You can use Service Level Management to define and track the level of support that you decide to provide to your contacts. For example, base the level of support on your firm's best practices or customer loyalty programs. Although Service Level Management is configured in NexJ Admin Console and runs behind the scenes, it is updated automatically when you complete an activity that counts as a touch type. A touch type is a form of communication or interaction with a contact that can be scheduled to build a relationship with the contact. For each contact you cover, you determine how often to contact them and review their accounts and create a service model accordingly.

Service models are created by assigning service levels to contacts. Tiers can be configured to map to a service level such that setting the tier on a contact will also set their service level. For example, tier "A" contacts may be given the "Gold" service level by default. This mapping is configured by your administrator using NexJ Admin Console; however, service models can be customized at the contact level by changing touch type intervals.

You can access Service Level Management components in the Home page and in the Contacts workspace.

Service level management process

NexJ Service Level Management allows firms to segment their clients by any criteria, and design programs that address the unique service needs of each segment. Users can apply service models and define frequencies to manage key client activities based on defined service levels and monitor their progress in real time within these segments.

The following diagram shows the high-level workflow for service level management.

The service level management process enables you to:

1. Apply a service level to a contact.
2. Work with touches, which are interactions with clients that NexJ CRM tracks, in the following ways:
   • Schedule a touch. You can choose to defer the starting date for a touch when necessary.
   • Complete a touch for multiple contacts using a batch email.
3. Complete a touch.

You can monitor touches using the Service Level Management dashboard and SLM Touches Report.

Service level management dashboard

The Service Level Management dashboard appears in the Service Level Management tab in the NexJ CRM Home page.

The summary bar graphs in the Service Level Management tab display the status of touches and reviews for the current period for your contacts, grouped by tier. When you complete a schedule item or task that is considered to be a touch or review, the service level management tool automatically logs it and updates the graph.

Summary graph

The set of data in the summary graph is determined by the contacts you cover, the touch type, and user selected in the filter bar. The touch type filter lists all of the touch types in the system. The list of users that can be selected in the filter bar are users that report to you. (If you do not manage any users, you will only see information for the contacts you cover.) If you choose the "Review" touch type and select yourself in the user list, the graph displays the reviews for all contacts you cover in the current period.

The graph displays a horizontal bar graph per tier. The number in parentheses represents the number of contacts in the tier represented by the bar graph. Each bar is divided into the following three sections:

• Solid Color: Completed touches
• Light Shading: Scheduled touches
• White: Unscheduled touches

The number shown in each of these sections represents the number of client touches associated with that section.

The color of each section indicates its status: ahead of or on schedule (green), slightly behind schedule (yellow), or well behind schedule (red). The color is based on the number of touches and reviews scheduled and completed relative to how far you are into the period of time being tracked. A thin vertical line on the graph indicates the portion of the period that has elapsed (for example, today's date). Once the vertical line has reached the right edge of the graph, a full period has elapsed.

Dashboard Legend:

• Green: Percentage of touches completed in the period greater than or equal to the percentage of the period that has elapsed.
• Yellow: Percentage of touches completed and scheduled in the period greater than or equal to the percentage of the period that has elapsed.
• Red: Percentage of touches completed and scheduled in the period less than the percentage of the period that has elapsed.

Touches

A touch is a type of interaction with a client that is recorded by the NexJ CRM activity tracking system. The list below the summary graph in the Service Level Management dashboard displays the contacts with whom you have a touch of the selected type in the selected period. The set of touches you see depends on the period you have selected. You can view either the current period's touches or the next period's touches using the filter above the list. You can filter this list by tier, touch status, and period and you can sort it by name, next touch target, and last touch.

This tool can be helpful when planning future meetings with contacts, and should be checked frequently to ensure that you stay on schedule with your service level commitments. Target dates in red indicate urgent touches where the target date has already passed. These will stay on the list even after the current period has passed, and are removed when a touch is scheduled with the contact.

Service model

The Service Model subtab, located in a contact's Detail tab in the Contacts workspace, shows which touch types are associated with the selected contact. A service model is a collection of touch types and intervals assigned to a contact. It also contains the interval, next scheduled touch, next target date, and last touch date for each touch type. The service model is pre-populated from the contact's service level. However, the service model can be customized on a per contact basis.

Modifying a contact's tier or service level

You can modify the tier or service level for a contact. Modifying the tier will also update the service level if your administrator has mapped tiers to service levels.

