Overview
This article introduces the Dashboard tab in Appraisal Scope and explains how AMC staff users use Dashboard subtabs (queues) to view and manage orders by status. It also outlines how permissions, rule profiles, and user-configured views affect which orders and information each user can see from the landing page.
Introduction to the Dashboard tab
When an AMC staff user logs in to Appraisal Scope, they access the platform beginning at the landing page. A prominent feature of the landing page is the main tab menu that runs across near the top, from left to right. Assuming a staff user has Dashboard tab permissions, the Dashboard tab is first on this menu, and when this user reaches the landing page, this tab will be selected by default.
The All Open subtab, under Dashboard, is the first in a series of subtabs that give users a list of order records that’s based on the order status or type. All Open is selected by default, which reveals an All Open list of order entries, giving AMC staff users a view from their landing page into all of the orders that are in an Open status and that they are configured to see. In general, orders in an Open status will be those not yet completed and that haven’t been cancelled.
Note: Keep in mind that the permissions given to a staff member will determine what orders a user sees from their landing page. Staff members working under a rule profile will see the open orders that fit the criteria established in that rule profile. And for admin users with the right permissions, choosing a staff member from the Staff drop-down list will provide a view into the open orders that the given staff member sees.
Dashboard subtab menu
The options in the Dashboard subtab menu can be thought of as filters that will restrict the number of records that are viewable to those that match the status reflected on the subtab. A staff user will click on a subtab from the menu, and depending on the permissions that are set up for the user, they will be able to view a list of orders that match the order status of the subtab. This list of orders is referred to as a queue. In general, as an order moves through an AMC’s Appraisal Scope workflow, it will change queues so that the order queue in which it’s found will always reflect the order’s status within the workflow.
The number that an AMC staff user sees just above the text description of each subtab reflects the number of orders accessible from that subtab. For general reference, the number of active orders that an AMC is managing at any given time will be reflected in the All Open tab, given that the admin user viewing the platform-version has adequate permissions to be able to view all of the orders accessible there.
Each order has its own profile, or record of important information to help staff members stay on top of management tasks. Order records can be accessed from any queue when a user clicks on the File# or Borrower Name fields specific to an order. This action will take the user to the Order Details page of that order record.
Staff users can also access a client company profile by clicking the Client or Client on Report fields specific to a loan entry. vendor user profiles can be seen when an Assigned To field entry is clicked.
Note: It’s important to note at this point that the views a staff user gets from the Dashboard page will be unique to that staff user. Due to the role of permissions and rule profiles, it’s likely that a staff user will only be looking at a subset of the total number of orders that an AMC is managing. Dashboard views are also configurable by individual users, and so a staff user will also be viewing information types and using filtering tools that they have the ability to change (see the section, Configuring available Dashboard Views, for more information).
All Open
For a given staff user, the All Open subtab list consists of all orders that they are set up to see and that are in an Open status, not yet completed, and not cancelled.
New
The New subtab list typically consists of orders that have just come in. These orders will be in one of three statuses that are viewable from the Status column of the list. When the status shows New, the order hasn’t been assigned to an appraiser. When the status shows Accepted with Condition, it means that it’s been assigned but the vendor user has accepted it with a condition that needs to be fulfilled. When the status shows Declined, the vendor user has not accepted the assignment, and the order will need to be reassigned.
Note: For New orders in an Accepted with Condition or Declined status, a staff user can click the Eye icon to see the message detailing the appraiser’s condition or reason for declining.
Accepted with Conditions
A vendor user has the ability to make their acceptance of an assignment contingent on certain conditions, such as fee or due date modifications. When this occurs, the status of the order will switch from New to Accepted with Conditions. Although the status changes in this case, the order record will remain in the New queue. Appraisal Scope will not move it to the Accepted queue until the AMC has accepted the stated conditions.
Staff users with access to the Dashboard tab can filter the All Open queue to isolate records in an Accepted with Conditions status by clicking the Process Status drop-down box, located above the queue, and selecting Accepted with Conditions. In order to accept the conditions that the appraiser has requested be met, however, a staff user will need to click the New subtab and access the order record in that queue.
Acting on an order in an Accepted with Conditions status
Staff users have the following options with regard to orders in the Accepted with Conditions status: 1.) accepting the appraiser’s conditions without conditions of their own; 2.) making their own acceptance contingent on the appraiser accepting counter-conditions; or 3.) declining the conditions and re-initiating the Order Assignment process.
To initiate action on an order in the Accepted with Conditions status, staff users can use the following instructions (also see Figure 7.1).
From the Dashboard page, click the New tab.
Note: Orders in the Accepted with Conditions status can also be acted on from the All Open and Updates queues; however, the Status column will need to be made active in the All Open queue before orders in the Accepted with Conditions status can be acted on there.
If the relevant order record isn’t immediately identifiable, click the Assigned Status drop-down box and select Accepted with Conditions. This will isolate the relevant entries.
In the Status field associated with the relevant order entry, click the Eye icon.
The Appraisal Accept with Condition dialog box will open, revealing the nature of the request that acceptance of the assignment is contingent on.
To accept the conditions without any further negotiation, a user will click Accept Conditions in the dialog box. If, on the other hand, an appraiser has requested a fee adjustment, but the AMC staff user wants to counter with a different amount, the staff user can enter this amount in the Appraiser Fee text box. A staff user can also add other conditions that an order assignment will be contingent on in the Additional Conditions text box. In either of these latter cases, the user will also go ahead and click Accept Conditions once they’ve made their changes.
