Mediachase IBN Help Desk and Project Management Blog

If you have files that multiple people will be collaborating on and making changes to, then you may prefer using the Document Manager rather than the traditional File Library tied to projects.

When you upload files to a File Library, there is no way of keeping track of version numbers or version history.

The Document Manager allows you to add versions, assign flags (Draft mode, For Review, Reviewed w/ Edits, Final Draft, Approved, Published), add comments, add resources, show update history, record the amount of time spent on reviewing/editing docs and configure system notifications whenever a change is made to a document.

For more information, please visit our trial at http://www.mediachase.com/ibn/tourtrial.aspx.

With the impending release of IBN 4.7, one important new feature introduced with this release is full time tracking and timesheet capabilities.  Unlike 4.5, where you could only track time within a project, the new and improved Timesheet feature allows you to track time from every task, to-do and project.

Here’s a walkthrough from an end-user perspective on how Timesheets work in IBN 4.7:

Time Management View

You have a consolidated view of your tasks, to-dos, and projects with the amount of time listed under each day of the week.  If you click on the blue “i” icon, a window will pop up giving you information about the task.   You can also chose from this view, “Send” your billable time for approval, “Clone” a task from a prior week to the current week, and delete any tasks if needed.

Add Tasks, To-Dos, Projects

 

You can choose to quickly add time to a project, task, or to-do manually, or use existing ones already posted on the IBN.

Quick Add Menu

 

You have a drop down menu of existing activities and projects.  You can then enter a work title/description and then billable time for each day of the week. 

Add Existing Tasks, To-Dos, Projects Menu

 

Here you have a list of tasks (including support issues) that you add to your Timesheet without having to enter the task manually.  You can also filter tasks or to-dos by project on the drop down menu.

Once that’s all send and done… SEND.

 

Once you’re done, check off the tasks you want to send off to get approved by the project manager or time-manager. 

Report View

 

Click on “Report” and that’ll bring you to the Report View.

 

Here you can track all of your timesheets past and present.  You can also check the status or approval from either the project manager or the time-manager.  You can then either print out or export the Timesheet into an Excel file.

In addition, you can create custom approval processes that best fits how your company approves Timesheets under the Administrative section of your IBN portal.   The IBN, as it’s designed, gives you full flexibility and customizations as needed. 

If you have any questions, suggestions, or criticisms about the new Timesheet feature, feel free to comment below.   Download a demo or sign up for a trial and give the IBN a test drive.

Here are some guidelines to follow if you are a project manager involved in more complex projects requiring a phased approach.

Team Concept
Every successful project is a team effort.  The most successful projects involve active participation on the part of the client.  Available resources include: project managers, developers, graphic designers, QA testers, and IT professionals.

Planning and Coordination
Projects fail in most cases not because of developers, but because of a lack of communication.  Effective and timely communication is the single most important factor for a project completing successfully on time and within budget.

Let's take an ecommerce project integrating with other third party systems (i.e. ERP, CMS, CRM, etc.) as an example.  For such a project, a considerable amount of time needs to be spent upfront to gather requirements and generate wireframes.  Deliverables are important - diagrams, project plans, requirements documents. And once these deliverables are acceptable and customer signoff has been received, then we are ready to proceed to the next step.

Finalizing Data Model
An accurate data model is the foundation of any site since everything related to finding a product and filtering search results hinges upon it. Because many medium to larger enterprises have disconnected systems scattered throughout the organization, devising an accurate data model is critical to the success of a project.  

Custom Development
This step in the methodology is the most variable in its duration.  Every customer has very specific technical requirements based on their unique business needs.  From a B2B portal with specialized pricing discounts based on login credentials, to modifying the order management in the back-end admin site, the range of customizations is limitless.  

QA Testing
No matter how successful a project is through the development phase, unless you spend an adequate amount of time for quality assurance, the project will seem like a failure if bugs surface after the site is launched in production.  A thorough, quality assurance period is time well spent and will reduce costs to the customer in the long run.

