5Administering Siebel Self Service
Administering Siebel Self Service
This chapter includes information about administering and setting up the functionality that customers can access on the Siebel Self Service Web site. It includes the following topics:
About Administering Siebel Self Service
After configuring Siebel Self Service, you perform the procedures in this chapter to set up the functionality that customers can access on the Siebel Self Service Web site. Unless noted otherwise, you use Siebel Call Center to perform these procedures. After you set up or change information in Siebel Call Center, customers with appropriate access can automatically see the information on the Siebel Self Service Web site.
About the Security Framework for Siebel Self Service
To establish a secured application security framework, you determine the application functionality and data content that apply to public access and the application functionality and data content that apply to registered customers. To protect privacy and avoid conflicts, you must authenticate registered customers and control the data and application functionality each authenticated customer can access. For more information, see About Authentication for Siebel Self Service and Access Control for Siebel Self Service.
You typically consider the following issues when you set up a security framework:
Anonymous use. Set up the Siebel Self Service Web site to allow nonregistered customers limited access.
Registration. Set up a means to allow nonregistered customers to register on the Siebel Self Service Web site.
Authentication. Set up a means to store and then authenticate the user name and password of the registered customers.
Access control. Set up a means to control customer access to views and data on the Web site.
About Authentication for Siebel Self Service
The customer management and authentication processes control access for the following customers:
Anonymous customers. Customers who do not register on the Siebel Self Service Web site can view only certain sections of the Web site, such as the company contact information. These customers can register, create their profiles, and gain access to additional functionality on the Web site. They can also obtain user names and passwords from customer service representatives.
Registered customers. Customers who register on the Siebel Self Service Web site have their user names and passwords authenticated in subsequent visits. After they log in to the Web site, they have access to views appropriate to the responsibilities that an application administrator assigns to them. For example, they can create service requests.
An application administrator or customer service representative can perform the following tasks for customers:
Create records for customer profiles.
Add or change user names and passwords for customer profiles.
Change information in customer profiles, such as postal addresses, email addresses, and telephone numbers.
A Web-delegated customer administrator is a designated administrator at a customer company in a business-to-business situation. These administrators are assigned a Siebel responsibility that allows them to add or change customer information for the account. This Siebel responsibility gives them access to the Web Channel Users view of the Administration - User screen in Siebel Call Center where they can work with customer information.
User names and passwords are typically stored in an external authentication directory, such as Netscape LDAP Directory Server or Microsoft Active Directory Server. The Siebel security adapter interface and the appropriate LDAP parameter settings support the integration between Siebel Self Service and an external authentication directory. With this support, the directory authenticates registered customers, and then the customers are authorized to access the Siebel Self Service Web site. For more information about customer management and authentication support, see Siebel Security Guide.
Access Control for Siebel Self Service
The following table shows the mechanisms you can use to control customer access to data.
Table Access Control Mechanisms
| Basis of Access | Access Control Mechanism |
|---|---|
Application Functionality |
Responsibility (Role) |
Data Partitions |
Organization |
Group Membership |
Access Community |
Ownership |
Position |
To control user access to data, you perform the following tasks:
Create customer lists.
Create access groups.
Assign the appropriate customer lists to the access groups.
Create catalogs and the categories for those catalogs.
Associate the data with the catalog categories.
Assign access groups to the appropriate categories.
For more information about access control, see Siebel Security Guide and Siebel eSales Administration Guide.
About Data Privacy for Siebel Self Service
Data privacy supports communication and data transfer through the Internet. By using the Internet SSL and encryption technology, Siebel applications can support a secured communication protocol. This technology also allows for the necessary protection of your transmitted data from a possible security breach, such as network spoofing. For more information about Internet security for Siebel applications, see Siebel Security Guide.
Constructing Expressions
When you click the select button for the Search Spec field in the Navigation Links view of the Administration - Application screen, the Expression Designer dialog box appears. In this dialog box, you can construct an expression to restrict the number of records in the record count for the location to which to link navigates.
The procedure in this topic shows you have to construct an expression to restrict the record count for the LOCATE OFFICE link to only records with a City field value of San Francisco, but you can use the Expression Designer to construct a variety of other expressions.
To construct an expression
Navigate to the Administration - Application screen, then the Navigation Links view.
In the Navigation Links list, query for the record with a Display Name field of LOCATE OFFICE.
Make sure that the Max Record Count Displayed field for the record contains a non-null value and that the Business Component field for the record contains a value. Otherwise, no business component fields are available for selection in Step 4.
Click the select button in the Search Spec field for this record.
In the Expression Designer dialog box that appears, complete the following steps:
Select Business Component Fields in the Categories list, All in the SubCategories list, and City in the Elements list.
Click Add Element.
[City] appears in the Expression field.
Click the equal sign (=).
[City]= appears in the Expression field.
Type ‘San Francisco’ after the equal sign.
[City]=’San Francisco’ appears in the Expression field.
(Optional) Click Validate to verify that the syntax in the Expression field is correct.
If the syntax contains an error, then the Errors field shows an error message. You must correct this error before you are allowed to save the expression. If the syntax does not contain an error, then the Errors field indicates that no error exists.
Click Save.
The expression that you constructed appears in the Search Spec field for the record.
Process of Administering Web Access
To administer Web access, perform the following tasks:
Activating the Workflow for Email Password Button
The Email Password button automatically generates a random password for a customer and sends an email containing that password to the customer. This button functions only if you activate the Contact Password Reset workflow. For more information about workflows, see Siebel Business Process Framework: Workflow Guide.
This task is a step in Process of Administering Web Access.
To activate the workflow for the Email Password button
Navigate to the Administration - Business Process screen, Workflow Deployment, and then the Active Processes view.
In the Active Workflow Processes list, query for the Contact Password Reset workflow.
If the workflow is not returned, then it is not yet activated.
If the workflow is not yet activated, then complete the following steps:
Scroll up to the Repository Workflow Processes list.