To modify a contact's tier or service level:

1. Navigate to the Contacts workspace.
2. Select the contact you want to modify the tier or service level for.
   The selected contact's profile opens.
3. In the contact banner, click the Edit button.
   The Edit dialog opens.
4. In the Tier field, select the desired tier for this contact.
5. In the Service Level field, select the desired service level for this contact.
6. Click OK .
   The Edit dialog closes and the new tier or service level is saved for this contact.

The tier or service level is updated for the contact. Any portions of the service model marked "Prevent Automatic Update" remain unchanged.

Batch updating contact tiers

If you want to update the tier for several contacts at once, you may do so in a batch update. Modifying the tier will also update the service level for contacts if your administrator has mapped tiers to service levels.

To batch update the tiers of a set of contacts:

1. Navigate to the Contacts workspace.
2. In the search area, filter the list of contacts to display only those contacts for whom you want to modify the tier.
3. Above the contacts list, click Select all , select Actions > Update > Tier , and then select a tier.
   A confirmation dialog opens that asks you to confirm the action and indicates the number of contacts that will be updated.
4. Click Yes .

The tiers are updated for the selected contacts. Any portions of the service model marked "Prevent Automatic Update" remain unchanged.

Batch updating contact service levels

You can batch update the service level for a group of contacts. The service level you select is applied only to the contacts that do not already have a service level.

To batch update the service level for a set of contacts:

1. Navigate to the Contacts workspace.
2. Filter the list of contacts to display only those contacts for whom you want to modify the service level.
3. Above the contacts list, click Select all , select Actions > Update > Service Level , and then select a service level.
   The Service Level Properties dialog opens. The dialog displays touch types associated with the service level and the current reporting periods for each touch type.
4. In the Interval drop-down, select an interval for each touch type, which defines the frequency at which to repeat a touch. For example, you could choose a monthly, quarterly, or annually interval for repeating touches.
5. In the First Touch Target drop-down, define when the first touch occurs for each touch type. Choose one of the following:
   • Choose a specific target date for all contacts. For example, if you plan to send a holiday greeting on the same date every year, you would select Specific date for all selected contacts and enter a date in the Start Date field.
   • Choose to stagger initial touches between start and end dates by selecting Distribute between start and end date . In the Start Date and End Date fields, enter the required target dates.
   
   The staggering logic used by the system will uniformly distribute the touches between the start and end target dates. Saturdays and Sundays will be excluded by default as target dates.
6. Click OK .
   A confirmation dialog opens that asks you to confirm your choice and indicates the number of contacts that will be updated.
7. Click Yes .

The service levels are updated for the selected contacts that do not already have this service level; any portions of the service model marked "Prevent Automatic Update" remain unchanged.

Scheduling touches

You can schedule a touch from the Service Level Management dashboard or the Service Model subtab on the Contacts workspace.

Scheduling touches from the Service Level Management dashboard

You can schedule touches for a contact from the SLM dashboard.

To schedule a touch from the dashboard:

1. Navigate to the Home page.
2. Click the Service Level Management tab.
3. Click the Action button beside the contact for whom you want to schedule a touch. Then, select Schedule Touch and select the type of activity and template you want to use to create the touch.
   The Add Task or Add Schedule Item dialog opens.
4. Complete the required fields.
5. In the Touches area, ensure that the checkboxes are selected for the touch types that you want to schedule.
   For example, to schedule a holiday greetings touch, select the Holiday Greetings touch type
6. Click OK .
   The Add Task or Add Schedule Item dialog closes.

The touch is scheduled.

Scheduling touches from the Contacts workspace

You can schedule touches for a contact in the Service Model subtab on the Contacts workspace.

To schedule a touch from the Contacts workspace:

1. Navigate to the Contacts workspace.
2. Select the contact for whom you want to schedule a touch.
   The selected contact's profile opens.
3. In the Detail tab, click the Service Model subtab.
4. Click the Action button beside a touch type. Then, select Schedule Touch and select the type of activity and template you want to use to create the touch.
   The Add Task or Add Schedule Item dialog opens.
5. Complete the required fields.
6. In the Touches area, ensure that the checkboxes are selected for the touch types that you want to schedule.
   For example, to schedule a holiday greetings touch, select the Holiday Greetings touch type
7. Click OK .
   The Add Task or Add Schedule Item dialog closes.

The touch is scheduled.

Preventing automatic updates to touch types

An advisor can prevent a touch type from updating automatically on a per contact basis by right-clicking the touch type and selecting Prevent Automatic Update . Doing so means that the interval for that touch type can only be modified manually by the advisor, and it will not be affected by batch updates.

