

To switch projects in the web client:

1Click the Home button in the menu bar.

The Home page appears.

2Select a project in the Project List.

To switch projects in the Windows client:

To switch projects in the Windows client, Select File > Active Projects > [PROJECT NAME]

2.2.3 Switching Views

In CustomerWise, a view is an interface that displays and organizes data in the client workspace. The CustomerWise web client is organized into eight views (web pages): the home, incident, event, customer, report, knowledge, utilities, and calendar views.

A view is an interface that displays and organizes project data in the workspace. Each view is designed to manage different types of data and displays a unique set of tools that enable the user to manage data in that view. Only one view is displayed in workspace at a time.

2.2.4 Web Client

In the web client, the view bar displays eight buttons that enable project members to navigate between pages in the CustomerWise web client. The view bar is displayed in all CustomerWise web pages.

The Home button enables project members to display the Home page.

The Incident View button enables project members to display the incident view.

The Event View button enables project members to display the event view.

The Customer View button enables project members to display the customer view.

The Report View button enables project members to display the report view.

The Knowledge View button enables project members to display the knowledge view.

The Utilities button enables project members to display the utilities view.

The Calendar View button enables project members to display the calendar view.

To switch views in the web client:

To switch views in the web client, select a view button in the menu bar.

2.2.5 Windows Smart Client

In the Windows smart client, the view bar displays five buttons that enable project members to navigate between views.

The Incident View button enables project members to display the incident view.

The Event View button enables project members to display the event view.

The Customer View button enables project members to display the customer view.

The Report View button enables project members to display the report view.

The Knowledge View button enables project members to display the knowledge view.

To switch views in the Windows client:

In the Windows client, project members may use view buttons, keyboard shortcut commands, or View menu commands to switch between CustomerWise views.

Use view buttons in the tool bar:

• Click the Customer View button for the customer view.
• Click the Incident View button for the incident view.
• Click the Event View button for the event view.
• Click the Report View button for the report view.
• Click the Knowledge View button for the knowledge view.

Use a keyboard shortcut:
• Press ALT + C for the customer view.
• Press ALT + I for the incident view.
• Press ALT + N for the event view.
• Press ALT + R for the report view.
• Press ALT + K for the knowledge view.

Use the View menu commands:
• Select View > Customer View for the customer view.
• Select View > Incident View for the incident view.
• Select View > Event View for the event view.
• Select View > Report View for the report view.
• Select View > Knowledge View for the knowledge view.

2.2.6 Reconnecting to CustomerWise Server

Occasionally, project members may lose their connection to the CustomerWise database; for example, when the network goes down.CustomerWise Windows users may reconnect to the CustomerWise database using the Reconnect command.

The Reconnect command may be invoked by two methods:

• Press CTRL + B.

• Select the Reconnect command in the File menu.

2.2.7 Reloading Data

The Reload command enables project members to reload incident data in the incident list panel. The Reload command ensures that the most recent data is displayed in the Windows client.

CustomerWise Windows client users may reload incident information by two methods:

• Press F6.

• Select the Reload command in the File menu.

2.2.8 Reloading Project Settings

The Reload Project Settings command enables project members to reload project definition settings.

CustomerWise Windows client users may reload project settings by two methods:

• Press F7.

• Select the Reload Project Settings command in the File menu.

2.2.9 Personalizing Login Settings

Using controls in the Login Control page of the Utilities view, project team members may personalize their login settings.

Figure 2-4: Login Control Page

To personalize login settings:

1Select the Utilities tab in the view bar.

2Click the Login Control command in the tree panel. The Login Control page appears.

3Define login personal preferences.

2.2.10 Exiting Projects

The Exit command enables project members to exit a project and close the client.

2.2.11 Web client:

To exit a project click the Log Off button in the menu bar

2.2.12 Windows client:

To exit a project select the Exit command in the File menu.

2.3 Managing Incidents, Events, and Customers in the List Panels

Three controls bars are displayed in every CustomerWise view .

View Bar The view bar displays navigation buttons that enable project members to switch between all CustomerWise web pages. The Menu bar appears in all CustomerWise web pages.

Tool Bar:The tool bar displays command buttons that enable project members to perform tasks within a specific page. The controls displayed in the Tool bar are specific to each page.

The user may view detailed information about a single work item (incident, event, or customer) by selecting that record in the list panel.

2.3.1 Understanding Incident, Event, and Customer Filters

In CustomerWise, a filter is a simple query that returns all records that match search criteria and displays those records in the list panel or report—all other issues are “filtered out” and not displayed.

Each view features a set of predefined filters that enable project team member to quickly search for an identify records (incidents, events, or customers) based on shared property definitions.

Filtering enables project team members to quickly identify relevant records based on key indicators, minimize the time needed to review large numbers of records, and to maximize effectiveness.

2.3.2 Incident Filters

Using controls in the incident search bar, project members may choose which events are displayed in the incident list panel.

Figure 2-6: Event Search Bar

Incidents may be filtered by customer, event owner, event template, event status, or dates.

Customer:The Customer text box enables the user to filter events by customer name. The Customer text box supports the asterisk (*) wildcard character. Criteria entered in the Customer text box filters the options displayed in the Customer dropdown list.

Customer List: The Customer dropdown list enables the user to filter events by customer. The list displays all every customer in the base project as well as the *All Customers and *Unknown Customers system variables.

Owner:The Owner dropdown list enables the user to filter events by current owner.

Status:The Status dropdown list enables the user to filter events by status. Every event workflow state is defined by its status: open or closed. The list displays the {All Open}, {All Closed} and {All Open & Closed} search parameters.

Query:The Query dropdown list enables project members to choose a predefined query to filter incidents. Queries may be public or private.

Search:The Search button enables project members to define custom search parameters based on incident properties.

The Define Query and Quick Search controls enable the user to define and save custom-defined search queries.

2.3.3 Event Filters

Using controls in the event search bar, project members may choose which events are displayed in the event list panel.

Figure 2-7: Event Search Bar

Events may be filtered by customer, event owner, event template, event status, or dates.

Customer List:The Customer dropdown list enables the user to filter events by customer. The list displays all every customer in the base project as well as the *All Customers and *Unknown Customers system variables.

Owner:The Owner dropdown list enables the user to filter events by current owner.

Template:The Template dropdown list enables the user to filter events by event template. The list displays the all event template types as well as the*All Email Events, *All Global Events, and *All Web Activity Events event template search parameters.

Date Type:The Date Type dropdown list enables the user to define the date fields used to filter events in the event list. The list displays the Due Date, Start Date, Start or Due Date, Start and Due Date, and the Last Modified Date search parameters.

From: The From calendar enables the user to define the starting date of the date search filter.

To:The From calendar enables the user to define the starting date of the date search filter.

2.3.4 Customer Filters

Using controls in the customer search bar, project members may choose which customers are displayed in the customer list panel.

Figure 2-8: Event Search Bar

In the customer view, customers may be filtered using the customer filters or the customer search.

Customer: The Customer text box enables the user to filter events by customer name. The Customer text supports the asterisk (*) wildcard character.

Criteria entered in the Customer text box filters the options displayed in the Customer dropdown list.

Customer List:The Customer dropdown list enables the user to filter events by customer. The list displays all every customer in the base project as well as the *All Customers and *Unknown Customers system variables.

2.3.5 Refreshing the List Panel

The Refresh command enables project members to refresh the data in the list panel. The Refresh command ensures that the most recent data is displayed in the client.

2.3.6 Web client:

To refresh incident data in the web client, click the Refresh button in the search bar.

2.3.7 Windows client:

Project members can refresh the incident list panel by two methods:

• Press F5.

• Select View > Refresh Incident.

2.3.8 Filtering Incidents, Events, and Customers by Customer

Incidents, events, and customers may all filtered using the Customer and Customer List controls in the search bar.

Customer:The Customer text box enables the user to filter events by customer name. The Customer text box supports the asterisk (*) wildcard character.

Criteria entered in the Customer text box filters the options displayed in the Customer dropdown list.

Customer List:The Customer dropdown list enables the user to filter events by customer. The list displays all every customer in the base project as well as the *All Customers and *Unknown Customers system variables.

2.3.9 Filtering Incidents and Events by Owner

In CustomerWise, every incident and event is at all times owned by one-and-only-one project team member or team folder. Filtering by owner enables the user to quickly view every incident or event owned by a specific project team member or team folder.

Using a team list filter, the user may filter the work items displayed in the list panel by current owner.

The Owner filter may be displayed in the search bar of the incident view and event view. The Owner list displays the name of all project team members, group folders, and two system parameters: the *All Members and *Unassigned parameters.

*All Members:The *All Members parameter returns all incidents or events owned by project team members.

*Unassigned:The *Unassigned parameter returns all incidents or events that are yet to be assigned to a project team member or group folder.

In the incident view, the user may choose to display the Owner filter or the Submitter filter in the search bar. The Submitter filter enables the user to view the incidents submitted by specific project team members or customers.

2.3.10 Filtering Incidents by Submitter

In CustomerWise, most incidents are submitted to the project by a project team member. Filtering by submitter enables the user to quickly view every incident or event submitted a specific project team member.

The Submitter filter may be displayed in the search bar of the incident view. The Submitter list displays the name of all project team members and two system parameters: the *All Members and *Customers parameters.

*All Members:The *All Members parameter returns all incidents submitted to the project by project team members.

*Customers:The *Customers parameter returns all incidents submitted to the project by customers.

2.3.11 Filtering Incidents and Events by Status

In CustomerWise, all incidents and events are at all times defined by theirworkflow state. A workflow state represents a particular stage in the lifecycle of that incident or event.

Status filtering enables the user to view incidents or events that share the same workflow state or status and filters out all other records.

Figure 2-9: Status List Filter in Incident View

The Status list filter may also be used to filter records by groups of workflow states according to theirworkflow status. Every workflow state is defined as an open state (a state with an open status) or closed state (a state with a closed status).

The Status List dropdown list in the search bar displays every workflow state and status that is applicable to the work items managed in that view. In addition to workflow states, the dropdown list may display one or more parameter filters which identify groups of incidents or events based on their property definitions.

*All Members:The *All Members parameter returns all incidents submitted to the project by project team members.

*Customers:The *Customers parameter returns all incidents submitted to the project by customers.

{All Open}:The {All Open} parameter returns all work items that are in an open workflow state—a workflow state defined by an open status.

{All Closed}:The {All Closed} parameter returns all work items that are in an closed workflow state—a workflow state defined by an closed status.

{All Open & Closed}:The {All Open & Closed} parameter returns all work items.

In projects that have enabled the CustomerWise Web Portal, two add it on al parameters may be displayed in the incident search bar. The {Mark as Resolved} and {Requested to Reopen} parameters identify incidents that have been tagged by customers in the Customer Web Portal.

{Mark as Resolved}:The {Mark as Resolved} parameter returns all incidents that customers have tagged as resolved.

{Requested to Reopen}:The {Requested to Reopen} parameter returns all incidents that customers have requested to be reopened.

2.3.12 Personalizing the Owner and Submitter Filters

Using controls in the User List page of the Utilities view, project team members may define which project team members are displayed in the Owner filter displayed in the incident and event view.

