PROPOSAL FOR SERVICES

eJMB logo, a strata management online help desk system.

 eJMB, A CUSTOMISED ONLINE HELP DESK

FOR STRATA MANAGEMENT

For perusal of
Mr. Vela The Board and Chairman,
Mr. Zahir JMB One Damansara Condominium,
Jalan PJU10/3C,
PA International Property Management (KL) Sdn. Bhd.. Damansara Damai,

47830 Petaling Jaya, Selangor.

Overview

Upon observation of the current workflow of the previous managements, it has been noted with great dismay that the mis-management could be reduced greatly, with a centralised ‘virtual help desk’ which employs an open two way communication between the users (residents) and staff (management). This allows scrutiny, transparency, and accountibility.

I dare say this because I’ve worked with the previous management bodies before. Practically everything is manual, and the attitude of the working staff is lackadaisal, at best. Efficiency could be increased greatly by collating residents’ inquiries from multiple sources; e-mails, phone calls and the website into an integrated and simple-easy-to-use web interface if we had a strata management support portal in place, such as eJMB.

On the back end, the staff is able to manage, organise and archive all support requests and responses in one place. The residents will also be able to to track progress of their tickets, ensuring transparency and accountability of their complaints.

eJMB can be further enhanced with Telegram, residents may contact the management through a Telegram bot (where staff address the residents’ issues without the need to reveal their personal number), and a Telegram group is created internally for the communication of staff members, which will also send notifications whenever there is a new ticket.

eJMB is not meant to totally replace the system in place, but rather enhance the workflow and the quality of the services rendered, by complementing the current system in place, and perhaps most importantly, place the interests of the residents to the fore. Other channels are still in place, be it phone calls or walk-ins to the office. Users of eJMB will soon realise, eJMB is just better at addressing their issues in a much orderly and organised manner. Complaints made verbally could be forgotten, written information could be illegible, or wrongly jotted down. Paperwork could be lost. With eJMB, these will cut down to a minimum, and most times, the system handles it in the background.

Performance of the management is available for scrutiny by the board for review and improvement, if and when needed. The dashboard details the issues reported, by volume, and can be further broken down by month, year, week, or even by a resident.

Response times can be analysed, and causes can be pinned down and identified to further lower response times. Two way communication between the management and residents can also be further enchanced in the system.

How eJMB Works

  1. Users and staff (called agents) create tickets via website, email, or phone calls, or walk-ins.
  2. The created tickets are then assigned to the relevant department and/or agents.
  3. The agents would then help the users resolve their issues.
  4. The ticket would be closed and archived when an issue is resolved.

 

Consider the following example;

A resident reports an issue, such as a broken light fixture. The resident would log into into eJMB and creates a ticket, which will be attended to by a support team.  The ticket would later be assigned accordingly.

In this case, a broken light will be routed to the Maintenance team. An agent from the Maintenance team would replace the light, and log it into the system. For other matters, say financial, the finance department will be tasked to handle it.

A resident is able to upload images and attach them to their ticket. In reporting a breakdown, for example, a picture would be better at explaining the situation. Residents could also upload proof of payment, or other supporting documents if and when needed, and a visitor will be able to register and upload his ID to the system when checking in.

Any and all progress will be recorded in the system, and internally, the relevant agents and departments will handle their designated tasks to find a resolution for the residents. An elegant solution, streamlining the experience for the residents at the tips of their fingertips. The flow chart below (Figure 1) might better visualise the process of a resident’s interaction with the system.

Figure 1. Customer Ticket Submission Flow Chart

Objectives

  1. Streamlining operations, by introducing a focal point for all interactions with the residents and staff.
  2. Reduce paperwork.
  3. Granular assessment of the staff/departments in the work flow.
  4. Transparency of work/issues’ progress for residents and staff.
  5. Flexibility, and reducing face to face interactions (in light of Covid), and also during after hours and holidays.
  6. Round the clock issues logging.

The Solution

A virtual help desk, eJMB. It is a ticket based, an online help desk customised for strata management. It’s available round the clock, everyday, allowing the bare and vital operations to continue functioning. A resident is able to lodge reports, or forward submissions of applications, and even make payments, or register house guests after hours. Visitors’ registration, especially food deliveries can also be logged into the system.

