How Do You Manage Requests in Your Organization?

StormShadw asks: "How do you manage IT requests in your organization? There seems to be a lack of software solutions specifically designed to track requests. Most that I've been able to find are either problem tracking systems or bug tracking systems, neither of which completely fit the 'request management' model. I work for a large bank and my department supports all of the internet web presence and online banking applications for the company. We receive hundreds of requests a week (my department has 51 people in it), typically through a variety of mediums (phone, email, hallway conversations). It's impossible to manage all these efficiently when there is no centralized system. What's the solution? What do you all use?"

"There is a 'workflow' aspect to many of these requests: we do our thing, then pass it off to the UNIX admins, firewall folks, or DBAs to process another portion of the request. Ideally, I'd like to have a web based system where our customers (internal lines of business) can submit their requests, get status, etc. We would also manage a queue of work through a web interface, assigning requests internally or to other teams we work with. Email notifications could be generated when requests are completed."

RT!

[ericsante]

check out http://www.bestpractical.com/

Our solution - Broken but it works.... Kinda

[johndoesovich]

Originally we setup a system where users would have to fill out a support request form and drop it in a box for us. This became cumbersome for us because we were constantly having to check and users were having to wait. In the end, I removed the SOP we had in place for requesting support. I would prefer they all submit their requests in the same manner (via email). We do not have a person here that can field calls all day. We also run a pretty cool program called Assett Navigator by Alloy Software (alloy-software.com). It is one of the few reasonably priced solutions that will manage the entire enterprise. It was pretty painless to roll out and their inventory module is pretty cool. They also have a web interface for the roaming IT person where he can check his to-do list. Being that it runs on Access or SQL, you could write a few scripts that would give the users the ability to submit their own support calls. The manager or someone else could easily route calls between techs. Additionally, techs can escalate calls to other techs if needed.

My ideal solution is an automated one. The last thing I want to do is answer calls all day from my users.

What I use

[Kujah]

I use a program called goldmine to manage contacts as well as interactions with them. It stores them in a (db3) database file, and you can add custom filters, etc, to it. I find it quite helpful

RT

[jdepons]

We use request tracker. http://www.gnu.org/directory/rtracker.html

Our own internal app

[keesh]

We have our own internal app which people can access via the Web or through Notes. Or, if they prefer, they can call the helldesk who will sumbit the problem for them. All submissions are routed via the helldesk anyway, who then pass them on (usually) to the (usually) correct group.

Of course, since there's a web interface, we also have several automated scripts that submit problems for us whenever something breaks, reminders of daily / weekly / monthly checks and so on...

Request Tracker

[chennes]

Funny you should ask: I just set up Request Tracker [bestpractical.com] this afternoon. While it probably fits more into the bug-tracking genre than anything else, I use it as a TODO list, a wish list and a bug tracking system. It is very easy to use, and setting it up isn't TOO painful. It is quite powerful (I use a MySQL [mysql.com] backend) and completely cross-platform (its main interface is web-based). It has great e-mail integration, and your customers will be able to check the status of their report as it makes its way through the system. In addition, it's free, with support available for a fee [bestpractical.com].

Request Tracker

[Uhh_Duh]

After facing the same dilemma you're facing and having a VERY limited (read: no) budget, I stumbled upon Request Tracker [bestpractical.com]. It's got all the features you get in the $20k packages (albeit a little rough around the edges on the GUI, as with most open-source), but it's completely free.

It's scriptable, it has plugins, it's web-based, it has full email management (submit tickets, reply to tickets, and receive ticket status via email -- even have people login to check the status of all their tickets, close tickets, etc.)

It ALSO has a full command-line suite of utilities, the system is completely object oriented (read: easily extended) and it's overall one of the best most complete perl / mod_perl projects I've ever seen. Jesse did a great job with this one.

This thing is gold.

DCL

[YinYang69]

My answer [sourceforge.net]

'Nuff said.

If they ask me via phone, email or IM, I ignore them until they add the task to DCL. Backed by a simple, yet effective agreement between management and staff to which all people can understand that if its not in DCL its not a trackable problem.

Of course it helps to pitch the idea of what DCL can do for the organization, but past the agreement, let DCL be set in stone.

Remedy

[Wetkarma]

We used a customized version of Remedy [remedy.com] where the user enters his problem via a web interface. The requests are automagically passed to the right department, and assigned to an individual tech. The tech works on the problem, making notes in the "work log" of the ticket, and finally closes it out. At this point the user receives an email stating (confirming) his problem is solved, and depending on the department they get the option to fill out a survey to ask how their experience was.

OTRS is maybe what you want

[malasa]

take a look at http://otrs.org/index/
they also provide an online demo.

looks very nice, very versatile and seems to be what you want/need.

There are a TON of problem tracking databases . .