Select the workflow from the list, and click Activate.
Stop and restart the Siebel Server.
Registering Customers
Customer service representatives can register customers in the Web Access form. For more information about customer administration, see Siebel eSales Administration Guide.
When customers perform self registration, they can select a user name, a password, and a challenge question. The challenge question confirms the customer’s identity when the customer forgets a password.
This task is a step in Process of Administering Web Access.
To register a customer
In the Side Menu, click Contacts.
In the Contacts Home menu, click Contacts List.
In the Contacts List view, click the plus icon (+) to add a new contact record, and complete the necessary fields.
Drill down on the Last Name field for the customer record.
Navigate to the Web Access view.
In the Web Access form, complete the necessary fields.
Some fields are described in the following table.
Field Comments User ID
Type the ID for the customer.
Responsibility
Select a value of Web Registered User. Responsibilities determine the views that a customer is allowed to access. Application administrators determine the available values in this field. For these values, the Web Access field is selected in the Responsibilities view of the Administration - Application screen. For more information, see Siebel Security Guide.
User Type
Select a value of Web Registered User.
Challenge Question
Type a question for which only the customer knows the answer.
Answer to Challenge Question
Type the answer to the challenge question.
To automatically generate a random password and send an email containing that password to the customer, click Email Password.
You do not see random passwords that are automatically generated. For more information, see Activating the Workflow for Email Password Button.
Reassigning Passwords
When customers forget their passwords, customer service representatives can use the Web Access form to verify their identities and reassign new passwords. They can automatically generate a random password and send an email containing that password to the customer.
This task is a step in Process of Administering Web Access.
To reassign a password
In the Side Menu, click Contacts.
In the Contacts Home menu, click Contacts List.
In the Contacts list, drill down on the Last Name field for the customer record.
Navigate to the Web Access view.
In the Web Access form, complete the following steps:
If necessary, verify the customer’s identity by asking the question in the Challenge Question field.
To automatically generate a random password and send an email containing that password to the customer, click Email Password.
Configuring the Applets for Program Information
Siebel Self Service is integrated with Oracle Knowledge so that customers can review information about programs on the Siebel Self Service Web site. This information includes details about programs, frequently asked questions (FAQs) about programs, and news articles about programs. Program information appears in applets on the Siebel Self Service Web site. Administrators can configure criteria for the information that appears in these applets. For more information, see About Configuring Oracle Knowledge for Siebel Self Service.
To configure an applet for programs
Navigate to the Administration - Application screen, then the Knowledge Management Configuration view.
Change the sample URL address in the Oracle Knowledge URL field to the appropriate URL address of the Information Manager Server for Oracle Knowledge.
In the Knowledge Management Configuration list, create a new record, and complete the fields as appropriate.
The following table describes some of the fields.
Field Description Applet Name
Select the name of the applet that you want to configure. For example, you might configure the following applets for a Siebel Public Sector Self Service Web site:
Ask a Question Applet (CX sService)
News Applet (CX sService)
News Search Applet (CX sService)
Service Programs Applet (CX sService)
Service Programs Search Applet (CX sService)
These applets are associated with a custom physical renderer. Any new applets that you create must use this custom physical renderer.
Channel Name
Type the name of the channel for the applet. For more information about applet channels in Oracle Knowledge, see Oracle Knowledge Information Manager Administration Guide.
Num Records
Type the maximum number of records that can appear in the applet.
Sort By
Select the field value by which records are sorted in the applet.
Type
Select the type of records to include in the applet. Values include:
common. Records that the user accessed the most often.
recent. Records that the user accessed the most recently.
popular. Records that all users accessed the most often.
Setting Up the Knowledge Base for Siebel Self Service
Siebel Self Service provides an integrated, searchable knowledge base through its solution literature and eSmartScript repository. Customer care representatives can use this knowledge base to provide consistent data and answers to customer questions. Customers can access the same answers themselves through Siebel Self Service.
Organizations can use Siebel Self Service to build a flexible knowledge base that consists of database records and files both inside and outside the Siebel Enterprise Application. Knowledge items such as solutions to problems, downloads, literature, and general documents can be searched using full-text searching. Customers can browse through a hierarchical library of categorized FAQs and eSmartScripts.
Setting Up FAQs for Siebel Self Service
To set up FAQs:
Create the eService Catalog
Set Up FAQs
Creating the Self Service Catalog
Siebel Self Service organizes the knowledge base through a catalog structure, which includes one or more categories. Before configuring FAQs or other solutions, you must define at least one catalog (named eService) and its associated categories. This catalog and associated categories will represent the structure in which your knowledge is organized, both internally and externally, for the customer.
For more information about creating catalogs and categories, including information about fields in the Catalog and Category records, see Siebel eSales Administration Guide.
To create the eService catalog and categories
From the application-level menu, choose View, Site Map, Catalog Administration, and then Catalog Administration.
In the Catalogs list, click New.
Fill in the fields in the Catalog record and the More Info form. Be sure to enter the name eService in the Name field.
Click the name of the catalog, which is a hyperlink.
The Categories list for the catalog appears.
In the Categories list, add a new record for each of the categories of FAQs that you want displayed to customers using Siebel Self Service, and fill in the information for each.
Setting Up FAQs
To publish FAQs (that is, Siebel Solutions records) in Siebel Self Service, you must first create the FAQs and then categorize them in the appropriate Siebel Self Service catalogs. Once categorized, the FAQs will be rendered in the appropriate applets and views. Optionally, you can apply access control on the categorized FAQs to restrict access to certain categories.
To create an FAQ
From the application-level menu, choose View, Site Map, Solution Administration, and then Solutions.
In the Solutions list, click New.
Complete the necessary fields. Some fields are described in the following table.
Field Description Name
This title name will not be displayed but is merely for administration upkeep.
FAQ
In this field enter the FAQ question to be displayed to the end user.
Description
Enter the FAQ answer. There is a text limit of 2 KB in this field.
