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Implement service level agreements for work orders

  • Article

This article provides examples of how you can use service level agreements (SLA) in the context of a work order. The article includes steps for how to create the sample SLA. It also delves into application lifecycle management for SLAs, outlining the steps to configure SLAs in a development environment, integrate the configuration into a solution, and deploy it to a target environment.

Note

This article references the documentation related to SLAs in Dynamics 365 Field Service. Since SLAs can be applied to any SLA-enabled entity record, including custom tables, this information is also relevant beyond the context where the SLA was first implemented.

Introduction

Service level agreements (SLAs) are effective for managing work orders by ensuring that services meet predefined standards. Here are some practical examples of how SLAs can be applied in this context:

  • Response times example

    An SLA might stipulate that all high-priority work orders must receive a response within 2 hours of creation, medium-priority work orders within 12 hours, and low-priority work orders within 24 hours.

  • Resolution times example

    An SLA might specify that work orders related to critical issues must be resolved within 4 hours, while less critical ones within 24 hours.

  • Service availability example

    An SLA might require that technical support is available 24/7 for emergency work orders, while for nonurgent work orders, support might only be available during business hours.

  • Escalation procedures example

    An SLA might define escalation procedures for work orders that aren't resolved within the specified times, detailing who should be contacted and what actions should be taken.

Apply service-level agreements to a work order in several ways:

  • Automatically update the SLA information using a Power Automate flow or a custom plug-in designed for the entity.
  • Manually applying SLAs to records.
  • Set a specific SLA as the default.

SLAs can also be updated. When an SLA is reapplied, all its items are reevaluated. Learn more at Apply SLAs.

Enable work orders for service-level agreements

In your development environment, you probably already added the Work Order table to your solution. If not, add it to the solution you use to transport your customizations by using the Add existing table feature, and then selecting the Work Order table with the Include table metadata option. This setting is essential as it includes the table settings in the solution. If the Work Order table is already part of the solution, verify that the table metadata is included by taking the following steps:

  1. Go to Work Order > Advanced > Table segmentation properties.
  2. In the Table segmentation properties, check if the Include table metadata field is selected. If not, select it, choose the Save action, and then go to Work Order > Publish.

Tip

Learn more at How to add an existing component to a solution.

Now you're ready to enable the Work Order table for SLA.

Important

This option can't be switched off once it's switched on.

  1. In the Work Order table properties section, select Properties.
  2. In the Edit table dialog box, expand the Advanced options section.
  3. Go to the Make this table an option when section, and then select the Setting up service level agreements checkbox.
  4. Save and in the Work Order table properties section, select Advanced > Publish table.

Example 1: Configure work order resolution service-level agreement

As a first example, let's create a service level agreement that defines the resolution times for a work order based on its priority:

  • High priority: Must be completed within 2 days.
  • Medium priority: Must be completed within 7 days.
  • Low priority: Must be completed within 15 days.

To get started with creating the SLA, follow these steps:

  1. Open the Power Platform Environment Settings app, and then in the Business area, select Service Management > Service level agreement.
  2. Create an SLA record (+ New)
  3. In the New SLA form, enter Work Order Resolution SLA as the name, select Work Order as the value of the Primary entity field, and then select Save.

Tip

You can use the Description field to outline the specific requirements.

Now create three SLA items for the three values of the work order priority: High, Medium, and Low.

Create an SLA item for high priority work orders

  1. In the SLA Form, SLA Item section, select + New SLA Item

  2. Fill in the fields as outlined in the following table.

    Field Value
    Name Work Order Resolution High Priority
    Allow Pause and Resume No
    Allow Custom Time Calculation No

  3. In the New SLA Item form, open the KPI lookup, and then select + New SLA KPI.

  4. In the Quick Create: SLA KPI form, fill in the fields as outlined in the following table.

    Field Value
    Name Work Order Resolution SLA KPI
    Entity Name Work Order
    KPI Field Work Order Resolution KPI
    Applicable From Created On

  5. Save and close the form.

The newly created Work Order Resolution SLA KPI is now visible in the KPI field of the New SLA Item form. You can reuse it for the SLA items for medium and low priority work orders created next.