[dgrgich]

. . . from home-grown solutions all the way up to $100k packages that run on top of pick-your-favorite-SQL DB.

We use Blue Ocean's Track-IT [blueocean.com]and have for a few years now. It has pretty much every major bell and/or whistle you could want available for it. Blue Ocean was recently purchased by Intuit and they haven't managed to mess up the package yet.

It also depends on what support model your company uses. We had a HUGE culture shift from stopping-IT-person-in-hall to call/web/e-mail-the-help-desk but it has been very successful. Of course, the bean counters in my management area outsourced the people answering the phones to Singapore and they don't speak very good English - but that's another story.

Check out Track-IT. We love it.

Help Desk / Centralized Mailbox

[Anml4ixoye]

I work for a large county government. We support around 6000 users. We use a help desk with a product from Perigrine called ServiceCenter for requests. They then get assigned to the appropriate sections within ITS. For example, phone issues go to Telecomm, web site issues to the Web Team, etc.

Additionally, requests for updates to the website get sent through our communications department to us, or directly to us using a common email address that goes into a folder the web team shares.

The ServiceCenter works well, but the entire web request method just is horrible.

Modifying existing helpdesk application

[JesterOne]

I'm currently using the freeware helpdesk software Liberum and am working on modifying it to track project requests (it's taking me a bit of time because I'm not a developer by trade and am an 'army of one'). It's free, web-based and it works.

www.liberum.org

Modified Open Source

[phpcoder21]

My organization has been happy with a heavily modified version of dotProject (..more info available at my website [erichkolb.com]. Not only does it do a great job of keeping track of "support tickets", but you can send via email and they are automatically added to the support database. There are also a couple of modules for project management which work well too.

Search sourgeforge !

[Anonymous Coward]

We get aprox 30- 70 calls a day and use my own system with a web interface.Developed in asp and ms sql- but looking at it now i could well do with a open source system like :
cerberus
http://sourceforge.net/projects/cerbe rus-kb/
or:
liberum help desk
http://sourceforge.net/projects/liberum/

Our system

[merlin_jim]

Helpstar.

It includes workflow management. We setup problem types that indicate the functional area that is addressed, and the current team status (for instance, a bug in this sytem will go from Project - Defect to Project - Fixed (indicating fixed but not ready to promote) to Project - QA (indicating ready to be confirmed))

Of course it doesn't apply just to bugs. Everything from "reset my password", to "install service pack x on server y", to "Change the border of the website to green" goes through it...

users file requests either by phone (we have a small call center to log incidents and route appropriately) or by e-mail (in which case the call center representative still takes care of routing, but the incident itslef is logged automatically by the system). A new incident can be assigned to a specific person, or a queue that represents a team of people.

Project Managers, QA Testers, and Programmers can log incidents themselves and route manually, bypassing the call center stage entirely.

It has lots of nice reports and automatic time tracking by incident, as well.

use CRM software

[Anonymous Coward]

In our organization, we use Siebel to track not only bug/defects, Tech Support calls but also all IT requests. The s/w has triggers for workflow, email etc.
The downside is that this stuff is expensive ...

Re:bugzilla

[Oliver Wendell Jones]

As the current Rational administrator for where I work, I have to disagree with your opinion. Somewhat.

Rational is big, I'll give you that. However, there is no reason why your CQ team hasn't setup that database for you. I routinely setup up ClearQuest databases and it takes a grand total of about 4 minutes. After the database is setup it takes an additional few minutes to add the user data (login ID and password) but it doesn't take *that* long to do, especially if the users are already in the system for a different database.

The single biggest problem I see with Rational tools is their high cost. A floating license for the Rational Suite: Team Unifying Platform (our suite of choice) is $7242 which includes the first years maintenance, then ~$1500 per year for ongoing maintenance and support.

Check out Remedy...

[TWagers]

At NCR, for the IT Services helpdesk, we used Remedy (http://www.remedy.com/solutions/servicemgmt/css.h tml), which intergrated phone, web, and voicemail requests, problems, and questions. Takes a bit of setup to use and to create taskable teams, but it's a very comprehensive and powerful program for tracking basically all requests and problems from a help desk perspective.

It's not really hard to use either, it's a fairly low learning curve, and can tie easily into existing knowledgebases (a Lotus Notes DB, for instance)

Behold the power of Google

[ikewillis]

http://www.google.com/search?q=trouble+ticket+syst em [google.com] returns a number of tools suitable for this purpose, such as this open source application [otrs.org].

Re:Remedy

[spooky_nerd]

I'm surprised it took this many posts for someone to mention Remedy. I've used it every day for the last 8 months, and it works quite well. One of the best features is its scalability. The company I work for has over 20 buildings in Washington state alone. It's important to be able to look at all of the tickets on a campus, and then drill down to a single building or person.

