TOPdesk Magazine 2011, issue 3

8/4/2019 TOPdesk Magazine 2011, issue 3

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Trendsetter in mental health care /Customer in focus: Managing monkeys /Change Management in the control room /

TOPdesk4.4:Simply working together

More in this issue:

August 2011, Volume 13, Issue 3


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DITORIAL

Creating your own Card report

Continue reading on page 26

7

have never considered myself someone who pays attention

trends. Still, here I am: my smartphone is practically glued

my hand and I am active in just about every form of social

edia you can think of.

ou follow trends without even realizing it. Even pensioners

ave digital television receivers and watch The Antiques Road

how on BBC iPlayer. My mother is on Facebook (to the greatnnoyance of me and my sister), and my father is always on

e lookout for the latest Wii games. Trends are no longer

e sole domain of gadget freaks, which means trendsetters

evote all their time to coming up with the next big hype.

annot keep up with the rapid technological developments

f the last few years. When I nally took the plunge and got a

martphone, the iPad was released. As soon as I got my shiny

ew flat screen television, all the commercials were telling me

at 3D television is the future. If only I had waited a while

he service management market is also awash with fast-

oving trends. Groundbreaking frameworks are popping

p left and right, and, thanks in part to new media, the New

World of Work is on the up. Every company needs to start

aking choices: should we get a package for this? How should

e position ourselves within the market? Do we even want

ommunal working spaces? Every new development raises

ew questions.

this edition of TOPdesk Magazine, you can read more about

e trends that we encounter with our customers, such as

Mental Health. Not only that, but we can tell you about the

ext big hype for 2011: TOPdesk 4.4!

might not be a trendsetter, but if you work for TOPdesk, you

e kept up to date on all the great features included in the

ext version. Above all, I was one of the rst who was able

use the latest TOPdesk version. And that is something my

other cannot say!

njoy the magazine,

enke Deuss

ditor in Chief, TOPdesk Magazine

CONTENTSAugust

Continue reading o

22

25

18

10

3 NEWS

5 TRENDS:

Trendsetter in mental health care

9 The benets of collaboration in TOPde

10 TOPDESK 4.4:

Simply working together

15 TRENDS:

The collaboration growth model

from chaos to efciency

18 CUSTOMER IN FOCUS:

Managing monkeys in the Netherland

21 COLUMN:

Backpacking for beginners

22 Change management in the control roo

25 WORK SMARTER:

Creating your own Card report

28 TIPS + TRICKS

FOR US, COLLABORATIONBETWEEN FACILITIES AND IT ISONLY LOGICAL!

Margreet Zomerdijk - GGZ Noord-Holland-Noord


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N

ollowing @TOPdesk_UK keeps

ou up to date on upcoming

vents and in the know regarding

teresting topics relating

TOPdesk and the service

anagement sector.

Twitter Improved user training

TOPdesks user training has been revamped to bring it more in line with the trainees daily

experience with the software. Research showed us that the customers required training

that was more geared towards the processes within their own organization. The trainees

also requested lessons on other modules used within their organization. As a result, we

have expanded the possibilities when it comes to participating in TOPdesk user training:

- attention paid to the trainees own processes and customer situations

- practising in their own (test) environment

- possibility to work with multiple modules

Aside from the user training, TOPdesk offers many other courses, both about the software

itself (modules, reports, application management) and the topics discussed during the

implementation process, such as Customer-oriented or Process-oriented methodologies.

For more information, visit www.topdesk.com/en/services/consultancy/

or extranet.topdesk.com

Even better SaaS support

On Sunday 8 May, TOPdesk upgraded more than 270 customers to the latest S

Due to the extensive preparations, the customers hardly noticed the work bei

and could get to work immediately with the new version the following day. On

performed the second SaaS Disaster Recovery test. Just about every problem w

down and resolved within twenty minutes.

The SaaS Disaster Recovery test was run by the SaaS team, part of TOPdesks S

department. This time around, the S aaS stand-by service resolved all the issue

as they would do with any issue reported outside ofce hours. Various scenar

accurately recreated in a test environment. This test environment was a copy

production environment, using ctitious data and including all elements, such

database server, VMWare hosts, rewalls etc.

TOPdesk in theEuropean FM market

This year, TOPdesk presented itself to the

European Facility Management market

at the European Facility Management

Conference (EFMC) in Vienna. 500

experts from both corporate and

scientic organizations were present at

the exhibition, and TOPdesk shared its

expertise both as a sponsor and exhibitor.

The European Facility Management

Conference is the most important and

complete networking event for FMprofessionals in Europe. This years theme

was Cracking the Productivity Nut: how

can Facility Management contribute to a

productive work environment? TOPdesk

is very optimistic about strengthening

its position in the European FM market,

and will probably also be present at next

years EFMC in Copenhagen. For more

information, visit

www.efmc-conference.com.

SHOWS AND EXHIBITIONSSeptember

20-22

IT & Business Trade fair

Stuttgart, Germany

21 - 22

The Scottish Learning Festival

SECC, Glasgow

27 - 28

IIR Servicedesk Forum

The Hague, The Netherlands

October

12 - 13

Performa

Utrecht, The Netherlands

13

Demo day

TOPdesk Ofce, Antwerp, B

25

itSMF Annual Congress

The Netherlands

Hardware for Viafrica

Are you looking for a good place to donate

your old hardware? TOPdesk partner

Viafrica has started a PC donation project

with PC processing company SiSo. Viafrica

uses the proceeds from the old hardware to

support IT education projects in Africa. The

hardware is picked up free of charge and all

data is wiped completely. It is also possible

to donate servers, printers, switches and

mobile phones.

