Release Notes - SmartOffice 2016 Release 1

About This Document

For general information about SmartOffice release notes, visit the Release Notes home page.

Revision History

These release notes may be revised after their initial publication. This section lists the dates of any revisions as well as a list of changes.

February 17, 2016

• Initial publication.

Release Overview

Note: This release of SmartOffice was made available to a limited number of SmartOffice Online customers. Most SmartOffice Online customers were upgraded directly to SmartOffice 2016 Release 2.

The main improvements in this version of SmartOffice are the completely updated look of the user interface and several important usability enhancements. However, users should note several other important changes:

• New product name: The full-featured, desktop/laptop-optimized interface for accessing SmartOffice is now called SmartOffice Pro. This change helps to distinguish it from the lighter, mobile-optimized SmartOffice Anywhere interface, which is aimed at beginners and users who do not need the full SmartOffice feature set.

• New release naming: The naming of SmartOffice releases now contains the year of the release and the release number for that year (e.g., SmartOffice 2016 Release 1 is the first SmartOffice release of 2016).

• Outlook sync changes: This version of SmartOffice drops support for SmartOffice Sync for Outlook, the Outlook add-in that enabled users to manually sync calendar and contact records between Outlook and SmartOffice (this includes the QuickSync feature). Users who need Outlook contact and calendar sync are encouraged to use one of SmartOffice's automatic Microsoft Exchange sync solutions:

• SmartOffice Online customers can get Exchange sync through Ebix's partnership with Financial Computer. For more information, call Financial Computer at (800) 777-9188.

• SmartOffice enterprise customers can contact their Ebix account manager for more information about implementing Exchange sync.

Finally, this release packages updates that have been applied to SmartOffice servers since SmartOffice v7.6.3 (Rebuild 13). Additional updates that have not previously been applied to SmartOffice servers are also included.

Enhancement Highlights

This section provides quick links to the featured enhancements in this release.

Core System

• Updated look and streamlined navigation

• Revamped file upload with drag-and-drop support

System Requirements

The system requirements for SmartOffice have changed with this release. The most significant changes are:

• Support for Internet Explorer is now limited to version 10 and later.

• Users no longer have to enable Compatibility View in Internet Explorer.

For detailed system requirements, see System Requirements.

Note Regarding Text Changes in SmartOffice

This release may contain minor changes to text in dialog boxes and other areas of the SmartOffice user interface. Changes of this type are typically made to correct spelling, grammar, punctuation and other language-related issues. Such changes normally are not listed in this document unless they affect the way the application works.

SmartOffice Pro Changes

Core System

Featured Enhancements

Updated Look and Streamlined Navigation

The look of SmartOffice Pro has been updated throughout with a more modern color scheme and icons. In addition, pop-up windows have been largely eliminated, and several adjustments to navigation have been made to help users access features more quickly.

The key changes are summarized below. For a more general overview of the SmartOffice Pro user interface, see Navigation.

Feature

What's New

Quick Action Corner/Alert Center

The appearance of the Quick Action Corner in the upper-left corner was updated with new icons and is now more compact in size.

at the top of any page. For more information, see Quick Action Corner and Alert Center.

Search Box

The Search box at the top of all pages functions much like it did in previous SmartOffice versions, except that the Detailed Search link has been renamed Advanced and is now located to the right of the Search box. In addition, the search drop-down list is organized into submenus.

For more information, see Search Box.

Side Menu

The Side Menu can now be collapsed to display only icons. This enhancement allows users to expand the main content area for viewing records, lists, reports and other content. For more information, see Side Menu.

New Menu

at the top of any page. For more information, see New Menu.

Options Menu

that frees space in section title bars for additional custom buttons.

Global Hyperlinks

The Global Hyperlinks in the upper-right corner (Home, Settings, Sign Out and Help/Training) have been replaced with a comprehensive profile menu, which you can access by clicking your name.

, accessing user and office settings and navigating to your home page and dashboards . For more information, see Navigation - Profile Menu.

Buttons

Buttons throughout SmartOffice Pro have been updated as part of the visual redesign. Here are a few examples of the new buttons for commonly used commands:

• Save

• Delete

• New Record

• Previous

• Next

• View SmartPad Notes

• New SmartPad Note

• Run Reports (PDF)

• Run Dynamic Reports

To quickly determine the function of any unfamiliar button, point to it to reveal its ToolTip.

Revamped File Upload with Drag-and-Drop Support

in the Document List (or click the Options button and select New 'Documents' record). This opens the new File Uploader dialog box.

