Creating a Service for Requests

This how-to article will help TeamDynamix Administrators create Services in the Client Portal using TDClient and TDAdmin.

This how-to article will help TeamDynamix Administrators create Services in the Client Portal using TDClient and TDAdmin. The user must have administrative permissions within TDAdmin.

Overview

A requestable service is a service that generates a ticket. Each Client Portal application has its own service catalog. This article focuses on creating services in TDAdmin, but they can also be created from the Client Portal. 

Services have many parts. The steps below will outline each item that should be created for a Service.

Client Portal Application - Service Categories

Service categories are folders used for organization of services and subcategories.

To create a new service category:

1. In TDAdmin, navigate to Applications > [Client Portal Application] > Service Catalog > Categories.
2. Click +New.
3. Name your category
4. Give it an order of how you want it to appear in the Client Portal
5. Click Active
6. Click Save

To create a service sub-category:

1. In TDAdmin, navigate to Applications > [Client Portal Application] > Service Catalog > Categories.
2. Click +New.
3. Name your category
4. Choose a parent category
5. Give it an order of how you want it to appear in the Client Portal
6. Click Active
7. Click Save

Ticketing Application – Ticket Types and Forms

Ticket type determines SLAs, reviewers, time and expense accounts, and are also used for reporting.

To create a ticket type category:

1. In TDAdmin, navigate to Applications > Shared Ticketing Settings > Type Categories.
2. Click +New.
3. Name your type category
4. Give it an order of how you want it to appear in the ticketing application
5. Click Active
6. Click Save

To create a ticket type:

1. In TDAdmin, navigate to Applications > [Ticketing Application] > Types.
2. Click +New.
3. Choose a category
4. Name your ticket type and describe if you would like to
5. Add a Primary Reviewer
6. Mark Active
7. Save

Forms determine routing, attributes, and classification.

To create a form:

1. In TDAdmin, navigate to Applications > [Ticketing Application] > Forms.
2. Click +New.
   1. We recommend copying your forms from one that already exists rather than starting from scratch for each form
3. Name the form
4. Choose a Classification
5. Copy from existing
6. Add and remove attributes as needed
7. Click Save
   1. Don’t forget to use the Preview tab to see how your form looks from the Client Portal and TDNext

Client Portal Application - Services

The service is the item that is being requested.

If you are following the ECAR approach, refer to the Getting Started with Your Service Catalog article, specifically the ECAR sections.

To create a service:

1. In TDAdmin, navigate to Applications > [Client Portal Application] > Service Catalog > Services.
2. Click +New.
3. Name the service
4. Choose category/sub-category for service
5. Associate ticket type to service
6. Associate form to service
   1. If you are taking a 1:1:1 approach, name your ticket type, service, and form the same. e.g., a Password Reset ticket type, a Password Reset service, and a Password Reset form
7. Provide a short and long description
8. Save

Custom Attributes

Custom attributes are fields you can configure for your services that meet your needs as an organization. You could use them for values such as MAC address, type of email client, or operating system of device.

To determine if you need to use custom attributes, answer this question: Do you need to track custom fields / information to either a) empower a technician to act on request and/or b) enrich your environment with data for reporting purposes?

If the answer to either of these questions is yes, then you can use custom attributes to meet your needs. If no to both, then proceed to the Services & Knowledge Management section.

To create custom attributes:

1. In TDAdmin, navigate to Applications > [Ticketing Application] > Attributes.
2. Click +New.
3. Name your attribute
4. Fill in Header Text (this is what you see when you report on this attribute)
5. Select Attribute type
   1. Checkbox List
   2. Yes/No Dropdown
   3. Text Box
   4. Etc
6. Choose sort order
7. Fill in options
8. Save

Associating Knowledge Base Articles with Services

Associating knowledge base articles to a service will provide end users with additional information about the service they are requesting. For example, if you have a Password Reset service, you’ll want to make sure the end user has attempted a password reset first. Associated the service with a knowledge base article with password reset instructions.

Create between 1-3 knowledge base articles and associate with a service.

To associate a knowledge base article with a service:

1. In the Client Portal, open the Service Catalog.
2. Open a previously created service.
3. Click Edit
4. Under Related Articles, click Add article.

Learn more about creating knowledge base articles.

Additional Notes & Assumptions

ITSM Service

• All groups for routing have already been created and populated.
• All SLAs have already been created.
• Conceptual understanding on how you want the Service catalog to be organized regardless of TDX configuration.
• All paths listed above assume you already have all the apps and permissions necessary, including admin access.

PPM Service

• All the above assumptions for the ITSM Service are valid, except Ticketing Application - Configuration section. 
• You would go into Portfolio Planning tab in TDAdmin to set up your Project Type first and then create the corresponding Service. When creating the Service, select Projects from the drop down menu item under Request Application / Type.
• Custom attributes for project forms can be found inside the Projects / Workspaces tab in TDAdmin.

Gotchas & Pitfalls

• Building Services, Ticket Types, and Forms takes time and input from your entire organization. Distribute the work and make sure that service owners are giving you the information you need to develop the services. 
• Think carefully about your end users when you build services. Use language that they will understand.

Examples

• Sample Service Catalog 
• Customers of TeamDynamix Service Catalogs