Figure 7.1. Details of the New queue and Appraisal Accept with Condition dialog box, with the Eye icon and available action controls highlighted.
Once this action is taken, the order record will be returned to the appraiser with any counter-conditions placed on it, and it will also move into the Assigned queue. The appraiser will then have the option of accepting, declining, or countering with further conditions. If they accept, the order will move to the Accepted queue. If they choose one of their other options, the order will move back to the New queue and will show a status of Accepted with Conditions or Declined, depending on the choice made by the appraiser.
Choosing to reassign an order rather than accept appraiser conditions
If an AMC staff user wants to reject an appraiser’s conditions outright, they will click Re-assign in the Appraisal Accept with Condition dialog box. This action opens the Reassign Appraiser dialog box. This dialog box will be pre-populated with a standardized message and the relevant order details. A staff user can customize this message to make it more relevant to the circumstances by clicking in the Message text box. If the staff user intends to notify the appraiser about order reassignment, they will click Notify Appraiser, and the text of the message will be sent.
When a user initiates a definitive action from the Reassign Appraiser dialog box, whether clicking Notify Appraiser or Reassign without Notification, the Order Details page associated with the relevant order record will open, and the Order Assignment controls will be accessible there at the top of the page, allowing them to assign a new appraiser.
Assigned
The Assigned subtab shows a list of orders that have been assigned but haven’t yet been accepted.
Unaccepted
The Unaccepted subtab consists of a list of orders that have not been accepted after a preset amount of time has passed. This subtab gives a staff user a quick view into orders that may require their attention.
Accepted
The Accepted subtab list consists of orders that have been assigned to an appraiser and subsequently accepted.
staff users can enable their platform to send a reminder to an appraiser regarding the need to set an inspection date by activating the Inspection Reminder scheduler (click Settings > Reminders > Inspection Reminder, and click Activate). When this reminder is enabled, orders in the Accepted queue for which an inspection reminder has been sent to the appraiser will be highlighted yellow.
Scheduled
The Scheduled subtab list consists of orders for which the appraisal inspection has been scheduled. The Inspection Date column of the list reflects the date that the inspection is scheduled. The E.C.D (Estimated Completion Date) column will show the estimated date that a vendor user enters to communicate when they will have the completed appraisal report uploaded (in cases where a staff user hasn’t configured their Dashboard view to eliminate this information).
Due
The Due subtab is intended to show a list of orders that have a firm due date showing when the AMC needs to have the report to the client. This date can be based off of the Appraiser Due Date, the Client Due Date, or the Estimated Completion Date. Once an order passes its due date, the order will move to the Due queue.
Late
The Late subtab is intended to show a list of orders that have passed their due date. This date will be calculated based on the global level settings available by clicking Settings > Options > Schedule & Due Date Limits.
On Hold
The On Hold subtab consists of a list of orders in an On Hold status. Orders can be placed On Hold automatically when settings have been configured at the global or client company level to establish the On Hold status criteria. A common example for orders in this list would be those placed On Hold due to lack of payment.
Messages
The Messages subtab opens the Messages queue, which gives staff users a quick look into communications that have been sent or received for the orders listed there. A message that appears in the queue will remain in the queue until an action is taken on it.
Users can view the text of a message and the date and time it was submitted by clicking the Eye icon in the Status field associated with an order. Users can also see how long a message has been in the queue by looking at the Hours field, where a running timer tracks this information.
To delete a message from the queue, a staff user will click the Delete icon in the Action field of the order entry. To delete multiple messages simultaneously, a user will select the check boxes associated with all order entries that they want to delete and then click the Delete icon in the Action field of any of these entries. The Remove Message Alert dialog box will open, asking the user to choose whether to delete only the message entry that they’ve clicked in or to delete all messages that have been chosen. The user will click All Selected Messages.
To take other action on a message, the user will click the Checkmark icon. Clicking the Checkmark icon will open the Notification dialog box. The dialog box displays whether the message is from a client, appraiser, or staff; it displays the Message text box with the text of the message itself; and it offers options for users to act on the message.
Forwarding a message from the Messages queue
First, click the Checkmark icon in the Action field associated with the Message entry you want to act on.
When the Notification dialog box opens, select from the Notify choices, just above the Message text box, whether to forward the message to the client, the appraiser, to both client and appraiser, or to a member of staff.
If you choose Staff, click the To staff drop-down box and select the check box associated with the staff user(s) you want to forward the message to.
If you want to alter the message before you forward it, you can click into the Message text box and add or remove elements of the message there.
If you want to replace the message with predefined messages, click the Select Predefined Message(s) drop-down box and select the check boxes for the messages that you want to appear.
When you’re satisfied with your message, click Submit.
Logging a message from the Messages queue
First, click the Checkmark icon in the Action field associated with the Message entry you want to act on.
When the Notification dialog box opens, select Log from the Notify choices, just above the Message text box and then click Submit.
Messages logged in the system this way will be kept in the Email Log, accessible from the Email Office tab of an order record.
Note: After a message has been acted on, it will disappear from the Messages queue. Users can prevent this by selecting the Keep message in queue check box in the Notification dialog box before submitting their action.
Outcome
After reading this article, users will be able to explain what the Dashboard tab is used for and how to use the subtab menu to move between queues based on an order’s status. Users will also know how to open order, client, and vendor records from a queue and understand why their Dashboard view may differ based on permissions, rule profiles, and selected staff views.