Type
Select Solution from this drop-down list to designate the record as an FAQ/Solution record.
To add FAQs to a Siebel Self Service category
From the application-level menu, choose View, Site Map, Catalog Administration, and then Catalog Administration.
In the Catalogs list, find and click the hyperlink for eService Catalog.
The categories within the Siebel Self Service Catalog appear.
From the Categories list, select the category to which you want to add FAQs.
Click the Solutions view tab.
Any FAQs already associated with the selected category appear.
In the Solutions list, click New.
The Add Solutions dialog box appears.
Query and select the desired FAQs, and then click OK.
The selected FAQs are now associated with the selected category.
Notes About Setting Up FAQs
The following considerations apply when you set up FAQs:
You may also create a new FAQ record if needed for the previous procedure.
The general FAQs in Siebel Self Service must be categorized under the catalog named eService Catalog. FAQs categorized there will be rendered in the appropriate Siebel Self Service applets and views.
The top FAQs in Siebel Self Service must be categorized under the catalog named eService Top Solutions and the category named eService Top Solutions. FAQs categorized under this catalog and category will be rendered in the appropriate Siebel Self Service applets and views. They are viewable under the Top FAQs list on the Siebel Self Service home page and the first drilldown view of the Browse the Knowledge Base link.
For further details on Catalog and Category administration, see Siebel eSales Administration Guide.
Setting Up Siebel eSmartScripts for Siebel Self Service
Siebel eSmartScript allows customers to engage in self-directed question-and-answer sessions that simulate the experience of talking with an expert. The sessions can have a predefined process flow, or the flow can be designed to change dynamically to reflect a customer’s response. The process flow can also populate the Siebel database with customer input, creating service requests and completing applications.
Siebel eSmartScript is integrated with Siebel SmartScript, allowing the same troubleshooting scripts to be shared between the Siebel Self Service site and customer care representatives who use Siebel Call Center. Scripts can be created and administered using a drag-and-drop, flowchart-based design interface. Benefits include increased call quality, fewer data entry errors, and reduced training time.
For information on creating and working with eSmartScripts, see Siebel SmartScript Administration Guide.
To add eSmartScripts to a Siebel Self Service category
From the application-level menu, choose View, Site Map, Catalog Administration, and then Catalog Administration.
In the Catalogs list, find and click the hyperlink for eService Catalog.
In the Categories list, select the category to which you want to add eSmartScripts.
Click the Troubleshooting/Access Instructions view tab.
In the Troubleshooting/Access Instructions list, click the menu button, and then click New Record.
The Pick SmartScript dialog box appears.
Query and select the desired record, and then click OK.
The selected eSmartScripts are now associated with the selected category.
Notes About Siebel eSmartScripts
The following considerations apply when you use Siebel eSmartScripts:
The general eSmartScripts in Siebel Self Service must be categorized under the catalog named eService Catalog. Siebel eSmartScripts categorized under this catalog’s categories will be rendered in the appropriate Siebel Self Service applets and views.
Make sure that the eSmartScript you select is marked as Active. This can be done by making sure that the Active column contains a check mark.
The top eSmartScripts in Siebel Self Service must be categorized under the catalog named eService Top Solutions and the category named eService Top Solutions. Siebel eSmartScripts categorized under this catalog and category will be rendered in the appropriate Siebel Self Service applets and views. They are viewable under the first drilldown view of the Troubleshoot Problems and the View Instructions links.
Setting Up Downloads, Documentation, and Product Literature
Siebel Self Service provides customers with access to all product documentation, product literature, and software downloads and updates (collectively referred to as Siebel literature). The literature can be provided in a variety of formats, including HTML, PDF, executable files, and dynamic link library files.
Customers who have registered their products can immediately access all the literature for their products without having to perform a search. From the Self Service portal, customers can select My Account, then My Products and see a list of all the products that they have registered. When customers click a product name, a list of all the literature linked to that product is immediately displayed.
Types of Literature
The literature displayed is organized by type. There are three types of literature:
Downloads. For example, software patches and maintenance releases.
Documentation. For example, product manuals.
Product Literature. For example, white papers and data sheets.
Users can perform searches within each type of literature. For example, the customer can search through the list of software patches using a variety of criteria.
Customers can also access literature for products they have not registered. If anonymous users are allowed access to the system, they can also access literature. The quick links on home page of Self Service application has links for each literature type. The customer clicks the link for the literature type, and can then use a search feature to locate a literature item or select from the list that is displayed of the most popular literature items of that given type.
Making Literature Available to Customers
To make literature available to customers though Siebel Self Service, you must perform the following tasks:
Add the desired item of literature to the literature catalog. You can specify a path, browse for a file, or link to the file through a URL.
Provide a name for the literature item.
Specify the type of literature that has been added (documentation, download, or product literature).
Associate the literature item with either a product or a catalog category. Failure to establish at least one association prevents Self Service customers from accessing the item. (For further details on Catalog and Category Administration, see Siebel eSales Administration Guide.)
To add Literature Items to Siebel Self Service
From the application-level menu, choose View, Site Map, Document Administration, and then Literature.
From the Literature form, click New. A blank line is added in the list.
Complete the necessary fields. Some fields are described in the following table.
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
Name |
The title of the literature item. This name is displayed to the customer in Siebel Self Service. |
File Name |
Clicking in this field displays a select button. Click select and the Add Attachment window appears. You can type the full path of the file or click the browse button to navigate to the file and select it. Alternatively, if the file is available on a Web server, you can select the file by specifying its URL in the URL field. |
Description |
Information about the literature. |
Literature Type |
Clicking this field provides a drop-down list. This list contains other values that are not used in literature administration. You must select one of the three literature types: documentation, product literature, or downloads. Do not select any of the other literature types from the drop-down list. They are used by other Siebel applications. |
Once you have added the literature item, the item should be associated with a product or a category of the eService Category Catalog.