TOPdesk has made its software available to

Viafrica, so that service centres in Tanzania

and Kenya can support schools in their

use of computer rooms. These rooms usehardware from sources including the PC

donation initiative.

Would you like to contribute to the

initiatives success? Visit http://viafrica.org/

projects/pc-donation for more nformation.

IT & Business tradefair in Stuttgart

From 20 to 22 September, TOPdesk will

be present at IT & Business, the most

important fair for software, infrastructure

and IT services in Germany.

Come to Stuttgart and talk to TOPdesk staff

about our software and upcoming features.

IT & Business is the IT trade fair for small

and medium-sized businesses. Here, IT

managers and commercial decision makers

are presented with business IT solutions

tailored to SMB requirements.

You will nd us in hall 5, stand B53 (5B53).

Four TOPdesk Account Managers are

looking forward to meeting you. We will be

present for all three days.

For more information, visit our website at

www.topdesk.de. Me


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TRENDS Photography:Aad HoogendoornText: Nienke Deuss

Internetand IT are becoming steadily

more important for services within the

mental health care industry. Not only

because they increase patient support

options: the Dutch mental health sector is

soon going to be subjected to substantial

funding cuts, and is also expected to face

staff shortages. More efcient methods

are needed to safeguard the quality of

care. GGZ NHN is aware of this and is

investing in innovative IT solutions for

both patient support and internal services

accordingly.

e-Mental HealthWithin the mental health care sector, the

trend to use IT resources to help support

patients is known as e-Mental Health. IT

and internet resources are used to simplify

care and cater to patients specic wishes.

EMRs (electronic medical records) make IT

essential for mental health care, explains

Margreet Zomerdijk, TOPdesk application

manager at GGZ NHN. Our care is

now tailored to the patients specic

wishes. For instance, the patient could

need immediate support. In that case,

they could have access to that support

with internet therapy, which

and video contact. That woul

effective than a central point

regular methods. Of course, a

on the treatment method and

situation, but these additiona

really improve the quality of c

GGZ NHN is starting to specia

remote patient support. They

TRENDSETTER IN MENTAL

HEALTH CAREIn the Netherlands, GGZ Noord-Holland-Noord is considered one o the leaders w

it comes to applying IT solutions to mental health care. The main ofce introduc

the New World o Work in 2010 and is active in the e-Mental Health feld. IT is als

important within the internal service departments: IT services, Facilities, Finance

HR work together in TOPdesk.

FOR US, COLLABORATION BETWEENFACILITIES AND IT IS ONLY LOGICAL!

Margreet Zomerdijk - GGZ Noord-Holland-Noord

Margreet Zomerdijk, GGZ Noord-Holland-Noord


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Text: Rob Haaring Photography:Ted ErkkilaTRENDS

The Self Service Desk (SSD) is also

known as the staff portal, service

point or help desk. What it always

boils down to is a webpage where

staff can register their own requests or

incidents. However, one aspect of these

applications that is frequently overlooked,

is their potential to facilitate simple,

straightforward communication between

departments, allowing organizations to

offer better support to their employees.

A single contact pointWhen multiple departments work

together in a single Self Service Desk, the

employee does not have to worry about

sending their incident or request to the

right person. He or she simply logs an

incident or request from the Self Service

Desk. Then, based on the selected category

or key words, the incident or request will

be assigned automatically to the correct

operator (group).

Automatic workflowSome requests require multiple

departments to perform tasks. When

someone is given a pay-rise, for instance,

HR needs to adjust the contract, while

the Finance department has to make

sure that the new amount is paid out

every month. It is not uncommon for

templates to be created in the SSD for this

type of workflow. If a team leader uses

the template (in the shape of a form) to

request a contract change, this request is

then immediately sent to HR. Once they

have completed their task, the following

task is automatically forward

Finance department.

Limited access to confdOf course, there are always q

are considered condential. T

get in the way of using the Se

Desk. After all, TOPdesk offers

of lter possibilities. This ena

use the Self Service Desk to

that include condential data

requests will be assigned dire

HR advisors, so that the con

is only visible to people who,

on their job, are authorized to

makes working with the Self

not only clear for the staff, bu

for the operators and the vari

departments.

is an HR advisor at TOPdesk and a TOPdesk application manager.

ROB HAARING

More and more organizations are trying to make their cross-departmental proc

more efcient. This edition o TOPdesk Magazine contains part two o the trilog

o practical examples o how an HR department can work together with other

departments by using TOPdesk. In this edition: a single service point.

THE BENEFITS OF COLLABORATI

IN TOPDESK

ents that are able to live virtually

ependently with the help of digital

port from Telezorg, or Telecare.

care involves patients being able to

tact aid workers via a touch screen in

r home. Margreet: This makes our

assistance straightforward and fast,

available twenty-four hours a day. The

ents can request assistance when they

d it. This project, Home 2.0, is being

ended to our whole region in 2011 and

2.

e New World o Work

NHN is also innovative when ites to internal organization: two of

r buildings have now been furnished

ording to the New World of Work. They

e been using their main ofces since

0. It had to house both the aid workers

the central services department,

as such, the buildings design had

timulate flexibility, openness and

aboration. This is obvious when one

s at the building: each space has its

theme, such as beach, heath or forest,

has been furnished to suit various

king methods.

new interior also saves the GGZ main

e a considerable amount of money.

ough there are as many employees as

ore, they now require 30% less space.

re are computers anyone can log in

to and use, rooms where patients are

treated, designated quiet spaces, a library

and a gorgeous high-tech conference

room. I also give TOPdesk courses there,

says Margreet proudly. If someone has

a problem, I can put their monitor on the

presentation screen and show the whole

group how to resolve it.