To prevent automatic updates to touch types for a single contact:

1. Navigate to the Contacts workspace.
2. Select the contact for whom you want to prevent automatic updates.
   The selected contact's profile opens.
3. In the Detail tab, in the Service Model subtab, double-click the touch type you want to prevent updates for.
   The Edit dialog opens.
4. Select Prevent automatic updates and click OK .
   The Edit dialog closes.

The touch type update is saved and this touch type interval will no longer be affected by batch updates.

Resetting touch type intervals

To reset the interval for a given touch type as defined by the contact's service level, click the Action button for the touch type and select Reset Interval . In a similar fashion, you can reset the interval for all touch types in the contact's Service Model subtab by clicking the Options buttonand selecting Reset all Intervals .

Updating touch type intervals

You can update the interval of a touch type from the Contacts workspace, Service Model tab. Intervals determine the next target touch date.

To modify the interval of a touch type:

1. Navigate to the Contacts workspace.
2. Select the contact for whom you would like to modify a touch type interval.
   The selected contact's profile opens.
3. In the Detail tab, click the Service Model tab.
4. Double-click the touch you want to modify.
   The Properties dialog opens.
5. Select a new interval from the Interval field and click OK.
   The interval is updated.

The interval is updated.

Batch updating touch type intervals

You can batch update the interval of a touch type in one step for all instances of the touch type by setting a new interval or resetting the existing interval. Intervals determine the next touch target date.

To batch update the interval of a touch type:

1. Navigate to the Contacts workspace.
2. In the search area, filter the list of contacts to display only those contacts for whom you want to modify the touch type interval.
3. Above the contacts list, click Select all and select Actions > Update > Touch Interval .
   The Update Touch Interval dialog opens.
4. In the Touch Type drop down, select a touch type.
5. Do one of the following, depending on your needs:
   • Select the Set Interval option and select the desired interval for this touch type.
   • Select the Reset Interval option to return the interval to the original default setting.
6. Click OK to continue.
   A confirmation dialog opens, asking you to confirm your choice and indicating how many contacts will be affected by this change.
7. Click Yes .

The selected touch type, and corresponding interval, is updated across the product.

Reviewing touch properties

You can view properties of a scheduled touch from the selected contact's Service Model subtab in the Detail tab.

To review the properties of a touch:

1. Navigate to the Contacts workspace.
2. Select the contact for whom you would like to review the touch.
   The selected contact's profile opens.
3. In the Detail tab, click the Service Model tab.
4. Click the Action button  for the touch you want to review and select Touch Properties .
   The Properties dialog for the selected touch opens.
5. Review the details as needed and click OK .
   The Properties dialog closes.

Reviewing last touches

If a last touch exists for a contact, you can view its properties from the selected contact's Detail tab.

To review a contact's last touch:

1. Navigate to the Contacts workspace.
2. Select the contact for whom you would like to review the last touch.
   The selected contact's profile opens.
3. In the Detail tab, click the Service Model tab.
4. Right-click in the touch types list and select Last Touch Properties .
   The Properties dialog for the last touch opens.
5. Review the details as needed and click OK .
   The Properties dialog closes.

Setting touch target dates

There may be situations where you will be unable to complete a touch by the target date because the contact is unavailable, such as if the touch is targeted for when a contact is on vacation. In these cases you can set a touch target to a later date when the contact is available. You can set a touch target date from either the dashboard or the Contacts workspace. You can only set a touch target date for unscheduled touches.

To set a touch target date for a contact:

1. Navigate to the Contacts workspace.
2. Select the contact for whom you would like to defer a touch.
   The selected contact's profile opens.
3. In the Detail tab, click the Service Model tab.
4. Click the Action button  for the touch you want to set the date for and select Set Touch Target .
   The Set Touch Target dialog opens.
5. Select a new date for the touch from the Touch Target field and click OK .
   The dialog closes and the new target date appears in the Next Touch Target field in the Service Model tab for this contact.

Completing touches

When a touch is scheduled using a schedule item, task, or document, you complete the touch when you change the status of the item, task, or document to completed. You can also use a batch email to complete touches for multiple contacts.

After the touch is completed, the last touch date is updated in the Service Model tab in the Contacts workspace and in the Service Level Management dashboard. For schedule items, the last touch date is the end date for the item. For tasks, documents, and emails, the last touch date is the date when they are marked complete.

After the touch is complete, the system updates the next touch target date using the interval defined for the touch type.