Dispatcher’s Guide And Tutorial For ICOMS GUI Systems Guide.pdf · Dispatcher’s Guide And Tutorial For ICOMS GUI ... At a computer connected to the client’s billing system,

Dispatcher’s Guide And Tutorial

For ICOMS GUI Systems

Revised 7/27/06

Table of Contents Chapter 1 : Introduction..................................................................................................... 4

Typographical Conventions ............................................................................................ 4 Chapter 2 : Basic Windows Elements................................................................................ 5

Windows Interface .......................................................................................................... 5 Mouse Actions ................................................................................................................ 6 Windows ......................................................................................................................... 7

Menus.......................................................................................................................... 8 Keyboard Shortcuts..................................................................................................... 9

Chapter 3 : Signing On and Off ....................................................................................... 10 Starting ICOMS ............................................................................................................ 10 Navigating ICOMS Screens.......................................................................................... 11 Signing On .................................................................................................................... 12 Display Program Messages Screen............................................................................... 13 Signing Off.................................................................................................................... 14 Ending Your ICOMS Session....................................................................................... 15

Chapter 4 : Navigating ICOMS Menus ........................................................................... 16 Master Menu ................................................................................................................. 16

OUTQ ....................................................................................................................... 17 Menu Options............................................................................................................ 18

Scheduling and Route Assignment ............................................................................... 19 Operations Personnel Menu.......................................................................................... 20 Dispatch Main Menu..................................................................................................... 21 ICOMS Menu Tree ....................................................................................................... 22

Chapter 5 : ICOMS Screens............................................................................................. 23 Dispatch ........................................................................................................................ 23 Tech Select.................................................................................................................... 24

Flashes....................................................................................................................... 25 Tech Status.................................................................................................................... 26

Panel Selection.......................................................................................................... 27 Panel Selection 2....................................................................................................... 29 Understanding the Tech Status Screen ..................................................................... 30 Left Panel Options .................................................................................................... 33 Displaying Flashes on a Separate Screen.................................................................. 34

Work Order Options ..................................................................................................... 36 Tech Batch ................................................................................................................ 37 Complete ................................................................................................................... 37 Access Info Icon ....................................................................................................... 38 Display ...................................................................................................................... 39

Chapter 6 : Customer Tasks and Info Codes ................................................................... 40 Drop-Down Menu Options ........................................................................................... 40 Icon Groups................................................................................................................... 42 Customer Tasks............................................................................................................. 44 Customer Info Codes .................................................................................................... 47

Makotek, LLC Page 2 of 48


Chapter 1: Introduction The purpose of this document is to provide a training and reference tool for Makotek dispatchers to use in learning and improving their skills, and to help standardize procedures across systems. That said, it is important to understand that local policies, security issues, and client preferences dictate that every system has different capabilities and needs. In other words, it is unlikely you will be able to (or need to) use all of the sections included within. Your trainer will help you know which sections to use, and which to skip over.

Typographical Conventions Format Used For Bold text Names of fields ‘Text inside quotes’ Names of Screens Underlined blue text Hyperlinks Note: Text Notes


Chapter 2: Basic Windows Elements

Windows Interface When you start up a computer running Windows, what you see on your screen is called the Windows Interface. It is composed of two main areas, the desktop and the taskbar. In Figure 2-1 below, the desktop is the large rectangular green area above the grey strip that is the taskbar. Your windows interface may look very different than the one shown below, but it will contain the same basic elements. Within the desktop are several icons. Icons are small pictures that represent and allow you to access various types of applications and files. As you move the mouse, you’ll see a small arrow ( ) moving across the desktop. This is called the mouse pointer. Using different combinations of moving the mouse and clicking different buttons, you control how you access everything in Windows. The taskbar may contain some or all of the elements shown here. Every taskbar contains the Start Menu and the System Tray. The Start Menu contains all of the applications installed on the computer, as well as links to log off and/or shut down the computer. The System Tray lists applications running in the background, and usually includes a clock. The taskbar will also include any open applications. If your taskbar isn’t visible, move the mouse pointer down to the bottom of the screen: in some systems, the taskbar is set to hide until the mouse pointer is over it.

