Service order automation can be setup to automatically be created for a selected service order type for a specific vendor using Quick Workflows. Note that existing service order automation functionality is unaffected.
By managing automation using the Quick Workflow feature, a high level of flexibility and detail in determining which vendor and when service orders are sent can be achieved over the existing.
To create automation, the Quick Workflow must have a Data Type of Assignment. Once the Quick Workflow conditions are created, the service order details actions are added under the Automation tab.
Two actions exist for automation which appear in the Process drop down list:
Once the Service Order Type is selected, a quick link will appear beside the selected Service Order Type. If a Service Order setting exists for the selected Service Order Type, a "View System Service Order Settings" link is displayed, else a "Add Service Order Settings" link is displayed and the Service Order Setting must be configured for the quick workflow to work. Note: A warning is display if settings do not exists or have company-level overrides.
The quick workflow can use the Preferred Vendor for the selected Service Order Type or it can be configured to use a specific vendor by selecting Choose a Different Vendor and selecting the vendor.
After saving the QWF and ensuring it is active, when the QWF is triggered, the Service Order is created and appears in the Assignment Service Order screen with the status of "Not Ordered" when "Create Service Order" is selected as the process.
Things to note in general
Prior to configuring the Quick Workflow and activating it, the following must be in place for a Service Order to be created:
Service Type must exist in System Lookup Maintenance (matches the service definition).
Service Order settings must be setup. If sending via email, the email template associated with the service order settings must have an email address configured
If using a preferred vendor, there must only be one (at company or system level)
Now it is possible to prevent duplicate service orders by creating a business rule to determine if the assignment already has a service order with the same Service Type and Vendor.
Additional details about each of the processes
Create Service Order Process
The Service Order will be created with the following default values:
Service Type: The Service Type associated with the Service that was authorized for the assignment.
Vendor: The Preferred Vendor for that Service Type. This is applicable if the QWF is configured to use Preferred vendor. See Vendor Defaulting on Service Orders for details about how this is configured.
Service Coordinator: If the user authorizing the Services holds the Service Coordinator resource role, the Service Coordinator will default to be that user. Otherwise, it will be left blank. This also applies when the authorization is being performed automatically:
If the services authorization is being performed by the “Authorize In-Policy Services for New Assignments” Quick Workflow, the Service Coordinator will be left blank because the user authorizing the Services is “Quick Workflow”, and that user is not a Resource in the system.
If the services authorization is being performed by the finalization of a Core Flex authorization, and the finalizing user holds the Service Coordinator role, the Service Coordinator will default to that user.
Vendor Contact: If the Preferred Vendor has a Contact marked as Preferred, that Contact will be identified on the Service Order.
Service Agent: If the Preferred Vendor has exactly one Service Agent associated with for it, that Service Agent will be identified on the Service Order.
Service Due Date: If the Service Order Settings for the Service Type identifies a value for Default Due Date to Create Date Plus, this field will default to that setting.
If a Vendor cannot be found for the Service Type, the Service Order will not be created.
If there are other fields that are required due to how Service Order Settings is configured, the Service Order will be created without those required fields.
Create Service Order and Send Process
The Service Order will be created according to the method described in the Create Service Order section and then automatically sent based on the Default Communication Method specified for the Service Type in the Service Order Settings screen. See flowchart of the process.
Default Communication Method is <Email>
When <Email> is the Default Communication Method, the Service Order is sent to the Preferred Vendor via email when a Default Email Template is configured on the Service Order Settings screen. If this is the case, a Note/Communication is created with the following defaults:
Order Type defaults to <Order>.
Type defaults to <Email>.
Email Template: The template identified in the Default Communication Method on the Service Order Settings screen for the Service Type.
Other email fields (e.g., To, Bcc, etc.): These are populated using the specified Email template. If the Email template has merge or static documents identified for it, those will be generated and attached.
An email will be sent to the Vendor when the Service Order is ordered. Additionally, if the Vendor is Integrated, the data will be sent to the Vendor, provided an active Event Definition exists for the vendor and all required fields have values.
The following issues will result in a failure of what is described above:
Email Template fails to merge properly.
Email Template is missing the To
Email Template Merge document(s) fail to generate and/or attach.
Email Template’s static document(s) fail to attach.
If any of these occur, the Note/Communication is not created and the Service Order remains in a <Not Ordered> status. Failures are logged in the Equus Platform’s LOG_EVENT table. Contact an administrator or an Equus Client Account Manager for details about how to access this.
Default Communication Method is NOT <Email> - Send via Vendor Integration
If a Default Email Template is NOT configured, the Service Order will be sent using the method described in this section.
When <Email> is NOT the Default Communication Method, the Service Order is sent to the Preferred Vendor via Vendor Integration only. The Note/Communication is created with the following defaults on the Note/Communication Detail screen:
Order Type defaults to <Order>.
Type defaults to <Note>.
The Service Order will be created but NOT sent in the following scenarios:
the Preferred Vendor is not an Integrated Vendor, or
an active Integration Event Definition doesn't exist for that Vendor and Service Type combination, or
any required field on the Service Order is missing a value.
If a Service Order fails to send due to one of these conditions, it will remain on the Assignment’s Assignment/Relocation Service Orders screen as a created Service Order without a corresponding Note/Communication. To send, simply make the appropriate corrections, create the Note/Communication and send it.
If a Service Order fails to send because of failures that occurred during the actual sending of the Service Order, the Note/Communication will be displayed on the Service Order Details screen with a Status of <Failure>. To send, correct the issue, create a new Note/Communication and send it.
Required fields
Integration Event Definitions can be configured with required fields, so that when Services are automatically or manually ordered, validation occurs that will stop the Service Order data from being sent to an Integrated Vendor if at least one required field present in the Integration Push Script does not contain any information. This allows for an automated check to ensure that Vendors always receive the information necessary to begin Services for an Assignment.
For service order automation Quick Workflows, Service Orders will be evaluated for Required Fields when the conditions from the previous section are met, and the Integration Event Definition for the Service Type includes fields designated as required. If the validation for Required Fields fails, the Service Order will be created but will be in a Status of Not Sent.
Navigating to the Service Order Details screen and creating a new Note/Communication will display a message indicating which Required Fields caused the validation to fail.
Note that when the Communication Type is <Email>, the email can still be sent to the Vendor upon clicking [Save & Send], however the Vendor’s system will not receive any information about the requested Service via Integration.
When the Communication Type is <Note> or< Verbal>, the [Save & Send] button will be disabled until the missing Required Fields are addressed.
When Services are ordered manually, the same evaluation will be executed when a new Note/Communication is created for a Service Order, and the same messaging will be present for each Communication Type.
Please contact your Equus representative to discuss details on configuring Required Fields.