To associate literature with a product
Make sure that the item of literature is selected in the list in the Literature list applet.
Select the More Info tab if it is not already selected.
Click the select button in the Products field.
The Associated Products window appears.
Click New. A list of products appears.
Query and select one or more products to associate with the literature item.
If desired, you can also associate literature with a Siebel catalog category. (For more information on Catalogs and Categories, see Siebel eSales Administration Guide.)
To associate literature with a catalog category
Select the literature item from the list in the Literature form.
Click the Category tab in the literature applet. If the literature is already associated with any catalog categories, the categories are displayed in the list.
Click New.
The Add Subcategories window appears.
Query for any of the eService Catalog Categories.
Process of Setting Up Office Locations
Customers can identify the offices of a company that are nearest to a specified location. They can visit these offices to conduct face-to-face business transactions.
Customers can perform office location searches by using a city, state, or ZIP code query. In the results of the search, the offices appear in order of proximity, along with relevant information, such as location names, addresses, operating hours, telephone numbers, and distances from a location.
To set up office locations, perform the following tasks:
Importing Geocode Data
The geocode data includes location references. You can import Geocode data in one of the following ways:
Using the Import command in Siebel Call Center.
Using Siebel Enterprise Integration Manager. For information about importing data with Siebel Enterprise Integration Manager, see Siebel Enterprise Integration Manager Administration Guide.
The imported geocode data is stored in the (S_ZIPCODE) database table. The following table shows the columns in this database table that must have data.
Table Data Model for S_ZIPCODE Table
| Column | Description |
|---|---|
ZIP Code |
Postal code in alphanumeric text. |
City |
Name of city. |
State |
Name of state or province. This field can be blank for certain countries. |
Country |
Name of the country. |
Latitude |
Latitude number (0 to plus or minus 90). A plus sign (+) denotes the Northern Hemisphere, and a minus sign (-) denotes the Southern Hemisphere. |
Longitude |
Longitude number (0 to plus or minus 180). A plus sign (+) denotes the Eastern Hemisphere, and a minus sign (-) denotes the Western Hemisphere). |
You can import a maximum of 2,000 geocode data records for each Import command on Siebel Call Center. You must store the geocode data in a file that contains the column heading information in the previous table.
This task is a step in Setting Up the Knowledge Base for Siebel Self Service.
To import geocode data with the Import command
Navigate to the Administration - Data screen, then the ZIP Code Administration view.
In the ZIP Geocodes list, click the cogwheel icon, and then select Import.
The Import dialog box appears.
In the Import dialog box, complete the following steps:
Click Choose File to select a file in the Input File field.
This file is the geocode data file.
For the Input Format field, select Comma Separated Text File or Tab Delimited Text File for the geocode data file.
For the Input Source field, select Auto Mapping.
For the Conflict Resolution field, select Overwrite Existing Record.
- Click Next.
Make sure the values for the import fields match the values for the Siebel fields, and click Next.
A view log appears when the import process is complete.
Creating Divisions for Office Locations
Before you create office locations, create the divisions for office locations.
This task is a step in Setting Up the Knowledge Base for Siebel Self Service.
To create a division for an office location
Navigate to the Administration - Group screen, then the Internal Divisions view.
In the Divisions list, add a record, and complete the necessary fields.
Some fields are described in the following table.
Field Comments Organization Flag
Select this check box if the division is associated with an organization.
Partner Flag
Displays a check in the check box if the organization is a channel partner. You select the check box in the Partner Flag field for the organization in the Organizations view of the Administration - Group screen to indicate that the organization is a channel partner.
Creating Categories for Office Locations
Before you create office locations, create the categories for the office locations.
This task is a step in Setting Up the Knowledge Base for Siebel Self Service.
To create a category for an office location
Navigate to the Administration - Data screen, then the List of Values view.
In the List of Values list, add a record, and complete the necessary fields.
Some fields are described in the following table.
Field Comments Type
Select a value of BUSINESS_CATEGORY. This field designates the category type for the office locations.
Displayed Value
Type the name of category value that the customers see.
Language Independent Code
Type the language independent field value that is used to search for the category. For example, in the Spanish version of Siebel Self Service, you might see Oficinas de Ventas for the Displayed Value field, but the Language Independent Code value is Sales Offices.
Creating Office Locations
You can create searchable office locations.
This task is a step in Setting Up the Knowledge Base for Siebel Self Service.
To create an office location
Navigate to the Administration - Application screen, then the Branch Locator view.
In the Branch Locations list, add a record, and complete the necessary fields.
Some fields are described in the following table.
Field Comments Branch
Type the name that you want the customer to see in the results view.
Category
Select the category for the office location. For more information, see Creating Categories for Office Locations.
Longitude
Type the longitude for the office. If you do not enter a value, then the longitude value from the S_ZIPCODE table for the value in the ZIP Code field is used.
Latitude
Type the latitude for the office. If you do not enter a value, then the latitude value from the S_ZIPCODE table for the value in the ZIP Code field is used.
Division
Select an existing internal division or channel partner. For more information, see Creating Divisions for Office Locations.
Address
Select the address for the office.
Linking Search Results to Map Services
In the preconfigured Siebel Self Service application, search results for office locations are not linked to map services. Application administrators can link search results for office locations to map services so that customers can view applicable directions and a map from an online map service provider. Some map service providers follow:
Google Maps™. You can link to the map service in Google Maps. You must comply with the terms of the service agreement when using the services of Google Maps.
MapQuest©.LinkFree is a free service of MapQuest that allows you to link directly to the MapQuest Web site so that customers can view maps for any address. The Mapquest map service page is automatically loaded for office locations. Customers must submit a brief registration form to Mapquest to make the link available on their Web sites. For information about legal terms, contact Mapquest.
Yahoo!© You can link to the directions and map service in Yahoo! You must comply with the terms of the service agreement when using the services of Yahoo!
