Bookshelf v7.7: 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.

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:

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
Group/Field	Description
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
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.
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.
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).