  1. In the Applicable When section, select + Add > Add row, and enter the condition Priority (Work Order) Equals High.

  2. In the Success Conditions section, select + Add > Add row, and enter the condition System Status (Work Order) Equals Completed.

  3. In the Warn and Fail Duration section, enter the following conditions:

    Field Value
    Warn After 1 day
    Failure After 2 days

  4. Save and close the form.

Create an SLA item for medium priority work orders

  1. In the SLA Form, SLA Item section, select + New SLA Item

  2. Fill in the fields as outlined in the following table.

    Field Value
    Name Work Order Resolution Medium Priority
    KPI Work Order Resolution SLA KPI
    Allow Pause and Resume No
    Allow Custom Time Calculation No

  3. In the Applicable When section, select + Add > Add row, and enter the condition Priority (Work Order) Equals Medium.

  4. In the Success Conditions section, select + Add > Add row, and enter the condition System Status (Work Order) Equals Completed.

  5. In the Warn and Fail Duration section, enter the following conditions:

    Field Value
    Warn After 4 days
    Failure After 7 days

  6. Save and close the form.

Create an SLA item for low priority work orders

  1. In the SLA Form, SLA Item section, select + New SLA Item

  2. Fill in the fields as outlined in the following table.

    Field Value
    Name Work Order Resolution Low Priority
    KPI Work Order Resolution SLA KPI
    Allow Pause and Resume No
    Allow Custom Time Calculation No

  3. In the Applicable When section, select + Add > Add row, and enter the condition Priority (Work Order) Equals Low.

  4. In the Success Conditions section, select + Add > Add row, and enter the condition System Status (Work Order) Equals Completed.

  5. In the Warn and Fail Duration section, enter the following conditions:

    Field Value
    Warn After 10 days
    Failure After 15 days

  6. Save and close the form.

Note

Ignore Business Hours for now.

Activate the work order resolution service-level agreement

You can have multiple service-level agreements active, but only one can be set as the default. The default SLA automatically applies to any new work order unless a different SLA is specifically assigned.

  1. Select the Work Order Resolution SLA in the All Service Level Agreements view.
  2. Select Active and then choose Activate in the Confirm SLA Activation dialog.
  3. After activating the SLA, select Set As Default, and confirm with OK.

Tip

To remove the default setting from an SLA, just deactivate it and then reactivate it.

Add SLA information to the Work Order form

Before testing the SLA, let's update the Work Order form to display the service level agreements.

  1. Open the solution you'll use to transport your customizations, and then open and edit the Work Order form.

  2. In the Table columns, search for the column SLA, and then add it to the form.

  3. Add a new section to the form and include a new Subgrid:

    Field Value
    Table SLA KPI Instances (Regarding)
    Default view SLA KPI Instances List View

  4. Save and publish your changes.

Tip

If you came to this spot from the section under Example 2, then once you complete the four steps here, then jump back to the Test the work order arrival time service-level agreement section and carry on with Example 2.

Test the work order resolution service-level agreement

You can now test the work order resolution service-level agreement in your Development environment. To do this, create a new work order, fill in the required information, set the Priority to High, and save it.

Observe the following:

  • The Work Order Resolution SLA is automatically applied.
  • In the SLA subgrid, you'll see the Status as In Progress, and the Failure Time indicating the deadline by which the Work Order must be completed.

Screenshot of Work Order resolution SLA high priority.

If you later discover that the Work Order should have a Low priority, update the priority and save it again.

You'll observe the following actions:

  • The previous SLA Item Instance has been canceled, and a new Instance has been created and is now in progress.
  • The new Failure Time has been recalculated based on the newly selected Priority.
  • This information can also be added to the Configurable Work Order summary. Screenshot of Work Order resolution SLA low priority with Copilot summary.

