Automating service requests

Automating routine and repetitive tasks increases the efficiency of your service desk because it frees up your service agents to focus on strategic initiatives and unique requests that need manual intervention. Service automation reduces the risk of human error, decreases resolution time, brings efficiency, ensures security and compliance, reduces administrative burden, and improves user experience. Password resets, software provisioning requests, access management, and employee onboarding requests are a few examples of tasks that can be automated.

Service request categories for automation

Service requests are organized into different types depending on the nature of the requests, the department responsible for handling the request, and the work required to resolve them.

The following sections list some service request categories that can be automated using BMC applications and third-party tools.

Category for automation	Description	Reference
Request management	Services for requests such as refreshing or updating laptops and mobile devices, adding users to Active Directory (AD), setting up VMs and cloud infrastructure groups, and installing software.	Request management
Asset management	Services that track the organization's assets with users, their usage, and management.	Asset management
IT service desk	Services that your users use to get help right away, such as fixing a laptop or a mobile.	IT service desk
Catalog and service health	Services related to creating and managing the service catalog and service health items.	Catalog and service health
Other automation	Services that permit users to seek assistance, monitor request progress, and approve requests within Microsoft Teams.	Other automation
Work order automation	Services that use work orders for request fulfillment. These services include requests for hardware, password resets, access to applications, and server provisioning.	Work order automation

