Version 3 Help Desk Update

For the past few months I've been trying to integrate the Zendesk Help Desk with NextComp, but the solutions they offered were more complex that I wanted to wrestle with, so I pushed off this feature.

Just last week Zendesk released a new integrated "drop box" tool. Ah ha, I thought, this is the answer to the issue of an easy, integrated help desk. And sure enough, after some testing today, it really does work! So I spent some time today updating every page of Version 3 with this new functionality.

Here's how it works.

From any page in Version 3, click the Support link at the top of the page.



You may be warned that the page contains some unencrypted information. Click Yes or OK depending on your browser. The only unencrypted information on the support dialog is the Zendesk logo. You may not receive this warning depending on your browser settings.





The background of the page will dim, and a Help Desk dialog will pop-up.



Enter your help desk request, a subject line for the message, and your e-mail address.



Click "Submit Query" and you'll receive a confirmation that your request was sent.



You'll receive an e-mail confirmation as well.



You'll also receive an e-mail when we have a solution to your request.



The best news is that this is all handled in NextComp and with e-mail. You don't have to leave the application to submit a request and you don't have to sign into another website to review the status of the request.

Integrated help desk support in Version 3... Check!

Happy Holidays

Here's hoping that you have an enjoyable holiday season. 'Tis the season to enjoy time with friends and family, stay warm and try to take some time off from work.

We've had a very cold and snowy start to winter here in the Pacific Northwest. My kids missed three days of school due to snow and we're expecting more on Christmas eve.




Here's one of my favorite photo locations during the first round of snow...



After a bit of an absence over the last two months, I'll be posting regularly starting in the new year. October, November and December are the busiest time of the year for data loading, updating data, and providing customer support. I've also been very busy with programming on the new version of NextComp. We have two customers currently using the new version as we build out all the features. Expect an in depth review of some of those features in the next post.

I read a very heartwarming blog post today about the importance of appreciating each moment we have on this earth. Take a read if you have a few extra minutes.

Here's to a successful and exciting year in 2009!

Version 3 Navigation Preview

Here's a preview of Version 3's new navigation bar.

We've spent quite a bit of time looking at how the navigation within NEXTCOMP.NET can be streamlined and improved. We are still working out all the new navigation features. We're far enough along that we wanted to share some images from Version 3. The final navigation bar will most likely vary from this preview.

This is the Start Page running in the Firefox browser.


You can see that we've re-arranged the Start Page and changed the navigation bar at the top of the page.

The first button will always take you back to the Start Page.


The next button takes you to the Market Pricing page, where you can view your jobs, matches and projects.

A project is a new concept in Version 3. It allows you to group jobs together from one or more pay plans. For instance, if you are market pricing a group of IT jobs, you could add them to an "IT 2008" project. This allows you to view all the relevant jobs together without the hassle of searching and selecting indivual jobs from a list of all jobs.

The next button, Surveys, give you access to the tools for managing your survey library. We have a new way of managing surveys in Version 3. More on that topic in a future blog post.


The next button takes you to the Standard and Custom Query reports.


The reports will have a similar functionality as the current version. We do have some nice enhancements planned though, such as being able to add formulas to Custom Queries so that all of your analysis can be accomplished within NEXTCOMP.NET, rather than having to use Excel for parts of the analysis.

The next button allows you to manage your compensation models and you can quickly see a list of recently model jobs.


The next button gives you access to all of your organization's data.

Grouping fields, such as Job Group or Department play a larger role in reporting and analysis in Version 3, so this data type has it's own link. Locations have an expanded role as well. Version 3 will be able to automatically geographically factor data based on location, using geographic factors that you supply.

And finally, all of the tools you'll need to import data are located on the right of the navigation bar.

Boston User Group Wrap-up

Thank you to the attendees of the 2008 Boston Area User's Group meeting. A special thank you to Dynamics Research Corporation for hosting the meeting and for providing lunch and an amazingly delicious platter of cupcakes for dessert. I limited myself to one cupcake, which wasn't easy.

