Suspend BPM - Wait for category

[Dan Munns]

Hi all,

Our Incident BPM is set to suspend for a number of reasons after logging the call. 

The user will log the call in the portal and then the BPM will suspend - wait for owner. Once owner is assigned it will suspend - wait for category. 

Now, when the BPM is suspended it will normally focus on the action it is waiting for, however on wait for category there is no auto focus. The analysts have to go into Details > Edit > Category to set the category which is a little out of the way and during our internal test phase almost all of the logged incidents have been logged without a category. There is also nothing to tell them what the BPM is waiting for so most of them didn't know they had missed anything and the ones who did know didn't know what it was. The BPM will not move on correctly without the category and tasks are not generated with is kind of the point of the BPM in the first place. 

Can I raise an enhancement request to make the suspend - wait for category auto focus on the required step or (preferably) present the analyst with a list of categories to select from based on the category level of the service? I don't want to add it to the procap as I don't want users picking their own categories as that is always a bad idea. 

 

Any other ideas welcomed. 

Thanks 

Dan

[AlexTumber]

Hi Dan,

All of the suspend bpm operations allow you to set the action focus to the tab of your choosing when waiting for something on a request. In terms of telling the user what the business process is waiting for, maybe introducing a checkpoint into your bpm called something like 'Category Assigned'. That way, when a user looks at the request and the heads up display, they know what they need to do to advance the process.

Alex

[Dan Munns]

Hi Alex,

I did look at the action focus but there is no 'Category' in the list. Leaving it as automatic leaves me in the situation described above. 

For the moment I will add a checkpoint for the category and introduce further training for the analysts on the issue. I would still like to raise the enhancement request as above to present the category list to the analysts upon reaching the suspend node though. 

Thanks

Dan

[Dan Munns]

Is there any update on this request?

The way we have to currently assign a category to a call is meaning that some calls are getting closed without a category as people do not know where to select it.

I have carried out a number of training sessions with all the teams which use Service Manager but as our go live is (finally) rapidly approaching I would like to be able to have it auto focus and present the list in an obvious way.

Thanks

[Victor]

@Dan Munns I'm afraid the "action focus" is exactly what the word implies... a focus on an action on a request. By action I mean any available top buttons representing an action on a request. There is no "action" per se for setting category therefore there is no option set focus to it...

 

Maybe create a manual task "Set the request category" which will only create if the BP reaches that point and if there is not category set at that time... and don't let the BP progress until the task is complete...

[Dan Munns]

@Victor I have added a checkpoint called 'Assign Category' to the BPMs but as people are unsure where to go to set it they are just leaving it off and clicking through the ticket with the action buttons. This in turn is meaning that tasks are not generated as the BPM is till waiting for the category to be set.

I was hoping for a way of making it a little (or a lot) simpler to set the category from within the call in the first place, not necessarily a focus.

It is only an issue when the user logs a ticket via the portal as the PC or the desk side incidents (analyst logged) contains the category form and all of the service requests auto fill the category within the BPM.

Thanks  

[Victor]

@Dan Munns sorry, don't really think you can achieve this in a simpler way with current functionality

You can have actions disabled and enabled via BP...So disable actions while the task is active... loop the task until the condition is met (category is set) then enable the the actions...

[Dan Munns]

@Victor I know it cant be done at the moment, I was just hoping there was a positive update on my request from Dec...

 

Quote

 I would still like to raise the enhancement request as above to present the category list to the analysts upon reaching the suspend node though. 

 

[James Ainsworth]

A new Action Item on the request has been created that allows you to select the category without having to edit the details of the request.  This was made available as part of the Service Manager update build 1800.  For more information please see the documentation here.  This will now work along side the existing Suspend and Wait for Category where this action item can be set as the Action Focus.