Request management

Sr. No.	Task	Description	How the automation works
1	PC refresh	Refresh a user's current device with a new or refurbished device.	Perform periodic checks to maintain an updated inventory of assets that are deployed to your users. Send an email to a user whenever a laptop needs to be replaced. The user responds to the email with relevant information, such as whether the laptop is their primary or secondary device (in case they have more than one), and the type of laptop they require. Replace the laptop based on the response given by the user.
2	Password Change	Allow a user to change a password by following the password policies.	Permit a user whose password is still active to reset the password as a self-service. Alternatively, permit an agent to submit a password change request on-behalf-of a user. Create a work order, and orchestrate the process to reset the password and inform the user of the new password.
3	Reset password by SMS	Unlock an account by sending an SMS.	Permit a user to send an SMS to a specified number to unlock the account. Create a ticket on behalf of the user and orchestrate the process to automatically unlock the account.
4	New User Profile in Active Directory (AD)	Create a new user profile in the AD based on input parameters.	Create a catalog service. Gather information from the user during the submission of the request. Use the Active Directory connector which helps you perform specific operations for users, groups, and computers in Microsoft Active Directory via the LDAP protocol. Note: You must have an Active Directory user account with sufficient permissions to perform read and write operations into the Active Directory server. Use BMC Helix iPaaS to handle complex scenarios.
5	Add or Remove Users from AD Groups	Create and manage groups in the Active Directory (AD) and add members to groups through self-service.	Create a catalog service to create and manage AD groups and to add members to the groups. Gather the necessary information from the user during the submission of the request. Use the Active Directory connector to connect to Microsoft Active Directory for service fulfillment and create an AD group. Use BMC Helix iPaaS to handle complex scenarios.
6	Provision VMs and cloud infrastructure	Provide a temporary environment for the entire solution or just the platform, with a specified end date.	Create a catalog service. Request the user to provide the scheduled dates when submitting the request. Create a work order ticket for non-production servers and a change request for production servers. Orchestrate the process so that after the Change Advisory Board (CAB) approves the request, it is automatically fulfilled. You can also initiate an automated deprovisioning workflow after sending a reminder.
7	Modify VM and cloud infrastructure attributes	Change cloud infrastructure attributes such as vCPU, memory, storage, and so on.	Permit a user to submit a request with the parameters as inputs. Create a work order ticket. Automate the remaining steps to change the attributes based on the parameters provided by the user.
8	Deprovision VM and cloud infrastructure	Deprovision VMs and cloud infrastructure no longer in use	Display the VM (provisioned asset) on the user's My Stuff page. Permit the user to deprovision the VM and cloud infrastructure.
9	Install software	Deploy requested software for users.	Create a generic IT service that permits users to request applications and automatically install those applications on their systems. Use BMC Client Management (BCM) to install the requested software.
10	Basic Monitoring (Ping and OS)	Set up basic monitoring.	Create a catalog service for basic monitoring of a server, site, or network. Collect the information from the user about the Configuration Items (CIs) that need to be monitored in the request.
11	Onboard new employee accounts and application access	Provision new employee accounts and provide them access to applications automatically.	Create a New Hire service for equipment, additional equipment, workspace, and so on. Permit hiring managers to select the new hire names and the hardware for the new hires when submitting the request. Automate the provisioning of the laptop and other accessories for new employees.
12	Terminate Employee Accounts	Deprovision accounts and cancel access to applications automatically.	Permit a user to submit a resignation request. Automatically initiate a process to ensure completion of exit formalities. Collect clearances from stakeholder teams such as procurement, accounts payable, facilities, IT team for employee assets, payroll, and so on. Inform the employee of the progress at each stage of the exit process. Provide a complete exit to the employee, including all letters. Delete the employee's account. Note: The process needs an integration between BMC Helix Digital Workplace and BMC Helix Business Workflows.
13	Submit a document for e-Signature	Permit an employee to submit a document for a digital signature, like a nondisclosure agreement (NDA) that needs to be sent to a partner.	Permit users to request a document or contract for a digital signature. Note: BMC Helix Digital Workplace and BMC Helix Business Workflows must be integrated. BMC Helix Business Workflows works with DocuSign and Adobe Sign.
14	Request a letter from the corporate administrator	Permit an employee to request for and receive letters such as employment verification, salary confirmation, and so on.	Permit a user to submit a request for a document such as salary confirmation. BMC Helix Digital Workplace and BMC Helix Business Workflowsmust be integrated and the different portals must be set up.
15	Reconfirm certifications	Periodically reconfirm validity of certification.	Automatically send an email requesting an employee to re-certify.
16	Request training recommendations	Permit users to request for training recommendation.	A generic HR service request permits users to request for and receive a list of recommended training courses based on the employee's role and responsibilities.
17	PriceSheet	Update the price sheet for a new learning course	Update the price sheet for a new learning course.
18	Manage Mobile	Push notifications to users' mobile devices.	Notifications can be sent to users' mobile devices especially when users need to be informed in a crisis scenario such as a global outage.
19	Mobile refresh	Refresh a user's current mobile with a new or refurbished device.	Send an email to a user whenever a mobile needs to be replaced. The user responds to the email with relevant information. Replace the mobile based on the response given by the user.
20	Book a room	Book specific conference rooms.	Book specific conference rooms for the Senior Leadership Teams (SLTs) by submitting a catalog request. An automated workflow is triggered for the booking.
21	Book an appointment	Schedule an appointment.	Permit users to book service appointments. Users view available slots and book a service appointment.
22	ITSM account access	Provide users access toBMC Helix ITSM and its data.	Permit users to request the creation of BMC Helix ITSM user accounts and access to data.
23	ITSM Support Group provisioning (approval)	Create and configure support groups in BMC Helix ITSM.	Permit users to request the creation or deletion of a BMC Helix ITSM support group to resolve tickets.
24	ITSM Support Group membership (approval)	Assign users to a BMC Helix ITSM support group.	Permit users to request for addition of users to a BMC Helix ITSM support group for resolving tickets.
25	ITSM Add alternate approvals	Add alternate approvers for tickets.	Permit users to request the addition of alternate approvers who have the authority to approve tickets within BMC Helix ITSM.
26	CMDB Ownership (claim/reassign)	Assign ownership of a CMDB database.	Permit users to request assigning or changing the owner of a CMDB database.

Asset management

Sr. No.	Task	Description	How the automation works
27	Order new PC	Order a new or refurbished PC.	Create a Replace or Get hardware catalog service. Permit a user to request for assets, such as a laptop, PC peripherals, IT accessories, and so on. The request captures the necessary information including the delivery address. Details such as cost center code and cost center owner are automatically set for the user, based on the employee code. Automate the steps to get the request approved and then create a work order for fulfillment.
28	Report a lost or stolen asset	Report lost or stolen assets and track the process.	The user submits a request that an asset was lost or stolen. Create a ticket with the information provided by the user in the request. Send an email to all teams involved in the provisioning process, including Client Services, Finance, Facilities, and Infosec. The details of the emails are listed in the Work Details section of the ticket.
29	Re-certify asset ownership	Permit users to certify or update their asset relationships.	An IT service request permits users to certify or update asset relationships especially when they return an asset. The IT team tracks the response status and sends email reminders to users.
30	Bring your own device - Mobile Device Access and Waiver	Register a mobile device for access and agree to the terms and conditions.	A catalog request allows a user to register mobile devices and agree to remote device management, including the possibility of a data wipe.

