Zoho FSM | Work Orders

Work Orders

A work order is a record created for executing a contact service request.


 Available in Editions: All Editions

Create Work Orders

Info
Permission RequiredWork Orders

A Work Order can be created in one of the following ways:
  1. From Requests: Use the Convert to Work Order option to create a work order for a request. This option will display the Create Work Order page with the field values pre-filled. Use the Requests to Work Order mapping to determine the Request field values that you want to pre-fill the fields in the Create Work Order page with. Refer to this page for details.

  2. From Estimates: Use the Convert to Work Order option to create a work order for an estimate. This option will display the Create Work Order page with field values pre-filled. Use the Estimate to Work Order mapping to determine the Estimate field values that you want to pre-fill the fields in the Create Work Order page with. Refer to this page for details.

  3. From contact phone Requests: The Customer Service Agent creates work orders for the contact requests received through phone calls.
To create a work order:
  1. Select Work Orders from the Work Order Management menu and click Create.
  2. Enter the following details, then click Save:
    1. Summary of the work order
    2. Priority
    3. Type to indicate the nature of the service the work order is being created for.
      Apart from the default values, you can also add custom values to this field.
    4. Due Date by which the work order should be closed
    5. The Contact for whom the work order is being created 
    6. The Company the contact belongs to.
      Conversely, for a given company you can choose the contacts associated with it.



    7. The Phone number of the contact
    8. The Email address of the contact
      If there is no email address associated with the contact, the email address of the company (if present) will be used.
    9. An Asset
      An Asset is added when the service is for a product that you have sold.
    10. The Territory in which the contact is located
    11. Service Address 
      This is the address where the service needs to be carried out. The service address present for the Asset, Company, or Contact will be used, in this order of preference. You can choose any other available address or click Create New.
      Upon clicking Create New, the Add Address overlay will be displayed. To add a new address, enter the details and click Save. You can either choose to add an address to the Company/Contact or create a Single Use Address. The Single Use Address can be used only in the current Work Order record.
    12. Billing Address



    13. Preferred Date1, and Preferred Date2 for the service call
    14. Preferred Time.
    15. Any additional Preference Note regarding the service call
    16. Select a Currency.
      The Currency and Exchange Rate will be displayed only if multiple currencies are enabled.
    17. Entries for Services
      These denote the services which have to be delivered for this work order. The Services added in Services And Parts module will be listed here. You can search a service using its SKU. If only a single service is added, then it will by default get associated with the Parts, and Skills that you add. Service tasks, if present for the service will also get added. 
      Select a Tax Rate or choose non-taxable by providing a reason. Click here to find details about setting the tax rates. The default tax preferences will be set based on the sync settings. 
      Enter a percentage for the discount you wish to offer or a discount amount. You can choose whether to offer a discount at the line item level or the transaction level. Log in to Zoho Books/Invoice and navigate to Settings > Preferences > GeneralDo you give discounts? and choose the desired option.



    18. Add the Parts necessary for the services.
      Select the Service for which the Part has been added. You can search a part using its SKU. Select a Tax Rate or choose non-taxable by providing a reason. Enter a percentage for the discount you wish to offer or a discount amount.
    19. Add the Skills necessary for the services.
      Select the Service for which the Skill has been added.


Info
Skills: These denote the professional capabilities needed for the work order.
Parts: These denote the products which are required for carrying out this work order.

In the Work Order Details page, you will have the links to all its related records, such as Request, Estimate, and Appointments. A history of the activities on the record can be found under the tab Timeline.


Create Follow-up Work Orders and Estimates

You can create a follow-up work order or estimate for an work order. If the agent finds additional work that needs to be completed during the initial work order, a follow-up work order can be created. A follow-up work order can also be created for routine maintenance on equipment, which can help prevent breakdowns and extend the lifespan of the equipment. Similarly, a follow-up estimate can be created to provide the customer with an accurate cost estimate for additional work or parts required for the original work order.

