Case - Main

Open the case management page by selecting Menu > Customer Information > Case > Search.

Main Information

Case Info contains a concatenation of important information about the case. Case ID is the system-assigned unique identifier of the case. These values only appear after the case is added to the database.

Note:

Formatting may be performed by a plug-in. Refer to Case Info May Be Formatted By An Algorithm for more information.

Case Type defines the type of case. This field is protected after the case has been added. Refer to Case Type Controls Everything for more information.
Note: Available case types can be restricted by CIS Division. The restriction of case type by CIS division is dynamic. It is based on the account in context, the premise in context, or the current user. The restriction of case type is applied using these rules in sequence.

  • If there is an account in context and that account has a CIS Division, that CIS Division is used to restrict the case types that appear.

  • If there is a premise in context and that premise has a CIS Division, that CIS Division is used to restrict the case types that appear. Note: If there are both an account and premise in context, the account CIS Division is used.

  • If there is no account or premise in context with a CIS Division and the current user is associated with CIS Division(s) those CIS Division(s) are used to restrict the case types that appear. See Users and CIS Division for more information.

Status shows the current state of the case. Refer to Case Lifecycle for more information.

If the case has any To Do entries associated with it, a hyperlink will appear summarizing the number and status of the entries. You can select the link to view these entries. Refer to To Do's and Cases for more information.

Date / Time Opened shows when the case was created. If the case is in a final state, the Date / Time Closed will also be shown. Refer to One Initial State and Multiple Final States for more information.

Script references the business process assistant script that can help you work on the case. You can click on the hyperlink to execute this script. This field is hidden if no script is associated with this case's current Status. Refer to Scripts and Cases for more information.

The Actions section contains buttons you can use to action the case. This area is suppressed if no actions can be performed for the case given its current status. A button will be gray if you do not have security rights to the action. Refer to Buttons Are Used To Transition A Case for more information.

When the user adds a new case or changes the state of a case manually the system attempts to auto-transition the case to subsequent statuses as necessary. If auto-transition rules apply to the new state (and to subsequent ones) they would be executed right away. If the case has been automatically transitioned to its current state the following message area appears right after the action area. If an error is encountered in the process a corresponding error message is displayed in the Auto-transition Message Area. Refer to Automatic Transition Rules for more information.

Note:

The Auto-transition Message Area only appears when a case has just been automatically transitioned to its current state online. It only remains visible until the data for the case is refreshed.

Use the Comments area to describe anything interesting or unusual about the case.

Person references the person associated with this case. This field is suppressed if the Case Type indicates that a person is not allowed on cases of this type. This field is protected if the case is closed (i.e., if its status is defined as being final). This value is defaulted to the Person currently displayed in the Dashboard.

Account references the account associated with this case. This field is suppressed if the Case Type indicates that an account is not allowed on cases of this type. This field is protected if the case is closed (i.e., if its status is defined as being final). This value is defaulted to the Account currently displayed in the Dashboard.

Premise references the premise associated with this case. This field is suppressed if the Case Type indicates that a premise is not allowed on cases of this type. This field is protected if the case is closed (i.e., if its status is defined as being final). This value is defaulted to the Premise currently displayed in the Dashboard.

Note:

The case type controls the relationship validation among person, account, and premise.

Responsible User references the user who has overall responsibility for the case. This field is suppressed if the Case Type indicates that a responsible user is not allowed on cases of this type. This field is protected if the case is closed (i.e., if its status is defined as being final).

The Contact Information area is used to define how to contact the individual who initiated the case. These fields are suppressed if contact information is not allowed on cases of this type. The fields cannot be modified if the case is in a closed status. The following information can be defined.

Contact Person references the person who should be contacted. This defaults to the Person defined above.

Preferred Contact Method indicates how the person prefers to be contacted. The following options are available:

  • Not Applicable. If the person doesn't want to be contacted (or the contact method is unusual), use this option. You might want to consider describing the situation in the Contact Instructions.

  • Person Contact. If this method is selected, select a person contact related to the Person link to the customer contact. The customer contact must contain a Person to use this method.

  • Postal. If this method is selected, the Contact Person's address appears. Refer to Where Does The Address Come From for a description of which address the system displays.

The following methods appear when the Legacy Person Phone and Email Option Type on the Customer Information Options Feature Configuration has been enabled.

  • Email. If this method is selected, the Contact Person's email address appears adjacent.

  • Phone. If this method is selected, the Contact Person's phone number appears.

  • Fax. If this method is selected, the Contact Person's fax number appears (the system knows which of a person's phone numbers is a fax number by the phone type).

  • SMS. If this method is selected, the Contact Person's short message service (SMS) information displays.

Note: While on a case, users can add a person contact by selecting Add Person Contact from a Person Context menu. This will open a portal-based page that allows a person contact to be added. This process will not lose context or information that has been added to the case. The new person contact can be used within the case.

Contact Instructions indicates any special instructions indicated for when or how to return a call.

Callback Phone Type, Callback Phone Number, and Extension indicate the actual phone number and phone type that should be used to call.

Characteristics

The Characteristics grid contains fields that contain important information about the case. This grid is suppressed if the Case Type does not use characteristics. This grid is protected if the case is closed (i.e., if its status is defined as being final).

You can only choose Characteristic Types defined as permissible for this case type. Refer to Additional Information for more information. If you attempt to use an Action to transition a case into a status that requires additional information, a pop-up will prompt you for the additional fields. Refer to Required Fields Before A Case Enters A State for more information.