Managing Tickler Rules

You can create a tickler rule for license and resource records. Tickler rules allow you to send email reminders for a group of records that share a common date. In addition to creating a tickler rule, you can also create a tickler for a specific record.

Use the ERM Tickler menu option to:

• Create a tickler rule.
• Create a tickler rule for annual email reminders.
• Create a tickler rule for email reminders based on two fixed-length fields.
• Edit an existing tickler rule.
• Delete a tickler rule.
• Copy an existing rule and edit it to create a new rule.
• Change the display order of the rules in the list.
• Print the list or a tickler rule.

Creating a Tickler Rule

To create a tickler rule in ERM for a group of records that share a common date:

1. Choose Admin | Parameters | ERM | ERM Tickler.
2. Choose Insert or Append.
3. Indicate that the tickler rule is Active by choosing Yes.
4. Enter a Name for the rule using alphanumeric characters. Typically, the Name is the Date field name and can include spaces.
5. Indicate the date field for which the tickler program should search in the resource or license record by choosing one of the following from the Date field drop-down list:
   • Resource record field:
     • Trial Begin Date
     • Trial End Date
     • Review Date
     • Registration Date
     • Activation Date
     • Followup Date
   • License record field:
     • Licensee Sign Date
     • Licensor Sign Date
     • Contract Start Date
     • Contract End Date
6. Enter the number of days before or after the Date that you want the email reminder sent in the Warn when within days field.
   • To be reminded before the date, enter a negative number equal to the number of days. For example, to be reminded three days before the date, enter "-3".
   • To be reminded on the date itself, enter the number 0 (zero).
   • To be reminded after the date, enter a positive number equal to the number of days. For example, to be reminded three days after the date, enter "3".
7. Specify whether or not matching record(s) affected by the tickler rule should be added to a Review File by choosing Yes or No. The review file name is "ERM Tickler for <tickler rule name>."
8. Enter the Email Address to which the email reminder should be sent. You can enter multiple email addresses by separating the addresses with a comma and a space.
9. Enter an Email Subject for your reminder.
10. Specify the text that appears at the beginning of the email body by entering an Email Header.
11. Specify the text that appears at the end of the email body by entering an Email Footer. If you choose to use a review file, it might be helpful to indicate that here, for example, "Records have been appended to the review file 'ERM Tickler for <tickler rule name>'." When you finish defining the tickler rule, choose OK.

Creating a Tickler Rule for Annual Email Reminders

You can set up an email reminder that repeats annually. The system disregards the year in the Date field when Annual recurrence is set to "Yes". This causes the email reminder to be sent in any year in which the system can match the month and day in the tickler rule's Date field to a value in the indicated fixed-length field of a record.

To create a tickler rule in ERM for an annual email reminder:

1. Choose Admin | Parameters | ERM | ERM Tickler.
2. Choose Insert or Append and fill out the fields as in Creating a Tickler Rule.
3. Indicate that the email reminder recurs annually by choosing Yes for Annual recurrence.
4. Choose OK.

Creating a Tickler Rule for Email Reminders Based on Two Fixed-Length Fields

You can set up an email reminder that requires the system to match data from the specified Date field of the resource or license record plus data from another fixed-length field. For example, you can require the system to generate an email reminder only when it matches values in both the specified Date field and the Status field to a tickler rule.

When Use other field and value is set to "Yes", the system sends an email reminder only if there are values in the record fields that match the Date field and the Other field specified in the tickler rule.

To create a tickler rule in ERM for an email reminder that is based on two fixed-length fields:

1. Choose Admin | Parameters | ERM | ERM Tickler.
2. Choose Insert or Append and fill out the fields as in Creating a Tickler Rule.
3. Indicate that the email reminder depends on two fixed-length fields by choosing Yes for Use other field and value.
4. Choose a fixed-length field from the Other field drop-down menu.
5. Enter the value to be matched in the Other field value text box.
6. Choose OK.

Editing a Tickler Rule

To edit an existing tickler rule in ERM:

1. Choose Admin | Parameters | ERM | ERM Tickler.
2. Select the rule and choose Edit.
3. Indicate whether or not the tickler rule is Active by choosing Yes or No.
4. Enter a Name for the rule using alphanumeric characters. Typically, the Name is the Date field name and can include spaces, if desired.
5. Indicate the date field for which the tickler program should search in the resource or license record by choosing one of the following from the Date field drop-down list:
   • Resource record field:
     • Trial Begin Date
     • Trial End Date
     • Review Date
     • Registration Date
     • Activation Date
     • Followup Date
   • License record field:
     • Licensee Sign Date
     • Licensor Sign Date
     • Contract Start Date
     • Contract End Date
6. Enter the number of days before or after the Date you want the email reminder sent in the Warn when within days field.
   • To be reminded before the date, enter a negative number equal to the number of days. For example, to be reminded three days before the date, enter "-3".
   • To be reminded on the date itself, enter the number 0 (zero).
   • To be reminded after the date, enter a positive number equal to the number of days. For example, to be reminded three days after the date, enter "3".
7. Specify whether or not matching record(s) affected by the tickler rule should be added to a Review File by choosing Yes or No. The review file name is "ERM Tickler for <tickler rule name>."
8. Enter the Email Address to which the email reminder should be sent. You can enter multiple email addresses by separating the addresses with a comma.
9. Enter an Email Subject for your reminder.
10. Specify the text that appears at the beginning of the email body by entering an Email Header.
11. Specify the text that appears at the end of the email body by entering an Email Footer. If you choose to use a review file, it might be helpful to indicate that here, for example, "Records have been appended to the review file 'ERM Tickler for <tickler rule name>'." When you finish editing the tickler rule, choose OK.

Managing the List of Tickler Rules

To manage the list of tickler rules in ERM:

1. Choose Admin | Parameters | ERM | ERM Tickler.
2. To delete a rule, select the rule in the list and choose Delete.
3. To copy a rule and create a new rule, select the rule in the list and choose Copy. To edit the copied rule, see Editing a Tickler Rule.
4. To change the order in which the rules appear in the list, select the rule you want to move and choose Move. Enter the row number to which the rule should move, and then choose OK.
5. To print the list of tickler rules, choose Print.

To print a rule, select the rule, choose Edit, and then choose Print.

6. To save changes you made to the list of tickler rules, choose Save.