About Assignment Criteria

Assignment criteria are sets of conditions describing the attributes of objects or candidates, or both, that are evaluated to determine optimal assignment. Assignment rules use criteria to determine which candidates qualify as potential assignees. Criteria also determine which assignment rule is evaluated in assigning an object. An assignment rule can include none, one, or many criteria.

Assignment criteria define attributes that can be used in assignment criteria records. Assignment criteria appear in the picklist that is displayed when you click in the Criteria list column (in the Criteria subview) when editing an assignment criterion record in Siebel Business Applications.

This topic contains the following information:

• "Assignment Criteria Comparison Methods"

• "Assignment Criteria Inclusion Methods"

• "About Assignment Scoring"

• "About the Required Field for Assignment Criteria"

• "Removing Assignment Criteria from Assignment Rules"

Assignment Criteria Comparison Methods

This topic is part of "About Assignment Criteria".

Siebel Assignment Manager uses criteria comparison methods to qualify objects or candidates, or both, for an assignment rule. Attributes (object or candidate) can be either attributes or skills, depending on the criterion value.

Note: Assignment criteria are evaluated as an attribute first, and then as a skill.

Table 5-15 lists the different requirements for each comparison method.

Table 5-15 Assignment Criteria Comparison Methods

Comparison Method	Description
Compare to Object	Compares criteria values to object attributes. The criterion passes if the objects possess the criteria values. For example, Account Zip Code = 94040.
Compare to Person	Compares criteria values to skills of person candidates (employees or positions). Person candidates that possess the skills required by the criterion qualify for this criterion. For example, Language = ENU. Note: With this comparison method, you have to list criteria values in the Values list under Criteria.
Compare Object to Person	Compares object attributes to skills of person candidates (employees or positions). Person candidates that possess the skills required by the object qualify for this criterion. For example, product means compare the product of the opportunity and the product skills of the person or position. Note: With this comparison method, you do not have to list criteria values in the Values list under Criteria.
Compare to Organization	Compares criteria values to organization skills. Organizations that possess the skills required by the criterion qualify for this criterion. For example, Type = Gold-level partner.
Compare Object to Organization	Compares object attributes to organization skills. Organizations that possess the skills required by the object qualify for this criterion. For example, ZIP Code means compare the ZIP Code of the service request and the ZIP Code of the organization. Note: With this comparison method, you do not have to list criteria values in the Values list under Criteria.

Depending on the comparison method, candidates that meet the criteria have the criteria score added to their total score, as follows:

• The total score from all criteria of the Compare to Object type that pass is added to all qualifying person and organization candidates.

• The person candidates get the score from the Compare to Person and Compare Object to Person criteria and values they pass.

• The organization candidates get the score from the Compare to Organization and Compare Object to Organization criteria and values they pass.

  
  

  Note: Assignment rules can be created with no criteria. A rule of this nature functions to make sure that data items of a particular type are assigned, that is, that all objects of the defined type pass. Use such rules carefully, because a rule defined with no criteria can make unnecessary assignments.

  
  
  
  

  Caution: In general, it is recommended to avoid creating rules with no criteria using batch assignment mode. This mode can produce a very large number of assignments, because all objects in the database that have rules with no criteria pass and are assigned in this mode. Such an increase can result in a backlog of requests that might cause the whole environment to stop working if the database or file system runs out of space.

  
  

Assignment Criteria Inclusion Methods

This topic is part of "About Assignment Criteria".

You specify criteria inclusion methods for assignment rules to determine how criteria values and candidates will be matched. Assignment criteria use inclusion methods to:

• Determine how many criteria values must be met to pass the criterion

• Determine how the score of the criterion values are added to the candidate's score

Table 5-16 shows the types of assignment criteria inclusion methods.

