November 2013, Issue 3, volume 15

Together we stand strong

More in this issue:

TOPdesk on European Tour Working towards shared services Are you using the Caller Card?

EDITORIAL

14

Success stories
I moved three months ago. This is always more trouble than you expect. Painting the ceiling after a day at the office, carrying boxes with the reinforcements, cleaning and dont forget! registering my new address with various authorities. Moving house is comparable to a large project at work. It can be both time-consuming and exciting. There is a lot to organize, and not everything goes according to plan. However, thanks to the right preparation and dedication, the project is usually a success. In this magazine you can read how TOPdesk customers started and successfully completed large projects. For instance, last year the health insurance provider CZ Tilburg was the first TOPdesk customer to use the SCOM link to manage their infrastructure. As for me, everything seems to be taken care of now. I am enjoying my new home, and all my mail is delivered to the right address. This project was a success, so it is time for the next one: being editor-in-chief for TOPdesk Magazine! Enjoy your read! Milou Snaterse, editor-in-chief TOPdesk Magazine Nederland
37% Geen gezamenlijke tool 21%

TOPdesk customers proved to be well Gezamenlijke tool met twee afdelingen on their way towards a shared tool, service and working processes Gezamenlijke tool metdesk drie afdelingen for HR, FM and IT.

63%

26

CONTENTS November 13
DID YOU KNOW YOU CAN USE THE CALLER CARD AS A SEARCH SCREEN?
Colin Bassant TOPdesk consultant

Read more on page 24

04

NEWS TOGETHER WE STAND STRONG MAKING CHANGE HAPPEN

Always on holiday

06 10 13 14
18

20

COLUMN

TOPDESK ON EUROPEAN TOUR

A great way to display your services

PRODUCTS AND SERVICES CATALOGUE

20 24 26 28 32

FROM HUGE LOGFILE TO CONVENIENT REPORT ARE YOU USING THE CALLER CARD? WORKING TOWARDS SHARED SERVICES WORKING SMARTER TIPS + TRICKS
Exporting data from TOPdesk (part 2)

42%

ON THE COVER:
Maastricht Councils Leon Geilen, Nicole Keizer and Enno Soeren

Want to stay up to date?

To stay on top of the latest TOPdesk news and service management developments, follow us on Twitter via @TOPdesk and @TOPdesk_UK.

TOPdesk ISAE 3402 type I-certied

As of 6 August 2013 TOPdesk is ofcially ISAE 3402 type I-certied. The report, composed by the external party BDO Audit & Assurance, demonstrates that TOPdesk has taken sufcient precautions to cover identied risks to services. This lets TOPdesk provide assurance for our customers about the quality for offering its customers well managed and secure TOPdesk environments. With the ISAE 3402 certicate we can demonstrate how we deal with this responsibility, and BDO can demonstrate that the described procedures were found suitable in concept. Of course TOPdesk is very proud of receiving this certicate. One of the people involved During recent years TOPdesk noticed customers paying more and more attention to the way suppliers manage valuable company from the outset was Martine van de Merwe from BDO. It was fun to be part of the process from the beginning to the end, she says. TOPdesk has developed into a structured ideal customer.

@TOPdesk
A selection of our recent tweets:

of our services.

@TOPdesk Proud! TOPdesk colleague Mirte wins gold @WorldRowing http:// bit.ly.19S4cpN #WRChamps

details and their SaaS solutions. As a SaaS service provider, TOPdesk takes responsibility

@JohnS_Medirest #ontour13 TD UK thank you excellent venue, presentations, food and hospitality.

@TOPdesk_UK Were so grateful to support your services and delighted an employee chose to sponsor a guide dog as her sales target prize @guidedogs Thats brilliant, thank you so much for your support

@thegreatdandini So weve just gone over to #topdesk5. Looking better I think. Some neat features. #uob

Team TOPdesk best run company at Ekiden Business Run

Team TOPdesk came in rst at the Ekiden Business Run on 6 July. This makes TOPdesk the best run company in the Netherlands. The team ran 42.195 km in 3:38:19. Ekiden is a marathon run as a relay race. The teams comprise six runners, who run 5, 10, and 7.195 km. Together they complete the legendary 42.195 km. TOPdesk took part with four teams comprising employees, customers, and other business relations. The winning team comprised Kimball Obr (Vestia Groep), Harmen den Boer (TOPdesk), Renate Brand (Municipality of The Hague), Lars Steekelenburg (Ask Roger!), Jeroen van Leeuwen (TOPdesk) and Menno Horjus.

Calendar
UK
20 NOV
Higher Education Symposium David Hume Tower, Edinburgh

NEWS
TOPdesk and Compass Group sign framework agreement
On 20 September, TOPdesk signed a framework agreement with Compass Group: a global food and support services provider. Based on the framework, Compass Group will implement TOPdesk as a facilities management tool to support their external customers. TOPdesk will also be used to manage Compass own facilities, including their global HQ in the UK.
With over 500,000 employees in around 50 countries, Compass Group is one of the largest food and support services companies in the world. It was therefore important to nd a tool that fullled the requirement of a worldwide organization. I was not looking for a CAFM (Computer-Aided Facilities Management) tool, but rather for something to help us develop our business, says David Fletcher, Compass Group CIO. What I like about TOPdesk is that it brings to life what we are about rather than just giving a snapshot of information. TOPdesk will also play an important role in the future of Compass Group. Andy mentions: TOPdesk puts processes and support structures in place. Now we can clearly see what we are doing, and I believe it will really help us be more effective. Andy Targell, Director of Global Workplace Solutions, agrees: We are always looking for value differentiators, and TOPdesk denitely provides them. The standardized framework is very benecial to work with; it has been developed well and suits our needs.