Figure 2-1


Mouse Actions Controlling the mouse is very important in using Windows applications. To move the mouse so that the mouse pointer is over a given spot within a window is to hover over that spot. If you hover over an item and then click the left mouse button once, the item is highlighted or selected. In this guide, we’ll often use the term left-click for this action. Click and drag refers to hovering over an item, clicking the left mouse button, and holding it down while you move the mouse pointer to another location. Clicking and dragging is useful for moving items around on a screen, and in ICOMS for selecting multiple items. If you hover over an item and click the left mouse button twice in rapid succession, you choose the item. We’ll use the term double-click for this action. Right-clicking is simply hovering over an item and then clicking the right mouse button one time. Right-clicking is used less frequently in Windows and almost never in ICOMS.


Windows A Window is simply a rectangular screen that displays information or an application. While every window look different, they all share certain elements. Figure 2-2 below shows a typical window. The gray strip along the top of the window is called the Title Bar. The Title Bar includes the name of the Window (in this case, “Home – Mozilla

Firefox”) as well as three icons for controlling the window. Clicking on the icon will minimize the current window; that is, it will make it disappear from the desktop and appear down on the taskbar, out of your way so that you can view something else on the

desktop. Clicking the icon will close the window entirely. In Figure 2-2, my

window is maximized; or taking up the entire desktop. Clicking the icon will restore

the window to its former (smaller size). You’ll then see the icon in its place, which will allow you to maximize the window again.

Figure 2-2


Menus Almost all windows contain menus. Menu titles are listed on the menu bar along the top of the application window. Figure 2-3 shows a typical Windows menu. Left-click on the menu title to see the menu appear below. For this reason, these are sometimes called drop-down menus. Here I’ve clicked on the Edit menu. Some of the options are in regular text, and some are grayed out. The gray items are not available at this time. Note also that these menu items have keyboard equivalents next to each item. For example, to Select All (select all items on the page), I could left-click once on the menu title (Edit) to drop the menu down, then again on the Select All text. Or, if I remember the keyboard equivalent for this command, I could skip the menu and simply type Ctrl-A [hold down the Ctrl key and type A] from my keyboard. ICOMS supports many keyboard shortcuts.

Figure 2-3


Keyboard Shortcuts The most commonly used ICOMS keyboard shortcuts are listed below. Remember that you don’t have to use these: everything you learn to do in ICOMS can be accomplished with the mouse, with the exception of entering data. But some people find that they can perform certain tasks more quickly by using a combination of mouse and keyboard, and others just prefer using the keyboard. Try both as you progress through this guide, and decide which is more efficient for you. Key Function Enter Processes data and takes you to the next window. Same as clicking on

“OK”. Tab Moves to the next field on the current screen. Shift-Tab Moves to the previous field on the current screen. Page Up Scrolls upward in a list. Same as clicking the icon. Page Down Scrolls downward in a list. Same as clicking the icon. F3 Exits the current screen. Same as clicking “Exit”


Chapter 3: Signing On and Off

Starting ICOMS At a computer connected to the client’s billing system, find and left-click on the icon to run the ICOMS software. It will normally be labeled “ICOMS”, ICOMSX”, or “JWalkX”. Ask your trainer if you need assistance locating the icon.

Figure 3-1


Navigating ICOMS Screens When ICOMS starts, you will see the ‘Sign On’ screen. Before we actually log in, it’s time to talk a little about navigating on the various screens. In the screen shot below, you can see that the screen is broken up into several areas. At the very top is the title of the screen: in this case, ‘Sign On’. Just below that, there are pull-down menus labeled File, Edit, and Help. Refer to the section on Menus in Chapter 2 for more on menus. Along the left side of the screen is a purple-shaded area some people call “Purpleland.” In this document, we’ll use the term “Left Panel”. It gives various options, depending on which screen you’re on. Note that on this screen, you only have one option: OK. Below the ICOMS logo, there are two boxes. The one on the right contains the text “System & Device Info,” along with some scary-looking letter and numbers. Don’t worry, though; that’s all preset by the client, and you won’t have to worry about them. The box on the left contains the words User, Password, etc. The boxes to the right of those words are called fields. Fields are places where you can enter data into the system. Notice that the User field is yellow, while all the rest are white. This tells you that the User field is selected: that is, if you start typing, the data will go into that field. Let’s give it a try on the next page.

