Navigating the Schedule & Dispatch page

Navigating the Schedule & Dispatch page

Mobileforce FSM has designed the Schedule & Dispatch page to assign, view, and dispatch all dispatcher information on a single screen. From this screen, dispatchers can:

This page displays a calendar and map view in addition to the assigned technicians and service tasks, allowing dispatchers to best determine the most efficient schedule for the assigned work.

Note:

For best results dispatchers require the following:

Accessing the Schedule & Dispatch page

The Mobileforce FSM Schedule & Dispatch page allows dispatchers to do the following:

From the Field Service page, click Schedule & Dispatch.

The Schedule & Dispatch page is divided into three panes:

Select Office Location
All schedule and dispatch actions in Mobileforce FSM are performed on a "per office" basis. Dispatchers select the desired office location, so Mobileforce FSM can display all of the Service Tasks assigned to or in proximity of the location.

Additionally, Mobileforce FSM displays the technicians assigned to the office and their schedule/availability.

When an office is selected the table view changes to display only those technicians and service tasks assigned to the office.

Filtering Tasks

You can filter the listed service tasks by Service Task Status, Service Task Type, and Proximity distance from their office location.

Using the Tasks pane

From the tasks pane you can view and review the Service Tasks for the selected office. Additionally you can filter the tasks by Service Task Status, or Name to find the Service Tasks you need.

Click the Service Task to select it. Once selected you can do the following:

When the task is selected you can assign the task to a technician associated with your office whose skills match the Service Task. For more information see, Scheduling Service Tasks.

When the task is selected the details are displayed at the bottom of the Tasks pane. Click the button to open the Service Task in its own read-only window.

When you have created a task by assigning it to a technician for a specified time, Mobileforce FSM allows you to lock the Service Task, so it can't be inadvertently rescheduled. To lock an appointment, select it in the Tasks pane, and click the Lock button.

To unlock an appointment, select the task in the Tasks pane, and click the Unlock button.

Example:

This feature may be useful if you have Service Tasks that need to be done at a specific time, or elite clients whose schedules cannot be moved. Or, dispatchers can simply lock the appointment, when the time has been confirmed with the customer.

If you need to delete a scheduled appointment, select it in the Tasks pane, and click the Delete button.

Searching for Tasks

Mobileforce FSM allows you to search for specific tasks assigned to the currently selected office.

Only those Service Tasks that match the specified search criteria appear in the below Tasks section.

Note:

Mobileforce FSM allows you to combine search criteria to find the desired Service Tasks. For example, you can use the fields to find all Tasks that have a status of Assigned where the Type is Installation.

Using the Calendar pane

The Calendar pane allows you to schedule tasks to technicians through a visual calendar.

Changing the Calendar View

By default, Mobileforce FSM displays the calendar in week view. To change the view, click the desired view: day, week, or month.

Additionally, you can display a list of scheduled tasks, by clicking the list view.

Mobileforce FSM allows you to schedule tasks by selecting windows of time for the technician (when By Tech is selected) or for the Service Task (when By Task is selected).

Specify the applicable options for the appointment, and click Create to add it to the calendar. For more information, see Scheduling Service Tasks

Hiding the Map Pane

You can hide the map pane from the Schedule & Dispatch page, allowing you to more clearly schedule appointments, by clicking the button.

Click the button a second time to re-display the map pane.

Viewing by Technician

Ensure that the By Tech button is selected to view the technicians associated to the currently selected office. Additionally, Mobileforce FSM displays the Skills assigned to the technician.

From here you can schedule the time when the selected Technician is assigned an existing service task assigned to the selected office.

For more information, see Scheduling Service Tasks.

Viewing by Task

Ensure that the By Task button is selected to view the tasks assigned to the currently selected office. Additionally, Mobileforce FSM displays the Skills required for the Technician to be assigned to the task.

From here you can:

Renaming Schedule and Dispatch Screen Objects

Mobileforce allows you to rename some of the UI elements (labels, buttons, objects) in the Schedule and Dispatch screen. Specifically, the following objects in the Schedule & Dispatch screen can be renamed: appointments, tasks, technicians, and skills

To rename, change the following properties in the Application Description (ADL)

* scheduler-appt-label-singular
* scheduler-appt-label-plural
* scheduler-task-label-singular
* scheduler-task-label-plural
* scheduler-tech-label-singular
* scheduler-tech-label-plural
* scheduler-skill-label-singular
* scheduler-skill-label-plural

Note: for Admins only

A full list of ADL Properties for the schedule and dispatch screen is available here