Figure 2-10: Login Control Page

To define user list filter preferences:

1 Select the Utilities tab in the view bar.

2 Click the User List command in the tree panel.

The User List page appears.

3 Define user list preference:

• To display the Owner filter, select the Owner option in the Team Member Filter dropdown list.

• To display the Submitter filter, select the Submitter option in the Team Member Filter dropdown list.

4 Optional: To display inactive users in the user list filter, select the Show Inactive Users in the List check box.

5 Optional: To filter the user names displayed in the user list filter, select the Apply User List Filter check box and select one or more project team members in the Team Member list.

2.3.13 Sorting Incidents in the Windows Client

In CustomerWise, sorting is the process of arranging development incidents in an ordered sequence based on one or more incident property values.

Using the Incident Sorting dialog box, CustomerWise Windows client users may identify the columns by which incidents are sorted, define the relative priority of each sort column, and define the sort order of each column.

To sort incidents in the Windows client:

1Right-click in the incident list panel and select the Sort command in the shortcut menu.

The Incident Sorting dialog box appears.

2Select incident list columns displayed in the Incident List Columns panel.

3Click the Right arrow to add the incident list columns selected to the Sorting Columns panel.

4Select incident list columns displayed in the Sorting Columns panel.

5Click the Left arrow to add the incident list columns selected to the Incident List Columns panel.

6Click the Up and Down buttons to change the order of the list columns displayed in the Sorting Columns panel.

• The Up button moves the list columns higher up the list.

• The Down button move the list columns lower in the list.

7Click the Sort Order button to determine the sort order for each list column displayed in the Sorting list.

• Ascending order

• Descending order

8Click the OK button.

2.3.14 Sorting Incidents in the Web Client

In CustomerWise, sorting is the process of arranging development incidents in an ordered sequence based on one or more incident property values.

CustomerWise web supports two methods of sorting development incidents in the incident list panel:

• A basic sort orders incidents in ascending or descending order based on the incident property values of a single column.

• An advanced sort orders incidents sorts incidents in order based on the incident property values tracked in multiple columns. Users may identify and define the relative priority of multiple columns.

To sort incidents using basic sorting:

Web client users may sort incidents in the incident list by a single parameter—incident property. Incidents may be sorted in ascending order (A-Z or 0-9) or descending order (Z-A and 9-0).

• To sort incidents in ascending order, click a column header in the incident list panel. The incidents sorted by that column.

• To sort incidents in descending order, click a column in the incident list panel where

A sort icon indicates whether the incidents are sorted in ascending or descending order in the incident list.

The Ascending Sort icon indicates that the incidents are sorted in ascending order (A-Z or 0-9).

The Descending Sort icon indicates that the incidents are sorted in descending order (Z-A and 9-0).

2.3.15 Locating Records by ID Number or Keyword

In CustomerWise, the Go To command is simple search tool that enables project members to quickly find development incidents based on ranges of incident ID numbers or keywords in incident titles.

• Incident ID numbers: Every development incident is identified by a sequential ID number that is assigned to that record when it is submitted to the project.

• Title keywords: Every development incident is identified by a user-defined title.

Using basic punctuation marks (commas, hyphens, and asterisks) as logical operators, project members may define complex queries to locate multiple incidents based on ranges of incident ID numbers.

• Use commas to search for multiple records (for example, 3, 7, 21).

• Use hyphens to search for ranges of records (for example, 20-50)

• Use asterisks (*) as wildcard characters to search for multiple records (for example, *9).

• Use the greater than >, less than <, and equal to = characters to define dynamic ranges of incidents.

• Combine commas, hyphens, and asterisks in a single Go To search (for example, 3, 20-30, *9).

The wildcard expression may be used to distinguish different ranges of incidents:

4* All incidents beginning with the number

4 *4 All incidents ending with the number

4 *4* All incidents containing the number 4

Greater than and less then characters may be used to search for dynamic ranges of incidents.

>50 All incidents greater than 50.

<50 All incidents less than 50.

>=50 All incidents greater than or equal to 50.

To use the Go command in the Windows client:

1Select the Go To command.

• In the Windows client, press CTRL + G or select the Go To command in the Edit menu.

• In the web client, click the Go To button in the menu bar. The Go To dialog box appears.

2Enter an incident ID number, range of ID numbers, or a keyword in the Go To edit box.

• Integers and numerical ranges are checked against incident ID numbers.

• Keywords are checked against incident titles.

3 Click the OK button.

Incidents matching the criteria are displayed in the incident list panel.

2.4 Managing Incidents, Events, and Customers in the Detail Panel

The CustomerWise Windows smart client is a web service-enabled client that enables project managers to view, manage, and track incidents, events, and customers.

Figure 2-2: CustomerWise Windows Client Workspace

Each view displays tools and controls that enable the user to process the work items managed in that view.

The CustomerWise Windows client workspace is organized into two distinct panels:

List Panel:The list panel displays high-level information about work items (incidents, events, or customers) in a tabular list of columns and rows.

Detail Panel:The detail panel displays detailed information about a single work items (incident, event, or customer) in a series of tabbed pages.

Menu Bar:The view bar displays navigation buttons that enable project members to switch between all CustomerWise web pages. The Menu bar appears in all CustomerWise web pages.

Tool Bar:The tool bar displays command buttons that enable project members to perform tasks within a specific page. The controls displayed in the Tool bar are specific to each page.

2.4.1 Browsing Incidents, Events, and Customers in the Detail Panel

In the CustomerWise web client, the detail bar in the detail panel enables the user to browse detailed information about the work items (incidents, events, or customers) returned by a filter or query.

The detail panel displays detailed information about a single work item in multiple tabbed pages. Detail bar tools enable the user to browse through related records— work items that meet the same search conditions.

Figure 2-12: Detail Bar in CustomerWise Web Detail Panel

The Current Record dropdown list displays the ID Number and Title of the work item on display in the detail panel. To view another record in the detail panel, select a work item (incident, event, or customer) in the Current Record dropdown list.

The Record Browser displays the number of records returned by a query and enables the user to browse records by clicking the Next Record and Last Record buttons.

To view the previous work item in the detail panel, click the Last Record button.

To view the next work item in the detail panel, click the Next Record button.

2.4.2 Reloading Incidents, Events, and Customers in the Detail Panel

To reload a record, click the Reload button in the detail bar of the detail panel.

2.4.3 Saving Incidents, Events, and Customers in the Detail Panel

To save a record, click the Save button in the detail bar of the detail panel.

2.4.4 Printing Incidents, Events, and Customers in the Detail Panel

To print a record, click the Print button in the detail bar of the detail panel.

2.4.5 Personalizing the Detail Panel

In the detail panel of the incident, event, and customer views, detailed information about a single work item may be displayed in multiple tabbed pages. Using controls in the Preferences page, project team members may personalize the appearance of detail pages in the client.

The CustomerWise Web client supports two options for organizing and displaying detail pages in the detail panel: the Primary Tab and Secondary Text option and the Text Only option.

2.4.6 Tabs and Text Option

If the Primary Tab and Secondary Text option is selected, links to the detail pages displayed in detail panel are graphically represented as tabs in the web client.

Figure 2-13: Tabs in Incident Detail Panel

Using controls in the User Preferences page, the user may define the order in which the “tabs” are displayed in the client. Detail pages may be designated as primary or secondary.

2.4.7 Text Only Option

If the Text Only option is selected, links to the detail pages displayed in detail panel are displayed as text in the web client.

Figure 2-14: Text Links in Incident Detail Panel

To personalize the detail panel:

1 Click the Preferences button in the detail bar of the detail panel. The User Preferences page appears.

2 Designate detail pages as primary and secondary. The links to detail pages are displayed in two rows within the detail tab bar.

Primary detail pages are displayed in the first row. Secondary detail pages are displayed in the second row.

• To define a detail page as primary, select the detail page in the Secondary list and click the Right Arrow button.

• To define a detail page as secondary, select the detail page in the Primary list and click the Left Arrow button.

3 Optional: Define the display order of primary and secondary detail pages:

• To move a detail page to the left of a row, select the detail page in the list and click the Up Arrow button.

• To move a detail page to the right of a row, select the detail page in the list and click the Down Arrow button.

4 Choose an option for representing the links to detail pages in the detail tab bar.

• To graphically represent primary detail pages as tabs and secondary detail pages as text links, select the Primary Tab and Secondary Text option button.

• To represent both primary and secondary detail pages as text links, select the Text Only option button.

5 Click the Submit button.

2.5 Working in the CustomerWise Windows Client

In CustomerWise, a work project is a tool for organizing, managing, and tracking a distinct area of work. Every project is defined by its project type and administrator-defined team structures, business rules, and workflow rules.

Every work project is represented in the CustomerWise, client by a customizedgraphical user interface(GUI) that provides project members with the tools that they need to manage and track incidents, events, and customers.

The client workspace organizes project data in multiple views. A view is an interface that displays and organizes data in the client workspace. Each view displays tools and controls that enable the user to process the work items managed in that view.

The CustomerWise client displays five views: the incident view, the event view, the customer view, the report view, and the knowledge view.

Incident View: The incident view is the primary view for creating, managing, and tracking incidents in the CustomerWise client.

Event View:The event view is the primary view for creating, managing, and tracking events in the CustomerWise client.

Customer View: The customer view is the primary view for creating, managing, and tracking customers in the CustomerWise client.

Report View:The report view is the primary view for creating, managing, and tracking incident, event, customer, and asset reports.

Knowledge View:The knowledge view is the primary view for creating, managing, and tracking knowledge in the work project.

In addition to the five primary views, project members may also access the Home, Utilities, and Calendar views in the CustomerWise Web client.

2.5.1 System keyboard shortcuts

Many of the system-level CustomerWise commands that are available in the menu bar and the tool bar are also accessible through keyboard shortcuts:

CTRL + A:The Select All command enables project members to undo changes made to a CustomerWise incident.

CTRL + B:The Reconnect command enables project members to reconnect to the CustomerWise Database Server.

CTRL + C:The Copy command enables project members to copy text entered into a CustomerWise edit box control.

CTRL + D:The Knowledge View command enables project members to display the knowledge view.

CTRL + G:The Go To command enables project members to find CustomerWise incidents by incident ID number or keyword.

CTRL + L:The Login command enables project members to log into a CustomerWise project.

CTRL +M:The Main View command enables project members to display the main view. CTRL + N The New command enables project members to create new incidents.

CTRL + P:The Print command enables project members to print incidents.

CTRL + Q:The Load Query command enables project members to search for CustomerWise incidents using a predefined query.

CTRL + R:The Report View command enables project members to display the Report view.

CTRL + S:The Search command enables project members to filter the incidents displayed in the incident list panel based on user-defined parameters and criteria.

CTRL + V:The Paste command enables project members to paste text into a CustomerWise edit box control.

CTRL + W:The Switch Project command enables project members to switch between projects.

CTRL + X:The Cut command enables project members to cut text entered into a CustomerWise edit box control.

CTRL + Z:The Undo command enables project members to undo changes made to a CustomerWise incident.

F4:The Save command enables project members to save changes made to CustomerWise incidents.

