Chapter 19: Managing Service Queues

CHAPTER 19: MANAGING SERVICE QUEUES

Objectives
The objectives are: Understand the basics of queues and the flow of cases and activities through queues. Create public queues and routing rules for them. Know how to delete queues. Work with queues, including assigning items and accepting them.

Introduction
This lesson explains how Microsoft Dynamics CRM service queues work, including how to create public queues and routing rules for queues. It discusses the process of deleting queues and explains how to view the list of cases and activities in queues and how to accept and assign items from queues.

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Overview of Queues
Microsoft Dynamics CRM includes queuing and routing tools designed to improve how incoming requests for customer service are handled. Microsoft Dynamics CRM queues are folders that contain a list of cases or activities logged into the system. The system includes two standard personal work queues: Assigned: This folder contains active cases and activities that have been assigned to the user, but that have not yet been accepted. This can include e-mail messages received. In Progress: This folder contains cases and activities that have been accepted and are currently being worked on.

Your organization can create other queues to manage work items. You can create queues based, for instance, on existing team assignments or subject matter expertise, and modify and merge queues as organizational, product, and customer needs change. Decide on the appropriate structure for queues and create the routing rules to move cases or activities into the appropriate queues. The goal of creating multiple queues is to keep each case type separate to ensure the proper representative or team is following up with the customer in a timely manner. Using queues allows a team to monitor what has and has not been followed up. Cases and activities reside in the queue and are shared until a service representative accepts the item, taking responsibility for handling it. Public queues also enable a user to monitor the queue and dispatch or assign items to other users. Accepting or assigning an item takes it out of the queue so no one else is working on the same case or activity at the same time. When a Customer Service Representative (CSR) accepts an item from a queue, it moves to his or her In Progress queue, where it can be resolved, taken to the next level of support, or assigned to another user for resolution and/or escalation. Queues can only be viewed from the Workplace area. Users can view the queues for their business unit, but the user's security privileges determine access to the cases or activities in the queue. A user who has the appropriate permissions can create and delete queues through the Settings area. Although queues were primarily designed for service management, such as handle customer issues, they can be used to handle activities from other stages of the customer lifecycle. For example, an organization might create queues to handle parts of the process for developing Statements of Work, such as technical research, drafting the proposal, etc. A sales person working on an opportunity might create an activity for calling the customer to discuss technical requirements and assign it to the Technical Research queue, for a specialist to perform.

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Scenario
The Customer Service Department at One Dilly Corporation has multiple queues to which different cases are routed depending upon case type. The queues are broken out by type of issue: product defects, documentation requests, customer complaints, and so on. Cases are routed either by users or through workflow processes to the appropriate queue. One Dilly's customer service representatives are divided into teams based on their skills and responsibilities within the organization. Some representatives monitor multiple queues based on their skills. Cases are accepted by representatives based on skill and duration the case has been open.

Flow of Items through Queues

The following is a summary of how cases and activities flow through queues: A call or other communication comes in and a service case is created. The user or manager manually assigns the case to a queue or a specific user, or the case is routed through Workflow processes. If the case is assigned to a user, it moves to the user's Assigned queue. If the case is assigned to a public queue, it becomes available for any user to accept and resolve. Users review the cases in the queue and accept selected cases. The case or activity appears in the user's In Progress queue. The user regularly reviews the cases in his or her Assigned queue. You cannot reject cases in the Assigned queue. You can assign a case to another user or queue, or you can accept the case. Accepted cases move to the user's In Progress queue.

Queues can also be assigned to e-mail addresses. In that case, all incoming emails to that address go directly to the queue as activity records, where they can be picked up like other activities. Note that if a customer chooses to e-mail or call on an existing case, Microsoft Dynamics CRM bypasses any routing rules and sends the activity directly to the CSR who owns the case. If the CSR is not available, the system asks the customer if he or she wants to create a new case and enter the queue.

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Setting Up Public Queues

Microsoft Dynamics CRM queues are public entities. They are temporary folders to which collaborative records such as cases and activities can be routed and reside. There are two steps to setting up queue services: 1. Create a logical organization of queues. 2. Create routing rules to move cases or activities to the appropriate queue. Your organization must take the time to plan out a set of queues that model the way that the organization assigns cases/activities. For example: If the CSRs are organized by product, you can create queues to handle product-specific calls, such as Printer Model A, Printer Model B, and so on. If the CSRs are organized by expertise, you can create queues by type of expertise, such as device drivers, installation, troubleshooting, and so on).