Central working spaceNo one in the building has a set work

space; however, certain spaces are meant

for specic activities. The help desk

agents sit together in the phone space,

where they support about two thousandemployees in over thirty branches. This is

where all the incidents are processed, from

broken printers and washing machines

to questions about pension agreements,

explains Margreet. You have to sit

together if you want to confer.

A few years ago, the IT and Facilities

departments worked in different TOPdesk

environments. We noticed that seeing

each others data was really useful, says

Margreet, as it allowed you to have all

the details when an incident was logged.

That is why we all started using a single

TOPdesk together when we upgraded from

Professional to Enterprise last year.

Facilities and Automation have very

similar processes for handling incidents,

and that is why this collaboration is only

the next logical step for us. This helps

the various processes t together better.

Also, we were placed in the same building

last January, which means we have been

working together more than ever before.

Easy or HR to join inThe HR department also started using

TOPdesk this year. And not just to handle

incidents, explains Margreet. The

HR department also needed a better

overview of their own workload. Nurses

are required to account for the hours they

spend working, and it only makes senseto expect this from other departments as

well. TOPdesk enables us to keep track of

all this, and with a few clicks I can create

and print a report on it.

A lot has changed in the central services

department over the past year. Margreet

tells us that the transition to a single

TOPdesk application and the collaboration

with HR went very smoothly. It was a

lot better than I expected, especially

considering that in a short time, we

implemented the New World of Work,

we moved, and all departments started

working together in a single application.

Picking up working with TOPdesk in a

single week was really quite fast!

MENTAL HEALTH MAKES CAREMPLE AND FAST, AND AVAILABLE

WENTY-FOUR HOURS A DAYMargreet Zomerdijk - GGZ Noord-Holland-Noord


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Text: Nienke Deuss and Timme Hos Photography: iStockphoto

Pdesk 4.4 is designed to make your job as care-ree as possible, whether you

ed to reserve a meeting room or help a new employee get started. Working

gether with other departments is now even easier. In this article, we will

ghlight the changes to the Reservations and Change Management modules.

TOPDESK 4.4:SIMPLY WORKING TOGETHER

WHEN MAKING CHANGESAND RESERVATIONS,COLLABORATIONBETWEEN IT, FM AND HRIS ESSENTIAL

Planning a reservation is easier than ever. Reservations

Management is one of the modules that was given a complete

overhaul in TOPdesk 4.4. In a few simple steps, both you and your

end users can reserve a meeting room for both staff and visitors,

including lunch and technical services. The module will also give

you an overview of your organizations available rooms and assets

from meeting and conference rooms to projectors, laptops and

company cars.

The right room every timeWith TOPdesks smart ltering system, you can nd the meeting

or conference room you need in no time. Are you looking for

a meeting room for twenty people? TOPdesk will lter out all

meeting rooms with a lower capacity. If you are looking for a

meeting room with a projector in a specic branch, TOPdesk

will display the availability of relevant rooms and assets in one

overview.

Sel Service Desk:more user-riendly than ever beoreThe Reservations Management Self Service Desk has b

improved. Now, end users can make a reservation in ju

steps. TOPdesk will generate an overview of available

on capacity and when the room is needed. End users c

make reservations for all their monthly team meeting

schedule recurring reservations. You determine which

reservations your end users can order.

Tea and coee ordered with easeA successful meeting or presentation requires more th

suitable room. The Facilities department needs to arr

layout beforehand, and you might require other servic

as tea and coffee or a projector. TOPdesk makes order

services effortless. What is more, you can determine w

In the graphic planner, you can see instantly which rooms or objects are availableor have been reserved

Reservations Management

DURING THE RESERVAPROCESS, TOPDESK FROOMS AUTOMATICATHEIR CAPACITY


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ice can be ordered per person or per reservation. Imagine that

are organizing a meeting for ten people. If you order lunch,

Catering department can see that they need to supply enough

for ten people, and the costs will be calculated automatically.

k visitors to reservationsw that the TOPdesk modules for Reservations Management and

or Registration have been integrated, you will have an even

er overview of your organizations processes. In TOPdesk 4.4,

can now link a visitor to a reservation. That is not all when

king a reservation, you can easily add visitors to the guest list.

tor information is always at your ngertips, and the reception

ws exactly where the visitors are expected to go. You can even

the Event Management module to send all meeting attendees

cluding visitors a detailed automatic reminder via email,

uding the date, time, location, guest list and services available.

Additional options or recurring reservationsTOPdesk 4.4 offers even more options for planning recurring

reservations, such as monthly team leader meetings. You can

also set up irregular patterns, having a meeting take place on

Wednesday one week, while arranging it on a Thursday the

following week. Additionally, TOPdesks special detection system

allows you to select alternative services and rooms should

reservations overlap. It is also easy to edit recurring reservations,

allowing you to adjust the number of attendees or adding a service

to future reservations in one go.

End users can make a reservation in a few easy steps

YOU CAN SCHEDULERECURRING RESERVATIONSIN THE SELF SERVICE DESK

When your organization implements changes, interdepartmental

cooperation is essential. The Change Management module helps

you to request, plan, perform, monitor and complete both simple

and extensive changes. For instance, if you need to upgrade a

server, TOPdesk can help you start the various processes needed

to get the job done. Everyone will know which tasks need to

be completed, and when. TOPdesk 4.3 already saw a complete

overhaul of Change Management, which included the addition of a

handy planner, checklist and Change explorer. Based on customer

feedback, we have implemented over a hundred changes, both

large and small, making this module even more intuitive than

before.