To create a follow-up work order or estimate:
  1. Click the Related List tab of the work order for which you want to create the follow-up work order or estimate.
  2. Click Create for Follow Up Work Orders or Follow Up Estimates.

The created follow-up work order or estimate will be listed respectively under Follow Up Work Orders and Follow Up Estimates.



In the follow up work order, the work order from which it was created will be listed as the Parent Work Order.



Click here to know how to create follow-up work order or estimate from the mobile app.

Edit Work Orders

To edit work orders:
  1. Select Work Orders from the Work Order Management menu.
  2. Click the work order you want to edit. In the Work Order details page, click Edit.
  3. Click Save after making the changes. 

Managing Addresses

You can perform the following actions on an address, Service or Billing, in the Edit Work Order overlay:
  1. Choose another address : If there are multiple addresses present, then click the Choose another icon [  ] to select another address. In the Select Billing/Service Address pop-up, select the desired address.



  2. Edit address: To make changes to the Service/Billing address, click the Edit icon [ ]. In the Edit Address overlay make the necessary changes and click Save.
    If the checkbox Also update this address in the <Parent> module is selected, then the modified address will be updated in the parent (Company or Contact) module too.



  3. Add address: Multiple addresses can be added to a contact. Click the Add icon []. In the Add Address overlay, enter the details and click Save.

Delete Work Orders

You can either delete work orders individually or in bulk.

To delete a work order:
  1. Select Work Orders from the Work Order Management menu.
  2. Click the work order you want to delete. In the Work Order details page, click Delete.
  3. Click Delete in the Confirm Delete popup.


To delete work orders in bulk:
  1. In the Work Orders List page, select the work orders you want to delete or select the master checkbox to select all records and click Delete.
  2. Click Delete in the Confirm Delete popup.

Clone Work Order

You can easily create a work order by replicating the details of another work order using the cloning feature. To clone a work order:
  1. Select Work Orders from the Work Order Management menu.
  2. Click the work order you want to clone and in the Work Order details page, click Clone.



  3. Click Save after making any changes.
    All the details from the source work order will be prefilled.


Change Owner

By default, the Super Admin is the owner of all the work orders. You can assign another user as the owner of a work order by following these steps:
  1. Select Work Orders from the Work Order Management menu.
  2. Click the work order whose owner you want to change and in the Work Order details page, click Change Owner.



  3. Select the user you want to be the owner and click Save.


Complete Work Orders

A work order can be completed only if service appointments have been created for all the associated services and all these service appointments have been completed. When a work order is completed, the status of the work order changes to Completed. You can also automate work order completion.

To complete a work order:
  1. Select Work Orders from the Work Order Management menu.
  2. Click the work order you want to complete and in the Work Order details page, click Complete Work.


You can also complete a work order when you try to complete a service appointment.



You can also force complete a work order even when some of its line items are only partially completed.


Close Work Orders

When all the activities related to a work order have been completed, then the work order can be closed. When a work order is closed, the status of the work order changes to  Closed.

To close a work order:
  1. Select Work Orders from the Work Order Management menu.
  2. Click the work order you want to close and in the Work Order details page, click Close.

Cancel Work Orders

There may be instances when you do not want to proceed with a work order. For example, customer who had requested for an AC installation decides to not go ahead with the installation for the time being. In this case, the work order created for the this request will have to be cancelled.

When a work order is cancelled, the following changes occur:
  1. the status of the work order changes to Cancelled.
  2. the appointments created for the work order will also be automatically cancelled.
To cancel a work order:
  1. Select Work Orders from the Work Order Management menu.
  2. Click the work order you want to cancel and in the Work Order details page, click Cancel.
  3. Click Save in the confirmation message.

Terminate Work Orders

There may be instances when you cannot proceed with a work order. For example, the field agent goes to the service location and finds out that the customer is not present at the service location, or the field agent is unable to carry out their task due to faulty equipment. In these cases, the work order created for the this request will have to be terminated.

