In my recent engagement at work, I’m bound to raise more incidents in SAP Support Portal than I’ve raised in previous projects. Few incidents have already got solved and few are still in the queue of getting fixed and definitely there is a good chance that I will raise few more in the coming weeks. I just cannot say that I’m having great experience all the time. However, in the journey of getting through some of the tricky incidents I learnt few things which can help customers and partners to get the best from SAP Support team. There is no particular order in which these could be written but as defined by my experience so far:
- Be as focused on the issue as possible while writing the incident description – Well, this effectively means that we have to do our homework properly before raising an incident. Following the programming guidelines – one method of a class should cater to one functionality only. The same applies to incidents as well. We cannot really write an incident which is generic and highlights issues at multiple scenarios in the same notes. It should highlight the specific problem.
- Provide the root cause of the issue when you can – One of the last incidents that I raised was regarding analytical page Fiori template. The issue was: the Fiori app did not work on the second click of GO button or entering a filter criteria after the first execution of the app. Well, I spent quite a time on this issue to fix it but then could not. However, by trying to fix it myself I could understand the scenarios under which the app would fail and hence could provide the part of the code responsible for it. After submitting the incident, we did not get any response for few days. When I think about it retrospectively, I understand that I might have given some generic information which might not have helped developer to analyse the issue. When I gave them the exact scenarios the response was fairly quick. I also gave them the standard code which might have caused the issue. The respond I got was very satisfactory as the developer not only helped me to understand the root cause of the issue but also fixed the template in a future release version.
- Understand the cultural impact – Well, this means to be aware of the Geographical location of the support consultant. If the consultant is working from India, we cannot expect some prompt turnaround in the festive season. I faced this during Diwali time when one of our support tickets was not getting responded for few days. We got that reallocated considering the criticality and it was OK. The clock hour’s difference cannot be ignored. Your morning may be night of the support team and vice versa. It is good to remain cognizant of the same.
- Use of call option when things are not moving – In one of my incidents, I was given the notes which highlighted the contact numbers of Support representatives according to the regional areas. I tried to make use of “Chat” option. It initially showed that I was in a queue of 8 queries and gradually moved up to the first one. However, this option did not work as the “Send” button was never enabled for my chat. So I moved to call option and dialed up the number for my region and it worked. This was really helpful. The representative was supportive and I was said that the support team were updating the comments internally and hence it was not visible to me. She sent an internal note to the developer and I got an update from her the next day.
- Be prompt in your responses – SAP usually comes back with access to the system or other clarifications that might help them to understand the issue better. It is a good idea to promptly respond back with the answers. I realize that being prompt from my side also keeps them on their toes. There have been instances when I do not get a response back from them for more than one day or two, I update the incident with more information and ask them to call me if further clarifications are required. My experience has been good in terms of response back from them.
I'm sure there might me more ideas here and you could share and add to the list. If anyone from SAP Support Team reads the blog, do let us know what might further help you all in Incidents resolution.