Template use now even more intuitiveWhen dealing with recurring changes, such as server upgrades,

templates can offer a practical solution. After creating a template

once, subsequent upgrades can be set in motion with just a few

clicks. The operator simply selects the activities required for each

request. It is possible to view the planning as soon as a template

is selected. If it turns out that another template is needed and the

request has not been authorized, you can simply select another

template.

Template activities are reusable, making it is easy to c

templates from existing activities. All your templates

up-to-date; if you need to change a template activity,

default operator, you only need to do it once. All temp

include that activity will be updated automatically.

Improved communicationthrough automatic emailsOften, one task needs to be completed before anothe

such as the test phase before a new TOPdesk version g

TOPdesk 4.4, you can send an automatic email when a

begin. When all activities in a single phase have been

the coordinator will receive an email informing him t

is ready to be approved. Everyone is reminded of his o

right on time.

Extensive Sel Service Desk possibilitiesEmployees can request and monitor changes using th

Desk. Managers can approve phases and authorize re

they are submitted. In the operator section, the mana

cards indicate which requests they can approve. In th

Change Management

You can view the dependencies between activities in the Planner

VIEW THE PLANNINGOF A CHANGE BEFORETHE REQUEST HAS BEENAPPROVED


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Text: Robbert Petterson Photography:Ted Erkkila

Upgrading rom TOPdesk3 to 4.4 is cost-eective

TOPdesk 3 customers can upgrade to

TOPdesk 4.4 at a low cost. This will

grant you access to TOPdesks latest

functionalities and possibilities. In

addition to the Reservations and Change

Management features mentioned in this

article, a graphic overview has been added

to Asset Management (Conguration

Management), among other things. This

overview displays your organizations

assets and their relationship to work

stations, persons and sites. TOPdesk 4 also

offers extensive Facilities Management

options, with modules such as Property

Management, Long Term Planning and

Visitor Registration.

TOPdesk 3 customers can take advantage

of our special upgrade offer. Upgrade to

TOPdesk 4 for a xed low price, and all

your current modules will be upgraded

to the new version. Contact your account

manager for more information.

In the improved Change explorer, the status of activities can be seen immediately

ion, the Self Service Desk can display changes on department, site and

sidiary level. This allows managers to see not only the changes they need to

horize, but all changes that affect their department.

proved Planner and Change explorer4.3 version of Change Management saw the addition of the Planner and

nge explorer to the work environment. These work environments have been

roved even further in TOPdesk 4.4.

en working in the Planner, it seems only logical that the activities which

d to be started rst are displayed at the top. That is why activities were

ered by start date. In practice, however, it turned out that deadlines were

e important. After all, what does it matter when an activity is started, as

g as it is nished on time? This is why activities are now sorted by end date,

hat the activity which needs to be nished rst is displayed at the top.

itionally, it was not always easy to see in the Planner which activities were

rdependent. Now, when an activity is selected, the Planner displays lines

ng it to related activities.

Change explorer contains an overview of all active changes and requests

change. At a glance, you can see the status of a change, or whether there

any bottlenecks. The overview can show you if an activity has been delayed,

a certain phase has not yet been authorized. Furthermore, you can also

mediately see who you should contact regarding the problem.

...is a consultant at TOPdesk and has extensive experience in leading la

He specializes in human interaction within service management.

When a manager hires a new employee, he has to arrange a multitude o things

beore the new worker can get to work. He needs to go to H R or sta details,

to Facilities to arrange a work station, mobile phone and key card and to the IT

department or a laptop and a network account. This is time-consuming and not

very efcient. However, i supporting departments were to work together more

closely, the end user would only have to send a single request.

ROBBERT PETTERSON

THE COLLABORATION

GROWTH MODEL:FROM CHAOS TO EFFICIENCY

When different departments

collaborate, money is saved

and both efciency and

customer satisfaction increase. Costs for

supporting tools can be cut and it is much

easier for the various departments to

share information with each other.

This does not mean that a Facilities

employee has to know everything about

IT, but if he understands the basics, he can

already be of more help to the end user.

However, what is most important is that

collaboration helps streamline the various

departments work processes even better.

Processes that currently overlap can be

made much more efcient.

Collaboration growth modelAs we have just seen, interdepartmental

collaboration has many advantages;

nevertheless, actually achieving such

collaboration is easier said than done. We

have noticed with a number of TOPdesk

customers that interdepartmental

collaboration is a growth process. That is

why we have developed the collaboration

growth model, which describe

growth process in four phases

0 is characterized by the absen

collaboration, while phase 3 fe

complete process integration

departments.

Phase 0: One chaosIn phase 0, there is no collabo

between departments. Island

reigns, with each department

its own way, maintaining its ow

and processes. Often, each de


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TRENDS

CHIEVING EFFECTIVEOLLABORATION IS EASIERAID THAN DONE

Robbert Petterson - TOPdesk

uses different tools. In such situations,

not unusual that new employees doreceive everything they need to get to

k on the rst day.

ase 1: One toolrst signs of interdepartmental

aboration become visible during the

sition between phases 0 and 1. The

artments realize that they share

ny processes. Whether they work

T, Facilities, HR or Finance, they all

e to process calls. Because the basic

cture of their day-to-day activities

milar, the departments will start to

ize that they can also work together

single tool, such as TOPdesk. In this

, each department maintains its own

k environment, but agreements can

made regarding certain issues. Think,

nstance, of basic settings, such as eld

ming conventions, or deciding which

s are required. The departments work

vidually within TOPdesk, but knowing

they all use the same tool will help

m understand that they are basically

ng the same type of work.

ase 2: One customerr phase 1, the departments will

e gained more insight into the other

departments work. They will realize that

they all serve a single customer: theircolleagues. In order to make things as

easy as possible for their colleagues, they

will create a single contact point. This will

save their colleagues from worrying about

who they can turn to when they want to

log an incident. This is especially useful

for calls which seem to fall in between

departments. For instance, if there is a

problem with a printer or phone, the end

user could be uncertain about whether to

contact the IT or Facilities department.

