Download - TOPdesk 5: Achieve More With Fewer Clicks
6 TOPDESK 5
The first version of TOPdesk was released almost twenty years ago, and has improved with each new version. The result? TOPdesk 4, our most successful version ever. However, we believe we can do better. We proudly present: TOPdesk 5!
Text: Nienke Deuss
T wenty years ago we were glad that we could create
an inventory and track calls without Excel sheets
or Post-its,” says Wolter Smit, TOPdesk CEO. “But
organizations have become much more complex since then.
Many IT departments work according to ITIL, which currently
comprises 26 processes. Moreover, it is more and more
common for Shared Service Centres to combine IT, Facilities
and HR processes. Our customers have to deal with complex
situations. We developed TOPdesk 5 with this in mind. This
version is intended to make your work easier and ensure that
you achieve more with fewer clicks.”
Achieve more with fewer clicksBut what does ‘achieve more with fewer clicks’ really mean?
“TOPdesk 5 is designed to let users access the information
most important to them without the extra clicks,” explains
Smit. “We achieved this by creating more space on the screen:
we moved or reduced the size of the elements that took up
a lot of space but were not frequently used. This lets users
utilize the space when they need it, and more space means a
better overview.”
This version also ensures that you have immediate access to
TOPdesk’s most important functionalities, as Smit explains.
“Links provide quick access to common actions, such as
creating a new card. TOPdesk 5 introduces the Quick Launch
Bar, which you can equip with buttons for the functions
you use most. For instance, you can create a new call or
reservation in a single click. We don’t know which functions
you use every day, so the Quick Launch Bar is customizable:
you can add buttons to create new cards, or to directly open
a report a selection.”
The ability to customize your work environment, such as with
the Quick Launch Bar, is one of TOPdesk 5’s characteristic
features. There are many ways to personalize your TOPdesk,
ensuring that you will always see the information you need.
“You can also see this with the new bookmark feature,” says
Smit. “As an operator, you may want to track a number of calls
or changes without having to create a new selection. This is
why you can create bookmarks for virtually any card. These
cards are included in an overview, which you can open directly
from your Quick Launch Bar. This overview can include cards
from several processes.”
TOPDESK 5: ACHIEVE MORE WITH FEWER CLICKS
7 TOPDESK 5
The start pageAs mentioned previously, you can use the Quick Launch Bar to click
through to important functionalities. However, you can also access
handy overviews via blocks and buttons on your start page. With
a single click you can open your Task Board, the Dashboard and
TOPdesk’s most important new feature: the Plan Board for operators.
All your tasks on one Task BoardYour start page displays all your tasks, and lets you click through to
task overviews for each module. It is also possible to click through
to the Task Board. The large button at the top of your start page lets
you open an overview of all tasks assigned to you, from all processes.
This gives you a complete overview of everything you need to do.
◄ On the start page, you can
directly click through to all
the information you need.
◄ The progress trail displays all
the customer communication,
including emails and
documents.
Photography: Robin Kuijs
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9 TOPDESK 5
When you open a call, you will immediately see another important
improvement introduced in TOPdesk 5. The call or incident card is
one of the most commonly used cards among operators. This card
has always contained a lot of information, right from the first version
of TOPdesk: a caller block, additional information, processing and
planning data and of course the request and action field. The layout
has been changed in TOPdesk 5: all fixed administrative data is
contained in (collapsible) sections on the left, leaving room on the
right side of the card for customer communication – the so-called
progress trail. “You can follow the entire process without a single extra
click. You can see the request, the action undertaken and the reactions,
presented chronologically,” says Smit. “What’s more, all sent emails
are included in the progress trail as links, and you are able to see all
internal notes and uploaded files. The progress trail is available in both
Incident Management and Change Management.”
