What’s new?
We are thrilled to announce the enhanced interface for our integration with Zendesk. Our goal is to improve maintenance processes, and the new user interface provides streamlined functionality, enabling faster and more efficient ticket resolution.
By using EZO CMMS’s Zendesk app, you can now manage tickets related to all your equipment seamlessly.
1. Why integrate with Zendesk?
Here are some ways you can benefit from the Zendesk and EZO CMMS integration:
- Efficient Resource Allocation: The integration allows for better resource allocation by providing insights into ongoing work orders, equipment availability, and technician schedules. This helps optimize resource utilization and ensures that the right personnel and tools are allocated to address maintenance needs promptly.
- Seamless Communication and Collaboration: Communication between maintenance teams and ticket requesters becomes more streamlined. Updates, status changes, and notifications can be easily shared between EZO CMMS and Zendesk, ensuring effective collaboration and timely response to maintenance requests.
- Improved Ticket Resolution: Agents can access relevant equipment and asset information directly from EZO CMMS within Zendesk. This eliminates the need to switch between systems, enabling faster and more accurate ticket resolution.
- Streamlined Workflows: You can quickly identify work priorities, review past issues, and access details like Location and AINs, enhancing operational efficiency through Zendesk allowing for streamlined maintenance management.
- Real-Time Updates: EZO CMMS provides real-time updates on asset status, maintenance history, and work order progress. By having this information readily available in Zendesk, maintenance managers can provide accurate and up-to-date responses to ticket requesters without delays or the need for manual follow-ups.
By leveraging the capabilities of EZO CMMS through integration with Zendesk, businesses can streamline information access,improve work order management, and foster collaboration. These factors contribute to faster response times, enabling agents to provide timely and efficient support to maintenance requests.
2. Some common workflows
Some typical uses of Zendesk EZO CMMS Integration are:
- An employee filing a ticket regarding their broken computer that needs to be fixed. EZO CMMS tracking asset related details while Zendesk tracking the ticket workflow.
- A person in the field requiring help on using a drill machine, and an agent in Zendesk following up, with specific details about the assigned machine.
- A customer requesting a memory extension for their Macbook. The IT Helpdesk looking for details on the Macbook checked out and based on the model determining the type of upgrade required. The details and past work on the MacBook being visible through the Zendesk app for EZO CMMS.
- Agents look up details of any asset in the organization via EZO CMMS for outstanding Zendesk tickets. Users creating Zendesk tickets from EZO CMMS.
- Logging EZO CMMS services and maintenance events in Zendesk to be assigned to the maintenance team.
3. Installation guide
The installation works both ways, that is if you install EZO CMMS from Zendesk or vice versa. However, we recommend installing Zendesk from your EZO CMMS account, as this eliminates the risk of human error.
3.1. Installing Zendesk from EZO CMMS
You need both Zendesk and EZO CMMS accounts for this. Sign into both of these, and then:
1) In EZO CMMS, go to Settings → Add Ons → Zendesk Integration and tap the ‘Get the app at Zendesk’ button.
2) Provide your Zendesk subdomain.
3) Once you’ve entered the subdomain here, press the Connect button. We’ll take care of the rest.
3.2. Installing EZO CMMS from Zendesk
There are two cases where you would install EZO CMMS from Zendesk:
- You want to install the EZO CMMS app from the Zendesk marketplace, and then connect the two accounts.
- You connected the two accounts from EZO CMMS and then uninstalled EZO CMMS from Zendesk. This means that Zendesk is still connected from the EZO CMMS end, but the EZO CMMS app needs to be re-installed from the Zendesk end.
In both cases, you will be asked for the following information in order to install the app:
- Access Token: You can get this by going into your EZO CMMS account, and then to Settings → Add Ons → API Integration to generate a new token.
- EZO CMMS Subdomain: Add your full EZO CMMS subdomain and host, such as ‘business.EZOCMMS.com’.
- Owner’s Email Address: You would provide the email address of the EZO CMMS account owner.
In essence, this is the screen you will see if you try installing the app:
Important Notes:
- For the integration to work, your role on Zendesk must be set as an ‘Admin’. Similarly, Zendesk can only be disconnected from EZO CMMS by the user that first integrated the two systems together. This user will have to be an admin on Zendesk at the time of disconnecting.
- Enable the Auto-sync when configuring the two apps. This ensures that whenever a ticket gets resolved in Zendesk, it is automatically updated in EZO CMMS as well.