To set up a single service point, the

departments will have to make agreements

regarding potentially confusing calls. They

need to determine who will be responsible

for such incidents. When the end user

logs an incident with the service point,

they want to be sure that their call will be

handled correctly. If this does not happen,

the user will not be satised and, as a

result, lose faith in the service point.

Phase 3: One processThe collaboration between departments

continues to grow in phase 3. The

departments realize that some processes

transcend departmental borders, such as

an employee starting work or leaving the

organization. Every department contributes

to such events. The departments have to

bring their own individual work processestogether and integrate them into a single

process. This will improve collaboration.

A good example is the commencement

of a new employee. HR will start this

process by making a staff le with personal

information. Using this information, the IT

department can create a network account

and the Facilities department will be able

to supply a work station. As soon as this

has been done, IT can arrange for a PC to be

delivered to the new work station.

Collaboration can be further improved

in phase 3. The process described above

could be well-coordinated, but what about

other cross-departmental processes?

Current processes could also be optimized.

For instance, other departments could be

involved in the recruitment process; think

of Property Management, a department

often responsible for key cards.

ResistanceCollaboration between departments

develops in phases, and each phase can

breed resistance among the department

employees. Teams develop their own

identities, with their own values and

rituals. When teams start working

END USERS MUST BE ABLE TO RELY ONTHE SERVICE POINT TO CORRECTLYPROCESS AND RESOLVE THEIR CALLS

Robbert Petterson - TOPdesk

together, they have to consider each other.

This means giving up some independenceand old habits. The more the collaboration

between departments increases, as

described in the collaboration growth

model, the more individual departments

will have to give up independence.

They will need to make further cross-

departmental agreements, and will become

more co-dependent.

In order to minimize resistance, it is

important that all employees have a clear

idea of the goals of collaboration. It is the

managers job to clearly communicate

these goals to the employees. He has to

pay close attention to possible resistance

in each phase. If collaboration is difcult

at rst, the manager has to pinpoint the

cause and provide a solution. Furthermore,

it is also important that he motivates his

employees, for instance by keeping them

updated on the progress towards achieving

the communal goals.

The practical beneftso collaborationInterdepartmental collaboration has many

advantages, the most important of which

is high customer satisfaction. Many of our

customers have already set up TOPdesk

for IT, FM and HR, leading to much more

efcient work processes, improved end

user satisfaction and, also not unimportant,

to saving money. The various supporting

departments work processes are really

quite similar, and they can best learn

how to streamline these processes by

working together in one tool; however, this

collaboration cannot be realized overnight.

It is a step-by-step process.

Which phase is your organization

in? Would you like to know how

you can integrate your various

departments processes? To

discuss the possibilities, contact

us on: +44 (0) 207 8034200

Service management extends

several supporting departmen

Supportingdepartments

Finance

IT FM


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CUSTOMER IText: Timme HosCUSTOMER IN FOCUS Photography:Aad Hoogendoorn

Rob Bloem, AAP Foundation

Due in part to a sponsorship deal, AAP Foundations Technical Service was able to

to work with TOPdesk recently. AAP Foundation uses CAFM or acility-related act

such as maintenance work and repairing the animal enclosures. Rob Bloem, head

Technical Service, tells us about the acility work at AAP Foundation and their pla

proessionalize.

MANAGING MONKEYS IN

THE NETHERLANDS

AAP Foundation is a European rescue centre and sanctuary for

exotic animals, with branches in the Netherlands and Spain

(the permanent sanctuary Primadomus). The foundation

houses animals that are found in deplorable conditions, with the

eventual goal of placing them in a more natural environment. Aap

means monkeyin Dutch, and in deed, primates are the foundations

main focus: from chimpanzees to tiny white-eared marmosets. AAP

Foundation also rescues other mammals, such as raccoons, degus

and chinchillas.

The animals come from circuses, or private owners who either wont

or are unable to care for them properly. AAP Foundation works with

various authorities and often relies on tipsters in order to nd the

animals. The foundation does not just rescue animals; they also

actively prevent animal abuse through education on proper care,

and lobbying the Parliament to have related legislation adjusted

accordingly.

A hundred and fty vandalsAt AAP Foundation in Almere, there is always plenty of work for the

Technical Service, which has been lead by Rob Bloem fo

three years. His team comprises two foremen, who are

for the daily jobs. Then there are another ten volunteers

whom work there through social work initiatives. We w

youngsters from difcult backgrounds, who have exper

addiction rehabilitation, the police, involuntary commit

integration processes, explains Rob. On the other han

vocational college teachers are also part of our team. It

bunch. Everyone is very motivated.

The Technical Service department at AAP Foundation ca

extremely varied tasks. People end up coming to us wh

nowhere else to go. We are mostly busy with buildings

other organizations, we have ofces that need taking ca

heating and lights need to work, and we dont want the

ceilings falling to pieces,explains Rob.

What makes the Technical Services work stand out, is t

it is done by commission of the animal carers. The enclo

always in need of adjustments or repairs, and are part o

workload, as Rob explains: A hundred and fty monkey


11/15

Text:Annemarie Moeijes Photography:Ted Erkkila

is a consultant at TOPdesk and has years of experience with impleme

changes within various organizations.

ANN EMA RIE MOEIJES

Wewill not likely nd someone

who is into that kind of holiday

in a mobile home in France.

And yet, I cannot think of anything better

than cycling into town to buy a baguette,

and would rather not think of sitting on

some overcrowded train in Asia with a

bunch of chickens on my lap.