Don't Forget: Things to Keep in Mind Before Site Deployment

• Will you run the site internally or will you go with a hosting facility?
• Redundancy or fail-over, web-farm configuration (if necessary)
• Do you have a support process ironed it if you encounter bugs on the site or the site goes down?
• Service Level Agreement - what is acceptable to the client?
  

With the IBN, we offer an On-Demand option for companies and organizations that don’t have the IT resources or infrastructure to host their own IBN environment.  This essentially follows the Software as a Service model, or SaaS, a growing trend in the software industry.

SaaS offers numerous advantages to traditional software offerings.  On the customer side, they don’t have to worry about setup, installation, and maintenance in-house, making SaaS an attractive business option for cost-conscious customers, businesses, and organizations.  They will access their applications through a standard web browser such as Firefox or Internet Explorer.  In addition, since the application is web-based, it makes collaboration easier.  Files and documents are stored in a centralized database, rather than a local machine, eliminating the need to send files back and forth, as long as the application supports file sharing.  Google Docs and Zoho Office are two prominent examples of effective online content creation and Web 2.0-style sharing and collaboration. Lastly, SaaS fits in common Web 2.0 trends, including social networking and rich Internet applications filled with AJAX-y goodness.

Zoli Erdos offers additional insight on the SaaS model and where software distribution may be heading if the Zohos of the world gain ground on traditional client-based software.  Software margins may shrink drastically for major companies such as Microsoft, but the demand for cheaper (or free), lighter, collaborative options will be too hard to ignore.

The Instant Business Network has released 3 server packages - IBN Help Desk, IBN Project Management, and IBN Full Suite. 

IBN Full Suite contains all features found in IBN Help Desk and IBN Project Management.

This is a preliminary feature list for each of the server packages.  A more comprehensive feature COMPARISON is coming soon.

IBN Help Desk

• 100 % web-based portal
• Collaboration - add multiple support staff / tiers of support staff
• Automatic notification via email or desktop alert to pool of support staff
• Process of assigning support staff, flaging issues, adding comments to issues, verifying issues, and resolving issues
• Automatic auto-reply template for all incoming support requests
• View by Issues Box - supports multiple support email addresses
• Knowledge base of past support issues
• Full-text search
• File library
• Time tracking
• Online calendar
• Custom Reports - i.e. # of open, closed or pending issues
• Optional desktop client for secure messaging, alerts, file sharing
• Read more
  

IBN Project Management

• 100 % web-based portal
• Collaboration - add multiple team members by project
• Automatic notification via email or deskto alert to all members of project whenever a change is made or file is uploaded
• Manage tasks, To Dos, lists, comments, discussions, calendar entries
• Multiple views: By Project, All Projects, List View, Resources View, Gantt Chart View
• Process to monitor status and closing of tasks
• Online calendar
• Full-text search
• Time tracking
• Custom Reports - i.e. status of tasks, resource utilization, etc.
• Optional desktop client for secure messaging, alerts, file sharing
• Read more
  

IBN Full Suite

• 100 % web-based portal
• Collaboration - add multiple team members by project or multiple support staff / tiers of support staff
• Automatic notification via email or desktop alert to all members of project whenever a change is made or file is uploaded, or to pool of support staff
• Manage tasks, To Dos, lists, comments, discussions, calendar entries
• Multiple views: By Project, All Projects, By Issues Box, List View, Resources View, Gantt Chart View
• Process to monitor status and closing of tasks
• Online calendar
• Full-text search
• Time tracking
• File library
  
• Process of assigning support staff, flaging issues, adding comments to issues, verifying issues, and resolving issues
• Automatic auto-reply template for all incoming support requests
• Knowledge base of past support issues
• Custom Reports - all information in the IBN can be pulled together into a report
• Optional desktop client for secure messaging, alerts, file sharing
• Read more

In addition, the IBN On-Demand service is the hosted version of the IBN Full Suite.