IT Service desk

Sr. No.	Task	Description	How the automation works
31	PC Fix or Repair	Fix any issue with a user's IT asset or application depending on the problem area listed in the request.	A generic BMC Helix Digital Workplace Catalog IT service request captures the necessary information about the repair that is needed.
32	Fix/Repair a mobile device	Fix any issue with a user's mobile devices.	This request is similar to the PC Fix/Repair request. A work order ticket is created and submitted to the concerned team based on the region. While getting the inputs and sending it to the team is automated, the remaining part of the process is not.
33	Create User Account	Create a new user account.	A generic catalog service request creates a new service account. Using the account, a new user can submit security and facilities requests.

Catalog and service health

Sr. No.	Task	Description	How the automation works
34	Update catalog items in bulk	Update multiple catalog items simultaneously rather than updating each item separately.	An administrator can automatically update multiple catalog items in one go.
35	Well-structured software catalog	Create a service catalog for various personas, considering their specific roles and tasks.	An administrator can manually or automatically create a catalog for varous personas.
36	Well-structured PC catalog	Create an organized services catalog optimized specifically for PCs, ensuring ease of access and clarity in service offerings.	An administrator can manually or automatically create a catalog for use on PC devices.
37	Well-structured mobile catalog	Create a service catalog for easy navigation and use on mobile devices.	An administrator can manually or automatically create a catalog for use on mobile devices.
38	Generate catalog automatically	Generate a catalog automatically keeping in mind the different personas and lines of business.	A catalog administrator can automatically generate a catalog.
39	Update the most requested Catalog Items section	Organize the most requested catalog items in a section in the BMC Helix Digital Workplace end user console.	An administrator can manually or automatically configure the most requested section in the Admin console, based on the popularity of requests.
40	Update the most requested Knowledge Articles section	Organize the most requested knowledge articles in a section in the BMC Helix Digital Workplace end user console.	An administrator can manually or automatically configure the most requested section in the Admin console, based on the popularity of requests and knowledge articles.
41	Business Service Health	Display the health status of business services in the end-user console.	An administrator updates the health status of a business service in the BMC Helix Digital WorkplaceAdmin console and broadcasts are sent to end users. End users receive these messages as push notifications in BMC Helix Digital Workplace and as emails if they have selected the services as their favorites. Note: Finance Management and Business Intelligence are examples of business services, whereas Concur and MicroStrategy are examples of technical services.
42	Technical Service Health	Display the health status of technical services in the end-user console.	An administrator updates the health status of a technical service in the BMC Helix Digital Workplace Admin console and broadcasts are sent to end users. End users receive these messages as push notifications in BMC Helix Digital Workplace and as emails if they have selected the services as their favorites.
43	Applications Health	Show the status of applications in the end-user console.	An administrator updates the health status of an application in the BMC Helix Digital WorkplaceAdmin console and broadcasts are sent to end users. End users receive these messages as push notifications in BMC Helix Digital Workplaceand as emails if they have selected the services as their favorites.
44	Service Catalog (IT-service catalog)	Monitor all facts about service health items.	The monitoring tool sends out System Generated Events (SGEs) for the health of services.
45	Send broadcasts to People groups	Permit administrator users to send broadcasts to people groups.	Administrator users compose a broadcast message and send it to selected People groups. For end users, broadcasts appear as push notifications in BMC Helix Digital Workplace and as emails in Microsoft Outlook.

Other automations

Sr. No.	Task	Description	How the automation works
46	Integrate chat with Microsoft Teams	Enable users to get assistance in Microsoft Teams.	Enable BMC Helix Virtual Agent in Microsoft Teams and use Microsoft Teams as a communication channel. End users connect to the chatbot through Microsoft Teams and get assistance.
47	Check request status in Microsoft Teams	Enable users to check the status of a request in Microsoft Teams.	Enable BMC Helix Virtual Agent or Live Chat in Microsoft Teams and permit users to check the status of a request in Microsoft Teams.
48	Show approval requests and allow for approval within Microsoft Teams	Approve requests in Microsoft Teams by using the chatbot.	Enable BMC Helix Virtual Agent in Microsoft Teams. Show approval requests and permit users to approve from within Microsoft Teams.