There are plenty of television shows

that use this concept: from the safety

of your own coucha bowl of snacks

within reachyou can watch your

fellow countrymen pursue happiness

overseas. That, andlets be honest

you can have a good laugh at the

expense of Mediterranean builders who

miss deadlines, building permissions

that are only approved with the help

of strategically placed wads of cash

and summer loves that turn out to be

considerably less lovely after the rst few

romantic strolls on the beach.

Jobs are a huge part of our livesanother

area where we enjoy predictability.

Most people are not exactly over the

moon when a reorganization or merger

is announced: new colleagues, new

tasks and having to look for the person

who needs your metaphorical wad of

cash to get things done. Over the past

few years, TOPdesk implementations

more frequently go hand in hand with

reorganizations and fusions. Services are

centralized and teams are consolidated.

Even three years after a merge or

reorganization, you can see the virtual

borders from the previous situation: Us

and them. It is only logical, as humans

were not built for change.

Nevertheless, such changes are great

opportunities to develop as an employer.

It is an employers job to create a safe

environment for people to slowly change

and develop. The employer also has to

think about his own personal aims and

how he can realize them within the new

work situation. The other day, I saw a

fantastic example of this in a merged

organization. Instead of denying that

two different company cultur

now being brought together,

leader gave these cultures th

needed. He provided employe

organizations with their own

but put the two groups in the

That way, the employees cou

get to know their new colleag

their own pace and retain the

habits. Leave people alone lon

and they will be getting each

conferring and exchanging id

time. I am convinced that the

will eventually leave their me

couches to go on adventure: t

uprooted, just trimmed a littl

If you nd yourself reorganiz

the fact that people want to c

but crave safety and familiari

same time. Make sure that m

dwellers like me are not put o

Nepal, but let us put our mob

somewhere else. Maybe cons

after all, they could do with t

right now.

People are naturally conservative. No, wait, let me rephrase that.

People are naturally inclined to do things in a certain way. Anyone whoconsiders travelling through Nepal with nothing but a backpack would

probably not consider themselves conservative.

BACKPACKING FOR BEGINNERS

COLUCUSTOMER IN FOCUS

cally a hundred and fty vandals. Look at the chimpanzee

plex. The other day, a chimp punched straight through some

mm Trespa High Pressure Laminate. My colleagues went in to

ir it, while the apes watched them through the window. The

thing they do after something has been repaired, is see if they

break it again. It is almost a game between the Technical Service

the animals. We try to make everything as strong and secure as

ible, while they try to make our lives as difcult as possible in

er to show us how creative they are.

ver checking orders againrder to keep up with the high volume of repairs and adjustments,

Technical Service had to professionalize. To accomplish this,

started his search for a CAFM last year to structure incidents

requests. He ended up at TOPdesk. Because AAP Foundationpendent on donations, making investments isnt easy for Rob:

run on donations. You can become a contributor for 15 Euros,

or me to spend 1500 Euros, my colleagues need to nd 100

tributors.Thanks to a TOPdesk sponsorship deal, AAP Foundation

able to get to work with a comprehensive CAFM.

Technical Services previous approach had not been very

ient. They would create a separate work order for every repair

djustment, making it difcult to stay on top of everything and

p les. My predecessors would meet up with the carers and

m leaders every month to check all the work orders, Rob says.

ey would sit down for an hour and a half to go through all the

ers and check their progress. That cost a lot of man hours. It was

ossible for the team leaders to keep track of all the tasks: was

repair job nished or not, or has it just broken again? Nothing

signed, there were no responses. There was no documentation

allowed us to see which problems kept cropping up, either.

m hatches to guest roomsmonth on from TOPdesks implementation, AAP Foundation

has already set up one department that handles all incidents

and malfunctions. As we speak, they have forty persons and four

operators registered in TOPdesk. Everyone who wants to put in a

request with the Technical Service has to do this via TOPdesk. The

CAFM is used to initiate and register most of the work done by Robs

team, which means that the mess of work orders is now a thing of

the past.

Rob tells us about the activities registered in TOPdesk: At AAP

Foundation, we have a lot of hatches, to let the animals in and out.

Some of the hatches give us some trouble from time to time. They

get dirty or stuck, which means they cannot open or close properly.

We try to make these hatches as monkey-proof as we can, so we

keep track of all the maintenance work in TOPdesk.

Now that he is reaping the new CAFMs benets, Rob is lookingtowards the future. Once the incidents and requests have been

streamlined, the next interesting module for AAP foundation seems

to be Reservations Management - not only for meetings, but also

for housing interns. Our interns often sleep here, Rob explains.

We have two houses especially for this purpose; AAP Foundation is

one of the most renowned organizations of its kind. We have about

fteen beds available, all of which have been registered in TOPdesk.

My colleague can now reserve them in TOPdesk instead of using

Excel.

Rob Bloem is optimistic about his departments professionalization.

Im very happy with how the system is currently running, as well

the commitment from both TOPdesk and the consultants who

visited. They really managed to see things through the eyes of AAP

Foundation.

HE FIRST THING THE MONKEYSO AFTER SOMETHING HASEEN REPAIRED, IS SEE IF THEYAN BREAK IT AGAIN

Rob Bloem - AAP Foundation


12/15

Photography: Sanne Brakel and iStockphotoText: Sanne Brakel

9 May, TOPdesk organized an interactive session on Change Management, in

operation with Brabant South-East control rooms Control Room and Communication

chnology Department, aimed at the IT department managers rom fve other control

oms. During this aternoon session, TOPdesk consultant Carolien Kleijer demonstrated

e latest version o Change Management, and there was a lively discussion on

ucturing change processes or control rooms.