Figure 3-2


Signing On Now we’re ready to sign on. Below, I’ve entered a username and password in the appropriate fields. Yours will be different; ask your trainer to provide them to you. After you enter the username, don’t type Enter! To move to the next tab, you can either type the Tab key, or left-click the mouse in the next field. To move to the previous tab, type Shift-Enter. Try moving back & forth through the fields on this page. When you’re ready, enter your password. To send your username and password to the system, you can either:

• Press the Enter key • Click “OK” in the Left Panel • Click on the big red checkmark (see my pointer)

Figure 3-3


Display Program Messages Screen Congratulations—you’ve signed on. The first screen you’ll see will look something like Figure 3-4. Sometimes, it will contain other messages (for example, scheduled system downtime), but generally they’re of no interest to us. To move to the next screen, either click the OK button (see my pointer), or type Enter.

Figure 3-4


Signing Off Signing off of ICOMS is a simple process. Every ICOMS menu has an option 90, Sign Off. Figure 3-5 shows the option in the Dispatch Main Menu. Left-click the link for either the number or the text, and you’ll be taken to the Sign On screen (see Figure 3-6). From there, you can either sign on with a different username, or end your ICOMS session.

Figure 3-5


Ending Your ICOMS Session To end your session, close the window by clicking on the red X in the upper right corner

of the window ( ).

Figure 3-6


Chapter 4: Navigating ICOMS Menus

Master Menu If the screen you’re looking at after signing on is different that the one in Figure 4-1, don’t worry. Different systems are configured so that you may start out at a one of several menus. In this chapter, we’ll discuss these menus, and give you a feel for how to navigate among them. Again, your security settings may not allow you to view all the screens shown here. But if that’s the case, you won’t need them to perform your dispatch duties. Figure 4-1 is the ‘Customer Management System Master Menu,’ but we’ll refer to it as just the Master Menu. This is the top level of a whole tree of other menus in ICOMS: from here you can access any other menu or screen. If you don’t start out at or have access to this menu, try skipping to the sections titled Scheduling and Route Assignment.

Figure 4-1


OUTQ Note that there is only one field on this screen, the OUTQ. The OUTQ is where printed output will go. If dispatchers print workorders in your system, you may need to change this field; if so, your trainer will provide the details. If not, be careful not to overtype what’s in this field—without a valid OUTQ, you’re not going to be able to use the system.

Figure 4-2


Menu Options Although there are lots of menus available here, only a few interest us as dispatchers. They are: 2, Scheduling and Route Assignment 9, Collections Management Menu 26, Operations Personnel Menus 90, Sign Off Your trainer can tell you which menus are available in your system. Also, if you attempt to go anywhere in ICOMS for which you don’t have security access, a window will pop up notifying you that “Security check failed for selected option”. If that happens, click “OK” on that window, and you’ll be returned to where you were before the error. All of the blue underlined entries on this menu are links to other menus. Just like on a web page, clicking the link will take you directly to that menu. So let’s go ahead and select Menu 2 (see my pointer). Just click on either the number or the text.

Figure 4-3


Scheduling and Route Assignment The screens we use from this menu are: 2, Assign Techs to Work Orders 4, Print Work Orders Now, select option 32, Return to Master Menu, then option 26, Operations Personnel Menu.

Figure 4-4


Operations Personnel Menu Of all the choices on this menu, we’re only concerned with three: 1, Customer Service Menu 2, Dispatch Menu 32, Return to Master Menu 90, Sign Off Of these menus, The Customer Service Menu is seldom used by dispatchers, and the last two are self-explanatory. Menu 2 is where you’ll be spending most of your time while dispatching. Let’s go there now.

Figure 4-5


Dispatch Main Menu This is the most useful menu for dispatchers, and in some systems, it’s the only menu you’ll have access to. As with the other menus, there are only certain choices we’re interested in here. They are: 1, Dispatch 2, Customer Order Maint/Inquiry 7, Tech Progress Inquiry 11, Display Equipment Assigned Tech 21, Equipment Detail Maint/Inquiry 31, Return to Operations Personnel Menu 32, Return To Master Menu 90, Sign Off Note that these links aren’t to menus (except for 31 & 32)—they’re links to screens we use to locate and enter customer data. We’ll cover the screens in detail in the next chapter. See the next page for a graphical representation of how the menus fit together.

Figure 4-6


ICOMS Menu Tree The figure below shows how the various ICOMS menus used by Makotek are related. You’ll notice that some screens can be accessed from ore than one menu. As we’ll see in the next chapter, there are other ways to access these screens as well.

