Type, Subtype, & Item (TSI) are powerful tools in ConnectWise Manage. When tickets are coded with these three items, three positive things become possible. First, we enable more data for useful reporting. Second, and this my favorite, we can link TSI to your technical Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs). And for the final impact, we can create a culture of process through technician participation in SOPs.

In our first article about TSI, we are going to discuss the reporting that becomes available through TSI’s use. There are several reports that can use this data to help you grow your practice. One stellar example is in the Service section called “Service Type, Subtype, & Item Report.” Using this report you can zero in on items for client that need to be fixed. You may find that one type of an issue is costing you the most hours against an agreement. You can then act o improving that area to increase your managed services agreement profitability and/or to increase client satisfaction with your proactive approach.

I recall one client discovering that an account lockout on a line-of-business application was causing the most tickets each month. Since it represented such a large expense, it was worth spending the resources to investigate. Turns out, the fix was very repetitive and scriptable. They setup their ConnectWise Automate tray icon to have a new menu option that verified the user and unlocked their account on the line-of-business server. The users LOVED not having to call and not having to wait to get this issue resolved. The MSP LOVED not having to answer the phone, put in a ticket, and resolve the ticket 20 times per week. This was win-win as every MSP agreement should be!

If you need help setting any of this up, of have any questions or thoughts, feel free to contact us.

Allen Edwards is president of Eureka Process, a firm specializing in process and leadership for IT firms. He started in IT professionally in 1994 and has been in management since 1999. He started his own MSP in 2002 and sold it in 2011. Subsequently, he went on to grow and bring a culture of process to two other MSPs before founding Eureka Process to bring his skills and experience to IT firms like yours.