Client Admin Configuration Settings

In order for TBS to be functional and allow Users to access the system, see their logo on the Login page and on the invoices or enter any customers, there are a variety of tools in TBS the client should access and enter configuration information. Below is a high-level introduction to core tools that Admin users should be familiar with in order to make the best use of TBS.

Client Setup

Company Information - At the top level, Clients can have one or more Companies represented in their TBS system. This is useful when the client has multiple business groups that it would like to keep separate yet bill from one system. This Company Name must be setup first before moving on to setting up branding and Base information.

Base Information - TBS supports what is called "Base" information. The term Base refers to a set of client specific settings that are applied to customers that "belong" to that base. TBS supports multiple Bases allowing Clients to segregate and even brand or co-brand groups of customers separately, yet keep all customer information in the same system. A customer is tied to a Base record through the Group field set on the Customer Information tab. (See Group Information below).

Every TBS system must have at least one Base record and there must be a designated "Default" Base if more than one Base exists. Bases are typically used when key information such as remittance address, logos, invoice or email messages need to be different for a large set of customers. This is very common if an acquisition occurs and new customers are pulled into the existing system. Bases drive many TBS settings which can all be maintained inside TBS using the Base Admin Tool. Examples of settings that are driven by Base:

  • Portal Logo (login page, header)
  • Payment Remittance Address for the invoice
  • Company Name & Return Address
  • Email Billing verbiage
  • Miscellaneous Charges (i.e., Paper bill fee, Recovery fees)
  • Customer Service contact information (phone, email)
  • Email distribution groups for Orders & Trouble Tickets.
  • Invoice layout (page 1 & 2)

Group Information - Now that the Base(s) are defined, the next important item for customer configuration is Group information. Groups are exactly what they sound like - a method of "grouping" like customers together for reporting and billing. Each TBS system must have at least one Group record setup before customers can be entered. There is no limit to the number of Group records that can be setup. Each Group record will point to an underlying Base record to drive the items mentioned above.

The Group is tied to the account on the Customer Information tab and indirectly ties the customer to a Base. This can be set manually by selecting it from the Group dropdown OR it can be automatically set based on the Agent assigned to the customer (if the Agent has a Group). Group by itself just serves as a way to segregate customer for reporting purposes. Additional features of groups also include the ability to drive the account number scheme that is used when a Group is selected for new customers.

The key to Groups is that they are tied to Bases (see above). Every group points back to a Base record. The selection of a Group on a customer is what determines which Base record is used when determining the invoice settings (logo, etc.), miscellaneous charges (paper bill fees), remittance information, etc. Multiple Groups can be setup inside TBS and point to the same Base or different Bases. Every customer must have a group assigned to them.

Cycle Information - The third important item that impacts a customer is the Cycle. TBS will be setup with one default cycle depending on the primary bill run day decided at setup.

Cycle, otherwise known as Billing Cycle defines when a customer is scheduled for billing. Every customer must be assigned a valid billing Cycle in order to know when they should be picked up by the billing process. Cycle names typically consist of letters and the day of month the billing process is ran, however a Cycle name can be anything desired. Cycles are set on the customer via the Invoicing tab.

Cycles also determine the Payment Processor that is used for credit cards and ACH payments. If a client needs to distinguish certain customer’s payments at the processor level, they would need to setup two different cycles, each pointing at the appropriate payment processor settings.

Cycle also serves as an additional way to segregate customers for reporting purposes. Unless multiple payment processors are needed, typically a client has one cycle per day of month billing. i.e., PTT01 would be a cycle that runs on the 1st of the month. If the client has an additional bill run, that may be named something like PTT15, which indicates the billing cycle is processed on the 15th of the month. Each of these cycles could point to the same payment processor or different processors depending on client needs. Note: New cycles must be added by Precision.

Users & Security - Now that we have reviewed the core items for setting up new customers, it is important to understand the types of security access and permissions that are available to ensure that all departments have appropriate access to the right modules.

Security for all user types is maintained using the Users & Security module available from the System Administration section of TBS. TBS is designed to support "Security Groups" that allow permissions to be setup at a group level, and have Users belong to one or more Security Groups in order to build the necessary permissions. This design allows for greater control vs. managing each user individually. Typical Security Groups include Admin, Accounting, Managers, Employees, Agents, Wholesale.

Despite Agent and Wholesale users not being part of the TBS Users table, the permissions for these user types are inherited as well from the Security Groups setup in the User & Security maintenance tool. Security Groups allow the following to be defined:

  • Access - Users can view the pages associated with this module
  • Add - Users can add new records
  • Update - Users can Edit / Update existing records
  • Delete - Users can delete records
  • Admin - Users have full access to the records

 

All of the above items are enough to get the TBS system initially setup and should be reviewed with the Precision Team prior to any customers being entered into the system. The section below will cover the core components that Admins should also be familiar with in order to start configuring system workflow and product setup.

 

Billing Components

Detail & Charge inventory - TBS supports the ability to store an inventory of charges for products. This inventory typically contains charges for Local Service (USOCs), Equipment, Usage Packages, Free Minute Packages. For Traditional Products, the Inventory is maintained using the USOCs inventory tool. For Integrated Products, the Charges & Plans Inventory is used to manage all inventory charges.

Rate plan Inventory - TBS supports many types of Local, VoIP (Inbound/Outbound) and Long Distance rating. All Rate plans are stored in the rate plan inventory of TBS and available for selection based on product type. These are necessary prior to any usage billing that can occur in TBS. Clients have the ability to maintain their own rate plans in TBS within the Products section of the System Administration module.

Work flow and Customization

Drop Down Lists - Throughout the TBS system, there are a variety of drop down options that can be maintained by the Client using the Drop Down List Maintenance tool. This tool allows the client to customize the options to fit their product suite, order types, etc. and better align with their business rules. Each Help topic outlines the data fields on a tab/screen and will identify those that can be maintained by using these tools. A few examples include:

  • Orders Module - Order Type
  • Orders Module - Order Description
  • Orders Module - Reject Reason
  • Trouble Tickets - Type
  • Trouble Tickets - Submitted to Center
  • Fixed Charges - Description
  • Invoice Viewer - Credit Reason

Status Actions & Work flow - Main modules within TBS utilize "Status Actions" to control the work flow an item (Order, Trouble Ticket, Product, Customer) follows. The term Status Action refers to a group of available statuses within a module and a list of Actions that are available depending upon the status applied to the Item.

For instance, a Customer in Status="New" may only have Actions available to "Activate", "Cancel", "Disconnect" or "On Hold" Each of the Action options will change the Customer status accordingly. So an Action of "Activate" likely results in a Customer status of "Active".

The Status Action admin tool allows the Client to understand and manipulate the available statuses and actions available within those statuses for Customer, Orders, Products and Trouble Tickets. This ensures that the client's business rules and work flow are followed by enforcing certain actions at certain stages of the item. It is very important to be very familiar with this Status Action setup.