(2024.2) Workflow
- David Engblom
Workflow is the tracking of what Worker or Workgroup will be associated with a given task in PCR-360. This tracking can assist a supervisor in following what work needs to be done, what is complete, and what is falling behind. There are many uses for Workflow that relate to Workers, Workgroups, and organizational efficiency.
Managing Workflow
Adding a Workflow
Workflow items will automatically populate to the Workflow tab based on the Service Desk Classification (SDC) templates that have been defined by the System Administrator. If the workflow is not automatically populated from the Service Desk Classification, or additional workflow is desired, it can be entered here. When a person or member of a Workgroup is selected to work on a Service Desk item, they will be notified via the My Service Desk portal.
Click on the
tab.
Click the
button.
In the data entry form, Users are prompted to select those parties who will be responsible for fulfilling the required Actions. Users must select a Workgroup and can additionally specify a Worker from lists defined by the User's organization.
Add New Service Desk Workflow exampleEnter a Workflow Number
A couple of things to remember about Workflow numbers:They are used to order the Workflow items.
Leave a range of numbers available between Workflow numbers (WF#) in case items need to be added later. We recommend intervals of 100.
Multiple Workflow items can have the same number. This is done when those tasks can be performed concurrently.
Enter the Workgroup.
If you are giving this to a specific person, enter/select the Worker.
If this Workflow item is ready to be worked, enter a Start Date.
Optionally, Users may also choose a Scheduled Date, and/or enter an Estimated Time to complete the Workflow. The estimated time field allows the User to specify the number of hours the task should take to complete.
Click the
button.
Adding a Workflow from a Service Desk Classification
Workflow can be added from a configured Service Desk Classification to supplement any preexisting Workflows.
Workflows will retain the Workflow Number from the Service Desk Classification, this means if a Workflow contained within the SDC has a Workflow Number less than a Completed Workflow Number already on the Service Desk Item, attempting to add a Workflow from the SDC will result in an error. To avoid this when building Workflows, defined Workflow Numbers should be sequenced to allow for compatibility amongst Workflows. For more details about Service Desk Classifications see the wiki article about them.
When using this button to add workflow, the SDCs that are available match the Service Desk Type, as well as, the Service Desk Action and must have defined SDC Workflow:
Click on the
Click on the
button.
From the Choose a Service Desk Classification form, select the SDC to apply.
Click the
button.
The New SDC will be applied to the Service Desk Item.
Scheduling Workflow
Technicians may be auto-assigned workflow in Service Desk and Service Desk Actions. The application assigns a worker and a scheduled date to each workflow, the Order and Actions are processed separately from each other.
A complete guide to scheduling can be found on Workflow Scheduling.
Editing a Workflow Action
Once an Action has been added either automatically or manually it can be necessary to modify it.
To edit an individual Action, simply selected the Action, and click the button.
Deleting a Workflow Action
Once an Action has been added either automatically or manually it can be necessary to delete it.
To delete an individual Action, simply selected the Action, and click the button.
Entering Labor
The button allows the user to enter Labor on a specific Workflow item.
Clicking it will open the 'Add New Service Desk Labor' data entry form.
From here the Worker can enter the Labor Type, Date Worked, Hours Worked, Mark as Billable, Record a Flat Rate, and even add a description of the work in question. Any given Action can have multiple Labor records for different Workers associated with it. One the Workflow tab a record of total time worked by these Workers will display under 'Labor Hours'. To access the details double-click the action and the 'Manage Service Desk Workflow' form will open.
To control the default state of the Service Desk Labor Billable checkbox set the SD_LABOR_BILLABLE parameter. By default, this configuration value is set to false, meaning the Service Desk Labor Billable checkbox is unchecked and must be checked manually by the User if billable time is desired.
When a User adds 'Labor' to a Workflow a Time Entry is automatically generated with the information provided. If the Workflow was completed as User can mark it as such from the Time Entry grid.
On the Time Entry data entry form, all a User needs to do is check the "Workflow Complete" checkbox to automatically mark the workflow as completed when this entry is saved. All of the tasks/notifications associated with completed Workflow will trigger as a result.
