Registering Calls


Overview

Tasks

Included with

Tivoli Problem Management

Overview

What is call registration?

Registering a call is the first phase of the Tivoli Problem Management workflow.

Call registration is the process used to gather information about callers and the details of their problems when they contact the help desk. When you register a call, you ask the caller for his or her location, name, type of problem, and various other information. You record this information in the Call Registration dialog box.

Note: You must register every call that comes in to your help desk.

Defining call registration

Call registration is a detailed, yet flexible process. For a new problem, you complete information in the Call Registration dialog box in this order.
  1. Specify the Contact Information.
    You use a name, contact ID, phone number, location, and organization to identify who called.
  2. Describe the call.
    You use call codes to classify the call and a severity code to rate the urgency of the call.
    Tivoli Problem Management includes a set of default call codes that classify the call. Your system administrator can create customized call codes that reflect your organization's call classification system.
    Severity indicates the call's importance or urgency. You track calls and problems on the basis of severity. Escalation capabilities also relate to severity. In general, severity is a numeric quantity ranging from 1 (most severe) to some higher number (least severe).
  3. Identify the Component Information or specify the Inventory ID.
    Tivoli Problem Management organizes the products your company supports into a component hierarchy. This hierarchy is composed of four levels: System, Component, Item, and Module. An additional piece of information, Problem Type, is associated with the component level.
    The component information for each problem can be used to search for a solution with Diagnostic Aids. System is the only required box in the Component Information section. Completing the Component, Item, and Module boxes, however, helps Tivoli Problem Management find the best solution to your caller's problem. A more precise SCIM helps Tivoli Problem Management find a more precise solution.
    If your help desk chooses to do so, you can maintain a list of all systems supported at particular locations and assign them an Inventory ID. SCIM information associated with an Inventory ID is automatically supplied in the Call Registration dialog box when you specify an Inventory ID.
  4. Describe the problem.
    This is the point at which you enter information about the caller's problem. The description is used by Adaptive Learning Diagnostic Aid to search for a solution.
  5. Determine a resolution.
    You can supply the solution yourself, use Diagnostic Aids, or transfer it to another analyst.

Call records and problem records

The information you gather during call registration creates both a call record and a problem record. Other analysts may use the call record if they want to re-examine a caller's problem or problems. Tivoli Problem Management uses information from the problem record to search for a solution.

Dispatching calls

A dispatcher answers and registers calls, then transfers the calls to an analyst or group of analysts. If you intend to register a call but not make an attempt to solve the caller's problem, you might prefer to use the Call Dispatch dialog box.

Other ways to register calls

You can attach calls to an existing problem. This saves time when you receive many calls about the same problem. For more information, see Attaching Calls to Problems.

You can also copy information from a problem that was reported and resolved in the past to a new call. See Copying Existing Problems to New Calls.

If you work on a problem before you register the call, you can add work history notes in the Call Registration dialog box. See Adding Work History to a New Call.

Using problem lists

Problem History is the second tab of the Call Registration dialog box. You use this tab to assemble a list of problems that matches location or component information you specify. When you use the Problem History tab, you can search for problem histories for one, some, or all of the problems in your help desk's database. For more information, see Using the Problem List during Call Registration.

Buttons

The following buttons are found on the Call Registration tab of the Call Registration Dialog box.
Choose... to...
Work History record work you have done on a problem in the Work History dialog box.
Cancel closes the Call Registration dialog box and doesn't save any information on the Call Registration dialog box.
Clear clears the Call Registration dialog box.
Diagnose access Diagnostic Aids to help you find a solution to your caller's problem.
Done

Finishing call registration

After you complete all the required fields on the Call Registration dialog box, you can provide the solution yourself, use Diagnostic Aids, freeze the problem, or transfer the call and problem to another analyst.

Tasks

Specifying contact information

You specify contact information to identify who called the help desk.
  1. In the First Name, Last Name, ID, and Phone boxes, do one of the following:
    • Enter the information in the appropriate boxes and press TAB.
    • Choose Browse next to the Last Name box to search for a contact using the Quick Contact dialog box.
  2. From the Location list, select a location.
  3. From the Organization list, select a organization.

Describing the call

Perform the following steps to describe the call:
  1. From the Problem Code list, select a problem code.
  2. From the Call Code list, select a call code.
  3. From the Severity list, select a severity code.
  4. From the Cause list, select a cause code.
    Note: Your system administrator can set default values for both the Call Code and Severity boxes.

Identifying component information

After you describe the call, your pointer moves to the section where you identify the components involved in the problem. There are two ways to identify components.
  • Specify the SCIM (System, Component, Item, and Module) information item by item or go to the Inventory box and type an inventory ID.
    Note: Because the component setup is hierarchical, if you specify the SCIM, you must identify the components from the top down (from system level to module level.)
  • If your system administrator maintains a list of supported items at particular locations, you can ask the caller if he or she knows the inventory ID of the system in question.
    Tip: If your caller knows the inventory ID number, go to Specifying the inventory ID procedure.

Perform the following steps to identify the Component Information:

  1. From the System list, select a system.
    Note: Selecting a system fills the Component list with all the components that are a part of the selected system.
  2. From the Component list, select a component.
    Note: Selecting a component fills the Item list with all the items that are part of the selected component. When a component is selected, Problem Type may be automatically filled in.
  3. From the Item list, select an item.
    Note: Selecting an item fills the Module list with all modules that make up the item.
  4. From the Module list, select a module.
  5. From the Problem Type list, select a problem type if the Problem Type box was not automatically filled in when you selected a component.

Note: For more information on components (SCIM), see Maintaining the SCIM Hierarchy.

Specifying the inventory ID

Inventory IDs are set up for each user. If there is a inventory ID for the caller, use the inventory box. If there is no inventory ID, enter information about the components involved in the problem in the SCIM. For more information, see Identifying component information.

Note: Inventory IDs are only available if you run Tivoli Asset Management.

Perform the following steps to specify the inventory:

  1. Choose the Inventory Browse button.
    Result: The Quick Find Asset dialog box appears.
  2. Enter Search parameters and choose Find.
    Note: For more information, see Searching and Inquiring.
  3. Select an asset and choose Select.
    Result: Tivoli Problem Management automatically completes the System, Component, Item, Problem Type, and Inventory ID boxes in the Call Registration dialog box.

Describing the problem

Perform the following steps to describe the problem:
  1. In the Description box, type a description of the problem your caller is having. This description is used by the Adaptive Learning Diagnostic Aid to search for a solution.
    Note: You can type as long a description as you like. This box has word-wrap capability.