To select files to be uploaded, click the Select files button to browse for them or drag and drop them onto the uploader. Once all files are listed, click the Upload button.

Other Enhancements

• Tier licensing name changes: The names of the user license tiers have been updated to better describe the users they serve. The changes, from the lowest tier to the highest, are as follows (PMG-589737):

• Tier One is now Standard

• Tier Two is now Performance

• Tier Three is now Brokerage Management

• Tier Four is now Brokerage Management + Commissions

Resolved Issues

PDF Reports

• Customers with System office access were finding that lower offices did not have access to certain System-office PDF reports for use in bunch reports, even when those reports had the Available in all offices permission enabled. This issue was resolved. (PMG-592491)

Advisors/Agencies

Resolved Issues

• In several areas of the system, when users clicked the hyperlinked name of an advisor to view the advisor's record, the record contained e-mail addresses that did not belong to the advisor. This issue was resolved. (PMG-572251)

• A record visibility issue affecting SmartView for Advisors was resolved. Advisors who have SmartView Case Status Format accounts were unable to view presale activities in which the Visible to Advisors option was enabled. (PMG-599138)

• With Enterprise View turned on, users who tried to update a CE Credits record for a child-office advisor were finding that their changes were not being saved. This issue was resolved. (PMG-615632)

Insurance Carriers and Products

Resolved Issues

• Posting a document on the Letters/Documents content link of a product record was causing the New and Delete buttons to disappear from the Document List. This issue was resolved. (PMG-613811)

SmartPolicies

Enhancements

• New plan types: Two annuity plan types (Indexed and FPDA) and three life plan types (Permanent, Life Settlement and COL) were added to the system. (PMG-596327)

Resolved Issues

• On the Policy Owner Service Requirements list of a policy, users who selected the Change Requirement Manager command could not select a manager who did not have the SmartCaseManager user right. This restriction was removed. (PMG-566238)

• A policy import issue that was causing the Comm Modal values of updated policies to change to 0.00 was resolved. The issue occurred in the following situations:

• The Update Existing Policies Based on Policy # Only option was selected during import and an existing policy's modal premium amount was updated.

• The import process updated a policy's modal flat extra value but not its modal premium. (PMG-575954)

• An error that was occurring when users tried to merge policy records was resolved. (PMG-595478)

SmartCaseManager

Resolved Issues

• On the HO Pending Case List, the value in the Ignore Case column was not accurately indicating whether the case was actually marked Ignored. This issue was resolved. (PMG-531423)

• Changing the status of a pending case to Approved was producing an error when no Await Approval workflow was configured in Policy/Case Setup. This issue was resolved. (PMG-590042)

• In the policy record linked to an informal application, users who selected a carrier and plan name were unable to save their changes. A message was prompting users to enter information in all required fields. This issue was resolved. (PMG-590064)

• An issue with Owner contacts in the Policy Relationship List of a pending case record was resolved. If an owner was not a contact in the SmartOffice database, case status reports sent to the advisor were listing the policy owner as "null." This issue was resolved. (PMG-593784)

SmartBenefits

Resolved Issues

• The Copy Group Policy command was not copying data from the policy's Custom content link to the new policy. This issue was resolved. (PMG-573971)

SmartCommissions

Resolved Issues

General

• Users who did not have the Administrative Database Maintenance user right could not edit the Paid Commission field in Charge Back records. These users can now edit the field. (PMG-576354)

• In enterprise hierarchies, commission check amounts were displaying incorrectly for advisors in different offices who had the same contact/advisor ID. This issue was resolved. (PMG-595400)

• When negative premium and negative gross/net commission values were entered for an Excess-type premium, the commission for the excess was not being calculated correctly. The calculation was corrected. (PMG-600197)

• When the target period was greater than 1, excess commissions were not being calculated with Excess Banding-type commission rates. This issue was resolved. (PMG-606661)

• An issue that occurred when users created cumulative commission rates for advisor or supervisor contracts was resolved. When creating a rate band and entering a rate definition in the Basic Schedule Information dialog box, users were finding that the Premium option was selected by default for all drop-down lists in the Commission Rate Details section. These drop-down lists were corrected so that they are blank by default. (PMG-613773)

Carrier Interface

• Some commission transactions in NAILBA format were not being imported into SmartOffice through the Carrier Interface. A policy number missing from a transaction was preventing the preceding transaction from being imported. This issue was resolved. (PMG-590901)