To link search results for office locations to a map service provider, you must change the user property values in the Service Provider Search Engine business service in Siebel Tools. The URL address format and variable values depend on the URL call of the service provider. Review the latest URL syntax of the map provider. For information about Siebel Tools, see Using Siebel Tools.
This task is a step in Setting Up the Knowledge Base for Siebel Self Service.
About Email Notifications
Email notifications alert customers about important information. For example, you can send email notification to alert a customer when the status of an open service request changes or when a customer service representative associates a solution with the service request. Also for example, you can escalate a service request that is outstanding for longer than a week by sending an email notification to the manager of a call center.
You use Siebel Workflow to define the business rules that automate business processes and procedures. Siebel Self Service provides the following sample workflow policies that send email notifications to customers:
eService Activity Policy. Sends an email when an activity is added to a service request.
eService Attachment Policy. Sends an email when a file attachment is added to a service request.
eService Registration Request Policy. Sends an email containing the user ID and password.
eService Service Request Update Policy. Sends an email when the status of a service request is updated.
You might have to change the workflow policy conditions for your business model. You must also enable Email Manager for these email notifications. For information about Email Manager, see Siebel Business Process Framework: Workflow Guide.
Setting Up Information for Email
Customers can submit email messages by completing a form in the Contact Us view. The contents of the form are converted into an email message and routed to an email address in your email application.
You must enable the Communications Management component group to process inbound email. This component group is started with the Siebel Server process to process inbound email. You can verify a successful email submission in Siebel Call Center by checking the logged event for this task in the Administration - Server Management screen. For more information, see Siebel CTI Administration Guide.
Siebel Communications Server processes inbound and outbound communication messages for the Siebel application. Siebel Self Service uses Siebel Communications Server to process the inbound structured email forms that customers submit. For more information, see Siebel CTI Administration Guide.
To set up information for email
Navigate to the Administration - Application screen, then the Contact Us view.
In the Email Accounts list, add a record, and complete the necessary fields.
Some fields are described in the following table.
Field Comments Account
Type the name of the account. Customers see this name in the drop-down list for the To field of the email form in the Contact Us view of the Siebel Self Service Web site when both of the following conditions are met:
The customers are associated with the organization for the account.
The account has an email address.
Account Type
Displays a value of Contact Us.
Address
Select the address for the account. When you click the select button for this field, the Company Addresses dialog box appears. You can select multiple addresses, but only one address can be the primary address for the account. In the dialog box, you can also create a new address record.
When you select or create an address record, the other fields in the Email, Fax and Mail Accounts list are populated with the data from that record. If an existing record in the Company Addresses dialog box has no values or incorrect values in the fields for the email address, telephone number, or fax number, then you can change the values for these fields in the dialog box.
Email
Displays the email address for the address that you select or create in the Company Address dialog box.
Navigate to the Email Subjects view.
Add an email subject record, and complete the necessary fields.
Some fields are described in the following table.
Field Comments Name
Type a name for the subject record.
Subject
Type the text for the subject record. Enter at least one subject for each account with an email address. You can create multiple subjects for an account with an email address.
Process of Administering Service Requests
To administer service requests, perform the following tasks:
Adding Updates to Service Requests
Customer service representatives might want to add an update to a service request to ask the customer for more information about the issue or to notify the customer that they are currently investigating the issue. To add an update to a service request, you associate with the service request an activity that describes the nature of the update. Customers who can access that service request can view the activity record under the Updates heading of the service request on the Siebel Self Service Web site.
This task is a step in Process of Administering Service Requests.
To add an update to a service request
Navigate to the Service Requests screen, then the Service Request List view.
In the Service Requests list, drill down on the SR number (#) field for the service request to which you want to add an update.
Navigate to the Activities view.
In the Activities list, add a record, and complete the necessary fields.
Some fields are described in the following table.
Field Comments Description
Type the description of the update to the service request.
Type
Select a value to categorize the nature of the update. Applicable values include Information Needed and Web Update.
Start
Displays the starting date and time for the activity. This field does not affect the update to the service request on the Siebel Self Service Web site.
Due
Displays the ending date and time for the activity. This field does not affect the update to the service request on the Siebel Self Service Web site.
Status
Displays the status of the activity. This field does not affect the update to the service request on the Siebel Self Service Web site.
Creating Solutions
Before you can associate solutions with service requests, you must create the solution records.
This task is a step in Process of Administering Service Requests.
To create a solution
Navigate to the Administration - Solution screen, then the Solutions view.
In the Solutions list, add a record, and complete the necessary fields.
Some fields are described in the following table.
Field Comments Name
Type the name of the solution. The customer does not see this name.
Description
Type the description of the solution. This field has a text limit of 2 kilobytes.
Status
Select a value for the status of the solution.
Type
Select a value of Solution in this field.
Publish Internal
Select this check box to designate that people within your company can view the solution.
Publish External
Select this check box to designate that people who access the Siebel Self Service Web site can view the solution.
Associating Solutions with Service Requests
When you associate solutions with service requests, customers who can access those service requests can view the solution records under the Solutions heading of the service requests on the Siebel Self Service Web site.
This task is a step in Process of Administering Service Requests.
To associate a solution with a service request
Navigate to the Service Requests screen, then the Service Request List view.
In the Service Requests list, drill down on the SR number (#) field for the service request to associate with a solution.
Navigate to the Solutions view.
In the Solutions list, add a record, and complete the necessary fields.
Some fields are described in the following table.
Field Comments Name
Displays the name of the solution that you select in the Add Solutions dialog box.
Description
Displays the description for the solution that you select in the Add Solutions dialog box.
Comments
Type additional comments relevant to the solution.
Associating Attachments with Service Requests
When you associate attachments with service requests, customers who can access those service requests can view the attachments under the Attachments heading of the service requests on the Siebel Self Service Web site.
This task is a step in Process of Administering Service Requests.
To associate an attachment with a service request
Navigate to the Service Requests screen, then the Service Request List view.
In the Service Requests list, drill down on the SR number (#) field for the service request to associate with an attachment.