04 15 DEC JAN
Dr. TOPdesk consultation hours TOPdesk office, London

21 22 NOV NOV
TOPdesk demo days TOPdesk office, London

12 13 DEC DEC
TOPdesk demo days TOPdesk office, London

21 22 NOV NOV

Belgium

TOPdesk and Compass Group celebrate during signing ceremony

TOPdesk consultation hours TOPdesk office, Brussels

Germany
14 NOV
TOPdesk on Tour Stuttgart

12 DEC
TOPdesk on Tour Mnchen

Denmark
12 13 NOV
NOV

Service Desk Conference Radisson Blu Scandinavia, Copenhagen

6 cUstomer in focUs

Photography: Jonas Mertens

From left to right: Maastricht Councils Leon Geilen, Nicole Keizer and Enno Soeren

Text: Stefanie Klaassen

cUstomer in focUs 7

Together we stand strong

The Maastricht city council is not only blessed with a magnicent view of the river Maas, their internal business is also well organized. The council has aligned all their supporting services in a single Shared Service Centre.

8 CUSTOMER IN FOCUS

TOPDESK GRANTS INSIGHT INTO WHAT NEEDS TO BE DONE AND BY WHOM

Leon Geilen SSC operational manager

The councils Shared Service Centre (SSC) encompasses all supporting services: not only IT and FM, but also HR, finance, communication, a team for administrative support and a team that manages all company information systems. The SSC includes all the councils nonprimary processes, says Leon Geilen, SSC operational manager. We have twelve teams in total, comprising three hundred people. This calls for a streamlined approach!

They should be as efficient and streamlined as possible. This is where the TOPdesk implementation is a great help. You find that the need for additional modules grows as the system implementation progresses. We use these moments to evaluate the process set-up again if necessary. For now, the module implementations are going really smoothly and we take everything step by step.

A smooth implementation
To efficiently manage all processes, we started using a service management tool, explains Geilen. We used to work with two other systems: one for IT and one for facilities. We wanted to use one system, and that system is TOPdesk. Our aim is to use TOPdesk for all our SSCs tasks. We are also working on an extensive self service solution, which we want to set up as a webshop environment for our end users. The council went live with version 5 in September 2012. Enno Soeren, SSC manager, is pleased with the implementation. It didnt take much getting used to; the implementation went really smoothly. Initially we implemented TOPdesk for IT, which meant SSC employees could get used to the principle. When we set up additional TOPdesk features, we noticed people were already used to TOPdesk and the process was a lot easier. The upgrade to a single tool resulted in a lot less work for the service desk, explains Nicole Keizer, implementation project manager. Two tools means double the work. You need to check them separately and add data to both tools.

A new Self Service Portal

The Maastricht Council is currently setting up a self service portal. TOPdesk lets you easily display and generate issues via the self service portal. For instance, customers can automatically fill out forms so they no longer have to send an email. This means fewer procedures for the service desk and more time to actually work on solutions, says Geilen. Soeren adds: We want to start using the self service portal for more things. This enables us to help the end user more quickly and efficiently, but it especially lets them do more themselves. The advantage of TOPdesk is that you can do this adequately: you do not have to re-enter your name or details when you order a service. Certain parts of the portal are entirely operational, says Keizer. This includes reserving rooms in our Work square. People are really enthusiastic: they can follow and adjust their own reservation, see which rooms are available and book the desired room. This never used to be an option, as the service desk allocated the room for you. Now end users organize these things themselves and it takes less time. We can already save on waiting times at the service desk.

Transparent, also for the customer

TOPdesk grants insight into what needs to be done and by whom, says Geilen. In the past, the SSC teams activities were not always registered. We now register these tasks proactively. Another advantage is that its easier to create reports, Soeren adds. This lets you become more transparent towards your customers. We want to show them what we do, whether we meet our agreements, and how we manage our service level agreements. For instance, customers can quickly and easily check the status of their calls. As a Shared Service Centre we want to make our processes lean.

Additional councils in a single SSC?

The success of the Maastricht Councils SSD has not gone unnoticed. There are plans to include other councils and start working together. We are in the middle of a process to set up a Shared Service Centre for half of the county, says Soeren. The larger councils are researching the options together. We currently use the SSC and have worked like this for a while, so we can set an example. We are now researching how our council has handled this and if we can implement it further, says Soeren. We also offer more support to the smaller councils in our area, such

CUSTOMER IN FOCUS 9

THE SELF SERVICE PORTAL ENABLES THE END USERS TO DO MORE THEMSELVES
Enno Soeren SSC manager

as telephone services. Soon we will have a centralized procurement process, which is something each council currently organizes individually. There are a lot of advantages to a collaborative approach. However, to arrange this we need an overview of all contracts. It is possible to enter them in the tool via one central contract register, so why not use it regionally? We are gathering more ideas as we go

along and the number is slowly growing. Other council departments have also picked up on the tools advantages, says Geilen, and we are curious to see whether it can also help them optimize their company processes. We are taking a positive approach and are happy with our success. However, we should take things slowly we need to keep it manageable!