Mediachase Plans Release of IBN 4.7 which Includes Advanced Time Tracking, Microsoft Project Synchronization, Improved List Management, and iGoogle-like Modular Views.

LOS ANGELES , California – May 12, 2008 –On the heels of its new pricing and packaging, Mediachase is already planning the release of its next version of the Instant Business Network, or IBN 4.7.

The most notable feature is a more advanced Time Tracking feature which adds the ability to include a workflow process that allows project managers to review (approve/reject) timesheets submitted by team members before the time is officially recorded. 

Second, the IBN 4.7 has the ability to synchronize changes from Microsoft Project to the IBN web portal, and vice versa.  This feature is particularly helpful for employees who travel often because they can use MS Project to make updates while on the road where they have no internet access.  And once the user has internet access again, he or she can synchronize changes back to their project web portal so that all team members can view the most up-to-date information.  

Third, the List Management interface has been overhauled to give users much more flexibility.  You can edit forms, change the order of columns, show a history for each record, store favorites, and relate multiple lists together.

Lastly, one of the most visually exciting features is the ability to customize your work space view into iGoogle-like modules that can be added, removed, or moved around and reordered.  This feature allows users to get a quick snapshot of the most important and relevant information regarding their help desk system or projects.

More information will be released in the coming weeks describing each of these features in more detail as Mediachase prepares for the pubic release of IBN 4.7.

About Mediachase

Mediachase designs, integrates, and builds innovative software solutions and tools for companies needing to streamline internal and external business activities. Mediachase is headquartered in Los Angeles, California, and currently has offices in Washington, D.C. and Kaliningrad, Russia.  

Mediachase is a privately held company established in 1997 with a global client base of installations. 

CONTACT INFORMATION

Ray Choi
Mediachase, LTD.
+1 323-988-1071

Mediachase launches 3 server packages (IBN Help Desk, IBN Project Management, IBN Full Suite) and an On-Demand Service. 

These solutions will help you to reduce email clutter, to track and resolve issues, to increase team member productivity, and to enhance collaboration. 

For more information, please visit http://www.mediachase.com/ibn.  Also, feel free to email sales@mediachase.com if you have any further questions.

Mediachase Software

http://www.mediachase.com/ibn

One of the key uses of the Instant Business Network Help Desk solution (which is part of our IBN Full Suite and On-Demand Service as well) is to manage customer service requests.

Here is a quick tutorial on how to configure an IBN Issues Box with a Gmail account to handle incoming customer service inquiries and requests.

First, go to "Issue Common Settings" which is in the Administration tab. (You will also notice advanced anti-spam features, but we will get into that in a later blog.)



Next, create a POP3 Box to capture all incoming emails (in the case of Gmail accounts, you can use all the settings shown below).



Assuming you already have an Issues Box set up (we are using "Customer Support"), you can go ahead and map this POP3 Box with the corresponding Issues Box.  To map the POP3 Box with the Issues Box, you can click the POP3 Box and select "Mapping Fields."  Then, make sure to select the Issues Box ("Customer Support) from the drop down list.



Now send an email to the email address (i.e. Gmail) that you plan to use to handle customer service requests.  After a few minutes, the email will appear in the "Customer Support" Issues Box found under the Issues/Help Desk tab.  Best of all, automatic notifications via email and desktop alert will be sent to every member of your support staff.



Yahoo no longer has a free POP3 service so if you are unable to configure a POP3 account with your internal mail server, we recommend Gmail.  Just follow the steps above and you should be all set.

Read more.

Mediachase Software

In the coming week or so, Mediachase plans to launch several server packages and an On-Demand Service to better target the needs of small-to-medium businesses.  The server packages will include the IBN Help Desk solution, the IBN Project Management solution, and the IBN Full Suite, all of which are web-based portal solutions that come with an optional desktop client for secure messaging and file sharing.