Navigate to the Attachments view.
In the Attachments list, add a record as follows:
To add a file, click New File, and navigate to and select a file in the dialog box that appears.
To add a URL, click New URL, and designate the URL in the dialog box that appears.
Complete the necessary fields.
Some fields are described in the following table.
Field Comments Attachment Name
Displays the name of the file that you select or the URL that you designate. You can select a different file or URL in the Add Attachment dialog box for this field. Files can be HTML files, PDF files, executable files, and dynamic link library files.
Comments
Type additional comments relevant to the attachment.
Setting Up Service Request Entitlements
Siebel Self Service provides service entitlement verification of registered users in addition to the standard contact authentication at login. If entitlement verification is active when a user tries to create, update, or view a service request, the application verifies that the user is a contact for a valid service entitlement. Without valid entitlement, users will not be able to create, modify, or view any service requests, including ones they may have previously created. Whether you implement entitlement verification depends on your business model.
If registered users receive different levels of support depending on their service entitlements, then entitlement verification is appropriate. If all registered users receive the same level of support, then entitlement verification is probably not necessary.
Entitlement verification of a registered user consists of the following:
The registered user's Contact record must belong to the contacts list of an entitlement.
The entitlement must currently be valid, that is, not expired.
For a contact to be able to create or modify service requests, that contact must be added to a valid entitlement.
Note: A contact can only be added to an entitlement by an administrator or customer care representative in the host company. A Web Delegated Customer Administrator does not have access to the Entitlement Contacts table.
Entitlement verification is found in the SWE section of \bin\sservice.cfg file in the directory for the Siebel Server. Entitlement verification is set to FALSE by default.
To enable or disable entitlement verification
Open the \siebsrvr\bin\sservice.cfg file in the Siebel Server directory in any text editor.
Locate the line beginning with
Entitlement=Replace the current setting following the = sign to FALSE to disable entitlement verification, or to TRUE to enable entitlement verification.
Save sservice.cfg, retaining its format as a text file.
Reboot your Siebel Server service to have the new entitlement verification setting take effect.
To add a contact to an entitlement
From the application-level menu, choose View, Site Map, Agreements, and then All Agreements Across Organizations.
In the Agreements list, select the agreement to which the entitlement belongs and click the Name hyperlink.
The Agreement form appears.
Click the Entitlements view tab.
The Entitlements list appears.
In the Entitlements list, select an existing entitlement from the current agreement.
Make sure that the Start Date and End Date fields are filled with the appropriate values in the new or existing Entitlement.
Complete the necessary fields.
Click the Contacts view tab.
In the Contacts list, click the menu button, and then click New Record.
The Add Contacts pop-up list appears.
In the pop-up list, select a contact, and then click OK.
In the Contacts list, select the Internet check box to activate the Internet flag.
Activating the Internet flag enforces the Entitlement on the Internet Channel, which in this case is Siebel Self Service.
Process of Setting Up Email Notifications
To set up email notifications, perform the following tasks:
Setting Up Email Notification for Siebel Self Service
Using Siebel Workflow, you can define business rules that will automate your business processes and procedures. For example, you may want to send email notification to alert a customer when the status of an open service request is changed or when a solution has been associated with the service request by a Call Center agent. Another example would be escalating a service request that has been outstanding for longer than one week by sending an email notification to the Call Center manager.
Siebel Self Service provides four sample Workflow policies that will send email notifications to customers:
Siebel eService Activity Policy. Send email when a new activity is added to a Service Request.
Siebel eService Attachment Policy. Send email when a new file attachment is added to a Service Request.
Siebel eService Registration Request Policy. Send email containing the UserID and Password.
Siebel eService Service Request Update Policy. Send email whenever a Service Request Status gets updated.
These Workflow policies are samples that are shipped with Siebel Self Service. You may have to modify the Workflow Policy conditions to suit your business model.
To set up email notification
From the application-level menu, choose View, Site Map, Server Administration, and then Component Groups.
Make sure the following component groups are enabled:
Communications Management
Workflow Management
Stop and restart your Siebel Server.
Siebel Workflow Manager will now actively monitor your Workflow policies that are online and perform the appropriate actions. The actual sending of the email notification step will be executed by Siebel Communication Manager, which interfaces with your SMTP mail server.
From the application-level menu, choose View, Site Map, Business Process Administration, and then Workflow Policy Group.
In the Policies Groups list, select the eService Group record.
The following policies appear in the Policies lists:
eService Activity Policy
eService Attachment Policy
eService Registration Request Policy
eService Service Request Update Policy
In the Policies list, verify that each record contains the following information:
An Activation field that is blank or contains a value that is not later than the date and time of your testing.
An Expiration field that is blank or contains a date and time that has not already passed.
From the application-level menu, choose View, Site Map, Contacts, and then All Contacts across Organizations.
Find a contact name and type an appropriate address in the Email field (for example, jdoe@yourcompany.com).
Click on the Contact record hyperlink, and then click the more/less button in the Contact form.
Click the Send Email Updates check box.
Once the component groups have been enabled and you have selected the contacts who will receive email updates, you need to change the parameters that generate triggers for the updates.
To change parameters that generate triggers
From the application-level menu, choose View, Site Map, Server Administration, and then Components.
In the Server Components list, find and select Generate Triggers.
Click the Component Parameters view tab.
From the Component Parameters list, change the following parameter values:
EXEC to TRUE.
SQLFlags to 1.
TraceFlags to 1.
After you change the parameters, you need to log into Server Manager and start the task for component Generate Triggers.
To start the task for component Generate Triggers
From the Command Prompt, log in to Server Manager, using the following structure:
srvrmgr /e<enterprise name>/g<gateway server name>/u<database user name>/p<db passwd>Start the task for component Generate Triggers, using the following command:
srvrmgr> start task for comp GenTrig with Exec="TRUE", privuser="<Tableowner_name>", privuserpass="<Table_password>"
Note: Substitute the italicized <Tableowner_name> with your database table owner name, and <Table_password> with your database table password.For more details, see Siebel Business Process Framework: Workflow Guide.