The Maastricht city councils magnicent views of the river Maas

10 topdesk ON tOUR

Photography: Menno van der Bijl

JudIth DIsbeRg
is an IPMA-certified project leader who has helped with several large TOPdesk implementations.

RobbeRt PetteRsoN
is a TOPdesk consultant with a lot of experience with large projects.

Making change happen

It is easy to talk about willingness to change, but how do you actually achieve it? We asked TOPdesk on Tour visitors. In this article we will share their (sometimes unconventional) answers.

During some editions of this years TOPdesk on Tour, we gave a presentation and a workshop. After a presentation about willingness to change, we presented a case to the attendees. This case was about a fictional hospital where the IT, FM and HR departments had to improve their collaboration. However, the departments did not accept the changes introduced with the new way of working. The reasons for refusing to accept the changes differed per department. Workshop participants were split into groups, with each group being tasked to think of concrete action items for a specific department (IT, FM or HR). These action items must help the employees accept the change. Each item was written on sticky notes and stuck in a circle diagram depicting three categories: Must, Want, Can (see the text box for more information).

daily tasks, while other participants had never had to consider how to deal with change before. In total, over 120 activities were suggested. This is a lot of activities to help people collaborate. Many of these activities can be used within your organization. When we look at the suggested activities, we noticed that the participants sometimes put the same activity in different categories. For instance, the activity involve key users was used to motivate the group (Want), to emphasize its necessity (Must) and to share knowledge (Can). Implementing a new system and approach means a change for your colleagues. This is why you should spend sufficient time considering which activities can help implement a change. It is good to think of activities that increase the willingness to change, but it is important to consider what you want to achieve with these activities. On the following pages, you can read some tips we gathered on TOPdesk on Tour to help you increase the chance of your organization accepting the change.

Creative solutions
The workshop participants were very enthusiastic and creative when it came to thinking of concrete action items. Some participants suggested activities that they already used in their

Text: Judith Disberg and Robbert Petterson

TOPDESK ON TOUR 11

The WMC model in short

Want

The TOPdesk on Tour workshop focused on the WMC model (Want, Must, Can). A certain level of willingness to change is required in order to display certain behavior. The higher the level of willingness to change, the bigger the chance of the change being accepted. Willingness to

Must

Willingness to change

Behaviour

Results

change is influenced by three factors: Want: how motivated is the colleague when it comes to changing? Must: how much pressure to change does the colleague feel?

Can

Can: to what degree does the colleague feel they are able to change?

Activities suggested during the workshop were placed on the WMC diagram

WA N

WA N

T
Motivating

M
T US
Creating pressure

M
T US

Structuring conditions

Read more about the top 5 change activities

CAN

CAN

TOPDESK ON TOUR

TOP 5 CHANGE ACTIVITIES

IT DEPARTMENT

FM DEPARTMENT

1 2 3 4 5

Mapping out the big picture and the benefits | Categorized as M/W Joining other departments for a day | Categorized as W Holding a customer satisfaction survey | Categorized as M Assigning key users | Categorized as W/C Involving colleagues more | Categorized as W/C

1 2 3 4 5

Demonstrating the bigger picture and benefits | Categorized as M/W Team building/bringing departments together | Categorized as W Adjusting TOPdesk and/or the process | Categorized as C Talking to the colleague(s) | Categorized as W Assigning key users (and using them to process bottlenecks) | Categorized as W/C

HR DEPARTMENT

NOTABLE SUGGESTIONS
Teambuilding trip combined with a Process Awareness workshop. Conveying the whats in it for me factor. Creating practical assignments with a dose of humour, such as dramatizing the problem to motivate people to come up with solutions.

1 2 3 4 5

Training colleagues | Categorized as C Talking to colleagues | Categorized as W Team building/putting departments together | Categorized as W Assigning key users | Categorized as C Making time | Categorized as C

Text: Jasmijn Moerman

Photography: Menno van der Bijl

COLUMN

JASMIJN MOERMAN
is a facilities coordinator at TOPdesk.

ALWAYS ON HOLIDAY
After getting back from her holiday, a colleague told me she might have an interesting topic for one of my columns. I was more than happy to get some inspiration for a new article!