F5:The Refresh Incident List command enables project members to refresh the records displayed in the incident list panel.

F6:The Reload command enables project members to reload information for a single incident.

F7:The Reload Project Settings command enables project members to reload project settings.

2.5.2 Incident management keyboard shortcuts

Incident management keyboard shortcuts enable project members to quickly browse and edit incidents in the Update Incident manager:

CTRL + O:The Owner command enables project members to select the Owner control in the Current Status in the Update Incident manager.

CTRL + N:The Next command enables project members to view the next development incident in the Current Status in the Update Incident manager.

CTRL + P:The Previous command enables project members to view the previous development incident in the Current Status in the Update Incident manager.

2.5.3 Printing CustomerWise Incidents

Incident management keyboard shortcuts enable project members to quickly browse and edit incidents in the Update Incident manager:

CTRL + O:The Owner command enables project members to select the Owner control in the Current Status in the Update Incident manager.

CTRL + N:The Next command enables project members to view the next development incident in the Current Status in the Update Incident manager.

CTRL + P:The Previous command enables project members to view the previous development incident in the Current Status in the Update Incident manager.

Chapter 3 Customer and Contact Management

3.1 Managing Customers in TechExcel CustomerWise

CustomerWise enables business to place customers and customer satisfaction at the center of their business strategy so that they may maximize customer satisfaction and profitability. In CustomerWise, every work project in a site—a CustomerWise implementation—shares a common customer base project. The customer base stores information about all customers (businesses) and contacts (contacts at those businesses) and is accessible by every contact point—sales, marketing, support.

Using CustomerWise, businesses may optimize their support process by providing support teams with everything they need to exceed the expectations of your customers. CustomerWise features sophisticated process automation, knowledge base management, customer self-service tools that enable support engineers to quickly close issues.

TechExcel enables businesses to manage customers through every step of the customer lifecycle.

• TechExcel CustomerWise automates all customer-related business processes. TechExcel CustomerWise business and workflow rules ensure that customers are effectively managed in each business area. The seamless transition between touch points ensures that customers do not fall through cracks. Project members may view the complete history of customer interactions regardless of touch points.

• TechExcel CustomerWise provides businesses with tools for collecting and analyzing customer needs and behavior. Using FormWise web forms and the Web Clicks Manager, project teams may gauge customer interest in products or services, and use that data to automatically target those customers with information by personalized e-mail or pages in the Customer Web Portal.

• TechExcel CustomerWise enables project members to effectively interact with contacts across all communication channels: by letter, phone, e-mail, and web conversations in the Customer Web Portal.

• TechExcel CustomerWise enables project members enables customer contacts to submit and manage their own incidents in the Customer Web Portal and provides them with access to information in the knowledge base. save customer service costs.

3.2 Managing Customers in the Customer List Panel

The Customer list panel displays high-level information about multiple customer accounts in a tabular format. Each row in the Customer List panel represents an individual customer account. Each column displays a key customer property.

The Incident list panel displays multiple incidents in a tabular format. Each row in the incident list represents a single CustomerWise incident. Every column represents an incident property.

Figure 2-1: Customer List in the CustomerWise Web Client

Project members may personalize the Customer list panel to display many different customer properties and as many or as few columns as are needed. Common customer properties displayed in the Customer list panel include the customer ID, customer name, and the customer phone numbers.

The Customer list is a tool for identifying customers that share properties in common. Project members may use tools in the Search bar to determine which customers are displayed in the customer list based on customer properties.

•Customer filtering controls enable project members to display customers based on their name or customer type values. ? Customer sorting enables project members to sort the customers displayed in the Customer list based on a single customer property.

•Customer searching to display customers based on one or more custom search parameters. Project members may define queries based on any customer property.

Once an customer or set of customers has been located in the Customer list panel, the project member may click an customer to view and manage customer details in the Customer detail panel.

3.2.1 Filtering Customers by Custom Customer List Views

Each customer list filter (view) determines which customer property values are displayed in the Customer list panel and filters the customers displayed in the list by user-defined search criteria.

To filter the customer displayed in the Customer list panel by a user-defined customer list filter, select a filter from the View dropdown list in the Search bar of the Customer view.

3.2.2 Defining Custom Customer List Views

Project members may use the customer list filters displayed in the View dropdown list of the Search bar in the Customer view, to determine which customer property values are displayed in the Customer list panel and to filter the customers displayed in the list by user-defined search criteria.

All customer list filters are user-defined. Project members may create multiple public and private customer filters in the Utilities view.

Figure 2-2: Customer List View Page in the Utilities View

Every customer list filter is either a public filter or a private filter.

•Public filters are available to all project members

•Private filters are only available to a limited number of project members based on their account type.

To define customer list filters:

1 Select the Customer List View page in the Utilities view.

2 Click the Add New button.

3 Define a unique and descriptive title for the customer list filter in the Name control.

4 Add or remove columns to the Customer list panel.

• To add columns, select an customer property in the Data Fields list and click the Right arrow.

• To delete columns, select an customer property in the View Columns list and click the Left arrow.

5 Select a predefined query in the Query dropdown list.

The Query dropdown list displays the public queries defined in the project, the {Current Query} system variable option, and the {No Query} option.

Project members may create public and private queries using the Search Advanced Search controls.

6 Define the display order of the filter in the Display Order edit box control.

7 Optional: To enable project members to make changes to the customer list filter, select the Enable Personalization check box.

8 Select an customer list filter option from the Type dropdown list.

9 Project members may create two types of customer list filters:

• Public and available to all account types

• Public and available to selected account types

10 If the Public and Available to Selected Account Types option is selected, define the account types that may access the customer list filter in the Available for Account Types check box controls.

The Available for Account Types areas displays the account types created in the current project.

11 Click the Submit button.

3.2.3 Filtering Customers by Predefined Query

Project members may filter the customers displayed in the Customer list panel using predefined public or private queries.

To filter the customers displayed in the Customer list panel by a predefined query, select an option from the Query dropdown list in the Search bar of the Customer view.

The Query dropdown list display all of the public and private queries that are available to the project members. Queries are predefined sets of search criteria that are saved in the CustomerWise system.

3.2.4 Sorting Customers in the Customer List

Project members may sort the customers displayed in the Customer list panel by a single customer property.

To sort customers in the Customer list panel, click an Customer list column in the Customer view of the CustomerWise Web client.

•Customers may only be sorted by a single customer property.

•Customers may be sorted in either ascending (1-9 or A-Z) or descending order (9- 1 or Z-A).

The sort order of the customers displayed in the Customer List panel is indicated by a sort icon in the selected list column.

An Up Arrow icon indicates that the customers are sorted in ascending order.

A Down Arrow icon indicates that the customers are sorted in ascending order.

3.3 Managing Customers

To filter the customer displayed in the Customer list panel by a user-defined customer list filter, select a filter from the View dropdown list in the Search bar of the Customer view.

3.3.1 Creating New Customers

Project members may define key customer account properties, designate customer contacts as the primary contacts for their customers, and assign support team members to customer accounts whenever they create new customer accounts.

Figure 2-4: New Customer Page

Note:CustomerWise pages and data-entry controls may be renamed and customized by project administrators in the CustomerWise Admin client. The names used in this chapter are the default names given to the pages and controls.

To create a new customer:

1Select the New Customer link in the Action bar.

The New Customer Page is displayed.

2Define the name of the customer in the First Name and Last Name edit box controls.

3 Optional:To check to see if the customer already exists in the customer base project, click the Check if Customer Exists button at the bottom of the page.

Confirming that customers by the same name do not exist in the project helps to ensure that duplicate customer accounts are not erroneously created.

4Define the contact information for the customer. Customer contact data may include phone numbers and cell phone numbers.

5Select an option from the Customer Type dropdown list.

The Customer Type dropdown list displays all of the administrator-defined customer types created in the current project.

6Define customer location information in the Location area of the New Customer page. Customer location data defines the place of the customer in the company hierarchy.

• The Site dropdown list displays a list of administrator-defined sites.

• The Division dropdown list displays a list of administrator-defined divisions that are applicable to the selected site.

• The Department dropdown list displays a list of administrator-defined departments that are applicable to the selected division.

• The Group dropdown list displays a list of administrator-defined company hierarchy groups that are applicable to the selected system team group.

7Identify the project members responsible for managing the customer account in the Team area of the New Customer page.

• The Group Assigned To dropdown list displays all of the system team groups available to the project.

• The Primary Support Engineer dropdown list displays support project team members that are applicable to the customer.

• The Secondary Support Engineer displays dropdown list displays support project team members that are applicable to the customer.

8If the project administrator has defined auto-assignment rules, project members may opt to select the {Auto-Assign} option in each dropdown list control. CustomerWise auto-assignment rules assign customers to system team groups and project members based on administrator-defined rules.Define the customer e-mail and password in the Login Info area of the New Customer page.

9Click the Submit button.

3.3.2 Checking if Customers Exist

To limit the chances that a project member may create a duplicate account for a customer, project members may check to see if a customer already exists in the customer base whenever they create a new customer account.

Figure 2-5: New Customer Page Detail

To check if a customer exists:

1Define customer properties in the New Customer page. Project members may search by company name or phone number.

2Click the Check if Customer Exist button.

3Customer account that match the data values defined for the controls in the New Customer page are displayed at the bottom of the page.

4 Optional: To select a preexisting customer, select the check box next to the suggested customer account.

3.3.3 Understanding the Customer Change Log

Project members may view the history of changes made to the customer type of a customer in the Change Log area of the Customer Info page in the Customer view.

The Change Log displays high-level information about the customer type of a customer in a tabular format. Every row represents a change in customers type. Three values are displayed in the change log: the date and time of the change in customer type, the project member who made the change, and the change made to the customer.

Figure 2-6: Change Log in the Address Page

3.3.4 Understanding Contact Statuses

The Active Contact control designates this contact as an active contact within the company. Inactive contacts cannot own or submit incidents, and cannot log into the Customer Web Portal.

3.3.5 Defining Contact Login Settings

Project members may define individual login aliases for each customer contact in the Contact Info page of the CustomerWise clients.

Login aliases enable customer contacts to log into the Customer Web Portal using an alias that has been specifically created for them by a CustomerWise project member.

Customers may log into the Customer Web Portal using either an e-mail address or a login alias. If the Support Login Alias check box in the General Setting page isnotselected, customer contacts may only log into the Customer Web Portal using their e-mail address.

The customer e-mail address servers two purposes:

• The customer e-mail address enables project members to communicate with the contact using CustomerWise e-mail features.

• The customer e-mail address controls the login information that the contact uses to access the Customer Web Portal. The customer e-mail address and password enables the contact to log into the Customer Web Portal.

3.4 Managing Subcustomers

All customer list filters are user-defined. Project members may create multiple public and private customer filters in the Utilities view.

Figure 2-2: Customer List View Page in the Utilities View

Every customer list filter is either a public filter or a private filter.

•Public filters are available to all project members

•Private filters are only available to a limited number of project members based on their account type.