To experience eJMB first hand, please visit https://demo.adeeology.my/ejmb, and click on ‘Sign In’. The login details is already filled in for demonstration purpose.

Residents’ Portal (Front End)

Figure 2. Customer Login Screen

Figure 3. Customer Login Screen
 Note:

eJMB support multiple languages. Choose a language at the top left.

 

Creating a Ticket

Figure 4a. Opening a New Ticket
 Click ‘Open a new ticket. Choose your topic, and fill in the details. That’s all to it!

 

 

Figure 4b. Opening a New Ticket, Details
 You can even upload a file, or better yet, take a picture with your phone, and upload it to better describe the issue you’re facing. They don’t say a picture is worth a thousand words for nothing!

Note:

While using your mobile phone, clicking on ‘choose them’ will allow you to select a picture on your camera, or capture a new image. On a computer, just drag and drop a file, or ‘choose them’ to browse for the files you want to upload.

 

 

The front end of the system is designed to be as simple as possible for the residents, and accessible on a computer, a smartphone or a tablet, with internet access. eJMB is tailored to be a closed system for the residents. A resident only need a valid e-mail account. The following flow chart explains how the system work.

Figure 5. eJMB Flow Chart

Screen Grabs of eJMB (Front End)

Figure 6. Featured Frequently Asked Questions for common issues

Figure 7. Tickets view of a resident, showing open and closed tickets

Figure 8. For the visitors.
 Visitors’ details can be recorded and accorded the necessary security measures. Residents may also register their house guests or contractors in advance, allowing their guest to simply check in, and park their vehicles if needed.

Staff’s Portal (Back End)

For the back end (staff or agents), the interface is different. For the purpose of this proposal, the link to visit is https://demo.adeeology.my/ejmb/scp.

Figure 9. Backend Login Screen

Here are some screenshots from the agent’s view. You may login to have a feel of the system, or contact me at hello@adeeology.my or call 010-4616553 for a more detailed explanation.

As I am also a resident of One Damansara Condominium, I could easily arrange an after hour demonstration if it’s more convenient.

Screen Grabs of eJMB (Back End)

Figure 10. Dashboard Summary

Figure 11. Tickets’ Listing

Figure 12a. Telegram Bot

Figure 12b. Telegram Group Notifications of New Tickets

 

Figure 13. A Ticket Example – Visitor Registration

Figure 14. A Ticket Example – Resident’s Complaint Attended to

Possible usage scenarios

eJMB is not just about logging complaints. It can be customised to include, or complement (subject to other software used) these functions as well. The list is just some of the few (and not limited to) additional features that can be added to the system.

  1. Collection of payments, and invoicing, for maintenance fees, or work deposit.
  2. Application for work (e.g. renovation) orders. (Just like the recently used QR Codes for Operation Forms.)
  3. Visitors’ login and tracking (e.g. apply and issue pass in advance).
  4. Parking allocation and tracking for visitors.
  5. Security complaint, round the clock.
  6. Chat boxes are possible, using almost any channels (WhatsApp, Telegram, Facebook Messenger for example) with set time periods (office hours).
  7. ‘Suggestion box’ from the users, to better improve the system.
  8. Enable Work From Home (WFH) for help desk agents, if needed.

The Costing

Pricing is highly dependent on the needs/requirement. Main factor is the hosting. Outsourcing the hosting to me will greatly reduce the initial cost, with the bulk of the cost spread out over the months, as a subscription model, which comes with technical and customer support.

If the management decide to host eJMB on its own webhost, training and documentation will be provided, but support will be on a per incident basis.

Or the way I see it, the management could employ me in a ‘consultancy role’ for a token sum. Engage me to handle the online presence (the website, emails, and take care of the backups, which I doubt is even running now), and also manage the eJMB system and provide training sessions/materials to both the staff and residents of One Damansara Condominium.

I believe there’s much to discuss and clarified in a face to face session. If you like to explore, you can log into a live demo of eJMB at https://demo.adeeology.my/ejmb. I am reachable at 010-4616553, or via email at hello@adeeology.my. and available for a free consult. l live on the third floor of Block A and is my time is quite flexible, even after office hours.

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