Completing a Workflow Action
The button sets the Workflow Status to Complete. This marks the particular item and sends out appropriate Notifications , if they are set. As each Workflow is completed the next Workflow in the sequence is automatically started, triggering the Workflow Start Date event.
Workflow can also be completed via the drop down selector on the Manage Service Desk Workflow form by setting it to 'Complete' and clicking Save or using the previously mentioned checkbox in Time Entry.
In order to complete the Service Desk Item, ALL Workflow must be completed.
Your ability to complete a workflow may be restricted depending on your organization's requirements defined in the configuration guide. If for example permission is denied to everyone except for the Assigned Worker, Manager, CSR, or SysAdmin and you are none of these you will not be able to complete the workflow. This also holds true if there is not assigned worker. In this case only the Manager, CSR or SysAdmin would be able to complete the workflow. See SD_WORKFLOW_PERMISSIONS configuration option for more details.
Requesting an Update
The button creates a status request email for a given workflow task.
To use it just click the 'Request Update' button. This will open the 'New Message form'.
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A User can keep the default email text or add additional content here. Clicking the button will generate the email and send it to the email inbox of the recipient.
Consolidating Workflow
If there are multiple 'Action/Type' that are duplicated Workflow it can be unwieldy to manage these tasks for similar requests. To address this PCR-360 has the option to Consolidate these duplicated Workflows. Only Workflow items with a Pending 'WF status' can be Consolidated.
Clicking the button will Consolidate all of the current workflow. The Workflow will have all original 'Action/Types' removed, combined with matching entries, and added back to the Workflow tab on the Service Order. For this to occur, the Workflow Number, Workgroup, and Worker fields will all have to match. It is important to note once done, this cannot be undone. Once completed you'll note that all of the Workflow entries(WF#) have '000' for their 'Action #', meaning they are assigned to the Service Order as a whole and not to any individual Action. Any 'Notes' unique to the separate records will be combined with the new consolidated Workflow and comma-separated. Any Estimated Time will be totaled together.
Tracking Workflow
PCR-360 offers multiple tools to aid in the tracking of Workflow across an organization.
My Service Desk: Assigned Workflow
Assigned Workflow lists all Service Desk items that have a pending workflow with a Start Date assigned to the current user as the Worker. See related: Assigned Workflow
Widgets
The 'By Type and Assigned Worker' Widget can assist in making a visual comparison of group members to ensure no one workgroup gets over loaded and distribute the workload.
The 'SLA Metrics For Worker' Widget can assist in showing the Workflow completed by a Workgroup/Worker. More information on Widgets can be located on the Widgets page.
Workflow Notifications
By establishing a system of Escalations and Notifications, Administrators can ensure, for instance, that all parties to a Workflow receive Notifications when that Workflow is approaching its due date. Or, if a Service Desk item has been left untouched for an extended period of time, supervisors can be notified so action can be taken to address it.
By assigning Workgroups an Admin can send Notifications to each person in the Workflow Sequence.
Workflow Administration
Workflow can automatically populate to the Workflow tab based on the Service Desk Classification templates that are defined by the System Administrator. Admin users can access this sub-section to implement the default Workflows.
Additionally, Workflow can can be accessed through the API for an Administrator to utilize. See the related API Workflow for use cases.
Configuration options for Workflow can be found in the Configuration Guide
Reporting on Workflow
To access the reporting for Workflow navigation to Main > Reporting > Service Desk > Workflow
Workflow: A report on all Service Desk Workflow. This report also includes several unique columns that are calculated by PCR-360 based on the Users use of the Workflow tools which are as follows:
Completed On Time: A yes or no value indicating whether the workflow was completed by the due date.
Reported Worked Time: The amount of time work was done on the workflow based on the work start and complete dates
Actual Worked Time: The amount of time work was done on the workflow based on when the workflow was created and completed.
Time On Hold: The amount of time the workflow was on hold.
From here a User can also create custom reports using the button.
Users are able to directly open the exact , , or record the User desires once the item is selected in the grid.
Related Quick References: Workflow
Workflow is an important part of all of the following tasks. Click a Guide for more information about how to use Workflow for the given task.