To define customer list filters:

1 Select the Customer List View page in the Utilities view.

2 Click the Add New button.

3 Define a unique and descriptive title for the customer list filter in the Name control.

4 Add or remove columns to the Customer list panel.

• To add columns, select an customer property in the Data Fields list and click the Right arrow.

• To delete columns, select an customer property in the View Columns list and click the Left arrow.

5 Select a predefined query in the Query dropdown list.

The Query dropdown list displays the public queries defined in the project, the {Current Query} system variable option, and the {No Query} option.

Project members may create public and private queries using the Search Advanced Search controls.

6 Define the display order of the filter in the Display Order edit box control.

7 Optional: To enable project members to make changes to the customer list filter, select the Enable Personalization check box.

8 Select an customer list filter option from the Type dropdown list.

9 Project members may create two types of customer list filters:

• Public and available to all account types

• Public and available to selected account types

The Available for Account Types areas displays the account types created in the current project.

11 Click the Submit button.

3.4.1 Adding New Subcustomers

Project members may add new subcustomers (child customers or reseller’s customers) in the Subcustomer page of the Customer Detail panel.

To add new subcustomers:

1 Select a parent or child customer in the Customer dropdown list and click the Subcustomer page in the Customer Detail panel.

2 Click the New Child Customer button. The Address page appears.

3 Define the customer address, team contact, and primary contact information and click the Submit button. The customer is automatically defined a child customer of the parent customer.

3.4.2 Editing Subcustomers

Project members may add new subcustomers (child customers or reseller’s customers) in the Subcustomer page of the Customer Detail panel.

To add new subcustomers:

1 Select a parent or child customer in the Customer dropdown list and click the Subcustomer page in the Customer Detail panel.

2 Click the Reset Child Customer button. The Reset Parent page appears.

3 Select the child customers to be assigned to a different parent customer.

4 Select an appropriate option from the New Parent dropdown list.

The New Parent dropdown displays every customer assigned the Parent Customer business type in the project.

5 Click the Continue button.

3.5 Managing Customer Contacts

Project members may filter the customers displayed in the Customer list panel using predefined public or private queries.

To filter the customers displayed in the Customer list panel by a predefined query, select an option from the Query dropdown list in the Search bar of the Customer view.

3.5.1 Creating and Editing Contacts

Project members may create and edit contacts using controls in the Contacts page of the Customer Detail panel. The Contact Info page enables businesses to track key information about its customer contacts.

Figure 2-9: Contact Info Detail Page

The Contact Info page is divided into four basic areas:

•Name and Address

•Customer

•Access Type

•Login Info

To create contacts:

1 Click the Add New button in the Contact page of the Customer page of the Customer detail panel.

The Customer Info page appears.

2 Define the contact information for the customer.

Contact data may include:

• First name

• Last name

• Job title

3 Define the contact information for the customer.

Contact data may include:

• Address

• Phone numbers

• E-mail address

• Fax number

4 Optional: To copy the customer address to the contact, select the Same as Company Address check box.

5 Define the status of the contact.

Project members may determine whether a contact is an active contact, applicable to the current project, and the primary contact for a customer in the For Customer area of the Contact Info page. For more information see “Understanding Contact Statuses” .

6 Define the access type.

Project members may assign an administrator-defined access type to every customer contact. Access types determine the projects that are accessible to contacts and the privileges that are granted to them in the Customer Web Portal. For more information see “Defining Contact Access Types” .

7 Define the contact type.

Project members may assign one or more contact types to a customer contact.Contact types represent the roles that a contact has with a customer. Each contact may be assigned multiple contact types. For more information see “Defining Contact Types” .

8 Define login information.

Project members may define individual login aliases for each customer contact in the Contact Info page of the CustomerWise clients. For more information see “Defining Contact Login Settings”.

9 Add a descriptive note about the customer.

10 Click the Submit button.

3.5.2 Understanding Contact Statuses

Project members may define the contact status of a customer contact in the For Customers area of the Contact Info page.

• The Active Contact control designates this contact as an active contact within the company. Inactive contacts cannot own or submit incidents, and cannot log into the Customer Web Portal.

• The Is Primary Contact control enables project members to designate a contact as a the primary source of information about company-related issues.

• The Is Current Project Contact control enables project members to determine whether a contact is visibility within the current project.

3.5.3 Defining Contact Access Types

Project members may use the Access Type control in the Contact Info page of the Customer view to assign an administrator-defined access type to every customer contact.

Access types determine the projects that are accessible to contacts and the privileges that are granted to them in the Customer Web Portal.

3.5.4 Defining Contact Types

Project members may use the Contact Type control in the Contact Info page to assign one or more contact types to a customer contact.

The Contact Type control is an optional multiple selection control that displays multiple, administrator-defined contact types.

Contact types represent the roles that a contact has with a customer. Each contact may be assigned multiple contact types.

3.5.5 Defining Contact Login Settings

Project members may define individual login aliases for each customer contact in the Contact Info page of the CustomerWise clients.

Login aliases enable customer contacts to log into the Customer Web Portal using an alias that has been specifically created for them by a CustomerWise project member.

The customer e-mail address servers two purposes:

• The customer e-mail address enables project members to communicate with the contact using CustomerWise e-mail features.

3.5.6 Defining Contact Links

The Contact Links button will open the Edit Contact Links Page. This page displays all the contacts in all associated company divisions and the company parent. To link a contact from another division, select the customer record from the tree on the left and then check the appropriate contacts from the list

3.5.7 Deleting Contacts

The delete button will delete a contact record from the database. This is an irrecoverable operation. All incidents, events, and opportunities belonging to a deleted contact will have the contact field reset to a blank record. A new contact should be selected immediately for these records.

3.5.8 Adding Notes to Contacts

You can add a memo-style note for each contact. To do this, select the contact and simply type the note in the “Note” text box. There are also four buttons in the lower part of this page.

3.6 Managing Customer Support Teams

Project members may sort the customers displayed in the Customer list panel by a single customer property.

To sort customers in the Customer list panel, click an Customer list column in the Customer view of the CustomerWise Web client.

•Customers may only be sorted by a single customer property.

•Customers may be sorted in either ascending (1-9 or A-Z) or descending order (9- 1 or Z-A).

The sort order of the customers displayed in the Customer List panel is indicated by a sort icon in the selected list column.

An Up Arrow icon indicates that the customers are sorted in ascending order.

A Down Arrow icon indicates that the customers are sorted in ascending order.

3.6.1 Understanding Customer Team Assignment Rules

TechExcel CustomerWise team assignment rules enable businesses to ensure that customers are always assigned to appropriate system team groups, sales persons, support engineers, and inside sales representatives.

Project members may assign a system team group, a sales representative, a support engineer, and a inside sales representative to a customer whenever they create a new customer or update an existing customer in the Team page of the Customer detail panel.

Each customer is assigned a system team group, a sales person, a support engineer, and a inside sales representative by one of two methods: manual assignment or auto-assignment.

• Project members may manually assign a system team group, sales manager, support engineer, and inside sales representative to a customer by selecting an option from the dropdown lists displayed in the Team dropdown list controls. Administrator-defined assignment rules ensure that only appropriate options may be selected.

• Project members may select the {Auto-Assign} option for each of the Team dropdown lists to automatically assign customers to appropriate system team groups, sales managers, support engineers, and inside sales representatives based on geography, or any other administrator-defined criteria

Only one system team group, one sales manager, one support engineer, and one inside sales representative is assigned to each customer.

3.6.2 Assigning Customers to System Team Groups

System team groups are administrator-defined groups of users that a company may use to organize project members into useful categories. System team groups may represent any internal structure within a company (product division, geographic division, or any other division that is appropriate to a business).

System team groups are used to define team assignment and auto-assignment rules in CustomerWise projects. By selecting a system team group, project members may ensure that customers are only assigned to an appropriate salesperson, support engineer, or inside sales representative.

The Group Assigned To control in the Contact Info page of the Customer view displays all of the system team groups available in the current project. The option selected in the Group Assigned To control may determine which options are available for selection in the Primary Support Engineer control, the Sales Person control, and the Inside Sales Rep control.

3.6.3 Assigning Customers to Salespersons

The Sales Person Engineer control enables project members to assign a customer to a sales person whenever they create a new customer or update an existing customer in the Team page of the Customer detail panel.

Administrators may ensure that only support engineers that belong to the selected system team group are displayed in the Primary Support Engineer dropdown list From Assigned Group Only check box.

Administrators may choose to make this control visible or invisible in the Team page.

3.6.4 Assigning Customers to Primary Support Engineers

The Primary Support Engineer control enables project members to assign a customer to a support engineer whenever they create a new customer or update an existing customer in the Team page of the Customer detail panel.

Administrators may ensure that only sales people that belong to the selected system team group are displayed in the Sales Person dropdown list From Assigned Group Only check box.

Administrators may choose to make this control visible or invisible in the Team page.

3.6.5 Assigning Customers to Inside Sales Representatives

Administrators may ensure that only sales people that belong to the selected system team group are displayed in the Sales Person dropdown list From Assigned Group Only check box.

Administrators may choose to make this control visible or invisible in the Team page.

Chapter 4 Incident Management

4.1 Understanding CustomerWise Incident Management

CustomerWise is a tool for creating, managing, and tracking collections of data calledincidents. An incident represents a particular task or set of tasks that must be managed by a support team. CustomerWise incidents are usually associated with an customer and one or more events.

Every incident is represented by a unique incident ID, a description of the incident, an incident workflow state, a work description, and other dynamic properties. Most incident properties are fully customizable. Project administrators may define which properties comprise an “incident” on a project-by-project basis.

Incident management tasks include:

• Creating incidents

• Forwarding incidents

• Closing and reopening incidents

CustomerWise incidents are generally managed in the Incident view of the CustomerWise client, but project members may create, edit, and track incidents in other views as well including the Events view and the Customer view.

Project members may define, update, and manage incident data in the CustomerWise client. The CustomerWise client GUI provides support teams with a central repository for viewing and updating all information about the incident. Project members can update incident details, add notes and note attachments, view incident history, or create links between related incidents.

Meanwhile, at any time during its lifecycle, project members may communicate with customers by web conversations, automated e-mail notifications, or personalized incident summaries by e-mail.

4.1.1 Understanding Incident Workflow

CustomerWise workflow is based on the processing incidents.

Workflow is a business process used to manage the tasks that compose a project. TechExcel CustomerWise delivers a flexible workflow model that enables project administrators to replicate and enforce their support processes in CustomerWise projects.

TechExcel CustomerWise enables each project administrator to define a unique set of workflow rules to manage the incidents in that project. Each CustomerWise project is managed by its own unique workflow rules.

Figure 3-1: CustomerWise Workflow Flowchart

Workflow rules enable project managers to define and track the flow of work between individuals and teams. A well-defined set of workflow rules enable an organization to perform tasks in an efficient and repeatable manner.

Workflow in the sample CustomerWise project is managed in eight workflow states: a opening workflow state, a closing workflow state, and six intermediary workflow states:

•The New workflow state

•The New Incident workflow state

•The Level 1 Support workflow state

•The Level 2 Support workflow state

•The In Development workflow state

•The Resolved: Closed workflow state

•The Resolved: Notify Customer workflow state

•The Closed workflow state

Administrator-defined workflow states determine the incident properties that may be edited, the project members who may own, and the actions that may be taken for incidents in each incident workflow state.