From Server Manager, type the following:
srvrmgr> list task for comp GenTrig
Note: Wait until the status of the GenTrig becomes completed before returning to the Call Center for the following step.
To change parameter for Workflow Monitor Agent
From the application-level menu, choose View, Site Map, Server Administration, and then Components.
In the Server Components list, find and select Workflow Monitor Agent.
Click the Component Parameters view tab.
From the Component Parameters list, change the following parameter values:
ActionInterval to 1.
Group Name to eService Group.
Actionagent to FALSE.
SQLFlags to 1.
TraceFlags to 1.
After you change the parameters, you need to log into Server Manager and start the task for component Workflow Monitor Agent.
To start the task for component Workflow Monitor Agent
From the Command Prompt, log in to Server Manager, using the following structure:
srvrmgr /e<enterprise name>/g<gateway host name>/u<database user name>/p<db passwd>Start the task for component Workflow Monitor Agent, using the following command:
srvrmgr> start task for comp WorkMon with tableownpass='db2'
Note: This example is for DB2UDB database. For Oracle, usetableownpass='<the table owner’s name>'. For MS SQL, usetableownpass='MSSQL'.From Server Manager, type the following:
srvrmgr> list task for comp WorkMon
Log out of Server Manager and return to Siebel Call Center.
Adding Additional Contacts for Email Notification
After you have performed all the steps for setting up email notification, you can add additional contacts simply by selecting the Send Email Updates checkbox. You do not have to re-run Generate Triggers or stop and start the Workflow Monitor Agent task.
To add additional contacts for email notification
From the application-level menu, choose View, Site Map, Contacts, and then All Contacts across Organizations.
Find a contact name and type an appropriate address in the Email field (for example, jdoe@yourcompany.com).
Click on the Contact record hyperlink, and then click the more/less button in the Contact form.
Click the Send Email Updates check box.
Enabling Component Groups and Policies for Email Notifications
To set up email notifications, you first enable the component groups and policies for email notifications.
This task is a step in Setting Up Service Request Entitlements.
To enable the component groups and policies for email notifications
Navigate to the Administration - Server Configuration screen, then the Enterprises view, and complete the following steps:
Navigate to the Component Groups view.
In the Component Groups list, make sure the following component groups are enabled:
Communications Management
Workflow Management
Stop and restart the Siebel Server.
Siebel Workflow Manager now actively monitors the workflow policies that are online and performs the appropriate actions. Siebel Communication Manager, which interfaces with the SMTP mail server, executes the actual step for sending the email notification.
Navigate to the Administration - Business Process screen, then the Workflow Policy Group view, and complete the following steps:
In the Policy Groups list, select the Self Service Group record.
In the Policies list, verify the following information for each record:
The Activation field that is blank or contains a value that is not later than the date and time of testing.
The Expiration field that is blank or contains a date and time that has not already passed.
Designating Customers for Email Notifications
After you enable the component groups and policies, you designate the customers who receive email notifications.
This task is a step in Setting Up Service Request Entitlements.
To designate a customer for email notifications
Navigate to the Contacts screen, then the Contacts List view.
For the customer record, make sure the value in the Email field is the correct email address for the customer.
Drill down on the Last Name field for the customer record.
Navigate to the More Info view.
Select the Send Email Updates check box in the form.
Changing Parameters for Generate Triggers Component
The Generate Triggers component creates triggers for the email notifications. You must change the parameters for this component.
This task is a step in Setting Up Service Request Entitlements.
To change the parameters the Generate Triggers component
Navigate to the Administration - Server Configuration screen, Servers, and then the Components view.
In the Components list, find and select the Generate Triggers component.
Navigate to the Component Parameters view.
In the Component Parameters list, change the EXEC parameter value to TRUE.
Starting the Task for Generate Triggers Component
After you change the parameters for the Generate Triggers component, you log into Server Manager and start the task for this component. Wait until this task is complete before changing the parameters for the Workflow Monitor Agent component.
This task is a step in Setting Up Service Request Entitlements.
To start the task for the Generate Triggers component
From the command prompt, log in to Server Manager as follows:
srvrmgr /eenterprise name/ggateway host name/udatabase user name/pdb passwdStart the task for the Generate Triggers component by using the following command:
srvrmgr> start task for comp GenTrig with Exec="TRUE", privuser="Tableowner_name", privuserpass="Table_password"
where:
Tableowner_name is the database table owner name.
Table_password is the database table password.
For more information, see Siebel Business Process Framework: Workflow Guide.
In Server Manager, type the following text:
srvrmgr> list task for comp GenTrig
Changing Parameters for Workflow Monitor Agent Component
You must change the parameters for the Workflow Monitor Agent component.
This task is a step in Setting Up Service Request Entitlements.
To change the parameters for the Workflow Monitor Agent component
Navigate to the Administration - Server Configuration screen, Servers, and then the Components view.
In the Components list, find and select the Workflow Monitor Agent component.
Navigate to the Component Parameters view.
In the Component Parameters list, change the following parameter values:
Action interval to 1
Group Name to eService Group
Use Action Agent to FALSE
Starting the Task for Workflow Monitor Agent Component
After you change the parameters for the Workflow Monitor Agent component, you log into Server Manager and start the task for this component.
If you want to designate additional email customers for email notifications after you complete all of the steps for setting up email notifications, then you do not have to start the task for the Generate Triggers component or the task for the Workflow Monitor Agent component. You can designate the customers. For more information, see Designating Customers for Email Notifications.
This task is a step in Setting Up Service Request Entitlements.