Table 5-16 Assignment Criteria Inclusion Methods

Inclusion Method	Comments
Include	At least one value must match: For Compare to Object, the object attribute must match at least one listed criteria value. For Compare to Person, the person attribute must match at least one listed criteria value. For Compare to Organization, the organization attribute must match at least one listed criteria value. For Compare Object to Person, at least one value of the person attribute must match one value of the object attributes. For Compare Object to Organization, at least one value of the organization attribute must match one value of the object attributes. Assignment Manager stops processing criteria when one value is matched and the score of the matching criterion value is added to the candidate's score.
Include All	All values must match: For Compare to Object, the object attribute must match all listed criteria values. For Compare to Person, the person attribute must match all listed criteria values. For Compare to Organization, the organization attribute must match all listed criteria values. For Compare Object to Person, all values of the person attribute must match all values of the object attribute. For Compare Object to Organization, all values of the object attribute must match all values of the organization attribute. If the criterion is met, then all the criteria value scores are added to the candidate's score. However, if just one of the criteria is not met, then Assignment Manager stops processing the rule.
Include All Matching	This inclusion method matches in the same manner as the Include inclusion method, that is, at least one value needs to match. However, unlike the Include method, Assignment Manager continues to process this criterion until all criterion values are exhausted. As a result, the scores from all passing criterion values are added to the candidate's score. Note: The Include All Matching inclusion method matches like the Include inclusion method, but scores like the Include All inclusion method.
Exclude	None of the values must match: For Compare to Object, the object attribute must not match any of the listed criteria values. For Compare to Person, the person attribute must not match any of the listed criteria values. For Compare to Organization, the organization attribute must not match any of the listed criteria values. For Compare Object to Person, no values of the person attribute can match any values of the object attribute. For Compare Object to Organization, no values of the organization attribute can match any values of the object attribute. Note: The Exclude inclusion method excludes criterion value scores. If the criterion is met, then only the criterion score is added to the candidate's score.

About Assignment Scoring

This topic is part of "About Assignment Criteria".

Siebel Assignment Manager determines which candidates are assigned to objects by applying scores to potential candidates. Assignment Manager then ranks the candidates based on their scores and selects assignees based on the assignee filter. Assignment Manager calculates the total score for each candidate from each assignment rule from the:

• Assignment rule score

• Assignment criteria score

• Assignment criteria values score (according to the appropriate inclusion method)

• Workload criteria score

• Employee, position, or organization score (depending on the candidate)

  
  

  Note: Before implementing Assignment Manager, carefully consider the value for each score. Use scores to assign weights to your criteria. If there are multiple criteria, then assign a higher score to the more important attributes. Doing this is especially useful for finding the best match when not all criteria are required.

  
  

Using Siebel Tools, you can configure Assignment Manager to save the scores of candidates that are assigned to an object. Other Siebel Business Applications modules can then access the saved candidate scores for various purposes. For example, you might want to produce analysis reports for employee utilization. Alternatively, you can expose the scores to users for review and sorting.

The scores of each candidate are stored in the appropriate team table by specifying the Employee Team Score Column, Position Team Score Column, and Organization Team Score Column for the assignment object. Team member scores are written independently for each type of candidate (employees, positions, and organizations).

You can also configure Assignment Manager to add scores across assignment rules. For more information about this, see the Add Scores across Rules (AddScores) parameter in "Configuring Siebel Assignment Manager to Add Scores Across Rules".

Note: Typically, you plan your scoring methodology during the design phase. However, you can add scores to assignment rules at any time. You must release the rules in order for the changes to take effect.

About the Required Field for Assignment Criteria

This topic is part of "About Assignment Criteria".

The Required field on an assignment criterion gives you the ability to make certain that an object or candidate meets this criterion for the assignment rule. If so, then the candidate's score is increased, giving that candidate a better chance of being assigned.

You make an assignment criterion required or not required by selecting one of the following choices from the picklist in the Required field in the Criteria list for the assignment rule: Always, Never, or When Available.

Required Assignment Criteria

With a required criterion, the object or candidate must meet this criterion. You can make a criterion required by selecting Always from the picklist in the Required field.

• For a criterion with a Compare To Object comparison, if the object does not have the attribute to satisfy the criterion, then that assignment rule fails and none of the candidates from that rule qualify for assignment.

• For person-based criterion (with a Compare To Person or a Compare Object to Person comparison method), if the criterion is not met, then that person candidate fails and does not qualify for that assignment rule. Therefore, further person-based criteria are not evaluated for that person candidate.

• For an organization-based criterion (with a Compare To Organization or a Compare Object to Organization comparison method), if the criterion is not met, then that organization candidate fails and does not qualify for that assignment rule. Therefore, further organization-based criteria are not evaluated for that Organization candidate.

