Create an Incident

The following procedures walk you through the steps required to create an Incident and how to classify it as a Major Incident. The process to create a request follows a similar workflow.

Log the Incident

Create an Incident record and provide initial details.

On the CSM Desktop Client toolbar, select New > New Incident. See CSM Desktop Client toolbar.
Note: If configured, an Incident can also be logged by an automated process or by a customer in the CSM Portal. After an Incident is logged, a CSM creator or technician moves the Incident through the Incident workflow. See Incident and Service Request Workflow.
Record Incident details:
1. Call Source: Select a source or method of contact from the drop-down list.
2. Customer: Select a customer from the Related Item Picker.
  1. (Optional) If the Incident is being submitted on behalf of another user, select Submit on Behalf Of and select the requester. You are also prompted to select who should receive email notifications.
    You can select this option again to change or remove the requester.
  2. Select OK.
    Note: You can also select Add Requester in the Actions list to submit on behalf of another user. To remove or change the requester, select Remove/Change Requester in the Actions list.
3. Description: Provide a description for the Incident (example: Cannot print to network printer). The description field is a rich text field. To format the text or embed an image, select the Zoom button. See About Rich Text.

Classify the Incident

The second step on an Incident form is to classify the Incident. Categorize, prioritize, and escalate to a Major Incident, if necessary.

Service Classification: Enter a service classification or select the Related Item Picker. The Related Items dialog box opens with a list of available service classifications. Select the classification that matches the Service, Category, and Subcategory for the Incident.
Note: Incident Type is determined by the Service Classification. This three-tiered categorization determines the Incident Type (Incident or Request), which specifics form to display and which SLA to invoke. See Specifics Forms. If you do not know the three-tiered classification, enter a word into the Quick Assembly field (example: Printer) then press TAB or ENTER to locate a possible match. Wildcards (% or *) can be used when searching. If matches are found, the Category Selector opens.
After an Incident is identified as an Incident or Request, the relevant specifics form is displayed.
Prioritize the Incident:
1. Select the Priority drop-down list, and select a priority number from the Priority Matrix. The selected priority is displayed in the Default form.
  After a priority is selected, Respond By and Resolve By Target Times are calculated based on the defined Priority Target Times in the invoked SLA, and are then displayed in the SLA section of the Incident form. The Respond/Resolve By fields indicate when the Target Times (deadlines) are met and breached. If enabled (via an Automation Process), emails are automatically created and sent to the managers of user/team owners to notify them of potential SLA Respond/Resolve By breaches.
  Note: If necessary (and allowed by the invoked SLA), place the record in a pending state to stop the SLA clock anytime after the required fields are populated by selecting the Set to Pending link in the Actions list. After you select a pending reason (example: Need data from customer), the status changes to pending and the pending reason (with a review date) displays in the Status bar. To remove the status from pending, select the Remove from Pending Status link in the Status bar.
Select a Primary Configuration Item (CI):
1. Select the Related Item Picker to launch the Find Related window, where you can select a CI. You can locate CIs by filtering (by Config Type, All Customers, a specific Customer) or by searching. You can also create a new CI on the fly.
  The selected CI record appears on the Configuration Items tab (arrangement area).
  Tip: To view the selected CI record, select the Quick View button or select the record on the Configuration Items tab (in the form arrangement). To view impacted CIs, select View Impacted CIs in the Actions list to open a Configuration Map that shows other CIs affected by the Incident.
Assign the Incident to a Team.
1. Enter the name of a team or select the team from the drop-down list. First Level Support is the default team.
Assign the Incident to a member of the assigned team.
1. Select the team member from the drop-down list.

Escalate to a Major Incident

A Major Incident has a company impact and requires a high level of urgency. It may involve several departments, or may be the result of multiple related Incidents. For example, if several Incidents have been submitted regarding login issues to Microsoft Outlook, and the cause of these Incidents is that Microsoft Outlook is down company-wide, a Major Incident should be created.

To escalate an Incident to a Major Incident if necessary, select Change to Major Incident in the Actions list.

(Optional): Attach similar incidents in the Linked Incidents tab of the form arrangement. This tab is only visible if the Incident is a Major Incident. Any Incidents linked to a Major Incident can be automatically resolved at the same time as the Major Incident.
Note: Linked Incidents are automatically updated with the Major Incident ID. If the Major Incident is closed, the linked Incidents are also automatically closed. If desired, create a One-Step™ Action to notify all Incident Owners of the Major Incident Escalation.
(Optional): Select Link to Existing Major Incident in the Actions list if the Incident is a contributing factor to an already open and existing Major Incident.

Resolve the Incident

After an Incident has been logged, classified, and associated Specifics forms are complete, the owner can resolve the Incident.

Develop a resolution:
- Search the Knowledge Base. See Search for Knowledge Using the Knowledge Pane.
- View Similar Incidents.
  Note: The Similar Incidents tab is displayed only for Incidents. Service Requests do not include the Similar Incidents tab.
- Use Actions (Actions/One-Step Actions/Quick Templates/Task Forms).
After a resolution is developed, resolve the Incident and capture the resolution details:
1. In the Status bar, select Resolve.
CSM prompts you to log the resolution/fulfillment details.
Note: If the Incident has open tasks associated with it that need to be closed before the Incident is resolved, a message displays to warn you.
(Optional) Transfer the resolution to the Knowledge Base/Support Group:
1. Select the Submit to KB button on the Resolution Details form, or select Submit to Knowledge Base in the Actions list to log a Knowledge Article. See Create a New Knowledge Article.
If you discover that the Incident was not resolved, clone it (create a new Incident with fields auto-populated with information from the cloned Incident) by opening the Task pane and selecting Incident Actions > Quick Templates > Clone Current Incident.