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Add dispatch steps to a workflow

Dispatch steps offer an order to installer companies and record who accepts it. You add them as a pair: one step selects the installer, the next one waits for that installer to accept the order.

Create the actor you dispatch to

A dispatch step fills a slot in the workflow. That slot is an actor, and it has to exist before you can dispatch to it.

  1. Select Workflows in the sidebar.
  2. Open the workflow you want to change.
  3. Open the Settings tab, then Actors.
  4. Select Add actor.
  5. Enter a Name. This name appears on the steps and in the order.
  6. Set Type to Dispatched.
  7. Set Source to Assigned with dispatching step.

Under Professions, Installation types and Tags you can narrow which of your partners are offered for this actor. Required tags filter the list. Tags that are not required make a partner preferred when automatic selection runs.

Turn on Main installer if this actor receives the installer share of the payment.

Add the dispatch steps

  1. Open the Workflow tab.
  2. Select Add at the bottom of the steps list.
  3. In the Add step dialog, choose the card named Select followed by your actor’s name. One card appears for each dispatched actor that has no dispatch step yet.
  4. Configure the dispatch step, then select Save to keep a draft or Publish to make the version live.

The card adds two steps as one group:

Step Assignee What happens
Dispatch to actor name Operator The operator picks installer companies and sends the order to them.
Accept order The dispatched actor The installer reviews the order and accepts it.

The second step depends on the first. You cannot change the Required toggle or the Depends on field on either step, and you cannot delete the dispatch step while the Accept order step depends on it. Delete Accept order first.

Both steps get a deadline of three days at 12:00, weekends skipped. See Set a deadline on a workflow step to change it.

Configure the dispatch step

Select the dispatch step to open Step settings on the right.

Setting Effect
Automatic selection Installers in the order’s area are selected from your network without an operator picking them.
Use actor name’s installer network Dispatches to installers from that actor’s network instead of your own. Shown when the step’s assignee is not the operator.
Allow multiple dispatches How many installers the order goes to at once. Automatic selection only.
Retry on failure New installers are selected when the first ones reject. Automatic selection only.

Automatic selection ranks candidates on driving time to the order, current workload, customer satisfaction, completion rate and response rate. Driving time carries the most weight. A candidate that has already rejected, been cancelled or timed out on this order is never offered again.

If no eligible installer is left, automatic selection turns itself off on the step and adds a comment to the step saying why.

What the operator sees when the step runs

The dispatch step lists your installers, shortest driving time first, with driving time and distance on each row. Straight-line distance is shown when the address is off the road network. If your organization has sub-organizations, two tabs split the list: Partners and My organizations.

Select one or more installers, then select Send. On a step that is not active yet the list is read-only and Send is disabled with the reason Available once this step is active.

Rows carry these labels:

Label Meaning
Currently assigned This installer accepted the order.
Waiting for response The order has been sent and no answer has come back.
Rejected The installer turned the order down.
Cancelled The installer had accepted and was then taken off the order.
Outside area The order address falls outside this installer’s area of operation.
Auto-accept The order is accepted as soon as it reaches this installer, without them reviewing it first.

Dispatching notifies the installers you sent the order to. You do not configure that on the step.

Once the step is done it shows the installers the order went to, one row per company, with the status and the date. Select Choose new installer to take the order off the current installer and dispatch it again.

Need help? Contact Installer.com support.

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