Request Tracker 4 (RT4) Implementation Project

1. Request Tracker 4 (RT4) Implementation Project Lisa Tomalty, ltomalty@uwaterloo.ca Information Systems and Technology

2. What is request tracking? • Ticket/request-trackingsystems are used to coordinate tasks and manage user requests • Users receive email updates on work being done • Staff working on a ticket see all of the activity, communications, history, etc.

3. Background: RT Investigation Project (2012-13) • Recommended RT4 • Open source; support available from Best Practical Solutions LLC • Existing expertise for RT exists on campus • Well liked, stable solution • Many new features, customizable and expandable • Active user community • Many issues identified can be addressed via • Process changes/leveraging existing RT functionality

4. RT Investigation Project • Recommended RT4 • Meets critical requirements identified • Works with browsers/operating systems used on campus • Ability to integrate with asset management and other systems • Request Tracking Investigation Project Recommendation

6. Campus Wide Involvement • Members from each IT area on campus to provide input/participation • In implementation • In on-going use and development • Consistent user experience • Key success factor: • adoption of common request tracking system

7. RT4 Team members 

8. Additional participants  Mail list only: CSCF: Lawrence E Folland IST-IS: Mike Gaspic IST-Security: Mike Patterson Security review: • IST-Security: Terry Labach or Patrick Matlock Testing/Mail list • IST-ITMS: Daspina Fefekos

9. RT4 Implementation Project • Continue to provide an ongoing, reliable RT system • Meet the most important request tracking needs of the IT areas on campus • Implement a knowledge base • Integrate with the service catalogue • Enable processes to improve IT support

10. Benefits of Campus Wide System • Efficiency • Shared tool, one installation • Share administration and development • Improved IT service support through • Collaboration between and within IT units • Improved communications, support • Increased functionality • Enable/automate improved IT service processes • Shared knowledge base • Common tracking and metrics

11. Program of Projects • Program of related projects will include: • RT4 Implementation Project • IT Best Practices Project • Asset Management Project • SLA Project • Possibly other projects • Dependencies between projects will be defined

12. Objectives/Goals-1 • Work together with IT areas on campus to leverage the many benefits of RT4 • Enable IT units to share and collaborate on requests • Upgrade to the most recent version of RT4 • Update user request forms • Import existing data • Provide training, documentation and communication • Expand the use of RT4 to other IT units on campus

13. Objectives/Goals-2 • Implement new functionality and configure the new system based on: • Requirement information gathered in the RT Investigation Project • Requirements that will come out of the IT Best Practices project (TBA) • Other requirements that are deemed necessary for IT support on campus • Non-IT areas use of the system: • Non-IT areas may continue to use the system • Focus will be on meeting IT needs of campus for request tracking

14. New functionality/features-1 • Reporting/metrics • Knowledge base (“Articles”) • New user request forms (linked from service catalogue) • Shared queue administration • Customizable workflows - per queue • Customizable email templates – per queue

15. New functionality/features-2 • Recurring tickets • Escalation • Better tools for synchronizing accounts/groups with Nexus/LDAP • Improved user interface (including ability to hide quoted text) • Improved searching/canned searches • Supposedly significantly faster. :-)

16. Approach • Phased approach • Incremental changes • Keep RT system operational and functional throughout the project

17. Timeline • Phase 1A (late Dec 2013) • Planning, clean up user accounts in RT3 • Install and configure newest release of RT 4.2 and necessary plug-ins • Phase 1B (Jan-Apr 2014) • Configuration/development • Testing • Permissions • Documentation, Training, Communication • Some new features • Phase 2 (May-Aug+ 2014) • More new features • Migrations and continual improvement • Make recommendation for maintaining and keeping RT current • Training/documentation of changes

18. IT Strategic Objective mapping • “IP9: Exchange high quality data and information when, where, and how it's needed" and"...ensure that the University community is fully enabled any time, anywhere, on their preferred platform or device, ..." • Web browsers: RT4 works across all/most common browsers • Mobile: RT4 works well on most mobile devices • Client computer: RT4 requires no special configuration to use in web browser

19. Related Strategic Objectives • RM1 "Make the necessary technology infrastructure and resource investments" • Investing in helpdesk and staff support technology • OC2 "Take a University-wide perspective to IT" • OC3 "Build a cohesive knowledgeable IT community across the campus" • Enable communication, collaboration • Knowledge sharing through requests and knowledge base • IP5 "Continuously improve and optimize IT processes, workflow, and platforms" • Collaborative, structured approach to improving processes and workflow • U1 "Empower the user and optimize the user's experience" • Improve responding to requests, allow users to check progress • Knowledge base: help "build our users' knowledge and capabilities"

20. Related IT Direction • Work together to improve the usability, delivery and support of IT • Related potential opportunity: • Create integrated, service-oriented helpdesks that uphold excellent standards and stay connected to share information to best serve users. • One installation of the request system used by all and shared knowledge base would help achieve this.

21. Questions? • Inquiries and requests for RT access/queues can be directed to: • Lisa Tomalty ltomalty@uwaterloo.ca • Project Web site:https://uwaterloo.ca/it-service-asset-management/request-tracker-4-rt4-implementation-project