4.1.2 Understanding Incident Management Privileges

Incident privileges enable project members to create, edit, and manage incidents in TechExcel CustomerWise projects.
All privileges are granted by project administrators to account types in CustomerWise projects. Project members inherit privileges when they are assigned an account type in a project.
Project members assigned a light account type cannot own incidents and may be granted a limited set of incident management privileges.
In CustomerWise, a privilege is a right to perform a task that is granted to project members based on their account type. Every project member is assigned an account type when they join a project. Project member roles, responsibilities, access rights, and privileges are defined by their account type.
Can Submit Incidents:The privilege enables project members to submit new incidents in CustomerWise projects.
Can Forward Own Incidents within Own Group:The privilege enables project members to forward their own incidents to any member in their team group, to their team group itself, or to a group folder owned by their team group. This privilege also allows the user to assign incidents to members of their team group at submission time. For more information regarding team groups and group folders, see their respective sections later in this chapter.
Can Assign Incidents within Own Group:The privilege enables project members to forward incidents that belong to any member in their team group to any member in their team group, to their team group itself, or to a group folder owned by their team group.
Can Forward Own Incidents to Members of all Groups:The privilege enables project members to forward their own incidents to any member in any team group, any team group itself, or to any group folder. This privilege also allows the user to assign incidents at submission time.
Can Assign Incidents to Members of all Groups:The privilege enables project members to assign or forward any incident in the current project to any member in any team group, any team group itself, or to any group folder.
Can View Incidents within Own Group:The privilege enables project members to view incidents that belong to any member in their team group, to their team group itself, or to a group folder owned by their team group.
Can View Incidents of all Groups:The privilege enables project members to view all incidents in the project.
Can Close Incidents:The privilege enables project members to close their own incidents.
Can Reopen Incidents:The privilege enables project members to reopen their own incidents.
Can Update Incidents Description:The privilege enables project members to update incident descriptions.
Can Import and Delete:The privilege enables project members to import incidents into the project as well as delete incidents from the project.
Can Define Public Query:The privilege enables project members to define queries for public use in the Incident view. Without this privilege, users can only create private queries.
Can Perform Interproject Copy:The privilege enables project members to copy incidents from one project to another
Can Edit Linked incidents from other Projects:The privilege enables project members to make changes to linked incidents from other projects.

4.2 Managing Incidents in the Incident List Panel

CustomerWise workflow is based on the processing incidents.

Figure 3-1: CustomerWise Workflow Flowchart

Workflow in the sample CustomerWise project is managed in eight workflow states: a opening workflow state, a closing workflow state, and six intermediary workflow states:

•The New workflow state

•The New Incident workflow state

•The Level 1 Support workflow state

•The Level 2 Support workflow state

•The In Development workflow state

•The Resolved: Closed workflow state

•The Resolved: Notify Customer workflow state

•The Closed workflow state

4.2.1 Understanding Incident Search Bar

Project members may use controls in the Search bar of the Incident view to filter the incidents displayed in the Incident list panel. Filtering the incidents enables the project member to limit the incidents displayed in the Incident list panel to those that meet a set of criteria.

Project members may filter incidents by customer, incident owner, incident submitter, incident status, incident workflow state, or define a custom set of search parameters based on incident or customer properties.

Figure 3-3: Action Bar in the CustomerWise Web Client

Customer:The Customer text edit box and Customer dropdown list controls enable project members to filter incidents by the customer associated with those incidents.

Owner:The Owner dropdown list enables project members to filter incidents by their current owner.

Submitter:The Incident Submitter dropdown list enables the project member to filter incidents by the project member that originally submitted the incident.

Status:The Status dropdown list enables project members to filter incidents by incident status or incident workflow state.

Customer:The Customer Search button enables project members to define custom search parameters based on customer properties. Customer search queries return the incidents that are associated with customers that match user-defined customer search parameters.

Query:The Query dropdown list enables project members to choose a predefined query to filter incidents. Queries may be public or private.

Search:The Search button enables project members to define custom search parameters based on incident properties.

4.2.2 Understanding Incident List Icons

The Incident list panel displays may display incident property values for multiple incidents. Project members may determine which columns (incident properties) are displayed in the incident list.

Each incident displayed in the Incident list panel is represented by an icon that indicates the current status of that incident. Incident icons enable project members to quickly identify and sort incidents based on four incidents statuses: open incidents, closed incidents, new incidents, and new web conversations.

The Incident list panel may also display high-level information about the incidents and child events that are linked to the incidents displayed in the Incident list panel. The events and linked incidents displayed in the incident list are also identified by icons.

Incident icons

Incidents may be tagged by four different icons: the Open Incident icon, the New Incident icon, the Closed Incident icon, the Web Conversation icon.

The Open Incident icon is displayed next to current incidents.

The New Incident icon is displayed next to new incidents. Once an incident has been worked on, the New Incident icon is replaced by the Open Incident icon.

The Closed Incident icon is displayed next to closed incidents.

The Web Conversation icon is next to incidents in which an customer has responded to a web conversation.

Event icons

Every event displayed in the Incident list panel is identified by an icon which indicates the current status of that event in the project. Events are represented by open and closed incident statuses, event workflow states, and starting and due dates.

Open Event icon is displayed next to events that have an open event status.

Closed Event icon is displayed next to events that have a closed event status.

Overdue Event icon is displayed next to events that have an open event status past their due date.

Linked Incident icons

The links between a CustomerWise incidents and other incidents are displayed in the Incident list panel.

The Link icon indicates that the CustomerWise incident is linked to another CustomerWise incident.

The Linked Sales icon indicates that the CustomerWise incident is linked to a sales incident in a TechExcel CustomerWise sales project.

The Linked Support icon indicates that the CustomerWise incident is linked to a support incident in a TechExcel CustomerWise support project.

The Linked DevTrack icon indicates that the CustomerWise incident is linked to a TechExcel DevTrack issue.

4.2.3 Viewing Events in the Incident List Panel

Project members may customize the Incident list panel in their CustomerWise client to display the child events of each incident. Displaying events in the incident list enables project members to survey progress on for each incident.

Child events are displayed in the same row of the incident list as their parent incident.

Figure 3-4: Events in the Incident List Panel of the Incident View

Event icons indicate if an event is open, closed, or past due.

Every event displayed in the Incident list panel is identified by its event ID number, event type, and an event status icon which indicates the current status of that incident in the project.

Events may be tagged by three different icons: the Open Event icon, the Closed Event icon, and the Overdue Event icon.

Open Event icon

Closed Event icon

Overdue Event icon

4.2.4 Filtering Incidents by Subproject

Project members may filter the incidents displayed in the Incident list panel by selecting a subproject folder in the Incident tree panel of the Incident view.

The Incident tree panel may display multiple subproject folders based on administrator-defined project settings. Each folder in the Subproject tree panel represents a subproject. Every CustomerWise incident may be assigned to a subproject

4.2.5 Filtering Incidents by Customer

Incidents submitted to a CustomerWise project are generally associated with a singlecustomer. In CustomerWise customer is the general term that is used to refer to a customer that is served by support engineers. Customers may submit incidents and events, be associated with multiple incidents, and assigned assets.

CustomerWise project members may wish to view or manage incidents or events based on the customer that is associated with those records. The Customer dropdown list and the Customer text box control enable project members to filter the incident accounts displayed in the Incident list by the name or customer type of the customer associated with those incidents.

To filter incidents by customer in the Customer dropdown list:

To filter incidents by customers, select an option from the Customer dropdown list control in the Search bar of the Incident view.

The Customer dropdown list control displays two system variables, the administrator-defined customer types, and the names of the customers managed in the project.

• The*All Customers system variable represents every customer managed in the CustomerWise project. Project members may select the *All Customers option to view all incidents regardless of the customer associated with those incidents.

• The *Unknown Customers system variable enables project members to return incidents that are not associated with an customer.

Note:Project members may create incidents that are not associated with customers in the CustomerWise Windows client. Unassociated incidents may not be created in the CustomerWise Web client.

• Customer types are administrator-defined groupings of customers that identify those customers in a project. Typical customer types include executives, full time customers, part time customers, and temporary customers.

To filter incidents by customer in the Customer text box:

To filter incidents by customers in the Customer text box, enter a string of characters in the Customer text edit box control, and press the Enter key.

Project members may use the asterisk (*) wildcard character to locate customers based on text strings.

and*:All customers beginning with the text string “and”. For Example,Anderson.

*and:All incidents ending with the the text string “and”. For example,AndersonandSanderson.

*and*:All incidents containing the string “and”. For example,Anderson,Sanderson, andOrlando.

4.2.6 Filtering Incidents by Incident Workflow State or Incident Status

Project members frequently need to filter the incidents displayed in the incident list based on their incident status or incident workflow states.

The Incident Status dropdown list in the Search bar displays four system-defined status options and every administrator-defined workflow states used in the project.

• Incident states are administrator-defined workflow states that represent the progress of the incident through the incident lifecycle. At any one time during the incident lifecycle and incident belongs to one-and-only one workflow state. Every workflow state represents either an open incident status or a closed incident status.

• The incident status of an incident indicates whether an incident is open or closed. Open incidents are in an open incident workflow state. Closed incidents are in a closed incident workflow state. A status may be assigned one of four system defined statuses: All Open, All Closed, Marked as Resolved, and All Open and Closed. Only incidents assigned an Open incident status are managed by project workflow.

To filter incidents by incident workflow state, incident status, or group of incident statuses, select an option from the Status dropdown list control in the Search bar of the Incident view.

The Incident Status dropdown list control displays administrator-defined incident workflow states and four incident statuses.

• The All Open option displays all incidents that are in an open incident workflow state.

• The All Closed option displays all incidents that are in an open incident workflow state.

• The All Open and Closed option displays all incidents regardless of their incident workflow state.

• The Marked as Resolved option displays all incidents that have been defined as resolved by a project member or customer in the project.

4.2.7 Viewing the Incident List by Incident Owner or Submitter

Project members may view and filter the incidents displayed in the Incident list panel by incident owner or incident submitter.

• The incident owner is the project member to which an incident is assigned in its current incident workflow state. Only one project

member may own an incident at any one time in the incident lifecycle.

• The incident submitter is the project member that originally submitted an incident in the CustomerWise project.

The Owner dropdown list control and the Submitted By dropdown list are alternatively displayed in the Search bar of the CustomerWise client based on user preference.

4.2.8 The Owner dropdown list

The Owner dropdown list control displays two system-defined variables, as well as all administrator-defined group folders, groups, and project members.

The *All Members system variable displays incidents owned by any CustomerWise project member.

The *Unassigned system variable displays incidents owned by any CustomerWise project member.

Group folders represent a kind of buffer between a group and the incidents assigned to that group. Each group folder is owned by a plus particular group and access to the incidents assigned to that group folder are protected by a set of privileges. Group folders are identified by the plus character: +.

Team groups are an administratordefined business object that represents a group of project members that share a common set of responsibilities, but different account types. Groups are identified by the asterisk character: *

Project members are individual users that have been assigned a license and an account type in the CustomerWise project.

