Integration
This chapter covers the following topics:
About this Chapter
This chapter provides an overview and a list of all products with which Oracle Knowledge Management integrates. In addition, the chapter provides additional setup steps required for integrating with Oracle Knowledge Management.
E-Business Suite Integration
Oracle Knowledge Management is a Web-based information management system that lets a user efficiently search, create, distribute, and manage information. For an end user, Oracle Knowledge Management is a self-service application in which they can enter natural language queries for retrieving and solving their own issues. A customer support agent can use Oracle Knowledge Management as a powerful solution management tool. Solutions created in Oracle Knowledge Management are available to users of all applications that integrate Oracle Knowledge Management, based on the security defined for the user. The availability of information at all times in organizations means quicker response for support calls with no long phone queue waits for the users. This enhances customer satisfaction while cutting the costs of customer support and improving the productivity of service organizations.
The tight integration that Oracle Knowledge Management has with several Oracle products allows the users of these modules to leverage knowledge in the knowledge base to resolves issues.
Oracle Knowledge Management integrates with other Oracle modules, such as Oracle TeleService, Oracle Field Service, and Oracle Depot Repair. This integration lets service agents for these modules access to solutions.
Oracle Knowledge Management also integrates with Oracle iSupport, which lets users of Oracle iSupport resolve their own service issues.
Topics in this section include:
Forms-Based Applications
When coming from agent integration flow, such as Service Request or Depot Repair, users can choose between Simple Search and Advanced Solution Search by setting the Knowledge: Search to display for Integrating Applications profile option. This profile's seeded value for the default search mode is Simple Search, which provides a more basic mechanism to search for solutions. The ability to search for service requests in Simple Searches also helps the agent to use the knowledge from previously resolved issues.
Forms-based applications that integrate with Oracle Knowledge Management include:
Oracle TeleService
Oracle TeleService (Support module) is a Service Request Management System that integrates with Oracle Knowledge Management for resolving customer issues. Oracle TeleService uses Oracle Knowledge Management to leverage a knowledge base of previously reported problems and solutions. As users log new service requests, agents can search the knowledge base to identify existing solutions that can resolve customer issues or contribute new solutions to the knowledge base. A user can navigate from the View Service Request form to the Search window of Oracle Knowledge Management. The Notes component in a service request documents the description and progress being made in resolving a customer issue. Notes can provide details to search the knowledge base for solutions and statements. You can link a solution that was created in Oracle Knowledge Management to a Service Request. You can use Notes to create new statements that contribute to the knowledge base. An agent uses certain Note Types for searching the knowledge base and creating solutions. Examples of Note Types to use for searching include: Symptom, Cause, Action, Problem, and Solution.
Note: You can use as search criteria only those Note Types that you have mapped to Statement Types.
The following information from the service request are passed to the Solution Search page:
-
Service Request summary defaults to the key words for searching.
-
For Solution Advanced Solution Search only, if your note was saved in the service request using a Note Type that has been mapped to a Statement Type in Oracle Knowledge Management, then the note text is passed over if user is using Solution Advanced Solution Search to perform the searching.
-
Product (if this has not been personalized to be hidden on the Oracle Knowledge Management window).
You can view the details of all solutions found in the search and select the solutions that are useful for the resolving of your service request. You can also link relevant solutions to your service request. If you cannot find the appropriate solutions, then you can creates a new solution based on the data from the service request.
As part of TeleService, Oracle Customer Management Contact Center users can also navigate to Oracle Knowledge Management through integration flows and achieve similar functionality as the preceding information mentions.
For more information, see the Oracle TeleService Implementation Guide.
Oracle Field Service
The Oracle Field Service suite supports an automated process that service organizations use to manage their field service operations. It assists in the entire service process from taking the customer call to fixing and reporting on the problem at a customer site. The Oracle Field Service suite offers a range of products to meet an organization's business needs.
The Oracle Field Service module assists in assigning tasks to service representatives, creating and dispatching daily schedules, and monitoring progress.
A support agent analyzes service requests. The support agent searches Oracle Knowledge Management for a solution and creates a task based on the problem description and action needed to solve the problem.
For more information, see the Oracle Field Service User Guide.
Oracle Depot Repair
Oracle Depot Repair tracks and manages the repair process in a service organization. This module reduces customer downtime while the product is being repaired.
Oracle Knowledge Management allows an agent in Oracle Depot Repair to review the full problem solution life span, starting from the initial diagnosis of a problem to problem resolution. A depot agent can search for a solution for a repair order by navigating to the Search window. Product and work summary of the repair order appear in the Solution Basic Search or the Advanced Solution Search window.
For more information, see the Oracle Depot Repair User Guide.
HTML-Based Applications
HTML-based applications that integrate with Oracle Knowledge Management include:
Oracle iSupport
Topics for Oracle iSupport integration with Oracle Knowledge Management include:
Oracle iSupport is a customer service portal that allows both customer and employee users of a service organization to resolve their issues themselves and to receive assisted service over the Internet. It enhances customer satisfaction while cutting the costs of customer support and improving the productivity of service organizations.