On her holiday my colleague realized that the distance from her work, both mental and physical, had been a huge source of inspiration. So what was the topic for my column? Well, exactly that. She did have a point. A tricky problem or impasse always seems much more complex before my holiday than it does afterwards. After a break Im able to tackle any problem with new creativity and enthusiasm. The word problem is not even part of my vocabulary: it is an opportunity or a challenge! This revival of sorts does seem to have a sell-by date, though. For me it is whenever I am done going through my latest holiday photos. Should I postpone all difficult choices, questions and problems until after the next holiday,

then? That could make for a few very boring months. How can you make sure that you can hold on to or recreate that just-back-from-holiday feeling? A tricky question. And my next holiday is quite a ways off, unfortunately.

you will probably remember all our recreational facilities. How do you get any work done? is a question we hear often. However, it is these facilities that help me escape that impasse or tricky problem. It is during the stressful periods, when I am more inclined to say no to a game of table football, that I make myself take part. Focusing on a ball for ten minutes often grants me new creative energy and insights. Even lunch can be a great escape when nothing else is at hand, though. Getting away from your desk, going outside. This

HOW DO YOU GET ANY WORK DONE?

However, I did not need to travel far to find an answer. You see, at TOPdesk we are good at stepping away from our work. If you have ever visited our offices (and if not, consider yourself welcome!)

can boost your productivity much more than eating your lunch between emails behind your desk. So why wait till next summer? Go now! Take a mini vacation between nine and five!

14 TOPDESK ON TOUR

TOPDESK ON EUROPEAN TOUR

TOPdesk makes the interaction between your supporting departments and customers easier. And what is easier than having TOPdesk come to you?

TOUR FACTS & FIGURES Germany: 10 tour stops in 10 different cities within 10 months Belgium: Customer event in Comic Strip Center Brussels Netherlands: Summer tour with 350 participants, of which 178 were TOPdesk customers Denmark: Tour stop in the TREFOR Park football stadium UK: A unique location, Drayton Manor, was the fun ending of a very informative day

Text: Claudia Funk

TOPDESK ON TOUR 15

16 TOPdesk on toUr

It is often difcult for customers in big countries to attend events that take place many hours from where they live and work. For TOPdesk on Tour 2013, TOPdesk set up several small-scale customer events throughout Europe. Neither trouble nor expense was spared to enable all TOPdesk customers to meet the TOPdesk team in person. Read on to nd out more about each individual event and the topics discussed during the tour.

Over the last couple of years, TOPdesk on Tour became a very popular fixed element of the customer events calendar. During these tour days, TOPdesk organizes presentations about the newest version of our software and provides the opportunity for customers to discuss TOPdesk-specific issues with TOPdesk experts as well as with other application managers. Many European branches participated in this years edition. The overarching theme was collaboration and how to improve it by using TOPdesk effectively. Many companies realize that a good working atmosphere with mutual collaboration is crucial to success, especially for service departments. TOPdesk can help achieve this by improving business processes to support effective

collaboration within and between departments. However, there are multiple ways to achieve good collaboration, depending for example on the size and the structure of the company. Therefore, each TOPdesk branch explored the theme with customers in its own way.

The art of service management

The Belgium tour event on 18 June took place in the well-known Comic Strip Center in Brussels. This location was chosen in accordance with the Belgian and Dutch tour theme: the art of providing excellent services. After a fun guided tour through the museum, housed in a beautiful Art Nouveau building, the 38 attendees enjoyed presentations about working together

TOPdesk on toUr 17

while everyone keeps their expertise. Both in Belgium and in the Netherlands the external chairman of the day, Gert-Jan Jansen, acted as moderator. This famous TV presenter and mediator hosted the day in a rather informal way which was highly appreciated by the audience.

explains: These small group settings are great for very lively discussions and in-depth conversations. And this is exactly what was intended with this tour program: letting customers get to know each other and discuss their way of using TOPdesk. This is why we reserve enough time for open discussions. This focus on service and getting to know one another is certainly a hit with attendees. Our customers mentioned that the personal contact with TOPdesk employees was the best part of TOPdesk on Tour. This was very much appreciated in Germany, and the same was true for Belgian customers who rated the accessibility as 9/10 on the final evaluation form.

A special location for a special day

Not so much arty but sporty was the motto of the Danish tour event as it took place in TREFOR Park, a famous football stadium. The Danish tour location was situated in Odense, the countrys third biggest city. Its central location enabled customers from east and west Denmark to join the event. All 34 participants spent the day focusing on Shared Service Centres. This included presentations and discussion panels on this subject. The British tour visited the Bulgari Hotel London, but also Drayton Manor, a family theme park in Staffordshire. The British team concentrated on how to involve customers in the service delivery, extending the meaning of collaboration beyond colleagues. Whats more, this day was about how to better coordinate work processes and as a result, how to manage internal changes.

Whats planned for 2014?

TOPdesk is looking forward and already planning the next years tour. For the first time in the German tour history, they will leave Germany and include Vienna and Zurich in the schedule. This to make it more comfortable for Austrian and Swiss customers to attend a TOPdesk event. All the other branches are busy planning future customer events but cannot give any details yet. Meanwhile, you can meet your TOPdesk team at different shows and demo days. Keep an eye on the TOPdesk website to stay up to date on upcoming events.

Small-scale events with in-depth discussions

In Germany the tour stopped in 10 different cities all over the country. One event per month, each with an average of ten participants. Kristin Mller-Partee, German account manager,

18 process and practice

Photography: Menno van der Bijl

MARIeke SpApeNs
is a facilities consultant for TOPdesk. She has extensive experience with organizations that use TOPdesk to support multiple departments.

