Streamlining Operations and Creating Efficiencies with OMT – FSM Integration

[Grace Petrucci]

Streamlining Operations and Creating Efficiencies with OMT – FSM Integration

Customer Challenges

In a complex operational environment, multiple ordering systems often coexist, each serving distinct purposes or catering to different business units. Despite technological advancements, manual processes still play a significant role, particularly in handling exceptions or unique scenarios that automated systems struggle to address. However, reliance on manual intervention introduces the risk of errors and delays. Order fallouts, resulting from discrepancies or failures in processing orders, are not uncommon and require swift resolution to prevent disruptions in service delivery. Additionally, managing in-flight changes and accommodating change requests pose ongoing challenges, requiring agile processes and robust communication channels to ensure seamless execution and customer satisfaction.

Creating Efficiencies to Streamline Operations

Efficiency and effectiveness in product and service delivery are paramount goals for any organization seeking to maintain competitiveness and customer satisfaction. Reducing the time required to launch a new product or service streamlines processes and enables quicker adaptation to market demands. Increasing the percentage of orders fulfilled on time not only enhances customer satisfaction but also bolsters the organization's reputation for reliability and dependability.

Customers are looking to improve responsiveness to change orders and having a streamlined integration between OMT and FSM would ensure agility and flexibility in addressing their needs and market dynamics. Reducing the cost of order fallout through proactive measures minimizes financial losses and optimizes resource allocation is a primary requirement for all customers. With streamlining workflows to reduce employee effort per order not only boosts productivity but also fosters a positive work environment, ultimately contributing to sustained organizational success.

OMT/FSM Use Case Description.

The following use cases are the main focus areas for the OMT and FSM integration.

Create Work orders

Automating the creation of the work order from OMT product, service and resource orders and order tasks is fundamental in reducing OPEX and streamlining workflows. The work order creation supports both the manual and automated creation of work orders. During design time, the work orders that need to be automatically created can be defined. Creating work orders for the field service team to request field service activities such as installation, site survey etc provide enable efficiency in the order fulfillment process.

Manage Updates

Managing updates ensures the exchange of data between OMT and FSM is consistently synchronized. This process provides a seamless flow of information for all users to ensure that they are updated on the status of both the order generated by OMT and the work order generated by FSM.

Have the capability to view the updated work orders created for the order fulfillment  process avoids logging directly into FSM or reaching out to the FSM team to receive updates. This provides a seamless integration of OMT and FSM and ensures that information is available in both systems at all times. This allows customers to have visibility over the progress and available information from several teams which facilitates coordination and successful order closures in a timely manner.

OMT will always be available to provide information on any required change as well as the completion of any type of order. For example in flight order changes, state changes within work orders, etc. will all be available within OMT.

Support Design Time Configuration

Supporting design time configuration facilitates the automation of work order creation by using a predefined work order templet with user-defined conditions.  In other words, it involves establishing conditions to initiate the creation of a work order for the corresponding order task using a predefined template. This enables the user to define specific criteria that determine when to create an order using a work order template.

The design time configuration capability enables the customization of product specifications, service specifications, and order tasks necessary for the work order creation. This in turn facilitates the generation of domain orders and order tasks throughout the order fulfillment process.  During the design time, the system admin would be able to define the need for the work order for specific services. If a workflow is intended to be consistently applied, it would be best to incorporate the workflow during the design time set up phase.

Data Modeling for OMT and FSM Integration

The below diagram is the data model mapping for the OMT and FSM integration.

Within OMT the Customer order is decomposed into the order line item which gets further decomposed into the Product Order, Service Order and Resource Order (I.e. OMT domain order). For each product/service/resource order, they can be further have order tasks created for the sub-flow triggering.

As part of the OMT/FSM integration,  there can now be an FSM work order created for each OMT domain order and/or each OMT order task. Some examples are listed below:

• An example of a order task is to have a feasibility analysis and a corresponding  site survey that also need to be conducted. Then from an OMT Order Task (Feasibility Study), a corresponding FSM Work Order (Site Survey) can be created in order to ensure that the appropriate site information is made available for the feasibility study.
• Also from a Service Order there can be a corresponding work order for the installation and integration as another example.

FSM also supports the creation of the work order from a work order template.  As a result, a corresponding template will be used for the specific work orders placed. At the same time, FSM will also trigger a set of related Work Order tasks for the specific Work Order placed to manage the work order lifecycle.

 ServiceNow OMT/FSM Implementation

Configure to create the work order for OMT domain orders and order tasks.

• The order management fulfillment process requires Work orders to be created automatically for the decomposed product, service and resource order and order tasks for the field service activities.
• OMT supports design time configuration using decision tables to map product, service, and resource specifications to work order template to create work orders for fulfillment process.
• Navigate to All > Decision Builder.
• On the landing page, the following two decision tables are used for mapping specifications and request definitions to the work order template
  • Work order policy for Domain Order
  • Work order policy for Order task

• Select the Work order policy for Domain Order decision table.
• The Domain Order decision table is used to decide which product, service, and resource domain order requires a work order for the order fulfillment process.  
• The result field in a work order template which is used to create a work order when a new decomposed order is created for the product, service, and resource specification.
• The values of the decision table are configured as part of the out-of-the-box demo data.

• Navigate back to the decision table list and select Work Order Policy for Order Task decision table
• OMT supports work orders for both domain orders and order tasks. This decision table is used to configure conditions to create work orders for request definitions based on which order tasks are created
  • For example, if you want to create a work order for a site survey for an LLD design order task for SD-WAN Service, we can define that in this decision table. So, when an LLD design task is created, the SD-WAN site survey work order is created automatically for the field service team.