For example, an assignment rule can have a required assignment criterion based on service request severity, with a Compare to Object comparison method and a criteria value of 1-Critical. In this case, if the object to be assigned has a service request severity of 1-Critical, then the object qualifies for the assignment rule. An object without a service request severity value or that has a different service request severity value does not qualify for this assignment rule.

Required When Available Assignment Criteria

With a required when available assignment criterion, the object or candidate must meet this criterion if the object or candidate has the attribute available. You can make a criterion required when available by selecting When Available from the picklist in the Required field.

For example, an assignment rule can have a required when available assignment criterion based on service request severity, with a Compare to Object comparison method and a criteria value of 1-Critical. In this case, if the object assigned has a service request severity of 1-Critical, then the object qualifies for the assignment rule. An object that has a lower service request severity value does not qualify for the assignment rule. However, an object without a service request severity value does qualify for the assignment rule, because the criteria value is NULL, or not available.

Note: If an assignment criterion uses a Compare Object to Person or a Compare Object to Organization comparison method, and has Required set to When Available, but the attribute value does not exist on a person or organization, this criterion fails. This behavior is different than when the Compare to Object comparison method is used, in which case the criterion would pass.

Nonrequired Assignment Criteria

Use a nonrequired assignment criterion to further determine a suitable match between candidates and assignment rules. You can make criteria nonrequired by selecting Never from the picklist in the Required field.

Use nonrequired criteria that include scores to apply scores to candidates. If an assignment rule satisfies the criteria, then these scores are added to the total scores of the candidates for this assignment rule. By using nonrequired criteria with scores, you can add a higher score to candidates that satisfy this criteria, while keeping candidates that do not satisfy the criteria.

• If a candidate fails a nonrequired criterion, then no score is added to the candidate; however, the candidate does not fail. Person candidates are evaluated for the rest of the person-based criteria and organization candidates are evaluated for the rest of the organization-based criteria.

  For example, use service-related criteria (such as Service Request Priority) for an assignment rule that is applied to service-related objects (such as Service Request). If you create an assignment rule with Server Request Priority as a nonrequired criteria, then Assignment Manager does not qualify any accounts for the criteria, because Service Request Priority does not apply to accounts.

• If an assignment rule uses only nonrequired assignment criteria, then the assignment rule passes even if the minimum score for the rule is not satisfied, because the assignment criteria are not required. To avoid this behavior, you can alter Assignment Manager so that assignment rules pass only when the minimum score for the rule is satisfied, even if the assignment criteria are not required.

• To require that an assignment rule satisfies the minimum score for the rule to pass, you can use the UseRuleMinScore parameter. If you set this parameter to TRUE, then each assignment rule score must be equal to or greater than the rule minimum score to pass. Also, candidates must have a total score from the rule greater than or equal to the rule minimum score in order to qualify for that rule as well.

• When running the Assignment Manager (AsgnSrvr) and Batch Assignment (AsgnBatch) components from the Server Manager command-line interface (srvrmgr), you can change the value for the UseRuleMinScore parameter. For dynamic assignment, you change the default value of the UseRuleMinScore parameter in the Assignment Request (In Process) workflow policy.

Removing Assignment Criteria from Assignment Rules

This topic is part of "About Assignment Criteria".

In some cases, you might want to eliminate assignment criteria that appear in the Assignment Criteria view. To do so, you must remove the unwanted criteria from the Assignment Criteria view as well as use Siebel Tools to disable the corresponding assignment attribute, assignment attribute column, assignment criteria, and assignment criteria attribute object definitions.

Use the following procedure to remove unwanted criteria from the Assignment Criteria view.

To remove unwanted criteria from an assignment rule

1. Navigate to the Administration - Assignment screen, and then the Assignment Rules List view.

2. In the Assignment Rules list, select the assignment rule for which you want to remove criteria.

3. Click the Criteria subview.

4. In the Criteria list, delete any criteria that you want removed.

5. Perform the tasks described in "About the Relationship Between Attributes and Skills".

Note: If you want to remove criteria from the list of values (LOV) field, then you must use Siebel Tools to perform Step 5. However, removing the criteria from the rule itself is often sufficient to make certain the criteria is no longer used for the rule.