ProdUcts and services catalogUe

A great way to display your services
As a consultant I have noticed how few facilities departments create a PSC (products and services catalogue). However, a good PSC can be a boon for your facilities department. Read on to nd out how to put this into practice.
A PSC is a document describing all products and services that the facilities department offers the organization. A PSC is like a shop window for your facilities services: in this document your customers can find all the required information about the products and services you supply. For instance: what is the procedure to reserve a meeting room? A PSC offers information regarding content, but it also functions as a communications channel between the facilities department and internal customers. Being clear about durations and how orders and calls are processed ensures that both your customers and facilities employees know what to expect. How you explain matters in a PSC shows customers how (in)formal, accessible and/ or professional you present yourself as a department. A PSC can also serve as a promotional tool for the facilities department; it raises the level of professionalism and demonstrates the departments transparency. Clearly listing the costs of certain services lets the customer know how the budget is spent and which costs will be passed on to them.

Creating a PSC
To properly inform your customers, you should describe the following information in your PSC: A description of the product or service. For instance, which facilities are part of a standard workstation?

Text: Marieke Spapens

PRoceSS and pRacTIce 19

The quality characteristics of the product or service. If the facilities department can supply various quality types this should be described in the PSC. Which types of meeting room are available? What are the procedures for receptions or jubilees? The order procedure for the product. Who can order the product or service can only the manager place the order, or do you require the budget holders signature? The terms of delivery for the product. Does the product have a delivery time? Where can it be picked up, or can it be delivered to the requester? Who can the customer contact about questions, complaints or malfunctions? Is there a phone number for this, or an intranet portal or maybe a helpdesk where they can be helped in person?

The plus package covers all products and services for which the customer is charged extra. This could include lunch services during meetings or printing on poster paper. Bespoke services are tailored to suit the customer, so they are not described beforehand. Purchasing these services is done in agreement with the facilities department. This can be used in situations when a customer needs help organizing an event, for instance.

Your PSC in TOPdesk

You can help your customers by offering all the desired information in one place. TOPdesk makes it easy to share your PSC with your customers via the Self Service Desk. This is also where they can access their calls, reservations and requests for change; moreover, they can create a new call via the PSC. The new Form Designer module lets you further refine your PSC by creating forms for specific parts of your PSC. For instance: have you described how your organization deals with issuing mobile phones? If so, you can use the Form Designer to create a form specifically for this purpose. Creating your PSC in TOPdesk creates a window to display your services. This is convenient for both your customers and your colleagues. Facilities departments have a clear understanding of their own services, and internal customers know exactly what to do with their requests.

Categorizing your PSC

Categorizing your products and services (such as differentiating between free services and paid services) is convenient for your customers. Dividing products and services into basic packages, plus packages and bespoke has proven successful. The basic package features products and services that are supplied to all internal customers, free of charge. Examples of basic package services are cleaning activities, coffee and tea supplies and print supplies.

20 cUstomer in focUs

Photography: Jonas Mertens

From hUge logfile to convenient report

Managing countless servers is not easy. How do you search all logles and create convenient reports of this information? Over the past year, Dutch health insurance provider CZ Tilburg has been using the SCOM-TOPdesk link to manage their IT infrastructure from TOPdesk.

Text: Stefanie Klaassen

cUstomer in focUs 21

Tom Taminiau, technical application manager for CZ

22 CUSTOMER IN FOCUS

The how and why of SCOM

Tom Taminiau is a specialist in the Technical Application Management department. Here he works with the SCOM (Microsoft System Center Operations Manager)-TOPdesk link and makes sure that the application runs properly. Taminiaus department is part of a larger IT department. There are about 180 of us, says Taminiau, but CZ is a big company with over 3,000 employees in total. Here at the IT department we do everything ourselves. We maintain our own website, manage workflows and have our own server park here in Tilburg, with another park of almost the same size in a nearby city. At a certain point the decision was made to have SCOM feature more prominently within the company. At CZ we pay close attention to the processes and monitoring is very important, but it takes a lot of time and manpower, says Taminiau. That is why we started using this tool. If something goes wrong in the middle of the night, SCOM sends you a text message so you can fix the problem before the workday starts. TOPdesk and partner 3Ffity created the link in two days.

the link grants us insight into these processes and we can send monthly reports. This lets the management immediately see what is going well and what isnt.

Relief for the service desk

The TOPdesk-SCOM link has resulted in a lower workload for the service desk at CZ and a more efficient registration procedure. Before we, meaning the IT department, had to email the helpdesk to create a ticket for ourselves in TOPdesk whenever we received an alert in SCOM, explains Taminiau. This then had to be put through to the right person within our IT department. This is no longer necessary. TOPdesk knows which user is linked to the incident type and automatically assigns the incident to this person. The incident is put through and processed in TOPdesk. Taminiau says, Every day we receive various types of incidents for different clusters, persons or departments. For instance, if we receive an incident relating to Exchange, it is automatically sent to the Exchange manager. This burdens fewer people: fewer people are now involved with the incident process.

