Siebel Field Service Guide > Scheduling and Dispatch > Dispatch Board Screen >
Process of Setting Up the Dispatch Board
To set up the Dispatch Board for use by dispatchers and customer service representatives, perform the following tasks: Setting up rules for Assignment Manager. See the chapter on assignment rules in Siebel Assignment Manager Administration Guide.
- Associating service regions and schedules to employees. For more information, see Defining Schedules.
- Defining employee exception hours. For more information, see Defining Schedules.
- Assigning responsibilities to employees. For more information, see Applications Administration Guide.
- Setting system preferences for the Dispatch Board.
- Setting user preferences for the Dispatch Board.
Setting System Preferences for the Dispatch Board
The Dispatch Board allows a dispatcher or customer service representative to drag an activity from the Unscheduled Activities list to a block of time and employee in the Gantt chart. If the service region of the activity is different from the service region selected for the Gantt chart, the result depends on the setting of the system preference FSDB:Override Service Region:
- If the value of the system preference is TRUE, then the dispatcher can drop the activity on the Gantt chart and the service region for the activity is automatically changed to the service region selected for the Gantt chart.
- If the value is FALSE, then the dispatcher cannot drop the activity on the Gantt chart and an error is returned.
Setting User Preferences for the Dispatch Board
Field Service provides control over many aspects of the Gantt chart. To change these settings, on the Dispatch Board screen, click the menu button, and then choose User Preferences. Table 41 describes the settings for the Gantt chart.
Table 41. Options for the Gantt Chart
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Major Time Value |
Sets the timespan (for example, one day) that can be viewed without scrolling:
- Year
- Month
- Week
- Day
- 6 Hours
- 4 Hours
- 2 Hours
- Half Hour
- Quarter Hour
|
Minor Time Value |
Sets the time increments (for example, 24 one-hour slots) of the Major Time Value:
- Year
- Month
- Week
- Day
- 6 Hours
- 4 Hours
- 2 Hours
- Hour
- Half Hour
- Quarter Hour
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Start Day at |
The start time for a work day. The default is 9 A.M. The format is 09:00:00 AM. |
End Day at |
The end time for a work day. The default is 5 P.M. The format is 05:00:00 PM. |
Service Region and Date Shown |
These are set in one of two ways (whichever occurred last):
- Choose Tools > User Preferences > Dispatch Board. A user makes the selections using the drop-down lists.
- Activities screen > Schedule view. A user arrives at the Dispatch Board by clicking an Activity Status link in the Activities screen > Schedule view. In this case, the items default to the choices made for the just-visited activity.
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Color Scheme |
Sets the colors of the time bars representing scheduled activities. A different color can be assigned to each combination of category and subcategory. To apply a color scheme, first select a subcategory and then select a color for that subcategory. To make the color the body of the bar, select that category as the Major Color Scheme. To make the color the border of the bar, select that category as the Minor Color Scheme. NOTE: When you select a subcategory color and then reset the subcategory and select a color again, both choices are saved and in effect.
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Enable Default Colors |
When selected, the default color scheme overrides user preferences and the Grid Object defaults to account name. |
Major Color Scheme |
Colors of the body of the time bars. |
Minor Color Scheme |
Colors of the border of the time bars. |
Grid Object |
Determines the text displayed on the time bars. When Enable Default Colors is selected, the Grid Object defaults to account name. |
Display Current Time |
Displays a vertical line in the Gantt chart representing the service region's current time. |
Display Earliest/Latest Start |
When selected, highlights (in yellow) the start time range for an unscheduled activity on the Minor Time Value bar of the Gantt chart. |
Auto-Update Service Region |
Selecting this check box determines whether the last service region displayed in the Activities Gantt chart appears the next time the user goes to the Dispatch Board screen. |
Enable Service Region Constraint on Unplan Activity |
When selected, only activities for the selected service region are displayed in the Unscheduled Activities list (instead of all unscheduled activities). |
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