The IBN Help Desk solution is ideal for organizations that need a system for capturing, consolidating, and resolving issues, whether they are external customer support requests or internal departmental issues.

One typical implementation of the IBN Help Desk solution is to set it up to process all incoming support requests sent via email address.  These issues enter the IBN system and are immediately routed to a support repository or Issues Box and notifications are sent out automatically to either a single support person or a pool of support staff.  The support person enters feedback for the issue and can close issues directly or flag a support manager to review the issue before giving feedback to the customer and closing the issue.

The IBN Project Management solution is geared toward making project management easier by reducing email clutter and making collaboration of resources more efficient, regardless of each team member's location.

The IBN Project Management solution allows you to manage/assign/complete tasks, share files, manage lists and To Dos, share a common project calendar with important dates and milestones, track finances and timesheets, and consolidate discussions -- all from the convenience of a web portal.  Best of all, whenever a change is made to the project or a file is uploaded, everyone on the team is notified via email or desktop client alert so that everyone always has access to the most up-to-date information.

The IBN Full Suite brings you the best of both worlds by combining the IBN Help Desk and IBN Project Management feature sets.  You will be surprised how much tracking issues as part of projects makes a lot of sense and will elevate your ability to manage projects more effectively.

For SMBs who are looking to reduce initial investment costs and set up time, the IBN On-Demand Service offers a very cost-effective monthly plan and the added peace of mind of a Tier 1 hosting facility with firewall security and daily data backups.

More information to come...

Mediachase Software
www.mediachase.com/ibn

The following table outlines user capacities and restrictions within the IBN portal based on user type.  Please keep in mind that group visibility and security role options also determine data accessibility.  This is just a breakdown of the three user types (regular, partner and external).

Items	Regular Users/ Intranet Group	Partner Users/ Extranet Group	External Users
Access to Web Portal	Yes	Yes	No
Project Management	Yes	No	No
Create Projects	Yes	No	No
Create Tasks	Yes	No	No
Create Issues	Yes	Yes	No
Create Lists	Yes	Yes	No
Create Timesheets	Yes	Yes	No
Create ToDo's	Yes	Yes	No
Shared Project Files	Yes	Yes	No
Shared Contacts/ Organizations	Yes	Yes	No
Project update alerts via e-mail	Yes	Yes	Yes

For more information regarding user configuration and security roles, please visit our documentation pages by selecting either users and/or security roles.

 

The IBN Issues and Help Desk feature provides entities with the capacity to effectively administer and manage all Help Desk and Issues related subjects within a centralized location.  We, at Mediachase, use this powerful tool to manage all support related incidents allocated to multiple issue boxes.  Here are some tips of how to use the Issues & Help Desk feature.

 

In order to access Issues/Help Desk, select Issues/Help Desk on the left navigation pane as shown below.  The IBN provides multiple views of existing issues and help desk related items, and the ability to view some or all of these items depends on the individual's position within the company.

 

As a help desk administrator, the following will be most useful in handling all issues:

1.    Select View by Issue Box and a drop down menu will appear of all existing Issue Boxes.  Select the specific issue/help desk box you would like to see.

2.    The controlled option to edit or delete an incident is on the right hand side of the window.

3.    You may create a new issue or import/export from and to an existing issue box.

 

You can access individual incidents by selecting the specific title/name of the issue (in blue) or by selecting the edit icon on the right.

 

 

The following screenshot is an example of a specific incident received from a customer. 

The numbered items are:

1.    Quick Tracking provides help desk/issues administrators with the ability to change the status of the incident and to assign the responsible individual with the particular incident.  The assigned individual will be notified via IBN Alerts or via email if properly configured.

2.    Option to add an existing email or add an internal message to the specific incident.

3.    The Send button records the added message or email to the history of the incident.

4.    Option to reply to, resend or delete a specific line item.

5.    Option to resend, mark as resolved, mark as workaround, or delete the message.

6.    The Actions drop down menu provides additional command options, such as add a ToDo, add resources, add timesheet items, and edit the incident.