THE LINES IN OUR REGISTRATION PROCESS ARE SHORTER AND EVERYTHING IS MUCH FASTER

help maintain the overview. We only register such incidents via SCOM. Previously this process was not only timeconsuming, but a lot of knowledge was also lost. The help desk information was not always as complete as you would want: they cannot know the technical details of everything, so they are not always able to properly explain the situation. With TOPdesk, this step is now removed. One click and everything is sent to TOPdesk, and you immediately have all the information you need right there on your screen.

Straightforward reporting
SCOM lets organizations see server error messages. Thanks to the TOPdesk-SCOM link, these can be put through to TOPdesk in two clicks. But why do this in TOPdesk, if SCOM has already indicated that something has gone wrong in the IT infrastructure? Taminiau explains. We want to register everything. If a hard disk breaks or is full, SCOM lets us know. But we did not have a clear view of the number of errors that were generated for things that broke or did not go well. Now everything is clearly registered in TOPdesk,

Shorter lines
Now the lines in our registration process are so much shorter, everything is faster, explains Taminiau. This saves time for the helpdesk, but also for us. This lets us get straight back to our work. In the morning we log in and put the most important alerts through to TOPdesk. After registration we process it straight away. At first you were dependent on the duration of the helpdesk when an incident was assigned to you. For that matter, we do not register incidents in TOPdesk ourselves, to

All in all
Taminiau says that the TOPdesk link with SCOM has made his work a lot easier. He believes that every organization that uses both tools should have this link. Its simple, he says. If you use SCOM and have TOPdesk, this link is a solution. You can seamlessly integrate your service management and your system management. Soon we will be upgrading SCOM and switching to the newest version of TOPdesk. We are very satisfied with how things are going now.

cUstomer in focUs 23

SCOM IN FActs
The server park in Tilburg comprises about 1,000

registered machines.
On average we receive 250

to 300 system messages per day. But that is not to say

that these messages are always acute. For instance, we currently have

94 critical alerts, of which only 1 is vital.

An agent goes through the

server logfiles and any

handmade monitors, and reports on errors or anomalies. SCOM checks

what should text

happen with the incident:

should an email be sent, or is it so urgent that it requires a

message?

24 TOOL

COLIN BASSANT
is a TOPdesk consultant. He is specialized in documenting and sharing knowledge about TOPdesk and service management.

ARE YOU USING THE CALLER CARD?

Your service desk uses TOPdesk intensively. You register incidents and changes, put these through to the correct operator and keep track of your own task list. However, you may not be using all the useful features TOPdesk offers. One of these is the Caller Card.

Telephone? Open the Caller Card!

The Caller Card is the step that comes before registering an incident or request for change. You can open the Caller Card when a customer calls, for instance. On this card you can select the correct caller and register information in the Notes field. After hanging up you can create a new first or second line incident or request for change with the press of a button. All information you entered on the Caller Card is automatically copied to the new card, the selected caller is linked and your notes from the Notes field are

moved to the Request field. But that is not all you can do with the Caller Card.

All information at hand

Did you know that you can also use the Caller Card as a search screen? When you select the caller or branch, all incidents registered by this caller or branch will appear on the Logged Incidents sub tab. The Changes sub tab provides an overview of all requests for change previously registered by the person or branch in question. This helps you quickly find the incident or change you need. Using this sub tab can be useful when a

DID YOU KNOW YOU CAN USE THE CALLER CARD AS A SEARCH SCREEN?
customer contacts you about the status of a certain incident, for instance. Of course, when you pass this information on to the customer, you want to update the incident in TOPdesk.

Text: Colin Bassant

TooL 25

The Caller card features all incidents logged by this caller

You can do this by filling in the Notes field, selecting the incident in question on the Logged Incidents sub tab and using the Add to selected Incident button. The text from the Notes field is automatically added to the incidents Action field.

lets you link all these incidents to a single incident that has been assigned major incident status. This enables you to update the major incident with information on how the situation progresses. When the problem is resolved, all linked incidents can be closed at once. The Caller Card makes it easy to link new incidents to existing major incidents. On the Major Incidents sub tab you can find an overview of current major incidents. When you receive a call about such an incident you only have to select the right caller, select the major incident and then click on the Create new incident on the basis of selected Major Incident

button. This creates an incident featuring all the information from the major incident. The incident is also automatically linked to the major incident. The only thing you need to do is save the incident.

Linking incidents to major incident

When you are dealing with a large malfunction, you may receive many incidents about the same topic. In such situations, it is important to register how many incidents you receive. The major incident feature in TOPdesk

The Caller Card as starting point

As you can see, the Caller Card offers a lot of benefits. I advise you to use the Caller Card as your starting point for every incident or change. You can add a shortcut to your Quick Launch Bar by clicking on the pen icon in the bottom left corner.

26 TOPDESK ON TOUR

WORKING TOWARDS SHARED SERVICES

During the run up to TOPdesk on Tour 2013, TOPdesk launched the Collaboration Barometer*. This barometer measured the level of collaboration with customers and other departments. TOPdesk customers proved to be well on their way towards a shared tool, service desk and working processes for HR, FM and IT.