Re:RT

[Kidder1974]

Be warned, RT requires mod_perl. Not quite. You can use either mod_perl OR FastCGI. -K

RT: Request Tracker

[tweakr]

Here's an OSS project that we currently use to support several hundred organization's worth of email-based support requests:

Request Tracker

http://www.bestpractical.com/ [bestpractical.com]

We find it to be quite useful! I definitely recommend checking it out :)

Cheerios!

ITracker - J2EE Issue Tracker

[javajames27]

I use ITracker [cowsultants.com], which deploys on Tomcat, JBoss and other J2EE application servers. I made some changes to my local CVS copy to support requested completion date, est start date, est end date, actual start and actual end. With that info, I can write reports and generate gantt charts to manage my IT and web content requests at church. I hope to offer the changes to the project so that others may benefit as well.

Merant PVCS Tracker I-Net

[revco_38]

I dont know how suited this would be to you but we track everything in "Tracker". It allows for various levels of security to be assigned so that requests must be entered by certain levels of management. Some things are "owned" by particular groups and others may be assigned at will. It can be as detailed as you like. I barely use it and dont necessarily like it because there are too many hoops for me to jump through just to get a change initiated (I'm an office supervisor and have to get at least one approval but usually two before any IT person sees my request). Our IT department like it because they have an ongoing priority list that is dynamic. http://www.merant.com/

Remedy

[GreenHairedDave]

We use Remedy Action Request System [remedy.com] here at Western Carolina University's IT Services. It offers multi-tier user accounts so that our Techs, Consultants, and IT Dept heads have different access levels. It includes the ability to incorporate a profile for every call, email, walk-in, even complete system re-works for faculty and staff. There is an ability to include priority levels and mark a ticket as resolved once it has been passed on to the proper department and solved. It also contains a bulletin board system that contains system wide messages so we don't have to ask around when we get calls like "Is VMS down? What about email?" It also emails us when tickets come in that pertain to our particular staff position, so that we don't have to sort through the ticket list looking for pertinent tickets.

Web Based Ticket System

[Anonymous Coward]

I work for an IT department of a large university. We had our programmer's create a web ticket system. Clients submit ticket requests which go into our queue. There are a bunch of added features (sort by OS, unit, name, etc), but the basic idea is that we then look through the queue and handle requests in that manner. Users are able to check the status of a ticket, and when we finish a ticket we mark it as completed and it's taken out of the queue.

It's a pretty good system and has worked well, for us. The problem is finding people who are able to write and maintain it :)

Re:DCL

[angel'o'sphere]

You get fired for shit like that, in the real world.
Depends in what real world you live. I would fire they guy ignoring the request to put it into DCL/RT for the third time.
But of course you can continue to work on CMM level 2 or below for the rest of your life :-)
angel'o'sphere

Mantis actually does admirably

[kescom]

We hooked up Mantis [sf.net] to e-mail, and it's worked pretty well for us. Yes, it's a bug-tracking system (we also use it as such, and are integrating it with CVS, too), but it as features like issue assignment which make it fairly appropriate for request tracking. It also has some great reporting tools.

E-mail me if you're interested in any details of our e-mail bridge and such.

IRM

[atrus]

There is IRM [atrustrivalie.org]. It integrates an asset database with a trouble ticket system, which in many cases makes lots of sense.

Siebel

[bombadillo]

A company I used to work for used Siebel for this. It worked very well. Siebel worked better than other ticketing systems I have used such as Vantive and Peregrine.

ServiceCenter

[Anonymous Coward]

If you're considering Remedy you should really take a look at ServiceCenter [peregrine.com]. While performing the same basic functionality, it is well established, feature rich, and integrates well with a whole host of other enterprise applications.

What you're missing is prioritization and triage

[xenoc_1]

Your biggest problem isn't what product you use to track requests. From what you posted, your real problem is that you assume:
request = work_must_be_performed.

Where's the point where the hundreds of requests are evaluated for ROI, prioritized as to the bank's stragegic and tactical business requirements, and championed by their requestors? I know I'm sounding like a PHB here, but you need prioritzation by the business first.

Place I work now has a committee of senior-level (not executive level) managers from the business who meet every 2 weeks to review these types of "queue requests". But before it even gets to them, we make the requester pass through some gates: they have to fill out a short form that makes them explain their requirements, what parts of the business will be helped, how much saved cost or gained revenue or oppportunity cost is involved, etc.

That gets sent to a Business Projects group, still in the business, not IT, who reality-checks it. If it makes sense to them, then they send it on to our group via a shared mailbox, and we do have a spreadsheet tracking system to log it and update it. We also have one person whose part-time job is to manage this queue from our team's perspective. It gets handed off to whatever development lead person is most familiar with the business issues and/or systems involved, and then that person sets up a requirements & estimating meeting with the requesting user area.