All reports and KPIs on one DashboardManagers monitor their department’s progress and mostly use
TOPdesk to make sure that everything is on track. We have also created
better overviews for these users. You can open the Dashboard directly
from the start page. “We developed the Dashboard for monitoring
processes,” explains Smit. “It allows you to gain immediate insight into
the status of your processes. You can view KPIs and reports displayed
in graphs. If something catches your eye, then you can access the
underlying details in a single click, right down to individual cards. You
can also determine what is displayed on the dashboards. You can add
overviews of current situations, reports, KPIs or selections, to name but
a few. Moreover, you also have access to an Overview Dashboard that
lets you display reports and KPIs from several process on a single page.
Plan Board for operatorsA coordinator is responsible for monitoring his team’s schedule. What
do you do when someone goes on holiday, or if someone calls in sick?
Do you still have the capacity to handle all incoming calls? “Many of
our customers use Excel sheets to keep track of their planning, with a
list of employees on one axis and the service desk’s opening times on
the other,” explains Smit. “The cells are then colour-coded to indicate
who is in the office, who has the day off, the shift someone is working,
◄ Above: View, create and group reports
and KPIs on a single Dashboard
Below: The Plan Board for operators
lets you easily (re)schedule tasks
YOU CAN EASILY SCHEDULE YOUR DEPARTMENT’S STAFF AND EVEN SET UP RECURRENCE PATTERNS
Wolter Smit about the Plan Board
YOU DETERMINE WHICH KPIS AND REPORTS ARE DISPLAYED IN GRAPHS ON THE DASHBOARD
Wolter Smit about the Dashboard
10 TOPDESK 5
and so on. It’s no wonder people use Excel
for this: it is quick, accessible and easy. But
we wondered if we couldn’t offer something
better, something in one application.”
TOPdesk 5 introduces the Plan Board for
operators, which combines the simplicity
of Excel with the power of TOPdesk, as Smit
explains. “With a single click you can access
a list of all operators, ordered by operator
group. You can register and adjust your
department’s staff, take morning and night
shifts into account when doing so and even
set up recurrence patterns.
“However, the Plan Board’s main advantage
is that you also have access to other
information registered in TOPdesk,” says Smit.
“You can see who is present, but you also
know how busy they are and what they are
doing. The Plan Board displays the number of
tasks your employees need to complete, and
how many tasks are assigned to them before
or after this week: you have optimal insight
into your employees’ workflow. You can use
this information to reassign tasks, ensuring
that your schedule will not be disrupted
when someone goes on holiday or calls in sick.”
Manage your processesTOPdesk application managers or process
managers spend a lot of time setting up
processes. They maintain the Change
Management templates or process surveys,
to name but a few tasks. “We have introduced
the module pages with these users in mind,”
explains Smit. “The module page displays
everything you need to manage a module. At
the top of the screen is the module diagram,
which shows how the module is set up for
your organization: the parts you do not use
are marked as light grey. Moreover, you can
click straight through to expand the module’s
settings with new selections, templates or
surveys, for example.”
▲ The module page uses diagrams to show how
your processes are set up.
Interested in a demonstration?Are you interested in TOPdesk 5’s new features and functionalities?
Get in contact with a TOPdesk office near you and request a free demo today.
DID YOU KNOW...
• The Dashboards, Plan Board and module pages are standard parts of the framework?
• TOPdesk 5 was developed by three development teams in the Netherlands, Germany and Hungary?
• Many TOPdesk 5 elements were developed based on users’ feature requests?
• The first demonstration of TOPdesk 5 for beta customers took place on 2 April?
• The next page features pictures of part of the team responsible for TOPdesk 5?
• You can view the names of all TOPdesk employees who contributed to the 5 under TOPdesk menu > Help > About TOPdesk?
Mark van MeursDevelopment (Delft)
11 TOPDESK 5
Robert AmeszDevelopment (Delft)
Niels van KlaverenSupport
Ivette van PuttenSupport
Jalitha WillsDevelopment (Delft)
Laurent van BerkelTesting
Olga ReutelingspergerFunctional design
Cees de QuaastenietTesting
Bart van der HelSupport
Balázs NádasdiDevelopment (Budapest)
Willem BottemaFunctional design
Dirk AmmerlaanFunctional design
Bart EnkelaarDevelopment (Delft)