No shared tool Tool shared by two departments Tool shared by three departments

21%

42%

37%

One tool for several departments

Over 63 per cent of respondents uses TOPdesk for several departments. 42 per cent shares the tool between two departments; 21 per cent uses the
63%

tool for HR, FM and IT.

Text: Jordi Recasens

TOPDESK ON TOUR 27
27% 63%

1%

SSD ideal for calls Small group uses the SSD 74 per cent of respondents uses the Self Service Desk to support their users. This roughly corresponds with the percentage that indicates that the Self Service Desk is the ideal way to receive calls, namely 81 per cent.

Self Service Desk as central registration desk

47%

Entire organization uses the SSD 74%

81%

27%

SSD ideal for calls

Small group uses the SSD

Entire organization uses the SSD

25% 20% 15% 10% 05% 0% 25%

Nothing shared 20%

24%

Shared tool, service desk and processes

24 per cent of respondents has two departments sharing not only a tool but also processes and a service desk. In addition, 3 per cent has arranged this for the three supporting departments HR, FM and IT. They are already well on their way to shared services. 14 per cent of respondents has not yet started organizing shared services.

14%

03% 24%

Two departments

Three departments

15%

14%

Shared Service Management

You can cut costs by setting up a shared tool, service desk and processes. Moreover, doing so will 10% help you better meet your customers expectations of your services. TOPdesk sees the Shared Service Management trend as the future of service management. Introducing a shared tool is a great rst step 05% towards collaboration between several supporting departments. 03%
0%
* The Collaboration Barometer was lled in by 210 participants.
Nothing shared Two departments Three departments

28 WoRKInG SMaRTeR

Photography: Robin Kuijs

pAtRIck mAckAAIj
is an information distribution coordinator. He is specialized in technical issues and optimizing processes.

EXporting data from TOPdesk (part 2)

In the previous TOPdesk Magazine I showed you how to easily export interesting data from TOPdesk to Excel, enabling you to process it in another system. In this article I will explain more about the CSV Export Wizard add-on.

You want to be able to analyse interesting data in TOPdesk, such as the equipment you manage in Configuration Management, the customer details in Supporting Files and process information on process cards. In TOPdesk you can analyse this data using reports on the Dashboard pages. If you would rather work with Excel or a reporting tool, you can use TOPdesk to easily export data in Microsoft Excel format. You can consult exported data offline, or use it as a source when importing it to a different information system. I discussed these possibilities in the previous TOPdesk Magazine. In this article I will tell you about the CSV Export Wizard. This add-on is useful if you regularly perform the same export, wish to export data from linked cards or want to use data from tables that do not have a card. An example of this is a list of all operators and their operator groups, or a list of all current calls sorted according to the operators branch.

CSV Export Wizard add-on

The standard TOPdesk interface enables you to easily export data that can be found on the cards. If you regularly perform exports or want to export more data, the free CSV Export Wizard add-on may be what you are looking for. Unlike TOPdesk, the CSV Export Wizard generates CSV text files instead of Excel files. CSV stands for comma-separated value. In such files the end of a column is indicated using a specific delimiter such as a comma or semicolon. New rows start on a new line. Many programs, including Microsoft Excel, can work with this file type. The CSV Export Wizard can export the same data as TOPdesk. In addition, you can also export: 1. Data regarding linked cards, such as extra information about objects, callers, operators, or a calls suppliers. 2. Data for which there are no cards, such as drop-down lists and categorization. 3. References to the same table, such as categorization or sub branches.

Text: Patrick Mackaaij

WORKING SMARTER 29

Image 1 Step 1 in the CSV Export Wizard

Image 2 Step 2 in the CSV Export Wizard

After installation, every operator can start the CSV Export Wizard via http://[TOPdesk server hostname]/tas/secure/csv/. The CSV Export Wizard starts by choosing a source: a selection you previously saved in TOPdesk or a table from the database (Image 1). If you wish to open the file in Microsoft Excel, it can be useful to select a Column delimiter that is the same as the character that has been set up as the List Separator in Microsoft Windows (Control Panel > Region and Language > Additional settings). In European Windows installations the default List separator is a semicolon, in American installations it is a comma. Excel will then automatically divide the data into columns. Select the Row delimiter that suits the operating system you will use to open the export file. The Include column name option ensures TOPdesk exports the database field names in question as the first row functioning as a header above the columns. Some programs require double quotation marks around the content of a field: activate Use quotes for this.

Using Open file at execution, you can indicate whether you wish to immediately open the file and edit it further or save it at a fixed location. If you select the latter, indicate what should happen to the existing file: overwrite or append.

