Microsoft Dynamics 365 Field Service
One of the key areas of learning curves for customers ramping up on the complex offerings of Microsoft Dynamics 365 Field Service is the vocabulary. After a bit it starts to sink in and make sense, but while you are in the learning curve the following might help. The first set are the most common items of confusion.
Bookable Resource = A person, technician, equipment, and even a room that can be scheduled. aka a Schedulable Resource.
Bookable Resource Booking = Scheduled Job
Incident Type = A set of products, services, service tasks and other details that would make up a template for a work order. aka Work Order Template.
Service Tasks = a task associated with a work order, aka a task that would most likely be completed as part of the work order.
- Work Order – The main bucket used to plan, track, and complete a set of work. Consider this the top of the tree. Could also be considered the main work that needs to be done.
- Work Order Type – Categorizes the type of service being performed, such as installation, repair, or preventive maintenance.
- Incident Type – A reusable template that defines the typical tasks, products, services, and inspections needed for a specific service scenario.
- Service Task – A specific activity or step a technician needs to complete on a work order.
- Inspection – A structured digital checklist used to capture technician observations, measurements, answers, and results. This is also called a Checklist and each item from the checklist can become a service task.
- Customer Asset – A piece of equipment or product installed at a customer location that can be serviced and tracked. Also consider that this is a product owned by the customer that you might be servicing.
- Functional Location – Represents the physical location or hierarchy where customer assets are installed, and serviced, such as a Site → Building → Floor → Room.
- Bookable Resource – A person, crew, facility, or equipment item that can be scheduled to perform work.
- Resource Requirement – Defines the skills, location, duration, and other criteria needed to complete a work order. Also considered the technician’s skills and certificates that you are tracking for each person.
- Booking – The scheduled assignment of a technician or other resource to a work order. The scheduled item, the job + Calendar, the appointment.
- Schedule Board – The visual scheduling workspace used by dispatchers to assign and manage field resources. Bookings show on the scheduled board.
- Resource Territory – Associates technicians or other resources with geographic service areas. The service territory that might be different from the sales territory. This can also be an area of complexity if your service technicians cross territories.
- Characteristic – A skill, certification, or capability associated with a resource, such as HVAC certification.
- Product – A physical item, replacement part, or material that can be used during service. Product, Part, Service – basically an item you are selling.
- Warehouse – A location where inventory and parts and products are stored.
- Inventory – The quantity and availability of products or parts at warehouses or on technician vehicles.
- Purchase Order – A record used to request products or parts from a vendor or the customer’s purchase order.
- Return Merchandise Authorization (RMA) – Tracks products or parts being returned by a customer or technician to the manufacturer.
- Agreement – Defines recurring service commitments and can automatically generate work orders on a schedule.
- Agreement Booking Setup – Defines when recurring work orders and bookings should be generated from an agreement.
- Service Level Agreement (SLA) – Defines service commitments, such as response or resolution time targets.
- Entitlement – Defines the level or amount of support a customer is eligible to receive.
- Warranty – Represents coverage that can help determine whether service, labor, or parts are covered.
- Time Entry – Records technician labor time associated with service work.
- Work Order Product – A part or material planned for or consumed on a specific work order.
- Work Order Service – A billable or non-billable service associated with a work order.
- Work Order Service Task – The individual technician task generated for a particular work order also called Service Task.
- Work Order Incident – The specific service issue or incident associated with a work order.
- Work Order Lifecycle – The progression of a job through statuses such as Open → Scheduled → Traveling → In Progress → Completed → Posted.
- Field Service Mobile App – The mobile experience technicians use to view assignments, update work, record parts/time, complete inspections, and capture service information in the field.