I'm going to be sending each of the participants a copy of the presentation via Basecamp.

Also, as of today, NEXTCOMP.NET Gamma is going to be known as NEXTCOMP.NET Version 3.

Based on feedback during the meeting we've decided to go with the version number rather than the fun sounding but rather cryptic gamma designation.

There was a great exchange of ideas, tips, tricks, and other information during the meeting. We'll be incorporating that feedback into our programming on Version 3. Stay tuned!

Help Desk Launched

We've launched an online help desk system to support the launch of NEXTCOMP Gamma. The new system is completely web based and allows us to track tickets related to issues, questions, and requests related to Gamma (and also the current version of NextComp).

It's super easy to get started using the new help desk.

Visit this URL and enter your name, e-mail and password.

http://nextcompnet.zendesk.com/registration

Note: This is a separate sign-in from NEXTCOMP.

We are also building an online knowledge base as part of the help desk. To get started, I've added a message in the "Tips and Tricks" section of the Knowledge base related to updating the results table of the pay plan. This is an example of the type of information that will be available in the Help Desk.

We have some additional tips and tricks to add. We'll be adding information to the Help Desk on a regular basis, especially as we roll-out Gamma over the next few months.

So head on over to
http://nextcompnet.zendesk.com/registration sign into the Help Desk and keep track of updated tips and tricks or submit a question to our help desk!

New Public Website

You may have noticed that NEXTCOMP.NET received a make-over. We've redesigned our public site to fit the style and layout of the soon-to-be-released Gamma version.

The Sign In page still directs you to the current application. Once we go live with the new version, we'll have a method of directing you to Gamma.

In regards to upgrading; this will not be mandatory when the site goes live. We realize that many of you are either in the middle of, or starting your annual market pricing cycle. You may want to wait and upgrade until you've finished this year's end of year pricing projects.

We'll work with you to move you're account to the new version when it makes sense for your organization.

In the meantime, take a look around the new public site.

Upcoming Webinars

We are holding a series of webinars starting on August 28th to discuss the new Gamma version of NextComp and field questions for you regarding market pricing, compensation modeling, technology in HR, and any other related topics that come up during the meeting. You're welcome to join us. We have three scheduled so far.

Webinars are limited to 15 attendees so register early! We'll schedule more as needed, if these dates fill up quickly.

Webinar #1

August 28th at 1:00 PM Pacific Daylight Time (check for your local time)

Register for August 28th webinar

Webinar #2

August 29th at 9:00 PM Pacific Daylight Time (check for your local time)

Register for August 29th webinar

Webinar #3

September 18th at 1:00 PM Pacific Daylight Time (check for your local time)

Register for September 18th webinar

Photo Friday

So I'm making a commitment to update the blog on a more regular basis.
I think having some regular features, such as a "photo Friday" will help keep me on task.



Here's a view of Mt Si in North Bend, Washington (my home town). It was a super sunny nice day. I love big fluffy white clouds in the Summer. It reminds me of being a kid laying on the grass looking up at the sky imagining dragons, pigs, and all sorts of other creatures floating along above me.

On a NextComp note, Elliott and I have a version of NextComp Gamma up and running. Some months ago we posted that we were developing a new version of NextComp using the latest in Web 2.0 technology. We originally envisioned using Java and all sorts of open source software to create Gamma. Well, it turns out that we are really ingrained in Microsoft technology and making the switch to Java was just too much of a resource strain. So we are developing Gamma in .NET using the recently released version 3.0 with the AJAX extensions. If you don't know what AJAX is that's understandable. Basically AJAX makes websites work more like desktop applications.

We will have a demo of Gamma ready by August 17th to share with everyone. It's going to be a bit of a limited demo showing the Search Surveys page, but it will be exciting as there are some new features in Gamma that will make life easier for survey matching.

Until the next post, have a great weekend!

Matt