TIP: You can set up a standard location in the CSV Export Wizard. To do this, adjust the location.save parameter in the bespoke-work-resources\csvexport. properties file. Please note the double slashes and

You can determine the filename using Save result as. To include date and time in the filename, activate this option: Use a timestamp in the filename. In the next screen (Image 2) you can indicate the database fields you wish to export. The CSV Export Wizard displays the field name

30 WoRKInG SMaRTeR

Editorial
from the TOPdesk card and the field name in the database. If the field is related to another card, you will see the name of the table in question in the Linked table column. Clicking on the plus icon opens the field selection for that table. Data that links to itself, such as categories and subcategories, can be exported one level deep.
The TOPdesk Magazine covers subjects Want to comment? Go to www.scribd.com/TOPdesk

You can discover what a table is called in TOPdesk via Help > DataDict. Here you can see that Category and Subcategory are linked to the Classificatie table, for example. If necessary, contact your TOPdesk application manager if this menu option is not available. The Save Export button lets you save settings for exports. This enables you to quickly switch between different structures for your export files, saving you the trouble of setting up the columns to be exported each time. TOPdesk saves the settings of the saved exports on the TOPdesk server. The default location for this is web\secure\csv\properties. When removing the CSV Export Wizard, such as when you wish to install a new version after an update, TOPdesk empties this folder. This is why it is advisable to make a copy of this folder before updating. You can also adjust the default location in the bespoke-work-resources\csvexport. properties file via the location.properties parameter and restart TOPdesk.

that are topical in the world of professional service desks in IT, facilities and other service providing organizations. TOPdesk Magazine is intended for managers, service desk employees, facilities organizations and electronic city councils anyone who is involved with supporting clients on a daily basis. This concerns both the processes and the technology behind these services. TOPdesk Magazine is a TOPdesk publication Tel: +44 (0) 207 803 4200 Email: editorial@topdesk.com Editor-in-chief: Nicola van de Velde

You can open saved reports in the first screen of the CSV Export Wizard using the Saved Exports button. From here you can edit, run or delete a defined export.

TIP: If you frequently use the CSV Export Wizard, the overview of saved reports or a specific report, you can create a shortcut to them on your Quick Launch Bar.

Editors: Leah Clarke, Nienke Deuss, Timme Hos, Stefanie Klaassen, Milou Snaterse Translators: Leah Clarke, Nicola van de Velde Contributors: Colin Bassant, Judith Disberg, Claudia Funk, Patrick Mackaaij, Jasmijn Moerman, Jordi Recasens, Marieke Spapens, Robbert Petterson, Bram Verheij and Courtney Wheeler Layout: Elise Kerner Photography: Menno van der Bijl, Aad Hoogendoorn, Robin Kuijs and Jonas Mertens Copy editor: Leah Clarke A print run of 6,000 Quarterly magazine Languages: Dutch, English

Automatic exports
TOPdesk can run a saved export when you access a URL. For Windows Server, look at Scheduled tasks and the tool cURL (http://curl.haxx.se/). Include an operators login details in the URL using the parameters j_username and j_password. The TOPdesk setting Settings > Technical Settings > Login Settings > Operators Section > Allow parameters in the URL must be activated for this.

Add-oNs foR TOPdesk TOPdesk offers Enterprise customers a number of add-ons to address questions relevant to several customers. Add-on installation usually happens under supervision of a TOPdesk consultant, who can provide information and take care of the initial set-up. You can request the CSV Export Wizard add-on via the TOPdesk Extranet.

WORK TOWARDS A SUCCESSFUL SELF SERVICE DESK !

The more your end users use the SSD, the more time and money you will save.

After a successful promotion, your end users will be motivated to log their calls in the SSD.

Please feel free to contact us to discuss the possibilities of your Self Service Desk promotion.

+31 (0)15 270 09 60 contact@designagencyddc.com www.designagencyddc.com

32 klant in beeld

tips + tricks
Using HTML tags in comments in the Self Service Desk
From TOPdesk 5.2 onwards you can use a number of HTML tags to format the comment text for calls and reservations in the Self Service Desk. This makes it easier to present instructions or other information to your callers in a clear way. In addition to text formatting, it is now also possible to create a table or add an image, for instance. 1. Under Settings, go to the Module Settings for the Self Service Desk. 2. Select Call Management or Reservations Management. 3. On the General tab you can adjust the text in the comments field for a number of languages. * > You will now see the comments with HTML formatting when you create a new call or reservation in the Self Service Desk. * Permitted HTML tags: a, b, blockquote, br, caption, cite, code, col, colgroup, dd, dl, dt, em, h1, h2, h3, h4, h5, h6, i, img, li, ol, p, pre, q, small, strike, strong, sub, sup, table, tbody, td, tfoot, th, thread, tr, u, ul. Please note: advanced HTML features are not supported and are therefore removed when saved. Uploading files using drag and drop is possible in all TOPdesk modules that have a progress trail. It is also possible to click on Upload a file in all internet browsers; doing so lets you navigate to your files. Moreover, it is now possible to upload documents or screenshots using drag and drop in all browsers except Internet Explorer. This lets you move several documents from your desktop or a folder to the Action field in TOPdesk. The files are uploaded once you release them in the Action field.

Uploading files using drag and drop

From TOPdesk 5.2 onwards it is possible to upload files in the Operators Section before you save the card. You can do this using the Upload a file button in the progress trail. After clicking on this, you can immediately select one or more files. It is no longer necessary to first save the card before you can add files.

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Copyright 2013 TOPdesk UK limited. Although this magazine has been produced with the utmost care and attention, the writers cannot be held responsible in any way for any damages that may occur due to errors and / or deficiencies in this publication.