Content for problem management
This section describes the extended function provided by the best practices content for the Problems application.
Predefined user names
Each security group included in the best practices content is provided with a predefined user name and password. The user name is the same as the group name with USR appended. For example, PMPRBADMUSR is the predefined user name for the PMPRBADM security group. Each user is created with a password that is set/chosen by the Administrator.
The PMPRBADMUSR user occupies the role of Problem Administrator. The Problem Administrator can create additional users for any security group.
Security groups and start centers
The best practices content package includes security groups for each of the Problem Management Service Desk roles defined in the IBM® Tivoli® Unified Process (ITUP). Besides the ITUP user roles, the package includes a Problem Administrator security group (named PMPRBADM) that is authorized to access all applications.
The following table lists the security groups for problem management. A start center is generated for each group.
| Security group name | Description | Start center template |
|---|---|---|
| PMPRBADM | Problem Administrator group. These users have rights to every action and every application. | PMPRBADM |
| PMPRBMGR | Problem Manager group. These users are responsible for the quality and integrity of the problem management process. The Problem Manager interfaces with other process managers and serves as the focal point for escalation. | PMPRBMGR |
| PMPRBOWN | Problem Owner group. These users oversee the handling of a problem, bringing in analysts and specialists as needed. The Problem Owner is responsible for bringing the problem to closure. | PMPRBOWN |
| PMPRBANAL | Problem Analyst group. These users are subject matter experts in one or more areas. The Problem Analyst discovers incident trends, identifies problems, and determines the root cause of problems. | PMPRBANAL |
Queries
The following table shows the queries that have been added for problem management. These queries provide quick access to information about current and historical problems.
See Record Statuses for definitions of the statuses referred to in this table (new, queued, in progress, pending, resolved, and closed). An open problem is defined as a problem in any status except RESOLVED or CLOSED.
| Clause name | Query description |
|---|---|
| PMPRBOPEN | All open problems |
| PMPRBMYOPEN | My open problems |
| PMPRBLATE | All open problems that are late or at risk of
being late.
Note that a target finish date is not required. A problem with no target finish date is not considered late or at risk of being late because the expected completion date is unknown. |
| PMPRBMYLATE | My open problems that are late or at risk of
being late. See the PMPRBLATE query description for definitions of late and at risk of being late. |
| PMPRBREPURG | All open problems with Urgent Reported Priority |
| PMPRBINTURG | All open problems with Urgent Internal Priority |
Key Performance Indicators
The following table shows the Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) that have been added for problem management.
| KPI name | KPI description |
|---|---|
| PMPRBLATEA | Number of late activities or activities at risk
of being late from all open problems. See the PMPRBLATE query description for definitions of late and at risk of being late. |
| PMPRBAVGTI | Average process time per problem in hours |
| PMPRBOPEN | Problems that are currently in progress |
| PMPRBWAPP | Open problems that have activities that are waiting for approval |
| PMPRBURG | Open problems marked Urgent Priority (internally) |
| PMPRBHIGH | Open problems marked High Priority (internally) |
Communication templates and escalations
The best practices content includes predefined communication templates that the service desk analyst can use to send a communication to other users. Communications that use predefined templates are automatically sent to the Reported By and Affected Person users shown on the problem record when certain conditions occur, such as a change in the status of the problem.
The following table lists the predefined communication templates provided for the Problems application. Each template is identified by a template name and title. The names and titles of the predefined communication templates are displayed in the list of available templates when a service desk analyst manually creates a communication using a template.
If a template is used in an automatic communication, the Automatic Notification column describes the condition under which the notification is sent. The Escalation column lists the predefined escalation that triggers the notification. The predefined escalations are run once a day. An administrator can make changes to the automatic notification behavior provided with the product by modifying or removing the associated escalations. For example, the ESCPRBCLS10 escalation, which triggers a notification 10 days after a problem is resolved, can be re-configured to a different number of days.
The predefined templates that are used in automatic notifications include the primary e-mail addresses of the Reported By and Affected Person users in the To: field of the template. When manually creating a communication using one of these templates, a service desk analyst can change these addresses to specify a different recipient or recipients.
| Template name | Template title | Template description | Automatic notification | Escalation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CTPRBRES | Problem is resolved | Notifies the recipients that the problem has been resolved. The e-mail message includes the reported date of the problem, classification, description, and solution details. | This communication is automatically sent to the Reported By and Affected Person users within one day after the problem status changes to RESOLVED. | ESCPRBRES |
| CTPRBCLS | Problem is closed | Notifies the recipients that the problem has been closed. The e-mail message includes the reported date of the problem, classification, description, and solution details. | This communication is automatically sent to the Reported By and Affected Person users within one day after the problem status changes to CLOSED. | ESCPRBCLS |
| CTPRBCLS10 | Problem is closed | This template is the same as the CTPRBCLS template, but the conditions for automatic notification are different. | After a problem has been in RESOLVED status
for 10 or more days, the problem is automatically changed to CLOSED
status and this communication is sent to the Reported By and Affected
Person users within one day after the problem is closed. The ESCPRBCLS and ESCPRBCLS10 escalations are coordinated so that only one notification is sent in case of a conflict. |
ESCPRBCLS10 |
| CTPRBASN | Problem is assigned | Notifies all members of an owner group that a new problem has been assigned to the group and encourages anyone in the group to take ownership. The e-mail message includes the problem name, description, internal priority, affected person, and reported date. | The logged-in user must create a communication to send this e-mail notification. It is not automatic. | none |