4.2.9 The Submitter dropdown list

The Submitted By dropdown list control displays two system-defined variables, as well as all administrator-defined group folders, groups, and project members.

The *All Members system variable displays incidents submitted by any CustomerWise project member.

The *customers system variable displays incidents submitted by any customer.

Group folders represent a kind of buffer between a group and the incidents assigned to that group. Each group folder is owned by a particular group and access to the incidents assigned to that group folder are protected by a set of privileges. Group folders are identified by the plus character: +.

Team groups are an administrator-defined business object that represents a group of project members that share a common set of responsibilities, but different account types. Team groups are identified by the asterisk character: *

Project members are individual users that have been assigned a license and an account type in the CustomerWise project.

CustomerWise filters the incidents displayed in the Incident list panel of the Incident view by the current owner of the incident or the project member that initially submitted the incident. For example, when the project member uses the User List dropdown list to filter the incidents, all incidents are filtered by the current incident owner.

Note:Throughout TechExcel CustomerWise, dropdown lists display team groups with a (*) prefix, group folders with a (+) prefix, and account types with a (#) prefix.

4.2.10 Sorting Incidents in the Incident List

Project members may sort the incidents displayed in the Incident list panel by a single incident property.

To sort incidents in the Incident list panel, click an Incident list column in the Incident view of the CustomerWise Web client.

• Incidents may only be sorted by a single incident property.

• Incidents may be sorted in either ascending (1-9 or A-Z) or descending order (9-1 or Z-A).

The sort order of the incidents displayed in the Incident list panel is indicated by a sort icon in the selected list column.

An Up Arrow icon indicates that the incidents are sorted in ascending order.

A Down Arrow icon indicates that the incidents are sorted in ascending order.

4.2.11 Prioritizing Incidents

Incident prioritization enables project managers, project teams, and project members to prioritize their work based on incident properties.

Project members may view the prioritization value and view or edit the prioritization order of incidents in the Incident Prioritization manager in the CustomerWise Windows client.

CustomerWise project teams may prioritize incidents using two different methods: priority values and priority orders.

•Priority value defines the priority of an incident using an administrator-defined formula that is based on incident properties.

•Priority order ranks the relative importance of incidents compared to that of other incident. The higher the priority value, the lower the priority order. An incident with the highest priority value is, by default, given a priority order rank of 1.

Every CustomerWise incident may have both a priority value and priority order number associated with it, giving incident owners tools to determine which are the most critical incidents.

Priority order management and priority value management are optional features in CustomerWise projects that must be enabled and configured by project administrators.

Figure 3-5: Incident Prioritization Manager

Project members may change the priority order of incidents in the Incident Prioritization manager. The priority value of incidents cannot be changed in the CustomerWise client.

Incident priority values and incident priority orders may be displayed in the Incident list panel of the CustomerWise Windows client. Project members with the appropriate privileges may change the priority order of their incidents or the incidents that belong to other project members.Project administrators may grant two privileges to project members based on their account type.

•The Can Edit Own Priority Order privilege enables project members to define the priority order of their own incidents.

•The Can Edit All Priority Order privilege enables project members to define the priority order of other project members. The privilege is generally granted only to management-level account types.

Incident prioritization is only available in the CustomerWise Windows client.

Note:The Priority control in the Description page and the incident priority value and incident priority order number are unrelated. The Priority control represents a customizable property of an incident. Prioritization numbers are values assigned to an incident based on the prioritization formula.

To prioritize incidents:

1Right-click in the Incident list panel of the CustomerWise Windows client. The Incident List shortcut menu appears.

2Select the Prioritize command in the shortcut menu. The Incident Prioritization manager appears.

3Select a project member in the Support Engineer dropdown list. The incidents owned by the selected project member are displayed in the IncidentPrioritization list.

4Change the priority order of incidents

• To prioritize incidents, select the incident and click the Up button.

• To de-prioritize an incident, select the incident and click the Down button.

5Click the OK button.

4.2.12 Finding Incidents Using the Go To Command

Project members may use the Go To command to filter CustomerWise incidents by their Incident ID numbers.

The Go To command enables project members to navigate to a specific incident or set of incidents using commas, hyphens, and asterisks:

• Use commas to search for multiple records (for example, 3, 7, 21)

• Use hyphens to search for ranges of records (for example, 20-50)

• Use asterisks (*) as wildcard characters to search for multiple records (for example, *9) • Combine commas, hyphens, and asterisks in

a single Go To search (for example, 3, 20-30, *9)

The wildcard expression may be use to distinguish different ranges of incidents.

4*All incidents beginning with the number

4 *4All incidents ending with the number

4 *4*All incidents containing the number 4

To use the Go To command in the Web client:

1Enter the incident ID numbers in the Go text box control in the Action bar.

2Click the Go icon.

4.2.13 Refreshing the Incident List panel

Project members may refresh the data displayed Incident list panel using the Refresh Incident List command in the CustomerWise Windows client and the Refresh Incident List button in the CustomerWise Web client.

Refreshing the Incident list panel reloads data from the CustomerWise database. Any changes made to incidents by other project members are immediately displayed in the client application.

• To refresh incidents in the CustomerWise Web client, select the Refresh Incident button in the Search bar.

• To refresh the CustomerWise Windows client, select the Refresh Incident List command in the View menu or press F5.

Note:Refreshing the data displayed in Incident list panel does not clear user-defined search parameters.

4.2.14 Personalizing the Incidents List Panel

Project members may use controls in the Preferences view to personalize the appearance of incidents in the Incident list panel.

Figure 3-6: Preferences Page in the Utilities View

4.3 Managing Searches in the Incident View

4.3.1 Managing Incident Quick Searches in CustomerWise Web

Incident quick searches enable project members to search for incidents based on keywords and user-defined date range search parameters.

Project members may define quick searches in the Quick Search panel in the Incident view of the CustomerWise Web client.

4.3.2 Managing Detailed Incident Searches in CustomerWise Web

The Detailed Incident Search page enables project members to define and save complex queries based on incident properties.

Figure 3-8: Detailed Search Page

The Detailed Incident Search page displays five tabbed pages that enable project members to define search parameters based on customer properties.

• The Description tab

• The Current Status tab

• The Time tab

• The Custom page tab

• The Data Grid tab

• The Other tab

Note:To save search criteria selected, select the Submit button in each tab of the Incident Search page. Unsubmitted search criteria are not included in the query.

To search for incidents in the CustomerWise Web client:

1Click the Search button in the Search bar of the Incident view.

Note:The Incident view is in Detailed Incident Search mode. The Search bar displays the Define Query and Get Results radio buttons, and the ++Current Working Query option is selected in the Search Query dropdown list.

2Click the Define Query radio button. The Detailed Incident Search page appears

3 Optional:Define incident property search criteria in the Description tab.

The Description tab enables project members to define search parameters based on administrator-defined incident properties.

4 Optional:Define incident workflow state search criteria in the Current Status tab.

The Current Status tab enables project members to define search parameters based on administrator-defined incident workflow

states.

5 Optional:Define incident date range search criteria in the Time tab.

The Time tab enables project members to define search parameters based on incident submitted, forwarded, closed, planned start

and finish, event creation, and event closed dates.

6 Optional:Define incident link type, incident ID, and closing reason search criteria in the Other tab.

The Other tab enables project members to define search parameters based on the incident ID number, the link types that are used to

link CustomerWise incidents and the reasons given for closing CustomerWise incidents.

7 Optional:Define incident search criteria in one or more custom pages.

The custom page tabs enable project members to define search parameters based on administrator-defined incident properties.

8 Optional:Define incident property search criteria in the Data Grid tab.

The Data Grid tab enable project members to define search parameters based on values defined in data grid control. Only one data

grid control may be defined in each CustomerWise project. Although the data grid control is always displayed in the incident

Description page, the control is represented by a unique search tab in the Incident Search page.

9Select the Get Result radio button in the Search bar.

4.3.3 Cancelling Detailed Incident Searches in CustomerWise Web

To clear incident searches in the CustomerWise Web client, click the Cancel Search button in the Search bar of the Incident view.

4.3.4 Managing Incident by Customer Searches in CustomerWise Web

Incident queries enable project members to search for incidents that are associated with particular customers.

Project members may define and save complex incident queries based on customer properties, customer types, assets, and support plans in the Incident Query page in the Incident view.

The Incident-by-Customer page consists of three tabbed pages: General Properties, Status & Type, and Asset & Support pages

To search for incidents by customer in the Web client:
1 Click the Query button in the Search bar of the Incident view. The Incident-by-Customer page appears.
2 Define customer search criteria in the General Properties tab. The General Properties tab enables project members to define search parameters based on administrator-defined customer properties.
3 Define customer type search criteria in the Status & Type tab. The Status & Type tab enables project members to define search parameters basedon administrator-defined customer types.
4 Define asset and support plan search criteria in the Asset & Support tab. The Asset & Support tab enables project members to define search parameters based on administrator-defined asset and service level agreement properties.
5 Click the Search button in the Incident Query page. The customers matching the defined search criteria are displayed in the Incident Query Customer list.
6 Select an customer in the Incident Query Customer list.
7 The Incident list panel appears. The Incident list panel displays the events belonging to the selected customer.

4.3.5 Cancelling Incident-by-Customer Queries

To clear incident queries in the CustomerWise Web client, click the Cancel Query button in the Search bar of the Incident view.

4.4 Submitting Incidents in the CustomerWise Clients

CustomerWise incidents are managed in the Incident view of the CustomerWise clients. The Incident view consists of two primary windows: the Incident list panel and the Incident detail panel.

• The Incident list panel enables project members to view high-level information about multiple incidents and to filter and sort incidents based on incident properties.

• The Incident detail panel enables project members to view detailed information about a single incident and to manage and track that incident.

The Incident list panel displays multiple incidents in a tabular format. Each row in the incident list represents a single CustomerWise incident. Every column represents an incident property.

Figure 3-2: Incident List in the CustomerWise Web Client

Project members may personalize the Incident list panel to determine display many different incident properties and to display as many or as few columns as are needed. Common incident properties displayed in the Incident view include the incident ID, incident name, and the incident owner.

The Incident list is a tool for identifying incidents that share properties in common. Project members may use tools in the Search bar to determine which incidents are displayed in the incident list based on incident properties.

• Incident filtering controls enable project members to display incidents based on their incident owner, incident submitter, associated customer, incident status, and incident workflow state property values.

• Incident sorting enables project members to sort the incidents displayed in the Incident list based on a single incident property.

• Incident searching to display incidents based on one or more custom search parameters. Project members may define queries based on any incident property.

Once an incident or set of incidents has been located in the incident list panel the project member may click an incident to view and manage incident details in the Incident detail panel.

4.4.1 Understanding the New Incident Page

The New Incident page displays the two panels: the New Incident panel and the New Incident detail panel.

• The New Incident page enables project members to select an incident template for creating the incident, assign the new incident to a

subproject, or associate the incident with an customer.

• The New Incident detail panel enables project members to define

The data-entry controls displayed in the New Incident page and New Incident Detail page is based on administrator-defined customizations, and the access type of the project member submitting the incident.