Master Menu

2, Scheduling & Route

Assignment

9, Collections Management

Menu

26, Operations Personnel

Menus

4, Print Work Orders

2, Assign Techs to

Work Orders

1, Dispatch Menu

22, Customer Order Entry

Maint/Inquiry

21, Equipment Detail

Maint/Inquiry

2, Customer Order Entry

Maint/Inquiry

7, Tech Progress Inquiry

1, Dispatch 11, Display Equipment

Assigned Tech

21, Equipment Detail

Maint/Inquiry


Chapter 5: ICOMS Screens

Dispatch For most systems, this is the most important and often-used screen. It’s used by dispatchers and techs alike. It is accessed from the Dispatch Main Menu, where it is option 1.

Figure 5-1


Tech Select Although our menu option was Dispatch, the name of the screen that appears is ‘Tech Select.’ It’s fitting, though, as that’s the first thing we will do on this screen—select the tech we want to look up. Enter the tech’s number in that field, then tab twice (or left-click on the Schedule Date field) in order to enter the schedule date. Dates must be entered in ddmmyy format; that is, 7/13/06 is entered as 071306. Pressing Enter or clicking OK in the Left Panel will display all of the flashes for that schedule date.

Figure 5-2


Flashes Flashes are simply messages. They can be automatically generated by the system, or manually entered by any operator. What we typically see in the non-pay business is canceled work orders due to the subscriber paying their bill. However, they can also be used to alert the dispatcher to schedule changes, special instructions from customers, and service changes. As flashes come in during the day, contact the relevant technicians promptly so that they don’t waste time attempting to collect (or disconnect) on a canceled job. For example, on the screen below, you would call tech 3605, and let him know that he has new cancellations for schedule date 7/13: jobs 8, 13, and 28. After notifying the tech, acknowledge the flashes. Left-click and drag the mouse to highlight all of the flashes for that tech number; then click on the bar that reads, “Acknowledge flash.” This causes the flashes to drop off the screen. After acknowledging any flashes, simply click “OK” in the Left Panel or type the Enter key to look at the tech’s log for that schedule date.

Figure 5-3


Tech Status This is the ‘Tech Status’ screen. It lists all workorders assigned to that tech for a given schedule date. Across the top of the screen, you can read the tech’s name and tech number, the schedule date, and last call (meaningful only for installation techs). There are also two fields: Job# and Panel#. If you enter a number into the Job # field, the screen moves to the 12 jobs following that number. You can also navigate up and down the list by clicking the blue up and down triangles ( and ), or by using the Page Up and Page Down keys on your keyboard. The Panel# Changes what information is displayed in the far right column of the display. The default Panel is Dispatch Comments, which can be any kind of short (up to 12 characters), free-form note, either for the dispatchers’, tech’s, or client’s benefit. To enter a comment, simply click in that field for the job number you want and begin typing on the keyboard. Type Enter to complete the comment. Ask your trainer what, if anything, Dispatch Comments are used for in your system. The Panel# may be changed in three ways:

• By clicking the drop-down triangle in the Panel# field ( ). • By clicking Panel in the Left Panel • By typing the F7 function key on your keyboard

Figure 5-4


Panel Selection Selecting the Panel by the drop-down method results in the screen below. Scroll through the additional options by clicking and dragging the mouse pointer on the scroll bar as shown. Press enter or click “OK” to see your selection. The options for the Panel are:

• Dispatch Comments • Customer Phone # • W/O [work order] Entry Time • W/O Number • Tech #/Job # • Node ID • Locator Codes • R/A [reassigned] from Tech # • Schedule Date

• Original Job # [for R/A jobs] • Trunk Rte • Grid ID • Commitment Date • NE ID • Stage Code • Service Phone # • W/O Class • W/O Group #


Don’t worry if you’re not sure what all of these options mean. Take some time to try selecting different panels now and as you become more proficient in ICOMS, you’ll learn which panels are useful in different situations and which apply to your local system.

Figure 5-5


Panel Selection 2 The screen below shows the result of selecting the Panel from the Left Panel or with the F7 key. As you can see, it opens another window with the same drop-down menu. After selecting the panel you want to change to, click “OK” in the Left Panel to close the pop-up window and see your selection.

Figure 5-6


Understanding the Tech Status Screen We’re back to the ‘Tech Status’ screen. Notice I’ve entered a Dispatch Comment in this tech’s Job 3. The customer had bounced a check, and the client called to say they’d only take a cash payment. By commenting the work order like this, other dispatchers will know the restriction and won’t accept a payment by check. We can learn a lot more about tech 3603’s first 12 jobs from this screen. The next two pages describe the columns in the main window in detail.

