There was once a time when we pretty much just threw all this stuff at you, and said “go for it; make it work!” At that time, this section contained a long set of suggestionstips on swimming once you were thrust (ready or not) into deep water. Now (as mentioned elsewhere) we have step-by-step plan that can be summarized, here, more succinctly: Read through the remainder of this chapter (up to but not including page 53), then skip ahead to Chapter 13 (“A Beginner’s Guide to Easy, Step-by-Step Implementation,” page 231), then follow its specific prescriptions.

As an additional note, you may notice that for several of the systems in ServiceDesk, there will necessarily be a period of overlap, during which old processes (initiated under your previous system) persist in the pipeline, as it were. Don’t worry. While in the abstract this sounds like a major complication, in practice it’s seldom so bad. There will be minor complications that you simply must think through logically. Since you’ve been running a business already, we’re sure you’re up to it.

In any such case, of course, there will be a decision as to whether old, already-in-the-pipeline items should be allowed to persist within the old context (until such pipelines are finally emptied), or whether to retroactively import them into ServiceDesk. Typically, we think its probably easiest to let the old items (whether consisting of job records, accounts receivable records, or whatever) run their course within their old pipelines. But of course the choice is up to you.

Regardless, please know that while the transition into ServiceDesk may be somewhat challenging, as a practical matter (and for most of the functions, anyway) there’s very little work aside from mere learning. The biggest thing is to just “do it.” With very little upset to the flow, you should be quickly operating, and with far greater efficiency and ease than before.