It is important to use logical, consistent naming conventions when creating public queues. During the initial implementation, create naming conventions that are consistent with the organization's policies and processes. NOTE: If a queue does not have an e-mail address assigned to it in the E-mail field. Then the queue will not receive any e-mail activity in Microsoft Dynamics CRM. If you enter a user's e-mail address, e-mail sent to the queue goes to that e-mail address. A queue can also share an e-mail address that has a record such as an account or contact.

Procedure: Create or edit a queue

1. In the Navigation Pane, click Settings, and then click Business Management. 2. On the Business Management homepage, click Queues. 3. On the Actions toolbar, click New. 4. On the General tab, enter the necessary information, such as: Queue Name: Enter a short, descriptive name consistent with your organization's queue naming conventions. Business Unit: Enter the business unit that this queue falls under. You can use the Lookup icon to search for a business unit. Owner: Enter the user who will be responsible for the maintenance of the queue. You can use the Lookup icon to search for a user. E-mail: If you are using e-mail addresses for queues, enter the email address for this queue. E-mail addresses must be valid. For example, someone@microsoft.com(mailto:someone@microsoft.com)

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Under Incoming E-mail, select one of the following options: All e-mail messages E-mail messages in response to CRM e-mail E-mail messages from CRM Leads, Contacts, and Accounts E-mail Access Configuration: Configure how emails are routed in the organization. Contract your system administrator for more information.

5. Click Save and Close.

Creating Routing Rules

Routing is the process of directing the cases and activities to the appropriate queues or users. Based on the queues and rules you have set, Microsoft Dynamics CRM can automatically route cases to the correct user or queue. An organization can use routing rules to determine how service calls are handled within a queue or to provide different types or levels of service. For example, you can create queues that handle only specific types of calls, such as high-priority, VIP, or escalated calls. Note that if a customer chooses to e-mail or call on an existing case, Microsoft Dynamics CRM bypasses the routing mechanism and sends the activity directly to the CSR who owns the case. If the CSR is not available, the system asks the customer if he or she wants to create a new case and enter the queue.

Adding Routing Rules through Workflow Processes

Routing rules are created by creating workflow processes. Workflow processes are discussed in Lesson 4, A Customer-Centered View and in Lesson 7, Opportunity Management. This section does not detail the process of creating workflows for routing. However, it discusses some of the general guidelines and uses of workflow routing processes. To create routing workflows, decide: What specific entities require rules The event that triggers the routing workflow The conditions that the workflow checks to decide where to route the case or activity The queue or user to which the workflow is routed

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You can use workflows to create routing rules for: Cases: Route cases that are created and have specific properties, or existing cases whose properties are changed. Activities: Route new activities, generally of a specific type and with specific characteristics.

For example, you might route all new cases for a specific product, or that have a specific priority, or even a specific service level. You might route task activities that are for opportunities that are in the Statement of Work (SOW) phase and pertain to a particular product, and assign them to the queue that specializes in SOWs for that product. Common triggers for routing workflows include: The case or activity record is created. The case or activity record's attributes change. The case or activity record's status changes. The user initiates the routing workflow manually.

Workflow routing rules often check conditions for the case/activity or its related records, including such things as: Subject Priority Service level Status Logical account Account classification

To route the item, you assign it. You can assign cases or activities to users or queues. The queue might represent an individual or a team. BEST PRACTICE: Before creating workflow processes for case routing, you must have a good understanding of an organization's business policies and procedures to make sure that the workflow processes will perform the required tasks. It is also important during the initial implementation to test all workflow processes before bringing them into a live production environment to verify the required processes.

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Demonstration: Create a Queue
This demonstration illustrates how to create a public queue in Microsoft Dynamics CRM.

Scenario
The Customer Service Manager has noticed an increase in calls related to [product problem] and decides to have a CSR dedicate time to these cases as she has specialized knowledge in this ea. The Manager creates a service queue named [queue name]. This queue will allow customer service representatives to route all [product problem] cases to this queue for the appropriate Customer Service representative to work on. Goal Description The goal of this demonstration is to create a queue.

Steps
1. In the Navigation Pane, click Settings and then click Business Management. 2. On the Business Management home page, click Queues. 3. On the Actions toolbar, click New. 4. Enter the information below: Queue Name E-mail Description Business Unit Owner [queue name] [email address] [description] [Business Unit] [Owner]

5. Click Save and Close.

Deleting Queues
Queues can only be deleted by users with appropriate permissions to manage queues. They cannot be deleted when there are records in the queues. All records must be re-assigned to another queue or user before deleting the queue. BEST PRACTICE: If there are workflow processes that route cases or activities to the queue that is to be deleted, make sure that you update all routing rules before deleting the queue.