Figure 5-7


Job# All of the jobs assigned to this tech for this schedule date are assigned a job number, or sequence number. From the ‘Tech Select’ screen, you can find any job with three pieces of information: tech number, schedule date, and job order.

St Open jobs show nothing in the “Status” column. Other statuses are:

• CN: Canceled • CP: Completed • RS: Rescheduled • RA: Reassigned • ND: Not Done • FB: Future Bill

Location Address The street number and address of the service location.

Apt The apartment number, if any.

Loc# Locator number. Also called Loc1 and Primary Locator in ICOMS. Used to indicate a general geographic area. The format of the code differs from system to system, so yours may be very different.

TP Work order type. All of this tech’s jobs are Non-Pay Disconnects (NP). The workorder types are:

• IN: Install • UP: Upgrade • DW: Downgrade • DI: Disconnect • NP: Non Pay Disconnect • TC: Trouble Call • SR: Special Request Order (SRO) • RS: Reconnect (Restart)


Time This is the scheduled appointment time for the job. Installations and trouble calls have an appointment window; NP and DI jobs generally do not.

Pts Points are assigned to work orders based on the amount of time expected to complete the job. Each point represents 15 minutes, so a job that should take two hours to complete would be assigned 8 points. This is used to help schedule techs with a full day’s work, yet allow them to finish within their scheduled hours.

Panel What’s displayed in this column depends on the panel selected. See Panel Selection for more information.


Left Panel Options There are 11 options in the Left Panel on the ‘Tech Status’ screen, but Makotek dispatchers don’t use all of them. Those that we use are:. Exit: Exits this screen (back to ‘Tech Select’) Panel: Changes the Panel. Refer to pages 27 and Error! Bookmark not defined. for more details. Display Flashes On Separate Screen: See page 34 for more details. Menu: Returns to the ‘Dispatch Main Menu’ Reposition: Clicking this simply moves the focus of the cursor to the Job# field. Remember that typing in a number in this field repositions the screen at that job number.

Figure 5-8


Displaying Flashes on a Separate Screen ICOMS gives you the option of including flashes along with the job information in the ‘Tech Status’ screen, or removing it to a separate screen. ICOMS defaults to including flashes with the job information, as in Figure 5-9.

Figure 5-9


However, one advantage to separating them is that you can see all of the tech’s flashes in one place, as shown in Figure 5-10. Note that the flashes for jobs 3, 6, and 7 are no longer visible on the Tech Select window, but clicking on the Pending Flashes button brings up a second window with all of that tech’s flashes. Note that you can scroll through the flashes if there are multiple pages. Also keep in mind that flashes are listed in the order in which they are received, not numerical order.

Figure 5-10


Work Order Options Highlighting a job on the Tech Status screen gives you several options for working with the job. Here I’ve selected Job 3. Notice that all of the buttons along the bottom of the screen have been activated. Look back at Figure 5-9 to see what the buttons looked like with no job selected.

Figure 5-11


Tech Batch If your system uses technician batches, select this to enter a payment for that work order.

Complete Choose this to complete the selected work order. The Workorder Completion screen (Figure 5-12) pops up so that you may enter Finding, Solution, and Fault codes as appropriate to your system. You may also enter a Dispatch Comment here, which will display in the Panel by default. The completion time is set to the current date and time; however, you may override this from this screen as well.

Figure 5-12


Access Info Icon Whenever you see the access info icon ( ), clicking it will bring up the allowable input options for that field, as shown in Figure 5-13.

Figure 5-13


Display Highlighting a job in the ‘Tech Status’ screen and clicking on the Display button brings up the ‘Work Order Display’ screen as shown in Figure 5-14. This screen is different from any of the screens we’ve seen so far in that there are several more pull-down menu options, as well as a row of multicolored icons across the top of the screen.