Work order automations

Sr. No.	Task	Description	How the automation works
49	Guest Wi-Fi Request	Grant guest Wi-Fi access to an individual or a group.	Create a Guest Wi-Fi catalog service. Collect details such as the names of guests, the location, and the duration in the request. Create an incident or a work order automatically and fulfill the request. Send an email to the requester with the guest Wi-Fi access credentials.
50	Email Distribution List (DL) creation, update the DL (add and remove members)	Administer email DLs without providing an administrator role to the requester.	Create a catalog service for a DL creation. Gather information about the DL name, its owner, and members from the user during the submission of the request. You can create a service bundle to include both services DL creation and addition of members to the DL. For a new DL creation request, create a work order and automate the steps to create a DL and add members. For an existing DL, automate the steps to send an email to the DL owner. Add members after the DL owner approves the request.
51	Jira Support	Perform Jira tasks and administer Jira without providing an administrator role to the requester.	Permit users to submit a request for Jira tasks such as: Providing access to an application or project Creating a new project or version Reindexing
52	Jira Project Role Permissions	Grant a Jira project role to a user.	Permit users to submit a request for Jira support. Automate the tasks to create an account, provision access, and provide the necessary Jira project role permission to the requestor.
53	AWS Security Group	Add a user to an AWS security group.	Create a catalog service for AWS. Permit users to submit a request for inclusion in an AWS security group.
54	Create Standard Change Template	Create a Standard Change Template.	Create a catalog service. Use an advanced interface form to collect the necessary information for the user during the submission of the request. Orchestrate the process so that after the Change Advisory Board (CAB) approves the request, it is automatically fulfilled.
55	ZeroDay Provisioning	Provide basic access to applications needed for a new hire to perform tasks on the first day.	Permit hiring managers to submit a request with information about applications needed for a new hire. Automatically provide access to applications.
56	Okta Factor Reset	Reset the Okta Factor.	Create a catalog service. Gather information from the user such as the factors to be reset during the submission of the request. Create a ticket and automate the process to reset the requested factors.
57	Create Technical Service	Create a technical service such as backup and recovery or storage.	Create a catalog service. Gather information from the user such as name of the service, the associated business service, product category during the submission of the request. Create a work order and send it for approval. Automatically create the technical service upon approval of the work order.
58	Amazon WorkSpace VDI (Virtual Desktop Infrastructure)	Proivde AWS workspace access.	Create a catalog service. When the request is submitted, if a user has the necessary permissions, automatically grant access. The Workspace is requested, and the entire process is orchestrated from provisioning, adding to Infoblox, moving to the appropriate Active Directory (AD) group, documentation, and creation of a dashboard entry to track who has the systems and the usage.
59	SOX Roles Automation	Grant SOX responsibilities to users for applications such as Salesforce, MicroStrategy, One Stream, and Oracle Applications.	Create a catalog service for a SOX application access. Gather information from the user during the submission of the request. Create a work order and send an approval request to the SOX application owner. After the request is approved, automatically grant access to the application. Not all SOX roles can be granted automatically.
60	AWS Legal Hold	Remove a user's access to Amazon Workspace VDI.	A user's access is removed automatically upon submission of the request.
61	Folder access	Grant access to a folder on a shared server.	Users submit a request to be given access to a folder on a shared server.
62	R&D source code access	Grant access to Source Code folders.	Users submit a service request and access is granted based on the details provided by the user when submitting the request.
63	DB ReadOnly Access	Grant read-only access to a database.	Users submit a catalog request for read-only access to a database.
64	Application Access Request	Grant a user access to business applications.	A generic service allows users to request for access to various applications. Some examples of applications include Qualtrics, BrainShark, Seismic, Miro, iLearn, Jira, GitHub, ZEng BitBucket, Confluence space, BMC Community, and Value Engagement Builder (VEB). For some applications, direct access is provided, and for the others, the requester is added to the relevant security group.
65	Remove Application Access	Remove the access a user has to a business application	A generic service to remove a user's access to an application.
66	PriceSheet	Update the price sheet for a new learning course	Update the price sheet for a new learning course.
67	Server decommission	Decommission a server	User submits a request. The fulfillment workflow creates a work order for a non-production server and a normal change request for a production server. An automation workflow decommissions the server.

Typical request fulfillment automation process

You can use an automation tool such as BMC Helix Intelligent Automation or any third-party tool to automate manual tasks involved in request fulfillment.

The following image illustrates the steps in a request fulfillment automation workflow:

Generic automation workflow

An automated fulfillment workflow includes the following steps:

A user submits a request in BMC Helix Digital Workplace.
The fulfillment workflow creates a work order or a ticket in BMC Helix ITSM.
BMC Helix ITSM sends the incident information to the automation tool.
The automation workflow in the tool performs the steps to fulfill the work order.
The tool informs the user.
It updates the work order or ticket, and resolves it.