4. How does the integration work?
4.1. The Basics
Open any Zendesk ticket and look for the EZO CMMS app on the right. If the Apps Panel is collapsed, tap the Apps button on the top right to view connected apps. With every ticket, you will see:
– A link to that person’s EZO CMMS profile
– Overall details of checkouts and reservations
– Item details
– Purchase Order details
– Work Order and Work Request Details
All of the Requester’s Checked Out items will populate under the relevant section heading on the right. Based on the description in the ticket, the support agent can scroll through the list and link the relevant items to it.
You can also link other items (that is, items not assigned to the Requester), by scrolling to the bottom of the list and clicking on “Search for All Items in the Company’. You will then be brought to a search bar, where you can look up assets and asset stock and link them to the ticket just like you did previously:
Here you can search assets and asset stock and apply various filters by Item Type, State, Group, location, and Custodian. To make workflows simpler, you can quickly search for Available Items by clicking on the filter ‘Available Items’ on the right.
When searching for an item, you can also filter for Assets, Asset Stock or Both.
All items on this right-side pane are clickable. Clicking on the item name in Zendesk will open a tab in EZO CMMS – the item’s detail page.
All linked assets/asset stock can be viewed just under the Requester’s profile:
You can see the ticket reference in EZO CMMS. For example, here’s what an Item Details Page looks like for a generator if it’s been linked to a ticket in Zendesk.
The Zendesk Tab has all the necessary details pertaining to the linked Zendesk tickets, including information on Ticket #, Summary, Requester, Created On, Status and Assignee Agent.
Update: You can now coordinate maintenance events across departments from a centralized location. For example, some of the VR headgear gets damaged at a CES exhibition. The booth operators create a service ticket in EZO CMMS for a repair/replacement. A ticket automatically gets created in the company’s Zendesk account operated by the IT department, which is immediately notified and takes reparative actions.
4.2. Link Purchase Orders to Zendesk tickets
With EZO CMMS’s ability to allow you to link Purchase Orders to a Zendesk ticket, technicians and maintenance managers have access to information regarding the purchase of specific equipment or parts related to a service ticket. This action helps them expedite issue resolution and provide a timely solution.
You can also create a new Purchase Order or link an existing one to a Zendesk ticket. Open up a ticket and go to the EZO CMMS window panel. From here click on ‘Add Purchase Order’.
This will open up a pop up asking you to either create a new PO or link the ticket to an existing one.
If you wish to create a new PO, the ‘Create New PO’ button will redirect you to the EZO CMMS app. Here you can generate a new PO and add all the relevant information.
You can also link an existing PO by entering the PO number.
Once done, you can click ‘Linked Purchase Orders’ to view all details:
After adding the required PO’s you can link/unlink them from the button on the right hand side.
When you create a new PO, it shows on your EZO CMMS app.
4.3. Add Work Orders
By linking a work order to a Zendesk ticket, you can easily track the progress and status of the maintenance task within the ticketing system. This enables you to provide timely updates on the request, ensuring transparency and reducing the need for separate communications about the work order. Let’s say, if a customer submits a ticket for a broken printer on Zendesk, then your maintenance manager can create a new work order and link it to the ticket mentioning the assets and inventory required to resolve the ticket.Technicians working on the assigned Work Order can access all the relevant information from the Zendesk ticket and complete the task. This helps improve work order management, and ensures that the right personnel is catering to the request.
You can create a new work order or link an existing one to a Zendesk ticket. Simply Go to “Add Work Order”.
This will lead you toward another window asking you to either create a new PO, create a or link the ticket to an existing one.
From the Zendesk agent workspace app, you can directly create a new WO. Simply create a new WO, fill in all relevant information, and then click the “Create” button to finalize.
When you create a new WO, the Zendesk ticket is updated with a message highlighting the action.
You can also create and link Work Requests by following the same steps. This is what your Work Request looks like in EZO CMMS.
Next you can also link an existing Work Order to a Zendesk ticket. Click on’ link existing WO’ and enter the WO number.
After adding the required WO’s you can link/unlink them from the button on the right hand side.
Note: When you create a new WO, the following option will appear on EZO CMMS to “Create Zendesk ticket against this Work Order”. If you are creating the WO by accessing it through Zendesk, then this will already be selected for you. However, if you create a WO on your own from the app directly, then you will have to select the option.
4.4. Choosing attributes to display in Zendesk
From your EZO CMMS account, go to Settings → Add Ons → Integrate Zendesk → Item Attributes.
