Using Microsoft Dynamics CRM

Update service calendars in Microsoft Dynamics CRM

Published: September 27, 2006

There are few things a scheduler dreads more than someone calling in sick when the service calendar is full of service activities. With the following steps, you can keep your business running smoothly:

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Block off the employee’s work day to prevent additional service activities from being scheduled.

•

Find and reschedule existing service activities.

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Assign an activity to call the customer to let them know of the change.

The following scenario takes you through the steps to take care of that sick employee, at least at work.

As the scheduler for your organization, you receive a call from Terrance, a shop technician. He’s sick and will not be coming in today. In Microsoft Dynamics CRM 3.0, you view the schedule and see that Terrance has a day full of service activities that you are now going to have to reschedule.

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Related Links
•Reschedule an appointment in 1 minute
•Fast ways to move around the service calendar
•Providing service with Microsoft Dynamics CRM 3.0
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On This Page
Block the user’s scheduleBlock the user’s schedule
Find the service activities to rescheduleFind the service activities to reschedule
Reschedule service activitiesReschedule service activities
Create a follow-up phone call and assign it to the receptionistCreate a follow-up phone call and assign it to the receptionist

Block the user’s schedule

First, you must block Terrance out of today’s work schedule.

1.

In the Navigation Pane, click Service, and then click Service Calendar.

Tip: If you do not see Service Calendar in the Navigation Pane, make sure that you have the correct permissions. The Service Calendar is not available in Microsoft CRM Client for Outlook, unless your system has been customized.

2.

To find Terrance’s schedule, enter the first few letters of his first name in the Look for box, select User in the Type list, and then click Find.

3.

In the list, double-click the name to open Terrance’s user record.

4.

Under Details, click Work Hours.

5.

In the calendar, make sure that today’s date is selected.

6.

On the Set Up menu, click Time Off.

7.

In the Schedule Time Off dialog box, in the Reasons box type “Out Sick” or another explanation.

8.

Make sure the All Day Event check box is selected.
If Terrance were going to be out for more than one day, in the Duration list, you could select the number of days.

9.

Click OK. In the Calendar, a red color block displays the time off.

10.

Click Save and Close to close the user record. The Service Calendar remains open.

In the Service Calendar, Terrance’s time slots will show that he is unavailable and his name will not be returned for any scheduling.

Note: Direct appointments and service activities can still be made for him, but an alert will be displayed that Terrance is being scheduled outside his work hours.

Find the service activities to reschedule

Now that you have blocked Terrance’s schedule, you can reschedule his service activities for today. Because you changed Terrance’s schedule, all his service activities today will have conflicts and can be found in the open Service Calendar.

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In the Service Calendar, on the Actions toolbar, click Show Conflicts. All his service activities will be outlined in red.

Tip: To view more of the schedule in the window, in the Calendar pane, click Day and then slide the Zoom scale a few increments to the left.

Reschedule service activities

1.

On the Service Calendar, select the time slot for the service activity, and on the Actions toolbar, click Reschedule.

If you accidentally open the Service Activity form, on the Actions toolbar, click Schedule to open theSchedule Service Activity form.

2.

In the Resource box, click Terrance’s name, and then press the Delete key. The name is removed from the box.

3.

In the Schedule Service Activity form, click Find Available Times.

4.

If other resources are available to perform the service, the list appears.
If there are no resources or appointments available for that time, change the requested time and try again.

5.

Select a time slot from the list and then click Schedule.

The Schedule Service Activity form closes, but do not close the Service Activity form yet.

Create a follow-up phone call and assign it to the receptionist

Because the time and date of the service activity has changed, you decide to set up a follow-up activity for your receptionist to call the customer with an update.

1.

On the Service Activity form, on the Actions toolbar, click Follow Up.

2.

In the Form Assistant pane, in the Activity Type list, select Phone Call.

3.

In the Subject box, type an explanation, such as “Notify of schedule change”.

4.

Select a due date and time.

5.

Click the Look Up button next to the Assign To box, and then select the name of the receptionist.

6.

Click Save and Open.

7.

In the Phone Call form, expand the Form Assistant pane.

8.

Click the Recipient box, and then in the Form Assistant pane, select the customer.

9.

The customer name fills the Recipient box in the Phone Call form.

10.

Double-click the customer’s name to open their record.

11.

In the customer’s record, copy the phone number, and then close the record.

12.

Paste the phone number in the Phone Number box in the Phone Call form.

13.

Click Save and Close.

14.

To close the service activity, click Save and Close.

After rescheduling the rest of Terrance’s service activities, you can be confident that your schedule is back on track and those customers will be notified of the changes to their services.


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