• Add the new Conditions record for LLD Creation shown below and save the update.
  • Specification: SD-WAN Service Package v2
  • Domain Order Action: Add
  • Request Type: LLD Creation
  • WO Template: SD WAN site survey

Submitting an Order from Workspace

• Navigate to Workspaces -> CSM/FSM Configurable Workspace.
• Navigate to Customer -> Accounts. And open the Funco Intl record.

• On the Account form, select Create Order UI action

• A pop-up window with option to choose Order Type appears.
  • Select ‘Order a new product’ and
  • click on the Create action button.

• Clicking Create loads a guided ordering flow. Fill in the details as follows –
  • Account = <Funco Intl> and
  • Contact = <Sarah Johnson>.
• Click on Continue.

• A pop-up to select a location appears (if it does not, refresh the browser)
  • Click in the Locations box and select one of the locations from the list that appears.
  • Once Location is added, click on Add.
  • Notice the location getting added to the Order in the left pane.

• Select Products:
  • Under Product Offerings, select the Offering = <Premium SD-WAN Offering v2>
  • Quantity = 1, remains unchanged.
  • Click on Configure Items.

• View product offering Hierarchy
  • Based on the Offering selected, observe the Order Line Items Product Specifications) that were added
    • Validate these by navigating to the Product Offering > Catalog Hierarchy by clicking on the info icon next to the Offering name as shown below.
    • Once validated, switch back to the Configure products tab to continue with the ordering journey.

Order Line Configuration

• For the SD-WAN Controller Order Line Item, click on the Characteristics tab –
  • Hover the mouse on the Tenancy characteristic, this makes the preview icon visible. Click on the icon to set a value.

• Click in the Characteristic option box, select a value and click on Update.

 

• For the SD-WAN Edge Device v2 Order Line Item, click on the Characteristics tab and update the characteristic values if needed.

• Click on the Review action button in the top right after updating the characteristic value.
  • The review page shows the Order Line Items and pricing  information
• Click on the Submit action button to submit the order
  • A pop-up returns the order number.
  • Click on View Orders to continue

View and Approve the Order

• In the Workspace > All Customer Orders list, identify the order submitted in the previous section and click on its number to open it.

• The Order Line Items tab shows the line items submitted as part of this Order.

• Navigate back to the Details tab of the Order and click on the Approve action button on the top right
  • Notice the Order state changes from New to Acknowledged to In Progress
  • Orders can be auto-approved as well

View the decomposed orders, order task, and corresponding work orders

• After the Order is approved, the decomposition process starts and the domain orders are created, and sub-flows required for fulfillment process are triggered to create order tasks.
• Navigate back to the Order line items tab on the customer order form and select the SD-WAN Service Package V2 Order line item

• On SD-WAN Service package V2 order line-item form, select the Product Orders tab to view the decomposed Product Orders.

• Select the Product Order created for SD-WAN Service Package V2.

• On SD-WAN Service Package V2 product order form, select Order Tasks tab to view order tasks created. Select the Perform Order Validation task.

• On the Perform Order Validation order task, Select Close to close the Order Task

• Navigate back to Order Tasks tab of SD-WAN Service Package v2 Product Order and select the Refresh icon to see the next task created. Select the LLD creation Order task

• On the LLD creation Order task, notice that a Work Order tab is created. A Work Note related to the Work Order is created with the details.

• The work order is automatically created based on the decision table configuration for the LLD creation task. Select the Work Order to view the details.

• Select the work order to view the details. Notice that the work order is automatically created with the following order and order task details.
  • Customer name
  • Contact
  • Location
  • Template (as per the decision table configuration)
  • Initiated from (the LLD creation task id)

• All the related work orders of an order task or domain order are either closed or canceled prior to the order task and domain order closure. To view the warning message, navigate back to the LLD Creation order task details form and select Close.

• Once the work order is created, it is managed and fulfilled in the Field service management flow based on the type of work order and the workflows applicable to the work order
• The cancellation of the work order is done by FSM users.
• Navigate back to the Order task form and view the work notes related to the cancellation of the work order. Select Close to close the LLD Creation Order task record.

• Navigate back to Order Tasks tab of the SD-WAN Service Package v2 product order and select the Refresh icon to see the next task created. Select the Reserve Resource Order task

• OMT provides the option to manually create a work order for an order task and domain order. The Create work order UI action is available to all In Progress order tasks and domain orders.
• Select Create work order to create a work order for the Reserve Resource order task and Select Create on confirmation pop-up window.

• The work order is created with the details from OMT order tasks. Make required changes to the work order if needed and select Save.

• Navigate back to the Reserve Resource Order task form and Select Save.
  • A work note is created with the work order task
• 

   Select the Work Orders tab to see the work order created and associated to the order task

• The fulfillment of the work order is managed in FSM.
• Navigate back to Work Order form and cancel the work order by adding the cancellation reason in the work note field and selecting Cancel.  
  • This will simulate the cancellation of  the work order from FSM to showcase the final state.

• Navigate back to the Reserve resource order task and select Close

• Navigate back to the Order tasks tab of SD-WAN Service Package v2 product order
  • Select the Refresh icon to see the next task created.
  • Select the LLD Sign off Order task

• Navigate back to the Product Order for SD-WAN Service Package v2 form
  • Select on Product orders tab to view the decomposed child product orders.
  • Select Product order for SD-WAN Edge Device v2

• On Product Order for SD-WAN Edge Device v2 form
  • Select the Work Orders tab to view the work orders created automatically based on the decision table configuration