20.5. K-Board

The K-Board dashboard uses Kanban principles, based on a rather simple idea: WIP (work in progress) actions should be limited and one cannot start a new task before completing a current WIP task.

The dashboard is a visual management system within the organization which can be used to signal when conditions that may cause an anomaly are met so that corrective action can be taken in a timely manner. Colors are used according to category and/or status:

• Green - means that everything is working normally.

• Yellow - means that there is a issue that requires special attention.

• Red - indicates an abnormal situation / damage.

In order to make the Kanban Dashboard available, you have to go to System Admin -> System Management -> Web Settings and then select the K-Board value in the Home Tab field. The Web Settings window can only be seen as a "System" user.

Labels are used to represent requests entered in the Request window located in Partner Relations -> Requests. Requests become visible upon dispatch. Editing a request is possible in two ways:

• minimal - is obtained by double-clicking on request label you want to edit. This opens a small window with a limited number of fields

• complete - is obtained by right-clicking and selecting the Edit option. This opens the Standard Requests window. Details in Requests.

On each label you can see:

• left - the number of days passed since the request registration date;

• right - the number of days passed since the last note was registered on the request, without counting Saturdays and Sundays.

The column heads display:

• number of displayed requests / number of total requests

• estimated total effort (planned) for displayed requests

Starting with v14.07, K-board has Drag & Drop functionality. The operator can assign or move a request from one state to another. The Request can be moved between lines (i.e. allocation) and columns (change of status). Moving should be targeted immediately below the upper separator for the desired row.

Filter parameter bar

The dashboard can be grouped or filtered using the following parameters: Status Category, Group, Request Type, Business Partner, Representative, Project, Product. Grouping is possible by Group, Call Type, Business Partner, Representative, Project, Product.

Search parameters can be customized for each company.

Columns

Follow the steps below to add new columns to a Kanban dashboard:

1. Kanban State

Kanban states represent the columns displayed by the Kanban dashboard. They are defined using the Kanban State window. Click Kanban State in Main Menu>Partner Relations>Requests>Request Setup and then fill in the following fields:

• Name - the column name as it will appear in your dashboard;

• Active - select to enable the column;

• Description - optionally, you can enter a column description here;

• Sequence - serial number of the column within the dashboard;

• Color code - optionally, you can set a color code for the column background;

2. Request Status Category

The request status category contains the available statuses a specific request have. To display requests using a request status category on the Kanban dashboard, open the Request Status Category window via Partner Relations -> Requests -> Request Setup and make sure the only checkbox selected is K-board.

In the Request Status tab found in the secondary window you can edit statuses found in the category. To add a new status to the category press the new record button and in the status field, select a predefined status.

To define a request status you need to create a new record in the Request Status window found in Partner Relations -> Requests -> Request Setup. Details in Requests.

3. Request Status

In the Request Status window found in Partner Relations -> Requests -> Request Setup, for the respective status, in the K-State field, enter the Kanban State previously defined at step 1. This will link a request status to a column on the Kanban dashboard. For a status, the request label will appear on the linked column (K-state).

4. Reset Cache

Run the Cache Reset Client + Server from the Tools Menu to update the dashboard.

User customizable area

This is divided into My Requests and My Documents. It contains buttons used to access requests, commercial documents (orders, invoices, payments etc), deliverables (download area) for which access can be limited, depending on the the user's role within the organization.

• My Request buttons can be customized. Details in Chapter II.9. As a result, by pressing the New Request button you will be able to open a customized version of the Requests - All window.

• My Documents buttons are set by accessing Web Settings via System Admin -> System Management. Web Settings is only available for System Users.