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Procedure: Delete a queue
1. In the Navigation Pane, click Settings, and then click Business Management. 2. On the Business Management homepage, click Queues. 3. In the list, select the queues that you want to delete. 4. On the Actions toolbar, click Delete. 5. In the confirmation message, click OK.

Working with Queues

Each user can view the cases and details for his or her Assigned and In Progress queues. Depending upon your permissions, you can view public queues. The ability to view the top level queue folder is not restricted by security. However, standard security rules apply to the items within the queue, so you can only view the cases or activities to which you have access. BEST PRACTICE: Restrictive security rules for cases can limit the ability of users to view them in a queue. If restrictive security is implemented on cases, users may be able to assign a case to a queue for another team, but they would not be able to view the case. At minimum, all service employees should have Global Read access for Cases. To enable a 360-degree view of the customer, all employees need Global Read access. Contact the system administrator for assistance. From the list of cases, you can open a case to view its details. You can also select a case in the list and accept it to move it to your In Progress queue. Lastly, you can assign items from the queue to another user or queue. Note that you do not need special privileges to assign an item.

Procedure: View the items in a queue

1. In the Navigation Pane, click Workplace, and then under My Work click Queues. 2. In the Queue Pane, select a queue. 3. View the list of cases and activities.

Procedure: Assign an activity to a user or queue

1. In the Navigation Pane, click Workplace, and then under My Work click Activities. 2. In the Queue Pane, select a queue. 3. In the list of records, select the record to assign to another user. 4. On the Actions toolbar, click Assign.

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5. In the Confirm Assignment dialog box, select one of the following: Assign to me: Select this option to assign the record to yourself. Assign to another user: Select this option to assign the record to another user, and then enter the user to whom you are assigning the item. You can click the Lookup icon to search for a user or queue.

6. Click OK. 7. Click Save and Close. NOTE: When assigning a case to queue, the ownership of the record does not change until a user has accepted it. Also, you cannot assign resolved cases.

Procedure: Accept a Queue Item

1. In the Navigation Pane, click Workplace, and then under My Work click Queues. 2. In the Queue Pane, select a queue. 3. In the list of records, select the record you want to accept. 4. On the Actions toolbar, click Accept. 5. In the confirmation message, click OK. 6. To verify that the item has been assigned to you, in the Queue Pane, select the In Progress queue. The accepted case or activity should appear.

Demonstration: Assigning Queue Items

This demonstration illustrates how to assign queue items in Microsoft Dynamics CRM.

Scenario
The Customer Service department at [user's organization] is currently experiencing increased call volume. The Customer Service Manager believes this increase is because of the increased number of cases regarding contract renewal. To better handle the volume of calls and use these calls as a selling opportunity, the manager has decided to assign all contract renewal items to the [sales rep queue] which is a queue for sales representatives. Goal Description The goal of this demonstration is to assign an item to a queue.

Steps
1. In the Navigation Pane, click Service, and then click Cases. 2. Under View, select All Cases. 3. In the list, if necessary click the Title column header to sort the cases by title.

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4. In the list, select the three cases titled: [case title1] [case title2] [case title3] 5. On the Actions toolbar, click Assign. 6. In the Confirm Assignment dialog box, select Assign to another user. Then, enter [sales rep queue]. 7. Click OK.

Summary
Every user has default queues Assigned and In Progress for handling their activities and cases. Service departments that organize support calls, for instance by product or expertise can create additional queues to handle specific types of calls, and workflow processes to automatically route items to queues. Users can view the items in queues to which they have access and can assign and accept items from queues.

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Test Your Knowledge

Records Assigned to Queues
1. How are records assigned to queues? Select all that apply. (Select all that apply.) ( ) Manually by a user ( ) Manually by a manager ( ) Automatically by workflow ( ) Manually by dragging them to the queue

Records Stored in Queues

2. What type of records can be stored in queues? Select all that apply. (Select all that apply.) ( ) Leads ( ) Opportunities ( ) Cases ( ) Activities

Queues and E-mail

3. What occurs when a queue is assigned an e-mail address? ( ) Outgoing e-mail has that address as the From: ( ) All CRM e-mail routes through that mailbox ( ) Any e-mail received by that address is a Microsoft Dynamics CRM activity placed in the queue ( ) Incoming e-mail on Cases goes to that mailbox