CHANGE MANAGEMENT INTHE CONTROL ROOM

When emergency services employees want to log

incidents related to control room systems or

network equipment, they go to the control rooms IT

department. The Control Room Brabant South-East, based in the

Netherlands, uses TOPdesk to track these incidents and handle

change requests. Every year, its staff process about 3600 incidents

regarding system and equipment malfunctions.

Knowledge sharing or control roomsThe IT managers often meet to exchange ideas on equipment

maintenance. They also discuss applications, including TOPdesk.

During one such meeting, Gerben Jansen and Frans Smulders

came up with the idea to organize a session on what Change

Management can mean to control rooms. I wanted to introduce

my colleagues to the latest version of TOPdesks ChangeManagement module, explains Frans. After Gerben and Frans

approached TOPdesk with the idea, consultant Carolien Kleijer got

on board and helped organize the session.

Interactive aternoon at the police stationOn 9 May, the local police station hosted the interactive session.

The group comprised nine TOPdesk employees and control room

managers. As the managers see each other quite often at their

meetings, there was a relaxed, informal atmosphere which helped

get the lively discussions going.

Over the course of the afternoon, the Change Management

module was discussed at length. Many control rooms have yet to

adopt TOPdesk, and Gerben and Frans were eager to show their

colleagues how the module would help them manage their change

processes. We deal with all sorts of changes, both big and small,

says Frans. We want to use Change Management to h

structure these changes.

Change Management in the control roomThe afternoon started with a presentation, showcasin

modules new features, followed by a discussion of tw

studies. One of these cases covered missing equipme

not uncommon for walkie-talkies and other devices to

This type of process requires multiple steps, such as d

the unit and informing the team leader. Change Man

help support workflows like these. Brabant South-Eas

room has created templates for its various processes.

regarding lost equipment is logged, they simply selec

and all operators will automatically receive an email d

steps they need to take.

An instructive sessionAll attendees found the session very useful. There wa

considerable knowledge gap between some individua

lead to many different questions: from specic functi

to process design. At the end of the day, Gerben and F

satised with the results. It was a successful afternoo

Frans. We are noticing that other control rooms are a

Change Management module.

Share your bright idea!TOPdesk enjoys helping its customers with initiatives

If you have a great TOPdesk-related idea and want our

would be more than happy to assist.>>

THE WORKFLOW MISSINGWALKIE-TALKIE CAN BESUPPORTED EASILY INCHANGE MANAGEMENT

Carolien Kleijer - TOPdesk


13/15

WORKING SText: Patrick Mackaaij Photography:Ted Erkkila

Control room managers during the

interactive session

Adding lists using the Action explorerUsing the Event Management module, you can insert a list. You can

nd Events and Actions in TOPdesk's Settings Management.

You can add a list as follows:

1 Right-click on the Action explorer in the messages eld;

2 In the pop-up select: Insert list;

3 Select the desired link.

4 Right-click on the eld layout that has just been a

example {Objects}{/}) and then add all desired dat

linked card for each eld;

5 Right-click on the eld layout;

6 In the pop-up screen, select Insert field...;

7 Search for the desired eld (the elds are grouped

classication in the card) and click on the Insertic

The result will appear as follows:

{Objects}[Object_ID][Type][Make][Serial Number]{/}

Please note: You can only choose elds that are used i

cards. These elds are summarized in the internal Obj

You can not use optional elds.

Layout with HTML/CSSWhen setting up this action, you can use HTML and CS

linked card details will be neatly illustrated in a table,

such as in the example below:

>

From TOPdesk 4.4, the Event Management module enables you to use data

rom linked cards. With the addition o lists, you can email or print a list o

all objects linked to an employee, or a list o reserved services and acilities

linked to a reservation.

... is a consultant and team leader at TOPdesk. He specializes in technic

optimizing processes.

PATRICK MACKAAIJ

CREATING YOUR OWN

CARD REPORT

Fig. 1 Generating a card report in the Action explorer

Change Management Tips & Tricks

1. Make sure you have a good step-by-step plan.

When a change is requested, which steps need to be

taken? Who is responsible for these tasks, and what is

the duration of an activity? When the steps for each

process are outlined clearly, it is easy to turn them into a

change template in TOPdesk.

2. Use the Change explorer.

The Change explorer grants you an overview of the

changes and the related activities. This provides you

insight into where things are going wrong and when you

need to intervene.

3. Use the mail import for change requests.

If you use TOPdesks automatic mail import, you will not

have to log a change request. What is more, the request

or incident will be directed to the correct module

automatically (Incident or Change Management).

4. Use the planners group overview.

If you work with various groups, you can use the group

overview to see who needs to perform which tasks when

a change is requested.

5. Work with optional activities.

It is possible to turn even the most extensive change

scenario into a template and select which activities

are applicable for each instance. In this way, you wont

have to create a template for every single exception to

standard situations.


14/15

WORKING SMARTER

ObjectID

Type

Make

Serial Number

>

jects}

[Object_ID]

[Type]

[Make]

[Serial Number]

>

able>

od introduction to learning HTML andis provided on the website http://www.

chools.com. To see a preview of the

result during editing HTML and CSS,

can use the website http://htmledit.

arefree.com.

porting the card report tocrosot Word using HTMLof course useful to be able to send

verview of links by email. It is just as

ful to be able to print this overview

g Microsoft Word.

rder to use the functionalities of the

nt Management module in Microsoft

d, TOPdesk offers the RTF Creator add-

However, the TOPdesk RTF Creator add-

annot process the data from inserted

. The add-on receives the data to be

layed from the Event Management

dule and places it in the corresponding

s in a previously created RTF template.

etails of linked objects will then be

ed in a single cell.

h a certain level of technical skill, you

use the standard functionalities of

desk to create a document which

can open in Microsoft Word and that

tains all relevant details. Documents

created in this way are

not saved on the card

itself, in contrast to

documents created by

the RTF Creator. As a

result, this type of card

report cannot be sent

as an attachment in

TOPdesk by just ticking

a checkbox.