• Project administrators may rename the data-entry controls displayed in the Create Page function page.

• Project administrators may define data-entry controls as mandatory, read only, or invisible to project members based on their account

type or the incident status of an incident.

Project administrators may define multiple data-entry fieldsmandatory on submission. Mandatory fields must be completed for the incident to be submitted to the project. The field labels of mandatory incidents are set in boldface type in the client.

4.4.2 Submitting New Incidents in the CustomerWise Client

Project members may submit new incidents using controls in the CustomerWise Web and Windows client applications.

To submit incidents to a CustomerWise project, project members must belong to an account type that has been granted the Can Submit incidents privilege by a project administrator. Project members that have been granted the appropriate privileges may defineincident templatesthat automatically prepopulate the data-entry controls in the Description page, Current Status page, or custom pages on incident submission. Alternatively, administrators may enable project members to define and use their own incident templates.

To submit a new incident:

1Click the New Incident command in the Action bar of the CustomerWise Web client.

The New Incident page appears.

The New Incident page may enable project members to select an incident template for creating the incident, assign the new incident to a subproject, or associate the incident with a particular customer.

2 Optional: To assign the incident to a subproject, select an appropriate root subproject and child subproject in the subproject controls.

• The root subproject dropdown list enables project members to select the root subproject for the incident. The root subproject is represented by a subfolder beneath the Project root folder in the Incident tree panel.

• The Subproject dropdown list enables project members to select any subproject beneath the root subproject. The Subproject dropdown list displays all of the child subprojects of the root subproject as well all grandchild subprojects and so on. Subprojects are an optional feature in CustomerWise projects that must be enabled and configured by a project administrator.

Subprojects enable work project teams to group and manage incidents by organization, product line, or by any other criteria they choose.

3 Optional: To select an incident template, select an option from the Incident Template dropdown list.

The Incident Template dropdown list enables project members to select an appropriate template for the new incident.

4Associate the new incident with an existing or new customer.

The New Incident page displays tool that enable project members to select, search for, or create an appropriate customer account for the incident.

• The Customer dropdown list displays a list of every customer account managed in the parent base project. Project members may associate an incident with a customer by selecting an option in the Customer dropdown list.

• The Customer Quick Search control enables project members to search for existing customer accounts and associate the incident with one of those accounts.

• The Customer Search button enables project members to define detailed search parameters for identifying and associating existing customers with the new incident.

• The New Customer button enables project members to create new customer accounts and to associate the new incident with that new customer.

5Click the Continue button.

The New Incident Detail tab appears.

The New Incident Detail tab displays tools that enable project members to define basic incident properties including the title and work status of the incident.

6Define incident properties.

The following controls are commonly displayed in the Create Page of CustomerWise projects.

• The Customer Access control enables project members to define the level of access to the incident that is granted to the customer for the new incident.

• The Title control enables project members to define the title of an incident. The Title control is generally mandatory on submission.

• The Progress Status control defines the current workflow status of the incident in project workflow. This control is generally read-only on incident submission.

• The Assigned To control enables project members to assign the incident to an applicable project member. Administrator-defined workflow rules determine which project members may own incidents based on their work status and other factors.

• The Attachment control enables project members to attaching knowledge items (documents, HTML links, topics) to an incident.

7Click the Submit button.

Boldface controls indicate that the data-entry control is mandatory. The incident cannot be submitted unless the project member defines a value for all mandatory controls

4.4.3 Searching for Customers (Customer Quick Search)

Project member may search for existing customer using the Customer Quick Search and Detail Search whenever they submit a new incident in the CustomerWise client applications.

Searching for customers enables businesses to avoid duplicate customer accounts.

4.4.4 Selecting Incident Templates

An incident template is a predefinedpatternfor creating incidents of a particular type in a CustomerWise project. Each incident template represents an incident of multiple predefined incident properties.

Incidents commonly share multiple properties based on the customer, product line, or other factors and an incident template may be used to represent a particular type of incident that share many common values.

Project teams may use incident template to expedite the creation of new incidents by importing incident properties from an incident template into the New Incident form. Importing incident properties from an incident template saves project members the effort of completing multiple data-entry controls in the New Incident page.

To select incident templates:

1Click the New incident button.

Project members may select an incident template whenever they create a new incident.

The New Page appears.

2Select a template from the Incident Template dropdown list.

The incident templates displayed in the Incident dropdown list depend on the project. All incident templates are defined on a project-by-project basis.

3Define customer incident properties in the New Page and click the Continue button.

The New Page appears. The New Page displays the incident properties inherited from the selected incident template.

4Update incident template properties where needed.

4.4.5 Defining Customer Incident Access on Incident Submission

Customers may view and edit the incidents associated to them in the Customer Web Portal based on administrator-defined customer access rules. Customer access rules determine which pages or data-entry controls customers may view or edit based on their access type.

Project members may grant customers access to incidents on an incident-by-incident basis in the CustomerWise client. Whenever a project member creates or updates a CustomerWise incident, the project member may change customer access to that incident.

User-defined customer access rules override the administrator-defined customer access rules granted to each customer based on their access type. For example, an administrator may define customer access rules that make incidents invisible to customers with the Temporary Customer access type. A project member may grant a specific customer to edit a specific incident by granting an customer full access to that incident.

To define customer access to the incident, select an option from the Customer Access dropdown list. The Customer Access dropdown list displays six options:

The Currently Full Access rule grants customers full access to incidents in the current incident workflow state.

The Currently Read-only Access rule grants customers read-only access to an incident in the current incident workflow states. The Currently No Access forbids customers from accessing an incident in all incident workflow states.

The Always Full Access rule grants customers full access to incidents in all incident workflow states.

The Always Read-only Access rule grants customers read-only access to an incident in all incident workflow states.

The Always No Access rule forbids customers from accessing an incident in all incident workflow states.

Project members may update customer access to an incident at any time in the Current Status page of the Incident detail panel.

Note:The Customer Access dropdown list displays customer access to an incident at all times. If the Currently Read Only option is selected when an incident is in the Level 1 Support workflow state, the value displayed in the Customer Access dropdown list of the CustomerWise client displays a value that represents the administrator-defined customer access rule for the customer as soon as the incident is changed to another incident workflow state.

4.4.6 Assigning Incidents to Project Members on Incident Submission

The Assigned To control enables project members to assign new incidents to an applicable project member. Administrator-defined workflow rules determine which project members may own incidents based on incident workflow states and other factors.

4.4.7 Adding Attachments to Incidents on Submission

Project members may attach files to new incidents whenever they submit an incident in the CustomerWise client application.

The New Incident Detail page enables project members to define basic incident properties, define customer access to incidents, and to files to incidents.

Note:Project administrators may restrict the type of files that may be uploaded to the CustomerWise knowledge base in the CustomerWise Admin client. If a project member attempts to upload a forbidden file type (for example, an EXE file), a warning message is displayed.

To attach files to incidents on submission:

1Click the Browse button in the New Incident Detail page. A file browser appears.

2Locate the file and click the Open button. The file browser closes. The path to the attached document is displayed in the Attachment control.

4.4.8 Submitting Incidents by E-mail

Project members may attach files to new incidents whenever they submit an incident in the CustomerWise client application.

The New Incident Detail page enables project members to define basic incident properties, define customer access to incidents, and to files to incidents.

To attach files to incidents on submission:

1Click the Browse button in the New Incident Detail page. A file browser appears.

2Locate the file and click the Open button. The file browser closes. The path to the attached document is displayed in the Attachment control.

Chapter 5 Event Management

5.1 Managing Events in TechExcel CustomerWise

TechExcel CustomerWise tracks day-to-day business activity as events. Events represent the “to do” items that project members must perform in the course of processing incidents.

As incidents progress through the incident lifecycle, changing workflow states and owners, events may be attached to those incidents to support multi-tasking, track day-to-day activities, and enhance incident workflow.

5.1.1 Incidents and events

Events enable support teams to schedule, assign, and track each of the subtasks that make up an incident. Each event has its own owner, a separate set of start and due dates, and may be managed by a different set of workflow rules than that of its sibling events.

An incident may be open days, weeks, or even months, and events provide project teams a way of tracking the daily tasks and actions taken to help resolve those incidents.

Every incident may have multiple child events. Events enable project teams to define a workflow rules for managing tasks within a particular incident workflow state, to assign those subtasks to different account types, group teams, or group folders, and to track the progress of those tasks.

5.1.2 Understanding Event Workflow

Event workflow rules enable project teams to manage and track “to do” and incident subtasks independently of one another, assign those tasks to different owners, and define separate schedules (start and due dates) for each event.

The lifecycle of an event is determined by the event type used to create that event. All event workflow rules are defined on an event type-by-event type basis.

Like incidents, events are managed within a set of administrator-defined workflow rules. The lifecycle of an event is composed of open and closed workflow states.

Figure 4-1: Event Workflow within Development Issue Workflow

Event workflow is typically quite simple. The event may consist of nothing more than anopen event workflow stateand aclosed event workflow state.

The event has two workflow states:

• To be done (open)

• Done (closed)

An open workflow state is a workflow state that has an open status. A closed workflow state has a closed status. In this scenario, the event merely tracks whether a specific subtask has been completed

Alternatively, event workflow may consist of an opening state and multiple closed states to indicate the result of the subtask.

The event has three workflow states:

• To be tested (open)

• Test passed (closed)

• Test failed (closed)

The lifecycle of an event may consist of multiple open and closed events. But no transition rules may be defined for event workflow. Transitions exists between everyopenevent workflow state in event workflow and consequently an event may be forwarded to any event state within event workflow.

The event has four workflow states:

• (open)

• (closed)

All event management tasks (creating, updating, and closing events) are controlled by administrator-defined workflow rules.

5.1.3 Understanding Event Management Privileges and Access Controls

In CustomerWise, a privilege is a right to perform a task that is granted to project members based on their account type. Every project member is assigned an account type when they join a project. Project member roles, responsibilities, access rights, and privileges are defined by their account type.

CustomerWise events are controlled by account type-based privileges and access controls.

• Event management privileges are defined on anevent type-by-event typebasis and are granted to project team members based on their account type.

• Event management access controls are defined on anevent template-by-event templatebasis and are granted to project team members based on their account type or relationship with a customer or previously submitted event.

5.1.4 Event management privileges

In CustomerWise, event management privileges are defined by event type. Project team members are granted the ability to edit or delete events of a particular event type based on their account type.

An event type is a set of business rules that represents a kind of subtask that needs to be tracked in a work project. Every event template is based on an event type. CustomerWise supports four event types: the regular, system, asset operation, and power user event types.

For each event type, a project team member may be granted the ability to edit or delete events of that event type.

Edit Regular Events:The Edit Regular Events privilege enables project team members belonging to the selected account type to edit regular events.

Edit System Events:The Edit System Events privilege enables project team members belonging to the selected account type to edit system events.

Edit Asset Operation Events:The Edit Asset Operation Events privilege enables project team members belonging to the selected account type to edit asset operation events.

Edit Power User Events:The Edit Power User Events privilege enables project team members belonging to the selected account type to edit power user events.

