Defining an Escalation

An escalation can be used to inform a user when deadlines of activities are nearly or already expired. Workflow escalations are defined in objects of the object class Escalation Definition (COOWF@1.1:EscalationDefinition).

To create an Escalation Definition, perform the following steps:

1. Switch to a Administration Tool.
2. Create an Escalation Definition (“Object“ > “New“).
3. On the context menu of the Escalation Definition click “Properties”.
4. Edit the metadata of the Escalation Definition. The following escalation settings are available:
   • Escalation, if Date for Submit Is Expired
   • Escalation, if Deadline for Start Is Expired
   • Escalation, if Deadline for Completion is Expired
5. Each of these fields contains the following fields:
   • Escalation Type
     In this dropdown list is determined, whether the escalation is done before or after expiry of the deadline.
     Selecting “Before Expiry of Deadline” the escalation is triggered before the deadline expires, but earliest one week before expiry. To get the concrete time for escalation, the deadline is deducted by the specified Period of Time.
     Selecting “After Expiry of Deadline” the escalation is triggered after expiry of the deadline. If a Period of Time is specified, in this case this period is added to the deadline to get the concrete escalation time.
   • Recipients of Escalation Message
     In this object list for the escalation message one or more recipients can be determined. The recipients are defined in a component object of the object class Recipient of Escalation Message (COOWF@1.1:EscalationRecipient).
     All entries in the Recipients in Fabasoft Folio field are dissolved and handled separately. There is no check for double entries.
     If a recipient cannot be dissolved or a message cannot be delivered the escalation is not canceled. If the number of successful messages is higher than the number of errors the activity is considered as successfully escalated. The errors are logged in the Fabasoft Folio AT Service.
   • Message Text
     In this field type the message text that should be used for escalation.
   • Action to Call
     In is possible to select an action that is executed on the activity after expiry of the deadline before sending the escalation message.
   • For Workflow Priority
     In this dropdown list a priority can be selected. In this case, only activities having this priority are escalated.
   • Period of Time
     Depending on the Escalation Type, the deadline is deducted by the specified period (escalation before expiry) or the period is added to the deadline (escalation after expiry).
   • Repeat Every
     This field can be used to determine a time interval for repeated execution of the escalation.
     Note: An escalation is triggered by an automated task. If in the automated task a longer period is defined for repeating the task than in the Escalation Definition for repeating the escalation, the escalation is triggered when the automated task is executed.

If there is no suitable Recipient of Escalation Message is available, a new one can be created. Therefore, in the Recipients of Escalation Message field perform the following steps:

1. Click “New”.
2. Type a name for the recipients and click “Next”.
3. On the context menu click “Properties”.
4. Edit the metadata of the Recipient of Escalation Message and click “Next”.

On the “Recipient of Escalation Message” the following properties are available:

• Multilingual Name
  In this field a name can be defined for the object.
• Types of Escalation
  In this dropdown list select the way in which the message is received.
  • “Fabasoft Folio Event”
    In this case the escalation message is displayed as Fabasoft Folio Event for the users specified in the Recipient in Fabasoft Folio field.
    Note: For this escalation type the user executing the Fabasoft Folio AT Service needs change permissions on the User Events object of the user receiving the escalation message.
  • “NT Messenger Service Message”
    In this case the escalation message is sent via Microsoft Windows Messenger Service to the recipient specified in the NT message to field. If this field is left empty, the login name of the user specified in the Recipient in Fabasoft Folio field is used.
  • “E-Mail”
    In this case the escalation message is sent via e-mail whereas the escalated activity is inserted as a link. The e-mail is sent to the recipient defined in the E-Mail to field. If this field is left empty, the e-mail address of the user specified in the Recipient in Fabasoft Folio field is used. The e-mail is sent by the action COOMAPI@1.1:SendObjects (for further information see chapter “Settings for Running Tasks using a Fabasoft Folio AT Service“).
• Recipient in Fabasoft Folio
  In this field specify a user of the Fabasoft Folio Domain as recipient for the escalation. The specified user is informed:
  • using the escalation type “Fabasoft Folio Event”.
  • using the escalation type “NT Messenger Service Message”, if the NT Message to field is left empty.
  • using the escalation type “E-Mail”, if the E-Mail to field is left empty.
  • Note: For further information to this field see chapter “Evaluation of the Recipient in Fabasoft Folio”.
• NT Message to
  Using the escalation type “NT Messenger Service Message” a Microsoft Windows Messenger Service contact name can be specified.
• E-Mail to
  Using the escalation type “E-Mail”, an e-mail address can be specified in this field.

The objects Escalation Definition and Recipient of an Escalation Message are component objects, so on the “Component Object” tab a Reference and a Software Component have to be entered.

Evaluation of the Recipient in Fabasoft Folio

In the escalation definition in the Recipient in Fabasoft Folio field the recipients of the escalation message are defined. The definition can be done using abstract participants or concrete users. The following possibilities are available:

• Abstract Participant
  In this dropdown list an abstract participant can be selected:
  • Process Initiator
    Process initiator is the person who initiated the process of the activity.
  • Responsible for Process
    For each process a responsible is defined. By default, the process initiator is responsible for the process.
  • Process Owner
    The process owner is the owner of the process instance.
  • Process Group
    The process group is the group to which the process instance belongs. If no further restrictions (e.g. a position) are defined, all users of this group are informed about the escalation.
  • Object Owner
    The object owner is the user who is owner of the object on which the process has been initiated.
  • Object Group
    The object group is the group to which the object belongs on which the process has been initiated. . If no further restrictions (e.g. a position) are defined, all users of this group are informed about the escalation.
  • Current User
    The current user is the user the activity is assigned to.
  • According to the organizational structure further options are available.
• User
  In this field a concrete user can be selected by performing a search or using the hierarchical structure.
• Group
  In this field a concrete group can be selected by performing a search or using the hierarchical structure. If no further restrictions (e.g. a position) are defined, all users of this group are informed about the escalation.
• Position
  In this field a position can be selected. If no further restrictions (e.g. a group) are defined, all users having this position are informed about the escalation.
• Organizational Unit
  In this field an organizational unit can be selected.

If no concrete user is defined, the selected values are used to get a list of users receiving the event. So the event is sent e.g. to all users of a group or all users of a certain position. If several values are selected, all of them have to be true for a user to be a recipient.

If the evaluation determines a user several times, he or she receives the event several times.

If a recipient cannot be dissolved or a message cannot be delivered the escalation is not canceled. If the number of successful messages is higher than the number of errors the activity is considered as successfully escalated. The errors are logged in the Fabasoft Folio AT Service.