Once we have that estimated, then we write up a standard sizing form, cost it out in real dollars, and give it back to the user and the Queue. It's the user's job to make the pitch to his own VP's and their peers at the next prioritization meeting, as to why the company's money should be spent on this. If they OK it, then and only then do we assign a developer to do it.

This may sound bureaucratic, but it works real well. We get lots of work done that actually helps the business, without doing all kinds of chaotic development that one "squeeky wheel" claimed he must have but really wasn't important. It did take a couple of years to train the business to get it, and to get our group to learn to say NO politely by saying "that sounds like an interesting idea - why don't you write it up for the queue".

It doesn't matter the actual communication/tracking product - you could use ClearQuest, Bugzilla, Notes, emails, Outlook assigned tasks, whatever. What matters is that there is a process with a built-in review/justification, rather than phone-call=work-starts.

Whereas when I used to work at a Major Bank, we had a dysfunctional process where nobody truly justified things but everybody jockeyed to get their project "added to the list" as a "Priority A" "Rank One" project. I had a ridiculously long list of projects all labeled A1, with endless nonsense meetings where suits tried to make their A1 better than someone elses A1. B and C projects and numbers beyond 1 were banished years before I got there. My job was "maintenance project leader" which lasted one month before I walked out in disgust. But they had cool tracking tools.

It's not the tool, it's how you use it.

Many Failed, Mantis Prevailed

[hacker]

At SourceFubar [sourcefubar.net] we use Mantis [sf.net] exclusively for bug, issue, feature tracking. After evaluating about 15 other projects and products, commercial and non, we decided on Mantis. It is feature-rich, extensible, written in PHP, hooks to MySQL [mysql.org] and other databases, and the developers are really a great bunch of people to work with. They are very receptive to patches, ideas, fixes, and anything else you can throw at them.

Mantis is actually getting me some contract work on the side, from Free Software developers on our projects who brought the notion of Mantis to their employers, who are talking to us about doing deployments of Mantis in their enterprise for customers and internal use.

The second-runner up out of the 15 we tried was a product called "Round-Up", written in Python. The reason it didn't win out over the top was the fact that it was written in Python (no flames, just that Python is more resource-hungry than PHP itself), and that the web-based interface wasn't anywhere near as mature as the Mantis interface.

Give it a try, you will most-certainly be impressed. I was, and still continue to be, to this day.

Re:HelpSTAR

[Plowd]

We have been using HelpSTAR for a couple of years. I have found it fairly simple and easy to tailor. It tracks problems and solutions and has either a client side or WEB entry. Also it will auto respod to users when you close tickets. The version we are on now tells you before you even look at the ticket if there are attachments. Don't get me wrong it's not heaven, but support has been almost instantaneous as well. The biggest difficulty is persuading your boss to buy into a Canadian company with Cayman bank accounts...

Re:use CRM software

[Anonymous Coward]

These people [empathysoftware.com] do something similar with event-driven workflow for tracking requests and assigning resources. Unfortunately their website seems a bit out of date.

Re:Remedy

[Spikerz]

We also use a "custom" version of Remedy. A user calls/emails into the Helldesk, they fill out the new ticket request and forward it on to the correct department. It also allows for child tickets to be spawned off. For example, a new user gets hired (hey it might happen!). There's one parent ticket, and child tickets go to the security guys for card access, the email guys for account creation, hr for benefits, etc, etc. It takes a remedy engineer/consultant, a good while to create your system for you, but it's pretty rock solid after that's finished.

Re:Intuit Track-It!

[doppleganger871]

Yea, we just started using that a couple months ago here in our IT dep't. We have 4 techs to take care of several hundred users. Usually 2 of us are on projects, or readying new PC's for users, so that only leaves 2 people to take "hotline" calls. Our trackit server is hosted in Chicago (We're in upstate NY), and it's gettin' pretty pokey after a couple months of using it. I generally see 15-40 tickets go in for our client services group every day. To open a ticket to view, it used to take 5-7 seconds to get to a point that you can edit it. Now it's taking 10-15 seconds... Just imagine how slow this will be in a year or two. Ugh.

Re:Remedy

[caropepe]

An important distinction to keep in mind that the term "Remedy" is often used indiscriminately to refer to both the software development environment(Action Request System) and/or individual applications running on the ARS (Help Desk, Change Management, Asset Management, CRM, etc).

Any discussion of "Remedy" should make it clear what portion is being examined.

I've been working with both for many years and think that ARS is great - there are very few alternatives for building and customizing enterprise applications as quickly and comprehensively as this can.

On the other hand, Remedy's applications are good - and can be great in the right environment. It's takes a lot of attention to detail to make sure that the configuration matches your business workflow. But once this work is complete, you have a system that works well. If this is skipped (and not maintained), then you run into problems.

Custom applications are fun to build and can be really amazing in what they can do!