Figure 5-14


Chapter 6: Customer Tasks and Info Codes

Drop-Down Menu Options Billing • Display Customer Ledger • Display Customer Prorate Summary • Display Customer Statement Configuration • Display Customer Occurrence Configuration • Display Customer Category Configuration • Display Collection Events • Display Collections Services • Display Serviceable Status • Display Customer Services • Display Customer Telephones • Display Customer Equipment • Display Customer Balancing • Display Work Order Display • Display Customer Premise Equipment • Display Customer Calling Cards • Display Customer Special Circuits Customer Information • Customer Maintenance • Customer Comments • House Maintenance • Customer Demographics • Customer Flashes • Display Bill To Information • Display Statement Image • Online Adjustments • Transfer From Account • Transfer To Account


Order Entry • Install • Service Change • Reconnect • Transfer • Special Request Order • Trouble Call • Requested Disconnect • Seasonal Disconnect • Non-Pay Disconnect • Change Existing • Reschedule • Cancel PPV (Pay Per View) • PPV Order Entry • PPV Order History • PPV Package Order Entry • PPV Campaign Selection • PPV Package Orders Financial • Counter Cash • A/R Comments (Accounts Receivable) • Customer MOP (Method of Payment) • Customer Pending Payments • Equifax History • Installation History • Trouble Call History • Account Change History • AOT Calls Taken • Display @CM Tracking Log HSD • Customer Modem Info • Customer Questionnaires • Customer Sub Accounts • High Speed data Users • Provisioning Transactions Help


Icon Groups The icon groups are separated by vertical lines, and represent the same functions, in the same order, as the drop-down menus—with certain exceptions, as listed below. Hovering the mouse pointer over any of these icons causes the name of the function it represents to be displayed in a ‘tool tip.” Billing • Display Customer Ledger • Display Customer Prorate Summary • Display Customer Statement Configuration • Display Customer Occurrence Configuration • Display Customer Category Configuration • Display Collection Events Does not include: • Display Collections Services • Display Serviceable Status • Display Customer Services • Display Customer Telephones • Display Customer Equipment • Display Customer Balancing • Display Work Order Display Does not include: • Display Customer Premise Equipment • Display Customer Calling Cards • Display Customer Special Circuits Customer Information • Customer Maintenance • Customer Comments • House Maintenance Does not include: • Customer Demographics • Customer Flashes

Display Order Types Not included in the drop-down menus, but provides the same functionality as the Order Entry pull-down.


Customer Information (Continued) • Display Bill To Information • Display Statement Image • Online Adjustments • Transfer From Account • Transfer To Account PPV (Pay Per View) Not included Financial • Counter Cash Does not include: • A/R Comments (Accounts Receivable) • Customer MOP (Method of Payment) • Customer Pending Payments • Equifax History Not included HSD Not included Help Not included

Display Bulletin Board Not included in the drop-down menus


Customer Tasks The following table lists the tasks commonly used by Makotek dispatchers. There may be other functions available to you in your system. Task Description Cancel Order Used to cancel pending work orders. Change Existing Order

Used to make changes in existing work orders. Examples of changes include scheduled date/date, one-time charges, and problem codes. Canceling and rescheduling are not considered changes in this context.

Collections Provides collection information about accounts such as customer credit rating, A/R, collection schemes and activity. Collection History may be accessed from the Left Panel.

Counter Cash Accesses the Counter cash window, where payments may be applied and posted to a customer’s account.

Customer Balancing Allows you to send transactions to addressable equipment, activating the services the equipment should have.

Customer Comments

Allows entry of free-form text comments regarding a customer account. The entry date, entering user, and a category are retained. Up to 99 lines may be entered.

Customer Equipment

Displays all equipment assigned to a customer’s account. From this screen, you can purchase, return, or exchange equipment, swap PPV events, send hits to activate/disable equipment, or access the Balancing Window.

Customer Flashes Displays messages relating to the customer or house, such as credit rating, delinquency & non-pay status, transfers, and write-off amounts.

Customer Ledger Allows you to view a customer’s A/R (accounts receivable) and payment information. Information in the main Ledger window includes: A/%R aging buckets, pending payments and adjustments, and monthly rates. Ledger detail displays line items which include dates and amounts of processed payments, taxes, adjustments, up/downgrades, PPV events, etc.

Customer Maintenance

Used to add and maintain information regarding the customer such as name, address, contact numbers, SSN, etc.

Customer MOP Method of Payment. Allows entry of EFT, credit card, and web payment information.

Customer Pending Payments

Allows access to automated payments that are not yet posted to the customer’s account.


Task Description Customer Search Displays a search window on which you can access a customer’s

account by searching by one of a variety of parameters. These include: account number, phone number, address, name, and social security number. Note that only one parameter may be used to search at a time.