To start the task for the Workflow Monitor Agent component
From the command prompt, log in to Server Manager as follows:
srvrmgr /eenterprise name/ggateway server name/udatabase user name/pdb passwdStart the task for the Workflow Monitor Agent component by using the following command for the DB2UDB database:
srvrmgr> start task for comp WorkMon with tableownpass='db2'
For Oracle, use
tableownpass='table owner’s name'. For MS SQL, usetableownpass='MSSQL'.In Server Manager, type the following text:
srvrmgr> list task for comp WorkMon
Log out of Server Manager.
Setting Up Asset Management
Siebel Asset Management allows users to register their newly purchased products, access warranty information, and view product news and recommended product services.
To set up asset management, perform the following tasks:
Setting Up Warranties
To include Product Warranties, you must first create warranties, and then associate those warranties with products. You may or may not choose to associate default warranties with products. To work with warranties you must be in the Siebel Call Center client.
Creating Specific Warranties
To create specific warranties, you:
Set up the warranty.
Associate the specific warranty with a user asset.
For information about setting up warranties, see Siebel Field Service Guide.
To associate specific warranties with user assets
From the application-level menu, choose View, Site Map, Assets, and then All Assets Across Organizations.
In the Assets list, select the user asset you would like to link to a warranty.
Note: You may need to query on the asset name or serial number.Click the Warranty view tab and Click New.
In the Name field, click the select button.
The Pick Warranties dialog box appears.
In the Pick Warranties dialog box, select a warranty and click OK.
Enter or edit the Start Date and End Date field values if needed.
Creating Default Warranties
To create a default warranty, you:
Set up the default warranty
Associate products with the default warranty
To set up a default warranty
From the application-level menu, choose View, Site Map, Service Administration, and then Warranties.
The Warranties screen appears.
In the Warranties list, click New.
Complete the necessary fields. Some fields are described in the following table.
Field Comments Type
Use this drop-down list to choose what you want to associate your product with. Choose Product to associate your warranty to a product.
Start Date Type
Use this drop-down list to set the time at which your product warranty will go into effect. Siebel Self Service will automatically associate a warranty to a product if the Start Date Type=Purchase Date. Selecting Purchase Date will make sure that your warranty will take effect on the date the product is purchased.
Duration (Days)
This is the number of days the warranty will be in effect.
Provider
This select button invokes a dialog box from which you may choose a warranty provider.
Once the following steps are completed, Siebel Self Service users will be able to view the default warranties associated with their newly registered products in their registered product detail view.
To associate products with a default warranty
From the application-level menu, choose View, Site Map, Service Administration, and then Warranties.
In the Warranties list, select your new default warranty.
Click the Products view tab and click New.
The Add Internal Products dialog box appears.
Select the product to be associated with the selected warranty and click OK.
The products are associated with the default warranty.
Note: To add more than one product, press CTRL while selecting the products in the Add Internal Products dialog box.
Setting Up Product News
To allow users to view news about their registered products:
Publish product news
Link product news to products
To publish product news
From the application-level menu, choose View, Site Map, Solution Administration, and then Solutions.
The Solutions list appears.
In the Solutions list, click New.
Complete the fields as needed. Some fields are described in the following table.
Field Comments Name
The value entered into this field will not be displayed to the user. This value is used only to facilitate administrative upkeep.
Description
This field has a 2 KB text limit.
Type
Select Product News from the drop-down list to classify the solution as a product news record.
Status
Select the value which reflects the status of your record.
Publish Internal, Publish External
These two check boxes allow you to designate the record for viewing internally, (that is, within your organization), externally, (that is, publicly on your Siebel Self Service Web site), or both internally and externally.
When you link a Product News record to a product, customers who have registered the product can view the product news record in Siebel Self Service.
To associate product news with products
From the application-level menu, choose View, Site Map, Product Administration, and then Product Administration.
The Products list appears.
In the Products list, select the product to be linked with product news.
In the More Info view tab, select Product News from the Show drop-down list.
In the Product News list, click New.
The Pick Product News dialog box appears.
Select a product news record to link to the product and click OK.
Setting Up Recommended Services
To allow Siebel Self Service users to view newly added recommended services linked to their registered products, or assets, in Siebel Self Service:
Create a recommended service. The recommended service is created in the product administration view. Technically, it is another product that you are trying to sell to customers who have already bought products.
Link the recommended service with products. After you link the recommended service to a product, customers who have registered the product can view the recommended service in Siebel Self Service.
To create a recommended service product
From the application-level menu, choose View, Site Map, Product Administration, and then Product Administration.
The Products list appears.
In the Products list, click New.
In the More Info view, complete the necessary fields, including the Product and Description fields.
A sample Product could be
1-Year Service Maintenance, and a sample Description could beInstall latest software upgrade.
To link recommended services with products
From the application-level menu, choose View, Site Map, Product Administration, and then Product Administration.
The Product list appears.
In the Product list, find and select the product to be linked with a recommended service product.
In the More Info view, click the menu button and select Related Products.
In the Related Products view, click New.
The Add Internal Products dialog window appears.
From the Add Internal Products dialog window, select a Recommended Service product and close the window.
In the Relation field, select Recommended Service.
In the Product screen, click Save.
Administering Customer Satisfaction Surveys
The Siebel Self Service Customer Satisfaction survey allows you to obtain customer feedback. The survey is a Web-based form linked to Web pages in which a customer has closed a service request. The customer can fill out the form, submit it, and your company can analyze the results.
You can modify the list of selectable responses for each survey question in the Siebel Call Center client. For instructions on how to configure control properties of the Customer Satisfaction Survey, see Setting Up Customer Satisfaction Surveys.
To administer a customer satisfaction survey
From the application-level menu, choose View, Site Map, Application Administration, and then List of Values.
Click Query.
Type
CS_*in the Type field and click Go.A list of customer satisfaction values appears.
Modify the existing values in the fields as needed. Some fields are described in the following table.
Field Comments Displayed Value
The answer that will appear in the drop-down list of values.
Order
The order in which the answer will appear in the drop-down list of values. Enter 1 if you want the value to appear first on the list, and so on.
Active
This field must be checked for the record to be active.