7.    Adjust the current view settings.

8.    View details of the incident, such as time received and response times and dates.

 

 

For additional information on help desk/ issues management and administration, please visit http://docs.mediachase.com/doku.php?id=ibn:45:admin:chapter7

jason

Many revisions ago, the IBN-CS had a client application that worked on the Microsoft CE and Java platform, back when PDAs were just starting to break into the market.  As mobile online connectivity was hard to come by and the popularity of PDA dwindled, the platform was temporarily suspended. 

However, now that the market has given way to the latest slew of SmartPhones and mobile online connectivity, whether it be 3G, Wi-Fi or smoke signal, has become abundant, there have been some asking for the resuscitation of the IBN-CS Mobile Client application.  Just imagine sitting smugly in a Starbucks securely IMing with your office asking them what type of mocha latte frap they want.

We are interested to hear the reaction from our community as to whether or not they might be interested in seeing something like that again.

We've recently gotten a few questions from customers as to how to seamlessly synchronize your MS Project (2003-2007) file with the IBN-CS.  For those of you who don't know, the IBN-CS has the ability to upload/export MS Project Files, which allows everybody on a project to essentially goto a webpage to look at the schedule, update their schedules/tasks and get auto notification as to when their tasks are due - essentially publishing a MS Project File online, allowing everybody (with permission) to modify on-the-fly.

In any event, here are the quick steps to importing in the MS Project file:

1. In MS Project, use the "Save As" feature to save the file in an .XML format
2. Log into your IBN-CS 4.5 instance
3. Pick the project you'd like to use this MS Project file for
4. Click the "Actions" button on the upper right hand corner and select "MS Project Data Exchange"
5. In the Import area, either type or "Browse" the file name, and the click the [Import] button
6. A series of question will pop up asking you to link references in the MS Project File to people in the IBN-CS system, as well as other possible connections you might want between the MS Proejct File and existing IBN-CS entities.
   

And that's it - you're ready to roll.  You final result should look something like what is being shown below.  At this point, people will start receiving automatic notification in either instant messages or e-mails about all of the things that they said they would do, but haven't yet.  (publisher's note - I'd love to hear if anybody has broken Mark's record of missing 38 consecutive milestones - as far as we know, a world record)

To all of the masses waiting for more witty commentary from Mark, we have to apologize on his behalf.  Unfortunately our very own Mark is a Washington Redskins fan, which is what ultimately lead to his head exploding after their undignified 51-7 loss to the New England Patriots.

In the meantime, please check out some of the new posts about the upcoming IBN-CS 4.6 release.  There should be some pretty interesting posts in the next couple of weeks, and we are always looking for valuable feedback from our beloved community.

We hope and expect Mark to be fully healed in a day or two, ready to begin posting and deal with another future Redskins loss.

Thank you for your patience and understanding. 

As we ready the new IBN-CS 4.6 release, one of the most hotly anticipated updates to the general project management and collaboration features is the completely revamped Timesheet component. 

The new Timesheet component will give IBN-CS users a simplistic and powerful tool for time entry, submission, and reporting.  Some important features of the timesheet include:

• Easy, spreadsheet-like AJAX interface for quick and smooth time entry
• Add Projects, Tasks, Issues, General Categories with two mouse clicks
  
• Enter and Tab through time entries with few quick keystrokes
  
• Admin-configurable workflow for timesheet approval/review process
• Admin-defined data dictionary for any time entry element, including categorization of time entries
  
• Seamless integration into the overall IBN-CS interface.
  

We would like to thank our creative and responsive IBN-CS community for their feedback and input for the new Timesheet component.  As we near the new release, we would still love to hear from you what features/functionality you would like to see in this new Timesheet component.

NOTE - Attached is just a mock-up, final design may vary (greatly)