Here, click on ‘Configure Attributes’.
This feature allows you to display any three attributes of your choice on Zendesk. Use the dropdown menus to make your selections. Now, head to your Zendesk account and add an item to a ticket. The attributes displayed for all assets will be the ones configured via your EZO CMMS account.
Note: If you add more than three attributes, then they will appear on the ticket as well.
4.5. Choosing item tags to display in Zendesk
Item tags in Zendesk will be defined based on the settings in your EZO CMMS account, with the pathway: Settings → Company Settings → Advanced Settings → AIN Options.
The enabled option here will be the mode of identification for assets tagged with a ticket. Choose between the Item Number and the Asset Identification Number and save the change. You can now head to your Zendesk account and link an item to a ticket.
Tag: EZO CMMS Item Number
Tag: Asset Identification Number
4.6 Solving Zendesk ticket triggers closing the associated work order
Customers value efficiency and prefer to avoid multiple actions. For instance, when a Zendesk ticket associated with a work order is closed, they would appreciate having the work order in EZO CMMS automatically closed. This would save time and streamline operations, especially for service teams that rely on Zendesk for ticket management.
To address this need, EZO CMMS has introduced a new option in its Zendesk integration. This option allows customers to resolve a Zendesk ticket and close its associated work order in EZO CMMS simultaneously.
To do this, go to Settings → Integrations → Zendesk Integration.
Check the option “Solving Zendesk ticket completes the associated work order” and click “Update.”
By default, this option will be unchecked. Whenever this setting is enabled, the Zendesk Ticket, which is associated with a work order, when solved will complete the work order as well.
6. Troubleshooting
1. Getting the error message when integrating with Zendesk, ‘The Requester <your email> doesn’t exist under Members in EZO CMMS …’
Solution: The requester must exist in EZO CMMS and Zendesk with the same email address.
2. Zendesk users not being recognized in EZO CMMS
Solution: For EZO CMMS to recognize users of your Zendesk account, you need to add them (by matching their email addresses in both systems). We currently do not support auto-importing users from Zendesk to EZO CMMS, but if you’re interested in having us implement this, please let us know by reaching out to us.
3. Getting the error message in Zendesk “There was a problem accessing the data ….”
Solution: This can happens for two reasons:
- While installing the EZO CMMS app from Zendesk, you’ve provided an invalid Access Token or EZO CMMS subdomain. To troubleshoot, configure your app settings again from Zendesk or simply disconnect Zendesk from Settings –> Add Ons and then reconnect.
- When the subdomain for the account is changed in EZO CMMS or a custom domain is added. To fix, simply disconnect Zendesk from Settings –> Add Ons and then reconnect.
Note: Existing data will NOT be impacted by the resetting of the connection.
4. Zendesk stops syncing with EZO CMMS
Solution: This happens when the account owner that originally set up the integration from EZO CMMS has either had a change in member role or has had their email address updated in Zendesk. To reconnect, simply go to Settings –> Add Ons and integrate with Zendesk from the current owner’s account.
Note: Prior data is not impacted during resetting of the connection.
5. Getting the alert message while disconnecting Zendesk from EZO CMMS: “Zendesk Add On has been disabled but we were unable to uninstall the EZO CMMS App from your Zendesk account…”.
Solution: While you might’ve disconnected Zendesk from EZO CMMS, the EZO CMMS App might not uninstall from Zendesk. These are the possible reasons:
- Your Zendesk trial account has suspended;
- The Admin’s email address has been updated in Zendesk;
- The role of Admin has been changed to that of a Staff User in Zendesk OR;
- The Admin has revoked EZO CMMS’s authorization from the connected Zendesk account.
To fix, head to your Zendesk Account and uninstall the EZO CMMS App manually. Go to Settings –> Apps –> Manage to uninstall the App.
6. EZO CMMS application not showing up in the Zendesk workspace after enabling the integration
Solution: If you are on the Starter or Essential plan of Zendesk and try to enable the Zendesk integration for EZO CMMS, the EZO CMMS application will not get populated in the Zendesk workspace.
You must be on the Suite Team or a higher Zendesk plan for the EZO CMMS application to be visible in the Zendesk workspace.
About EZO CMMS
EZO CMMS is the next generation maintenance management software. It does more than just simple maintenance, it empowers your teams with a central command center to assign and complete work orders to achieve optimal productivity. We offer a free 15-day trial – no credit card required!