Example 2: Configure work order arrival time service-level agreement

Let's look at another example. To ensure urgent repairs receive prompt attention, some Work Orders may require swift action from a technician. We can establish a service level agreement (SLA) that specifies the arrival time for a work order based on its priority:

  • High priority: The technician should arrive within 2 hours.
  • Medium priority: The technician should arrive within 1 day.
  • Low priority: The technician should arrive within 2 days.

To get started with creating the SLA, follow these steps:

  1. Open the Power Platform Environment Settings app, and then in the Business area, select Service Management > Service level agreement.

  2. Create an SLA record (+ New).

  3. Fill in the fields as outlined in the following table.

    Field Value
    Name Work Order Arrival Time SLA
    Primary entity Work Order

  4. Save your changes.

Tip

You can use the Description field to outline the specific requirements.

Let's now create three SLA items for the three values of priority: High, Medium, and Low.

Create an SLA item for arrival time on high priority work orders

  1. In the SLA Form, SLA Item section, select + New SLA Item.

  2. Fill in the fields as outlined in the following table.

    Field Value
    Name Work Order Arrival Time High Priority
    Allow Pause and Resume No
    Allow Custom Time Calculation No

  3. In the New SLA Item form, open the KPI lookup, and then select + New SLA KPI.

  4. In the Quick Create: SLA KPI form, fill in the fields as outlined in the following table.

    Field Value
    Name Work Order Arrival Time SLA KPI
    Entity Name Work Order
    KPI Field Work Order Arrival Time KPI
    Applicable From Created On

  5. Save and close the form.

    This new created Work Order Arrival Time SLA KPI is now visible in the KPI field of the New SLA Item form. You can reuse it for the SLA items for medium and low priority work orders that we create next.

  6. In the Applicable When section, select + Add > Add row, and enter the condition Priority (Work Order) Equals High.

  7. In the Success Conditions section, select + Add > Add row, and enter the condition First Arrived On (Work Order) Contains data.

  8. In the Warn and Fail Duration section, enter the following conditions:

    Field Value
    Warn After 1 hour
    Failure After 2 hours

  9. Save and close the form.

Create an SLA item for arrival time on medium priority work orders

  1. In the SLA Form, SLA Item section, select + New SLA Item.

  2. Fill in the fields as outlined in the following table.

    Field Value
    Name Work Order Arrival Time Medium Priority
    KPI Work Order Arrival Time SLA KPI
    Allow Pause and Resume No
    Allow Custom Time Calculation No

  3. In the Applicable When section, select + Add > Add row, and enter the condition Priority (Work Order) Equals Medium.

  4. In the Success Conditions section, select + Add > Add row, and enter the condition First Arrived On (Work Order) Contains data.

  5. In the Warn and Fail Duration section, enter the following conditions:

    Field Value
    Warn After 4 hours
    Failure After 1 day

  6. Save and close the form.

Create an SLA item for arrival time on low priority work orders

  1. In the SLA Form, SLA Item section, select + New SLA Item.

  2. Fill in the fields as outlined in the following table.

    Field Value
    Name Work Order Arrival Time Low Priority
    KPI Work Order Arrival Time SLA KPI
    Allow Pause and Resume No
    Allow Custom Time Calculation No

  3. In the Applicable When section, select + Add > Add row, and enter the condition Priority (Work Order) Equals Low.

  4. In the Success Conditions section, select + Add > Add row, and enter the condition First Arrived On (Work Order) Contains data.

  5. In the Warn and Fail Duration section, enter the following conditions:

    Field Value
    Warn After 1 day
    Failure After 2 days

  6. Save and close the form.

Note

Ignore Business Hours for now.

Activate work order arrival time service-level agreement

Given that multiple service-level agreements can be active simultaneously, we can now activate this second SLA and set it as the default.