Delete Regular Events:The Delete Regular Events privilege enables project team members belonging to the selected account type to delete regular events.

Delete System Events:The Delete System Events privilege enables project team members belonging to the selected account type to delete system events.

Delete Asset Operation Events:The Delete Asset Operation Events privilege enables project team members belonging to the selected account type to delete asset operation events.

Delete Power User Events:The Delete Power User Events privilege enables project team members belonging to the selected account type to delete power user events.

5.1.5 Access Controls

The ability to submit, edit, or delete events in a project is controlled by account type-based access controls that are defined on a template-by-template basis.

An event template is a set of default event properties, workflow rules, project member and customer access controls, and other business rules that define how events are to be managed in a project.

Every event template is defined by three account type-based access controls:

Submit:The Submit access control enables the user to submit events based on the event template.

Edit:The Edit access control enables the user to edit events based on the event template.

Delete:The Delete access control enables the user to delete events based on the event template.

5.2 Tracking Events in the Event List Panel

An incident may be open days, weeks, or even months, and events provide project teams a way of tracking the daily tasks and actions taken to help resolve those incidents.

5.2.1 Filtering Events in the Event List Panel

Filtering enables project team members to quickly identify relevant records based on key indicators, minimize the time needed to review large numbers of records, and to maximize effectiveness.

The CustomerWise search engine returns all events that match the search criteria and displays those events in the list panel—all other events are “filtered out” and not displayed.

Using controls in the event search bar, project members may choose which events are displayed in the event list panel.

Figure 4-3: Event Search Bar

Events may be filtered by customer, event owner, event template, event status, or dates.

Customer: The Customer text box enables the user to filter events by customer name. The Customer text box supports the asterisk (*) wildcard character. Criteria entered in the Customer text box filters the options displayed in the Customer dropdown list.

Customer List: The Customer dropdown list enables the user to filter events by customer. The list displays all every customer in the base project as well as the*All Customers and *Unknown Customers system variables.

Owner:The Owner dropdown list enables the user to filter events by current owner.

Status:The Status dropdown list enables the user to filter events by status. Every event workflow state is defined by its status: open or closed. The list displays the{All Open}, {All Closed} and {All Open & Closed} search parameters.

Date Type:The Date Type dropdown list enables the user to define the date fields used to filter events in the event list. The list displays theDue Date, Start Date, Start or Due Date, Start and Due Date, and the Last Modified Date search parameters.

From:The From calendar enables the user to define the starting date of the date search filter.

To:The From calendar enables the user to define the starting date of the date search filter.

Personalizing the Event List Panel

Project members may add, remove, or order the columns displayed in the event list panel of the CustomerWise client. All event list panel personalizations are client-specific and do not affect the display of events in other clients.

To personalize the event list panel:

1 Click the Settings button in the search bar. The Event View Customization tab is displayed.

2 Add or remove fields (columns) to the list of displayed columns.

• To add an event field to the list panel, select a field in the Available fields list and click the Right Arrow button.

• To remove an event field to the list panel, select a field in the Displayed fields list and click the Left Arrow button.

3 Define the display order of columns in the list panel.

• To move an event column to the left, select the Up Arrow button.

• To move an event column to the right, select the Down Arrow button.

4 Optional: To display hours and minutes in event date fields, select the Date Fields Include Time check box.

Event date fields include: the Date Closed, Date Created, Date Last Modified, Due Date, and Start Date fields.

5.3 Managing Events

The lifecycle of an event is determined by the event type used to create that event. All event workflow rules are defined on an event type-by-event type basis.

Like incidents, events are managed within a set of administrator-defined workflow rules. The lifecycle of an event is composed of open and closed workflow states.

Figure 4-1: Event Workflow within Development Issue Workflow

Event workflow is typically quite simple. The event may consist of nothing more than anopen event workflow stateand aclosed event workflow state.

The event has two workflow states:

• To be done (open)

• Done (closed)

Alternatively, event workflow may consist of an opening state and multiple closed states to indicate the result of the subtask.

The event has three workflow states:

• To be tested (open)

• Test passed (closed)

• Test failed (closed)

The event has four workflow states:

• (open)

• (closed)

All event management tasks (creating, updating, and closing events) are controlled by administrator-defined workflow rules.

5.3.1 Definable event types

Project administrators may create multiple event templates for each of the nine definable event types.

Definable event types represent a set of business rules designed to manage a particular type of event (for example, e-mail management tasks, knowledge management tasks, or asset management tasks) that may be used as the basis for one or more administrator-defined event templates.

Project administrators may create customized event templates based on nine different event types.

Asset Operation:The Asset Operation event type represents a set of business rules for managing asset operation events. Every event template based on the Asset Operation event type is applicable to one of ten types of assets{Assign Asset}, {Exchange}, {New Asset}, {{Parts}, {Reconcile}, {Return, Asset}, {RMA Return with Exchange}, {RMA Return}, {Update Status}, and {Upgrade}

Co-Owner:The co-owner event type represents a set of business rules for managing co-owner events.

Email Announcement:The e-mail announcement event type represents a set of business rules for managing e-mail announcement events.

Email Received:The e-mail Received event type represents a set of business rules for managing e-mail received events.

Email Sent:The e-mail Sent event type represents a set of business rules for managing e-mail sent events.

Knowledge Management:The knowledge management event type represents a set of business rules for managing knowledge management events.

Power User:The power user event type represents a set of business rules for managing power user events. A power user event is an event that may be submitted and owned by a power user customer.

Quick Letter:The quick letter event type represents a set of business rules for managing Quick Letter events.

Regular:The regular event type represents a set of business rules for managing regular events.

5.3.2 Understanding Event Creation

Every event is based on an administrator-defined event template and is managed in the client using administrator-defined workflow rules. Project administrators may define workflow rules that automatically generate new events based on changes to the workflow state of an incident or event.

Administrator-defined applicable events and autocreation events determine in which incident state events may be created based on an event template.

Each project member may be responsible for submitting new events, editing existing events, viewing event information, or deleting events.

Events are created in the CustomerWise client in three ways:

• Project members may manually create new events based on event templates in the CustomerWise client. The event templates available to project members in a given incident state depend on administrator-defined applicable event rules.

• Customers may create new events based on event templates in the Customer Web Portal. The event templates available to customers in a given incident state depend on administrator-defined applicable event rules.

• Events may be created automatically based on event workflow rules. Administrators may define workflow rules that create new events based on changes to the workflow state of a parent incident.

However, the completion of many tasks may be required before an incident can progress from one workflow state to another. And these subtasks may be performed by many different project members and have different due dates.

5.3.3 Submitting Events

To submit events to a CustomerWise project, project members must belong to an account type that has been granted the Can Submit incidents privilege by a project administrator.

To submit an event:

1 Click the New Event command in the Action bar of the CustomerWise Web client. The Create New Event page appears.

2 Associate the new event with an existing or new customer.

The Create New Event page displays tool that enable project members to select, search for, or create an appropriate customer account for the incident.

• The Customer Quick Search control enables project members to search for existing customer accounts and associate the incident with one of those accounts.

• The Customer Search button enables project members to define detailed search parameters for identifying and associating existing customers with the new incident.

• The New customer button enables project members to create new customer accounts and to associate the new incident with that new customer.

3 Select an event template from Event Type dropdown list.

The Event Type dropdown list displays a list of system events and administrator-defined event templates.

Note: The Event Type dropdown list displays only those event templates that are applicable to incidents in the current workflow state and those that are accessible to project members based on administrator-defined access rules.

4 Select an incident option from the Parent Incident dropdown list.

The Parent Incident dropdown list displays open incidents belonging to the selected customer and the General Events system variable.

• Incident-specific events are the children of a parent incident and are always associated with a specific customer.

• General events are not associated with any incident or customer.

5 Click the Continue button.

The Event Summary page appears.

The Event Summary page displays tools that enable project members to define basic event properties including the title and workflow status of the event.

6 Define event properties

The data-entry controls displayed in the Create Page is based administrator-defined customizations, and the access type of the project member submitting the event.

Note: Event properties are frequently prepopulated by values defined in the selected event template.

7 Click the Submit button.

Note: Boldface field labels indicate that the data-entry control is mandatory. The incident cannot be submitted unless the project member defines a value for all mandatory controls.

5.3.4 Submitting Automatically Created Events

Project members may be prompted to submit new events whenever they make change to the workflow state of an incident or an event. In CustomerWise administrators may define autocreation rules that automatically create new events based on predefined

triggers.Event autocreation rules are based on administrator-defined triggers. Event autocreation rules may be mandatory or optional.CustomerWise supports optional or mandatory events:

Mandatory:If the autocreation event is mandatory, the event is created in the project without any input from the project member.

Optional:If the autocreation event is option, the project member is prompted to create the event and, possibly, to choose the event template.

Most event autocreation events require no input from project members and cannot be altered in the CustomerWise client. However, administrators may choose to make even autocreation optional and prompt the project member to submit the new event in the Event Workflow dialog box.

Figure 4-5: Event Workflow Dialog Box

The Event Workflow dialog box appears in the client whenever an autocreation event is triggered. Administrators may define workflow rules to automatically create events whenever a change is made to the state of an incident or the state of an event.

The Event Workflow dialog box lists all the events that to be created based on the parent incident workflow state change.

• A red check next to the event indicates the event creation is mandatory.

• A blue check next to the event indicates the event creation is optional. Project members may disable optional event creations by double-clicking the blue check mark.

To manage autocreation events:

1 Edit the state of an incident.

The Event Workflow dialog box appears.

2 Double-click blue check marks to deselect the autocreation event.

5.3.5 New Section

Defining Customer Access to Events

customers may view and edit the events associated to them in the customer Web Portal based on administrator-defined customer access rules. customer access rules determine which pages or data-entry controls customers may view or edit based on their access type.

Project members may grant customers access to events on an event-by-event basis in the CustomerWise client. Whenever a project member creates or updates a CustomerWise event, he or she may change customer access to that event.

User-defined customer access rules override the administrator-defined customer access rules granted to each customer based on their access type. For example, an administrator may define customer access rules that make events invisible to customers with the Temporary customer access type. A project member may grant a specific customer to edit a specific event by granting an customer full access to that event.

To define customer access to the event, select an option from the customer Access dropdown list. The customer Access dropdown list displays six options:

Currently Full Access:The Currently Full Access rule grants customers full access to events in the current event workflow state.

Currently Read-Only Access:The Currently Read-only Access rule grants customers read-only access to an event in the current event workflow states.

Currently No Access:The Currently No Access forbids customers from accessing an event in all event workflow states.

Always Full Access: The Always Full Access rule grants customers full access to event in all event workflow states.

Always Read-Only Access:The Always Read-only Access rule grants customers read-only access to an event in all event workflow states.

Always No Access:The Always No Access rule forbids customers from accessing an event in all event workflow states.

Project members may update customer access to an event at any time in the Event.Summary page of the event detail panel.

5.4 Managing Co-Owner Events

CustomerWise events are controlled by account type-based privileges and access controls.

• Event management privileges are defined on anevent type-by-event typebasis and are granted to project team members based on their account type.

5.5 Managing Power User Events