Oracle iSupport integrates with Oracle Knowledge Management to search for published solutions. A service request agent using Oracle iSupport can search for solutions while creating a service request. Oracle iSupport customers can also search Oracle Knowledge Management to find solutions without waiting for a service agent's assistance.
In the Create Service Request flow, an Oracle iSupport administrator can enable or disable the step of searching the knowledge base. For more information, see the Oracle iSupport Implementation and Administration Guide.
An Oracle iSupport user can search and view a solution by either clicking the Support tab or by clicking the Find a solution link on the iSupport Home page. He or she can also navigate to a solution listed in the Common Problems and Recommended Solutions section. The Solution Details appear. A user can provide feedback on the solution by selecting Yes or No for the feedback section. He or she can also click the Add to Quick Links hyperlink or click the Create Service Request button to navigate to Create Service Request window.
When users access Oracle Knowledge Management from iSupport, Oracle Knowledge Management tracks their searches, solution viewing, and feedback actions.
When users navigate from Oracle Knowledge Management to create a Service Request, the system records their tracked actions:
-
The search key words that you use automatically appear in the summary of the Create Service Request page.
-
Depending on profile Oracle iSupport: Option to Track Solutions Viewed During Service Request Creation setting, the system records the viewing history and feedback on the Service Request. For more information, see the Oracle iSupport Implementation and Administration Guide.
The Knowledge Management Calculate Solution Usage Score concurrent program calculates the usage score.
The Knowledge: Time period (in seconds) for user activity log profile option enables solution usage recording for iSupport. The profile option defines the time frame within which the user activity tracking runs. By default, the time is 0, which means that no solution usage tracking occurs. Note that this profile does not control how the system stores the data in the service request.
The Oracle iSupport: Option to Track Solutions Viewed During Service Request Creation profile controls how the data storage occurs. For more information, see the Oracle iSupport Implementation and Administration Guide.
You can also enable this solution usage recording for Partners Online if you set the profile the respective levels.
Purge Unused Tracking History Data
When you enable the solution tracking feature, the system records data by each use of iSupport. Overtime, the tracked data can become very large. You should consider running the Knowledge Management purge tracking history concurrent program to purge the outdated data to improve the performance.
End users--such as customers who search the knowledge base--access Oracle Knowledge Management through the Support tab in Oracle iSupport. Tasks that end users typically perform include:
The following flow diagrams show end-user processes.
The majority of end users searching the knowledge base conduct a key word search using the Simple Search functionality. The following figure, Conducting a Simple Search, shows the tasks that you use to conduct a Simple Search.
Conducting a Simple Search involves:
-
Entering key word for search: Enter a key word or words.
-
Reviewing search results: Review search results and decide whether or not to modify the search by entering new key words.
-
Reviewing solutions: Review solutions that appear in the search results.
-
Providing feedback: Indicate whether a solution helps to solve your problem by clicking a response at the bottom of the Solution Detail page. The system captures this information in usage counts that populate the Frequently Used Solutions list.
From the Simple Search page, end users can browse Solution Categories that are similar to folders for solutions. The following figure, Browsing Solution Categories, is a flow diagram that shows the tasks that you use to browse Solutions Categories.
The tasks to browse Solution Categories include:
-
Reviewing Solution Categories: Review Solution Categories to determine where you might find solutions that meet your needs.
-
Drilling down to subcategories or navigate to other categories: Choose a subcategory or another category.
-
Reviewing solutions in category: Review solution headers and detail to find an appropriate solution.
-
Providing feedback on solutions: Indicate whether a solution helps to solve your problem by clicking a response at the bottom of the Solution Detail page. The system captures this information usage counts that populate the Frequently Used Solutions list.
Viewing Top Solutions in Oracle iSupport
Users can navigate to a list of Recommended Solutions and Frequently Used Solutions from the Top Solutions subtab in Oracle iSupport. The following figure, Viewing Top Solutions in Oracle iSupport shows the tasks that you use to view Top Solutions in Oracle iSupport.
Viewing Top Solutions in Oracle iSupport
Oracle iSupport users can navigate to the Top Solutions tab to review the following lists of solutions:
-
Recommended Solutions: View a list of recommended solutions. The Recommended Solutions list is a list of solutions that the Knowledge Administrator chose to appear in Oracle iSupport.
-
Frequently Used Solutions: View a list of frequently used solutions. The basis of the Frequently Used Solutions list is usage counts. Users can filter the Frequently Used Solutions by specifying the date range.
The Guest User concept allows unregistered or registered users to access certain features in Oracle Knowledge Management without having to log in.
Note: Oracle iSupport provides Guest User support for Oracle Knowledge Management.
