April 2024

DE-DE ES-LATAM FR-CA IT-IT

Introduction

This document serves as a reference guide for the Dispatch module in the Fleet Management Application. The Dispatch module functions in conjunction with the Mobile module, which Resources use to view and status their assigned appointments. With near real-time incoming and outgoing updates, Dispatch users can proactively manage the day’s appointments and support Resources in the field. With dynamic key metrics highlighting items requiring attention and simple ways to make meaningful adjustments, the Dispatch module allows users to rapidly respond to the ever-changing field environment while maintaining focus on route progress.

! IMPORTANT: A subscription to Advanced Routing is required to use this module.

Prerequisites

A mandatory prerequisite to using the Dispatch module is that a plan must first be published in the Route module of Routing & Optimization.

! IMPORTANT: The Dispatch module cannot be used until a plan is published for the day and the Branch you are managing. For more information about the Route module, refer to the Routing & Optimization – Route User Guide.

Getting started

Dispatch can be accessed directly from the Fleet Management Application.

To access the Dispatch module:

Dispatch Module

The Dispatch module is organized into two views, the Command Center and the Schedule Board. Switch between the two views by clicking the respective button.

Command Center

At a glance, the Command Center provides a same-day view of key metrics for all the monitored Branches with published plans in the Route module. Refer to the metrics buckets for more details, create same-day appointments, select the Branches you want to monitor, and more.

✱ NOTE: All Command Center data is based on the selected Monitored Branches (Health tab > Modify Selections > Branch Selection).

1. Metrics Overview: Displays on-time arrival trends over time, as well as an overview of appointment metrics. See Summary section for more detail.
2. Summary: The default view when Dispatch is launched, which provides a real-time summary of appointment statuses across monitored Branches.
3. Health: Displays a quick overview of Monitored Branch specific metrics.

✱ NOTE: Click on Modify Selection, then select the Branch(es) to be monitored. These selections are user specific.

4. Same Day Appointments: A functional tool that allows users to create new appointments for a specific Branch, which are then added to the current day’s plan as unassigned. See Creating an Appointment for more detail.
5. Metrics Buckets: Categories of Appointments and Techs (Resources) grouped by relevant metric from which some actions can be taken. Each number within the metric bucket indicates the applicable item count.
6. Notification Panel: Displays Dispatch events as they occur, with user timestamps.

Summary

The Metrics Overview - Summary is divided into two sections:

1. On Time Arrival Metric (OTA %) which displays the following information:
2. 1. Planned On-Time: Displays the percentage of total appointments that are planned to be on-time that are not currently in-progress.
   2. Current On-Time: Displays the percentage of total appointments with on-time arrival that have been completed and/or are currently in-progress.
   3. Missed: Displays the number of appointments where the scheduled appointment time window was missed.

   

2. Appointment Metrics that dynamically categorize the day’s appointments by status
3. 1. Incomplete: Number of Not Done’d and/or Canceled appointments
   2. Rescheduled: Number of appointments that have been rescheduled for a different date
   3. Completed: Number of appointments completed today
   4. Pending: Number of appointments that are not yet started and still considered on-time
   5. Planned: Number of appointments that are scheduled for the day
   6. Same Day Appointments: Number of appointments created today, scheduled for today

Appointments scheduled in the selected monitored Branches are displayed by clicking anywhere in the Appointment Metrics bar.

Using the Appointment Metrics bar, you can do the following:

1. Choose which details to display through the Columns option by setting the toggle on or off for up to 10 of the following:
2. 1. Branch
   2. Order Type
   3. Begin Time (appointment start time)
   4. End Time (appointment end time)
   5. Begin Window (appointment time window)
   6. End Window (appointment time window)
   7. Duration
   8. Drive Time
   9. Street (address)
   10. City
   11. Postal Code
   12. Tech (Resource)
   13. Tech Team (Resource Team)
   14. Customer
   15. Customer Phone

   ✱ NOTE: Actions and Appointment ID are always displayed by default.

2. Use Sorting Options to order the appointments by one or more columns, in ascending or descending order. Click Apply when done.
3. Under the Actions column, click Home Verify to add or review an event, or click Notes to add or review a note.

You can view the current Appointment Status and Home Verify event type as defined by the following icons.

Metrics buckets

An overview of each Dispatch metric is displayed in interactive buckets which display the current event count, where some buckets include subcategories and counts.