View Queues
4. Where can queues be viewed from? ( ) Case Actions menu ( ) Accounts Actions menu ( ) Service area ( ) Workplace area

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Create or Delete Queues
5. Who can create or delete queues? ( ) Any user who has access to view the queue ( ) Only service managers who have access to the queue ( ) Any users who have appropriate permissions ( ) By default the customer service manager

Cases
6. Where does a case go when it is assigned to a user? ( ) The user's In Process queue ( ) The user's Workplace queue ( ) The user's Assigned queue ( ) The user's Accepted queue

Progress Queue
7. What can the user do with items put in their In Progress queue? Select all that apply. (Select all that apply.) ( ) Assign the item back to a public queue ( ) It can be assigned to another user ( ) Complete the item ( ) Cancel the item

Reassigning Activities
8. What activities can be reassigned to another user? Select all that apply. (Select all that apply.) ( ) Fax ( ) Task ( ) Phone Call ( ) Appointment

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Lab 19.1 - Creating and Assigning to Queues

In this lab you create a queue and assign some cases to it in Microsoft Dynamics CRM. As you perform the instructions, use the information in the Scenario and Goal Description to complete the lab. Refer the Introduction to Training chapter for information about the two levels of lab instruction and the lab solution in Appendix B. Scenario The Customer Service Manager at [user organization] is responsible for managing all service queues and routing cases and activities to their appropriate queues. He also is responsible for handling any escalated support calls that are routed to the escalated support queue. The Customer Service Manager has noticed that there are a number of support cases related to marketing questions, such as what colors are available for the new model year, and where customers can get a product catalog. Because of this, he has decided to create a queue to manage marketing-based cases. Goal Description Use Microsoft Dynamics CRM to accomplish the following: Create a queue. Assign cases to the new queue.

Make sure you are logged on as Stefan Delmarco. The user name is Stefan and the password is Pa$$w0rd.

Challenge Yourself!
Use the information in the Scenario and Goal Description to complete the lab.

Need a Little Help?

Follow the steps below:

Step by Step
1. In the Navigation Pane, click Settings, and then click Business Management. 2. On the Business Management homepage, click Queues.

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3. On Actions toolbar, click New. 4. Use the information below to fill out the rest of the form. Queue Name Business Unit Owner E-mail Marketing [Business Unit name] [Owner] [Email address]

5. Click Save and Close. 6. In the Navigation Pane, click Workplace, and then under My Work click Queues. 7. In the Queue Pane, select a queue. 8. In the list of records, select a record. 9. On the Actions toolbar, click Assign. 10. In the Confirm Assignment dialog box, select Assign to another user. Then, enter [sales rep queue]. 11. Click OK.

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Quick Interaction: Lessons Learned

Take a moment and write down three key points you have learned from this chapter: 1.

2.

3.

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Solutions
Test Your Knowledge
Records Assigned to Queues
1. How are records assigned to queues? Select all that apply. (Select all that apply.) () Manually by a user () Manually by a manager () Automatically by workflow ( ) Manually by dragging them to the queue

Records Stored in Queues

2. What type of records can be stored in queues? Select all that apply. (Select all that apply.) ( ) Leads ( ) Opportunities () Cases () Activities

Queues and E-mail

3. What occurs when a queue is assigned an e-mail address? ( ) Outgoing e-mail has that address as the From: ( ) All CRM e-mail routes through that mailbox () Any e-mail received by that address is a Microsoft Dynamics CRM activity placed in the queue ( ) Incoming e-mail on Cases goes to that mailbox

View Queues
4. Where can queues be viewed from? ( ) Case Actions menu ( ) Accounts Actions menu ( ) Service area () Workplace area

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Create or Delete Queues
5. Who can create or delete queues? ( ) Any user who has access to view the queue ( ) Only service managers who have access to the queue () Any users who have appropriate permissions ( ) By default the customer service manager

Cases
6. Where does a case go when it is assigned to a user? ( ) The user's In Process queue ( ) The user's Workplace queue () The user's Assigned queue ( ) The user's Accepted queue

Progress Queue
7. What can the user do with items put in their In Progress queue? Select all that apply. (Select all that apply.) () Assign the item back to a public queue () It can be assigned to another user () Complete the item ( ) Cancel the item

Reassigning Activities
8. What activities can be reassigned to another user? Select all that apply. (Select all that apply.) () Fax () Task () Phone Call () Appointment

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