Customer Services Displays a listing of all services that are attached to a customer’s account. This list is broken down to the number of occurrences and the rate of each occurrence, paid vs free quantities, and service status.

Dispatch Takes you directly to the Tech Select window. Allows you to view a technician’s daily log by tech number or name and schedule date.

House Maintenance/Inquiry

Provides information pertaining to the address (vs. customer) for an account. Displays such information as dwelling type, locator codes, number of outlets, signal access, tag numbers, drop date, etc. House comments may be accessed from the Left Panel. Most information is display only and cannot be modified from this screen.

Install Creates an installation (IN) work order at the address. Can only be created for customers in ‘FORM’ or ‘NEVR” status.

Installation History Displays data about all completed service orders that have undergone nightly processing. This includes sales, disconnect and completion dates, customer services, and technician numbers. This can be useful in tracking data on customer accounts in answering customer questions.

Non-Pay Disconnect Creates a NP work order to disconnect services for lack of payment. These orders are normally automatically generated based on the collection scheme during nightly processing.

Order Entry Displays a window which allows you to select order types and create a new work order.

Reconnect Used to create a reconnect work order for the last customer who was disconnected at the address. For a new customer, use an Install work order.

Requested Disconnect

Creates a DI work order to disconnect all services at the customer’s request. To disconnect only some services and leave others active, create a downgrade work order. After completion, check-in, and nightly processing are complete, the customer will be removed from billing.

Reschedule Order Used to select a new date and/or time for a work order. Available when the order is in open or pending status.

Service Change Enters an upgrade or downgrade of services to an account. Special Request Order

Allow you to enter Special Request Orders (SROs). SROs are used to generate specific field activity and one-time charges that do not result in a recurring monthly charge.


Task Description Trouble Call History Displays information on all trouble calls that have undergone

nightly processing. Includes trouble call codes and descriptions; technician number; dates received, dispatched, and completed; and finding and solution codes. This display shows all trouble calls for all occupants of an address.

Work Order Display Displays work orders, both pending and completed. The information in this display includes work order number, type, status, and comments; schedule date and time; and customer services. The Work Order Display is for viewing information only, and the only item accessible for user input is the comment field. Once the work order is checked in, the comment field cannot be modified.


Customer Info Codes The Customer Information codes are useful in displaying additional information about a given customer without having to move to a different window, as it brings up a screen overlaying the one you’re currently in. Code Description A/R Collection Information

Displays the Customer Collection Status window, which shows balance and aging buckets, recent payments, and collection event occurrences. From the Left Panel, you can display a detailed list of all collection transactions.

Channel Lineup Displays the customer’s channel lineup in a separate window. Customer Category Status

Indicates the current status for each service category (i.e., cable/HSD/phone)

Customer Contacts Allows recording and categorizing of information each time a customer is contacted.

Customer Summary Displays commonly-needed information on a single window. Includes name & address, installation date, aging buckets, date & amount of last two payments, addressable equipment, collections info, and a list of services.

Dispatch Flashes Displays dispatch flashes from any window with a Customer Info field.

Duplicate Home Phone #

Displays all customers who have the same phone number on file as the current customer.

Duplicate SS# Displays all customers who have the same social security number on file as the current customer.

House Comments Provides space to enter and read free-form comments pertaining to the customer premise. For example, “Digital phone svc not available due to contract clause restrictions.”

House Information Provides important house information without having to access the House Maintenance window.

Lookup by Address Displays the Customer Lookup window, which is useful for entering a new address similar to the one displayed, without returning to the Customer Search screen. The address fields are pre-filled with information from the current account. This can be useful, for example, for checking neighboring addresses or apartments.

Lookup by Name Displays the Customer Lookup window, with the name information from the current account pre-filled. Useful for checking for a customer’s prior accounts.

Phone#/SS#/Billing Brings up basic customer information such as phone numbers, social security number, bill day, and monthly rate.


Code Description Statement Image Displays Customer Statement History screen. From this screen,

you can display an image of any of the customer’s statements, or view transaction or ledger details. This can be useful in helping the customer understand his/her bill, or to address billing disputes.

W/O Display/Tech Sch

Displays all past and pending work orders for the account. For any pending work order, you can access the daily schedule of the technician assigned to that job.


Documents

Dispatcher’s Guide And Tutorial For ICOMS GUI Systems Guide.pdf · Dispatcher’s Guide And Tutorial For ICOMS GUI ... At a computer connected to the client’s billing system,