The bucket colors and counts provide visual cues to focus attention where needed:

1. Light gray: Activity in this bucket
2. Dark gray: No activity in this bucket
3. Red: Will only show for the Tech in Danger bucket if applicable

Bucket subcategories

The bucket subcategories are meant to highlight the number of events by severity in accordance to time.

1. Now: Appointment time window has begun or was missed
2. In 1 hr: Appointment begin time window is within 1 hour from now
3. In 2 hrs: Appointment begin time window is within 2 hours from now
4. In 3+ hrs: Appointment begin time window is within 3+ hours from now

✱ NOTE: The Available Techs bucket subcategories refer to the number of Resources and when they are expected to be available.

Click any of the buckets to view appointment and/or Tech (Resource) details.

Bucket filters

Once in a bucket, use the predefined severity time filters to view the specific appointment or Tech (Resource) list, by clicking on one or more of the subcategories (Now, 1 hour, 2 hours, 3+ hours). The filters also apply to the map with the applicable filter color.

The appointment list can be further filtered, and additional appointment categories can be displayed by clicking on the Sorting button, and using the sliders to enable or disable the following:

1. Filter by Order Type Group
2. Show Missed Appointments
3. Show Assigned Appointments
4. Show Unassigned Appointments
5. Filter by Home Verify Event

Once one or more selections are made, click anywhere outside the list to collapse it, then click the Back button to return to the now filtered appointment list.

Click on any of the appointments displayed on the map to view additional information and take action like add a Home Verify event, Notes, or modify the duration.

Switch to another bucket without returning to the Command Center by, clicking on it from the top list view.

Notification panel

The Notification Panel is a near real-time data log which displays events as they occur throughout the day for all Branches with activity.

1. Use the Search field to locate and filter events for a specific appointment or Resource (Tech).
2. Use the Filters menu to select one or more event types to refine the notifications displayed. The current quantity of each event type is also indicated
3. Use the Download function to export all events (as of current time) to a CSV file.

Schedule Board

The Schedule Board is used to help monitor and manage appointments and Resources (Techs) within a given Branch, allowing you to view Resource (Tech) and appointment status in near real-time as the day progresses. Here you can take action on appointments, like reassigning or modifying the duration, while the system updates the route metrics in response to the adjustments.

Viewing the Schedule Board

1. Switch between Branches by clicking on the applicable Branch pill.



2. Or use the dropdown menu above the Resource (Tech) list.



3. Customize the size of the Schedule Board details by choosing from Small, Medium, or Large view.



4. View routes across the day by using the position buttons to move backward, to current time, or forward, or by clicking anywhere except on an appointment and dragging left or right.



5. Search for an appointment or Resource (Tech), then click on the selection to focus your view.
6. Determine current appointment status by color.
7. 1. Blue: Assigned (on-time, within arrival time window)
   2. Yellow: At Risk (of missing arrival time window)
   3. Red: Late (missed arrival time window)

   

   ✱ NOTE: Completed appointments will be blue, regardless if arrival time window was missed.

7. Hover over an assigned appointment to view the following information on the Appointment detail panel:
8. 1. Appointment status
   2. Appointment time window and Order type
   3. Appointment ID
   4. Duration (on-site time), adjusted according to assigned Resource efficiency
   5. Customer Name and Account number
   6. Appointment address
   7. Assigned Resource and their Team
   8. (Estimated) Arrival Time and Drive Distance
   9. Late Time, if applicable

   

8. View scheduled Resources (Techs) and their current status, Ready (green circle icon) or Not Ready (white no-symbol icon) and filled capacity percentage.



9. 1. Click the Order By button to customize the Resource (Tech) list sorting and group by Team (if applicable).
1. Hover over the Information icon to view additional Resource (Tech) details such as efficiency, schedule, start and end address, etc



9. Select one or more Resources (Techs) then click Open Map to view the routes on a map with appointments noted by sequence.

1. Zoom in or out on the map by using the mouse scroll wheel, or use the Plus / Minus buttons.
2. Expand the map by clicking the Expand button to Enter full screen.
3. Click the Layers button to toggle the display of other data points on the map.

1. Click Close Map to collapse the map view.

Assigning an Unassigned Appointment

Click the Unassigned Appointments button (green triangle) to expand and search the list.

✱ NOTE: The number of unassigned appointments is indicated on the button.