A Guest User is a user who comes to the site and does not log in explicitly, but implicitly to the applications to use certain functionality. The Oracle Knowledge Management Guest User can use the following pages at specified locations (URLs) without explicitly logging in to applications:
When a registered user has not logged in to the applications, but uses the URL to open any of the preceding pages, the module displays the page in Guest User mode, with the Login icon. Users can log in to see pages for their respective role and permission.
For more information, see the Oracle iSupport Implementation and Administration Guide.
Functions for Configuring Oracle iSupport Pages
When the profile Oracle iSupport Page Level Configuration Option is on, you can configure the high-level look and feel of the user interface (UI) for the Browser, Search Results, and Solution Details pages that appear in Oracle iSupport by defining the appropriate JSP name in the following FND functions:
-
Top: Indicates that the JSP appears at the top of the content page.
-
Left: Indicates that the JSP appears at the left of the content page.
-
Right: Indicates that the JSP appears at the right of the content page.
-
Bottom: Indicates that the JSP appears at the bottom of the content page.
For more information, see the Oracle iSupport Implementation and Administration Guide.
-
CS_KB_BROWSE_TOP_FN: Top section of Browse page
-
CS_KB_BROWSE_LEFT_FN: Left section of Browse page
-
CS_KB_BROWSE_RIGHT_FN: Right section of Browse page
-
CS_KB_BROWSE_BOTTOM_FN: Bottom section of Browse page
-
CS_KB_SEARCH_RESULT_TOP_FN: Top section of Search Result page
-
CS_KB_SEARCH_RESULT_LEFT_FN: Left section of Search Result page
-
CS_KB_SEARCH_RESULT_RIGHT_FN: Right section of Search Result page
-
CS_KB_SEARCH_RESULT_BOTTOM_FN: Bottom section of Search Result page
-
CS_KB_SOLN_DETAIL_TOP_FN: Top section of Solution Detail page
-
CS_KB_SOLN_DETAIL_LEFT_FN: Left section of Solution Detail page
-
CS_KB_SOLN_DETAIL_RIGHT_FN: Right section of Solution Detail page
-
CS_KB_SOLN_DETAIL_BOTTOM_FN: Bottom section of Solution Detail page
Oracle eMail Center
Oracle eMail Center is the module for managing inbound e-mail interactions with customers, partners, suppliers, employees, and others that interact with an organization. Oracle eMail Center provides an agent with tools and capabilities to maximize their productivity and effectiveness.
Oracle Knowledge Management integrates with Oracle eMail Center during inbound e-mail processing. Oracle eMail Center agents can search Oracle Knowledge Management for appropriate solutions while responding to an e-mail. The agents can send the searched-for solutions as an e-mail message to the customer.
For more information, see the Oracle eMail Center User Guide.
Oracle Partner Management
Oracle Partner Management is the entry point for Partner Relationship Management (PRM) services across the pre-sales, sales and post-sales intercompany processes for companies and their partners. These services include:
-
Partner profiling and opportunity matching for the vendor
-
Online access to latest product collateral in addition to sales and service support for the partners.
Users of Oracle Partner Management can access the Support tab in Oracle iSupport. For more information, see the Oracle Partner Management Vendor User Guide and the Oracle iSupport Implementation and Administration Guide.
Oracle Customer Support
Customer Support is a module of Oracle TeleService and integrates with Oracle Knowledge Management in a way that is very similar to that described in the TeleService section.
Additional Integration Setups
The following procedure uses the integration points in the Oracle E-Business Suite:
Map a Statement Type to a Note Type
The Notes component is a Common Application Component within the Oracle E-Business Suite. The Notes component includes a seeded set of defined Note Types that you can use throughout the Oracle E-Business Suite. Individuals with the CRM Administrator Responsibility can also create additional customized Note Types.
You use Notes in a Service Request to document the description and progress made in resolving customer issues. The Notes component captures details that you can use to search the knowledge base for solutions or to create new solutions. For more information, see Oracle TeleService Implementation Guide.
You can map a Note Type to a Statement Type. Although it is possible to set up a multiple-to-multiple mapping relationship between Note Type and Statement Type, one-to-one mapping is highly recommended.
You use this mapping to translate Notes from other objects, especially service requests, into Statement Types in Oracle Knowledge Management.
This integration is primarily used with Oracle TeleService.
Responsibility
Knowledge Administrators with edit permission (CS_Type_Edit) can relate a Statement Type to a JTF Note Type.
Prerequisite
None
Steps
-
Create a new Statement Type or navigate to an existing Statement Type.
-
In the Related section, choose External Links from the list.
-
Click Add.
The Select an External Object window appears.
-
Click Note Type.
The Note Type window appears.
-
Search for the Note Type that you want to add to this Statement Type.
Tip: Use (%) in Description field for a wildcard search.
-
From the Search Results choose the JTF Note Type to add to the Statement Type.
-
Click Update.