The card reportin practiceIn TOPdesk, the

operator runs two Special events: one tocreate the report, and a second to open the

report.

The TOPdesk server creates the report le

as a temporary text le with the Action

settings in gure 1. The report le will

be placed on the server in the temporary

les folder. TOPdesk will then run the le

MoveFile.cmd; a batch script with which

the temporary le (variable %1) will

be moved to a location from which the

TOPdesk operator can access it through the

TOPdesk server. This location is congured

in the batch script. You can create the

batch script in the TOPdesk installation

master folder, using the following content:

move %1 web\secure\TOPdesk-reports\%2.

doc

Before you do this, ensure that you have

created the folder TOPdesk-reports on the

TOPdesk server in the folder /web/secure.

Tip: You can easily copy the report to

a different location and build up an

archive by using the copy command with

appropriate switches on a separate line.

The second Action setting makes it easy for

operators to open the report that has been

created via a context menu.

The GET eld refers to the generated lewith the following text:

/tas/secure/TOPdesk-reports/\

U[Compound_Name] [-UNID-]\u.doc

Please note: The text between \U and \u

will be encoded by TOPdesk. This means

that it is also possible to use a le name

containing a space.

If you want to be able to open the card

report from any incident card, you must

create the Action settings in a rst line,

second line and partial incident card.

It is also possible to create an HTML le and

open it in a web browser. The disadvantage

of this is that when you print a web page,

the header and footer text appears on

the print-out by default. Deactivating this

at each work station takes a lot of time

and effort, but perhaps certain users will

appreciate being able to do this.

Fig. 2 Retrieving a card report in the Action explorer

For previous tips on sending

professional emails from TOPdesk,

please refer to the TOPdesk

Magazine from December 2010

(p24).

HRM is the process o working with people,

but oten the administrative hassle leaves

you with no time to spare. TOPdesks call

and workflow system can improve your

efciency, giving you more time to ocus on

your colleagues.

Attend one o our seminars in Lo

on 16 and 17 June or in Antwerp

October to see what TOPdesk can

organization. For more inormat

+44 (0)20 7803 4200 (UK) or

+32 (0)3 292 32 90 (Belgium)

HR Services Simplified

EditorialWant to comment? Go to

www.topdeskmagazine.com

The TOPdesk Magazine covers subjects

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: +31 (0)15 270 09 00

Email: [email protected]

Chief Editor: Nienke Deuss

Editors: Nienke Deuss,

Timme Hos, Niek Steenhuis

Translators:Leah Clarke, Hazel Hollis,

Nicola van de Velde

Contributors: Rob Haaring, Robbert

Petterson, Annemarie Moeijes, Sanne

Brakel, Patrick Mackaaij

Layout:Cathy van den Berg, Joost Knuit,

DDC design agency

Photography:Ted Erkkila, Aad

Hoogendoorn, iStockphoto

Website: Timme Hos

A print run of 1,000

Quarterly magazine

Languages: Dutch, English

No time or your colleagues?

Enhance the efciency of your

HR Services with TOPdesk


15/15

tips + tricksFiltering report resultsTOPdesks powerful reporting feature makes your

services transparent and easy to manage. In four easy

steps, you can compile all the data you need.

You can generate reports about specic data, such as

a certain category of incidents, or sorted by operator

group. A number of customers use Selections to

create these reports, but there is another way, which

is particularly useful for lite customers. The lter

option in the Report wizard can be used to adjust the

report output. When compiling the report, click on the

lter icon when you reach the third step, and you can

immediately select the groups you want to use to lter

your results.

Scanning hardware andsotware with the TOPsisVisual Basic Script

From TOPdesk version 4.3 onwards, it is possible to use

a Visual Basic Script to scan Windows servers and work

stations in your network. This means that you will no

longer have to use the TOPsis service.

By using your start up or login script, you can use the

Windows workstations to access topsis.vbs, which will

then perform the scan on the hardware object. All

scan result les are then saved in a central folder, to be

determined by you. TOPdesk will import all these les

at a set time every day and process the data on the

Hardware Cards (Management tab).

This new functionality also makes it possible to create

new Hardware Cards when scanning.

The latest TOPsis-VBScript is available from TOPdesk

Support.

Online Help & Support

The Help & Support site is updated regularly. Use it to

nd manuals, or even tips to get the most out of yourTOPdesk software. You can access the Help & Support

site by clicking on the question mark on any TOPdesk

process page, or the menu option

Help > Help & Support.

TOPdesk UK limitedt +44 (0)20 7803 4200e [email protected] www.topdesk.co.uk

TOPdesk Netherlandst +31 (0)15 270 09 00e [email protected] www.topdesk.nl

TOPdesk Germany GmbHt +49 (0)631 624 00 0e [email protected] www.topdesk.de

TOPdesk Belgiumt +32 (0)3 292 32 90e [email protected] www.topdesk.be

TOPdesk Hungaryt +36 1 301 0190e [email protected] www.topdesk.hu

TOPdesk Francet +33 1 4222 2314e info.topdesk.frw www.topdesk.fr

Copyright 2011 TOPdesk UK limited. Although this magazine has been produced with the utmost care and attention, the writers cannotbe held responsible in any way for any damages that may occur due to errors and / or deciencies in this publication.