To assign an unassigned appointment, follow these steps:

1. From the expanded list, click and drag an appointment to the route of the target Resource (Tech).
2. Release once the correct route is selected, as defined by the blue dashes around the route.



3. The target Resource (Tech) route will be filtered, and the appointment detail panel will appear. Click the Confirm Assignment button to complete the action, or press the Escape key to cancel.

✱ NOTE: The appointment will be inserted at an optimal sequence automatically, regardless of the position set in step 3. You can resequence the appointment after confirming the assignment.

Reassigning an Assigned Appointment

Appointments can be reassigned from one Resource (Tech) to another by clicking and dragging.

1. Click and drag an appointment from the current Resource route to the route of the other Resource (Tech).
2. Release once the correct route is selected as defined by the blue dashes around the route



3. The two Resources’ routes will be filtered, and the appointment detail panel will appear. Click the Confirm Assignment button to complete the action, or press the Escape key to cancel.

✱ NOTE: The reassigned appointment will be added to the end of the other Resource’s route automatically, regardless of the position set in step 2. You can resequence the appointment after step 3.

Resequencing an Assigned Appointment

Assigned appointments can be resequenced within a Resource’s (Tech’s) route. When this is done, the estimated arrival times and drive times for all appointments within the route are then automatically recalculated and updated accordingly.

1. Click and drag the desired appointment along the route to the target position.

✱ NOTE: The target sequence position will change from green to white as the appointment is dragged along the route.

2. Release at the desired sequence position.



Modifying an Assigned Appointment

3. Click the desired assigned appointment within a route so the Appointment detail panel appears.
4. From the Appointment detail panel, the following options display. Click to view or edit:
5. 1. Home Verify – View existing or add the applicable event and optional comment.
   2. Notes – View existing or add a new note.
   3. Details – View whether a Locked Resource or Preferred Resource is associated with the appointment.
   4. History – View appointment events that have occurred.
5. Click the Edit (pencil) icon and choose from the following options:
6. 1. Edit Info – Change the duration of the appointment.
   2. Unassign – Unassign the appointment from the Resource.
   3. Force En Route – Change appointment status from Assigned to En Route.
   4. Force in Progress – Change appointment from Assigned to In Progress.
6. Click the Save button to save your edits.

Closing an Assigned Appointment

1. Click the desired assigned In Progress appointment within a route so the Appointment detail panel appears.
2. Click the Edit (pencil) icon and choose Close Appointment
3. Set the required Close Time, and click on the applicable status (Compete, Cancelled, or Not Done)
4. 1. Optional: Select Close Codes and/or Work Codes, and input Comments
4. Click the Close Appointment button to save and update the status.

Viewing and modifying an Unassigned Appointment

1. Click the Unassigned Appointments button (green triangle).
2. Scroll through the list of appointments or use the Search field to locate a specific appointment



3. Click the appointment in the list, and the Appointment detail panel will appear for review.



4. From the Appointment detail panel, click to view or edit the following:
5. 1. Home Verify –View existing or add the applicable event and optional comment.
   2. Notes – View existing or add a new note.
   3. Details – View whether a Locked Resource or Preferred Resource is associated with the appointment.
   4. History – View appointment events that have occurred.
5. Click the Edit (pencil) icon and select Edit Info to change the duration of the appointment.
6. Click the Save button to save your edits.

Creating an Appointment

New appointments can be created within the Schedule Board and then assigned to a Resource.

1. Click on the + Create Appointment button, and the Create New Appointment window appears.

✱ NOTE: The Branch defaults to that which is selected in the Schedule Board, and cannot be changed.



2. Fill in the fields:

Appointment (all are required)

3. 1. Appointment ID – Manually enter, or use the refresh button to auto-generate
   2. Order Type – Search or select from the dropdown
   3. Window begin (appointment time window)
   4. Window end (appointment time window)
   5. Address – Use search field then click on correct address once it appears
   6. Duration – On-site time, modify if needed, default per Order Type will automatically apply
   7. Revenue – Modify if needed, default per Order Type will automatically apply

   Contact details (only name is required)

   8. Contact name
   9. Email
   10. Primary phone
   11. Secondary phone
   12. Add Note – Relevant to the appointment
3. Click Save or Save and create another (then repeat steps above). The new appointment will be added to the Unassigned Appointments list.