Dispatcher quick start

Learning goals and outcome

Enterprise dispatchers assign pending work orders to service groups, engineers, or configured external service providers. Service group dispatchers handle work orders assigned to their group. They usually select only engineers within that group.

Role	Scope	Common assignment targets
Dispatcher	Enterprise-level work orders pending assignment	Service groups, engineers, or external service providers
Service group dispatcher	Work orders assigned to the current service group	Primary and supporting engineers in that group

Before you begin

• Enterprise dispatch requires the Dispatcher role. Group dispatch requires Service Group Dispatcher permissions.
• The work order has reached a manual dispatch stage and appears in your pending assignment list.
• Verify the service address, planned service time, service area, and required skills.
• Map dispatch requires a locatable service address. Reassignment also requires permission for the Reassign button.

Procedure

Assign a work order on Web

1. Go to Tasks > Work Orders Pending Assignment.
2. Open the work order and verify the customer, equipment, address, and current assignment stage.
3. Return to the list, select the work order, and select Assign Work Order.
4. Select a service group, engineer, or external provider allowed by the current stage. Enter any required dispatch details.
5. For collaborative service, select a primary engineer and then the allowed supporting engineers.
6. Confirm the assignment. Verify the updated group, provider, primary engineer, or supporting engineers on the work order.

Choose list or map dispatch

• List dispatch: Compare available engineer status, location, and assigned work order counts shown on the page.
• Map dispatch: Find nearby internal engineers or external resources by service address. This option requires a locatable address.
• Service group dispatch: An enterprise dispatcher selects a group. The work order then enters the group dispatcher's task list.
• Dispatch within a group: A group dispatcher selects primary or supporting engineers only from the current group.

Assign an engineer in the App

1. Open the administrator-configured Pending Assignment entry in the App workbench.
2. Select the work order and select Assign Work Order.
3. Select an engineer and any allowed supporting engineers.
4. Confirm the action. Return to the work order and verify the result.

The App does not support map dispatch. Use Web to compare resources on a map.

Handle rejection, transfer, and reassignment

1. If a group cannot handle a work order, use Reject or Transfer when available. Rejection returns it upstream; transfer routes it to another group.
2. To replace an assigned resource, select Reassign from the work order list or details. Choose a target within your role's scope.
3. Submit the change. Verify the new assignee and confirm that the previous assignee no longer needs to act.

Roles, stages, states, and feature permissions control these buttons. Contact an administrator when an expected button is unavailable.

Expected results

• The work order shows the selected group, provider, primary engineer, or supporting engineers.
• A directly assigned engineer can see the task in the workbench.
• A selected service group's dispatcher receives the group dispatch task.
• Rejection, transfer, or reassignment updates the responsible scope or assignee.
• Automatically assigned work orders do not require duplicate manual dispatch.

Troubleshooting

The work order is missing from the pending assignment list

Confirm that it reached your dispatch stage. Check whether your account is an enterprise dispatcher or the target group's dispatcher. Successful automatic dispatch can move it directly to an engineer.

Map dispatch is unavailable

Map dispatch is Web-only and requires a locatable service address. Add the address or use list dispatch.

The target engineer is unavailable

Group dispatchers can select only engineers in their group. Enterprise scope can also be limited by service area, skills, permissions, or process settings.

Rejection, transfer, or reassignment is unavailable

These actions are not available to every role or at every stage. Confirm the state and current assignee, then ask an administrator to review permissions.

Notes

• Verify the address and service requirements before assignment to reduce immediate reassignment.
• When engineers have different actions, confirm the tasks shown for the primary and supporting engineers.
• Automatic and manual dispatch can coexist. Manually dispatch only unmatched work orders or stages that require a selection.

Related topics

• Manage work orders as a dispatcher
• Assign a service group
• Assign an engineer
• Assign an external service provider
• Use Gantt charts and maps for dispatch
• Reject, transfer, and reassign work
• Engineer quick start