  1. Select Work Order Arrival Time SLA in the All Service Level Agreements view.
  2. In the Confirm SLA Activation dialog box, select Active, and then choose Activate.
  3. After activating the SLA, select Set As Default, and confirm by choosing OK.

Tip

To remove the default setting from an SLA, just deactivate it, and then reactivate it.

Add the SLA to the Work Order form

If you didn't follow the steps in Example 1, go back to the Add SLA information to the Work Order form section and follow the steps there. Then come back to the Test the work order arrival time service-level agreement section.

Test the work order arrival time service-level agreement

You can now test the arrival time service-level agreement in your development environment. To do this, create a new work order, fill in the required information, set the Priority to High, and save it.

You should observe the following activities:

  • The Work Order Arrival Time SLA is automatically applied.
  • In the SLA subgrid, you'll see the status as In Progress, and the Failure Time indicating the deadline for the technician's arrival.
  • The Promised window was set accordingly due to a Field Service setting, Field Service SLA Configuration. This setting is on by default in all Field Service environments.

Screenshot of Work Order arrival time SLA high priority with Copilot summary.

Tip

Users can choose a different SLA after one has been set. Many organizations don't have a default SLA. Instead, they decide based on specific criteria whether to use the resolution service-level agreement or the arrival time service-level agreement each time. In this example, you can modify it from the UI since the SLA field is visible and editable in the form. However, as mentioned earlier, you ca also modify it using other techniques, set the SLA field as read-only or not visible, and thereby prevent manual changes to the SLA field.

Business hours and holiday calendars

You might have noticed that each service level agreement item record lets you select a business hour schedule. This helps set up when the service team is available, including business hours for each day of the week and days off.

To ensure SLAs are tracked correctly, combine the business hour schedule with a holiday calendar. This way, SLAs aren't affected when the service team is off.

For example, if the team has an SLA to complete work orders within four business hours, adding a holiday schedule to the service calendar ensures that holiday closures don't affect the SLA.

Warning

Set up business hour schedules and holiday calendars directly in the development environment. When exporting the solution, all SLA-related components and their dependencies, including linked schedules and calendars, will also be exported. However, this is only possible if the Enable calendar export and import setting is manually set to Yes in both the development and target environments. Enable this setting in the Power Platform Environment Settings app by navigating to Business > Service Management > Service configuration settings.

To create a holiday calendar record, open the Power Platform Environment Settings app, and select Business > Service Management > Holiday schedule. Learn more at Create and manage holiday schedules.

To create a business hour schedule, or customer service schedule, open the Power Platform Environment Settings app, and select Business > Service Management > Customer service schedule. The holiday calendar can be linked to a customer service schedule. Learn more at Create customer service schedule and define the work hours.

How to transport the Service Level Agreements to a target environment using managed solutions

If you followed the guide, you should now have the Work Order entity in your solution, along with the customizations needed to display the SLAs.

Warning

Don't use the default publisher that comes with an environment. When you start making customizations, create a new publisher instead of using the default one. Try to avoid creating more publishers unless you have to. Learn more at Solution concepts with Power Platform.

Next, add the SLA records to the solution. Open the Power Platform Environment Settings app, navigate to Customization > Customizations > Solution. Open your solution, select Add existing > Rules > SLA, choose the SLAs you created, and then select Add.

Tip

An even better approach is to create the SLAs directly within the solution by using the + New > Rules > SLA feature.

Next, export SLAs from the development environment and import them with a managed solution to a target environment along with other customizations using your preferred mechanism: pipelines in Power Platform, ADO pipelines, or others.

After the import, the SLA's state in the target system changes from Active to Draft. However, you can restore the same isdefault and statecode values of the development environment using a flow. Below is an example of a Power Automate flow created in the development environment, outside of any solution, that queries these values from development and then connects to a specific target environment to perform an update. This update creates active layers for the SLA records and isn't supported if you have enabled the Block Unmanaged Customizations option in the target environment.

Screenshot of a Power Automate flow.