When a work order is terminated, the following changes occur:
  1. The status of the work order changes to Cannot Complete.
  2. The status of the appointments created for the work order will automatically change to Cannot Complete.
To terminate a work order:
  1. Select Work Orders from the Work Order Management menu.
  2. Click the work order you want to terminate. In the Work Order details page, click Terminate.
  3. Click Save in the confirmation message.

Mark Billing Status As Non Billable

There are work orders that you undertake but do not charge clients for. These work orders are typically associated with internal activities that are necessary for the operation of the business but do not directly generate revenue. Common examples include employee training, internal meetings, administrative tasks, etc.
 
You can mark the billing status of these work orders as Non Billable. After you do so, you will not be able to create invoices for these work orders.

To mark the billing status of a work order as non billable:
  1. Select Work Orders from the Work Order Management menu.
  2. Click the desired work order. In the Work Order details page, click Non Billable.



  3. Click Proceed in the confirmation message.
  4. Enter a reason for marking the billing status of the work order as non billable and click Continue.

Mark Billing Status As Void 

If there are work orders that are rendered invalid after they were created but you do not want to delete them, then you can mark their billing status as Void. After you do so, the status of the invoices generated for these work orders will be Void

To mark the billing status of a work order as void:
  1. Select Work Orders from the Work Order Management menu.
  2. Click the desired work order. In the Work Order details page, click Void.



  3. Click Proceed in the confirmation message.
  4. Enter a reason for marking the billing status of the work order as void and click Continue.

Create Service Appointments   

Service appointments are jobs created for carrying out the services in a work order. These service appointments are assigned to field agents or crew who will then render the services at the contact location. You can create as many service appointments as the services in the work order. 

Appointments can be created from the  Work Orders module or the Service Appointments module.

To create a service appointment:
  1. Select Work Orders from the Work Order Management menu and click the work order you want to add the service appointment to.
  2. Select the Appointments tab and click Create Appointment.
  3. Enter the following details, then click Schedule:
    1. Summary for the service appointment
    2. The values for Scheduled Start Date Time and Scheduled End Date Time.
      The Scheduled Start Date Time and Scheduled End Date Time should be within the same day. Use multi-day scheduling to schedule an appointment spanning multiple days.
    3. Field Agent or a Crew
      One or more resources can be assigned to the appointment.


      The following agents or crews will be available for assignment:

      - Active agents or crews assigned to the territory that is chosen in the work order

      - The agents and crews who are active in the territory between the 
      Scheduled Start Date Time and Scheduled End Date Time

      During the time when a field agent is part of a crew, they will not be available as an individual resource.

      Hover over the name of an unavailable agent to know the reason for their unavailability.




If you schedule an appointment without assigning it to a service resource (see screenshot below), then the appointment created will be in New status.


Creating Service Appointment for a Service

You can create a service appointment for a work order or for the individual services. Appointments for the services can be created as explained below:

To create a service appointment for a work order line item:
  1. Select Work Orders from the Work Order Management menu and click the work order you want to add the service appointment to.
  2. Select Appointments tab and click Create Appointment.
  3. Enter the following details, then click Schedule:
    1. In the Service field, retain the services or service tasks you want to create the appointment for.
    2. Summary for the service appointment
    3. The values for Scheduled Start Date Time and Scheduled End Date Time.
      The Scheduled Start Date Time and Scheduled End Date Time should be within the same day. Use multi-day scheduling to schedule an appointment spanning multiple days.
    4. Field Agent or a Crew
      One or more resources can be assigned to the appointment.
A new service appointment can be created for the work order or service after the existing one has been canceled or terminated.


You can link a service which has been newly added to a work order, to one of its service appointments. Following are the steps to link a service to an existing service appointment:
  1. Add a service to an existing work order.



  2. Select the service appointment of the work order to which you want to add the newly added service. Click Link Service.



  3. Click Save.

The service will get added to the service appointment.




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