Carrier Posting

• While viewing the details of an expected commission transaction in a carrier posting record, users who entered an amount in the Paid Commission field were finding that the value in the Net Expected Amount field was changing by a small amount (often by one cent) . This issue was resolved. (PMG-584340)

Speed Receipts

• While viewing a speed receipt record with Enterprise View turned on, users who selected the Create Payments by Interest % of Policy command in the Commission Data list were finding that payments were not being calculated for child-office policies. This issue was resolved. (PMG-610618)

SmartWholesaler

Resolved Issues

• An issue with the Producer Owner Transfer command was resolved. After running the command, users who viewed the rep territory notes were finding that the Open Link icon was either missing or was producing an error when clicked. This issue was resolved. (PMG-615958)

SmartInvestments

Enhancements

Investment Positions

• New columns for position lists and reports: Columns from the following security-related tables are now available for inclusion in all investment position lists and Position-category Dynamic Reports (PMG-573455):

• Security - Bond

• Security - Cash

• Security - Miscellaneous

• Security - Mutual Fund

• Security - Stock

• Security - UIT

• Security - VA

• New cash value column: A Total Account Cash Value column was added to the Investment Accounts table. The new column displays the sum of the dollar values of all Cash and Equivalent positions in an account. The column is available for use in investment account and position lists as well as Dynamic Reports that include the Investment Accounts table. (PMG-590135)

Resolved Issues

General

• A "failed to load object" error that users were encountering when trying to save changes in User Preferences - Policies/Investments was resolved. (PMG-587794)

Investment Accounts

• The system was not accepting a manually entered Closed Date when an investment account's Open Date was blank. This issue was resolved so that the system always accepts a Closed Date unless it is earlier than the account's Open date. (PMG-577952)

• After creating an account group from the Account Groups List, users who clicked the Group Performance content link were encountering a message stating that no accounts were linked to the group, even when the group contained linked accounts. This issue was resolved. (PMG-589050)

• During the account closure process, an issue was preventing values on the Account Detail content link from being updated to zero. This issue was resolved. (PMG-605214)

• Several issues affecting closed investment accounts were resolved. With specific account roll-up options selected, linked positions were displaying incorrect statuses and were missing liquidation dates. In addition, the current values of positions were displaying incorrectly in some cases.  (PMG-613983)

Investment Positions

• In some cases, after all of a position's transactions were marked as Canceled/Reversed, the system was not updating the Shares field on the position Detail content link to reflect those changes. This issue was resolved. (PMG-581300)

• After using the Merge Non-Duplicate Positions command on a particular variable-annuity subaccount position, users were finding that all other positions for that subaccount were no longer visible. This issue was resolved. (PMG-588220)

• Two issues with the Merge Duplicate Positions command were resolved (PMG-600681):

• After variable-annuity positions were merged, there was a discrepancy between the number of transactions displayed on the Position Transactions content link of the merged position and the Account Transactions content link of the account.

• Cumulative share, cumulative tax cost and cumulative purchase cost values were not being updated in merged positions after validation.

• The Position Status and Liquidated Date columns on investment position lists were not being updated when a miscellaneous transaction to liquidate a position was created during the reconciliation process. This issue was resolved. (PMG-604802)

Investment Securities

• Using the Relink Subaccounts command on a variable-annuity security subaccount was not updating the Investment Name field/column in the Investment Position and Holding tables. This issue was resolved. (PMG-602314)

Investment Validation

• Running the following commands was not marking the affected investment account and position records as eligible for validation: Reassign Primary Contact, Relink Position to Another Account, Merge Non-Duplicate Positions, Stock Split, Relink Subaccounts, Link Account to Contact, Link Position to Account. This issue was resolved. (PMG-591445)

SmartOffice Pro Known Issues

This section lists significant issues that were identified after this SmartOffice Pro release was deployed to customers.

Last Update: March 10, 2016

• Opportunity stage mass modification: Users cannot mass modify opportunity stage data. Resolved 3/10/2016

• Opportunity list filters: The Process and Status drop-down list filters at the top of the Global Opportunity List are not working. Resolved 3/10/2016

• Browser cache: Users were experiencing a variety of issues due to objects in the browser cache not being automatically refreshed. Issues included missing icons, unresponsive fields and buttons and/or layout anomalies. Resolved 3/2/2016

• Correspondence status: The status window that displays while correspondence is being generated was appearing behind the SmartOffice browser window, giving the impression that nothing was happening. Resolved 3/2/2016

• PDF report progress bar: The progress bar that appears when Account Master-category PDF reports are being generated was appearing behind the SmartOffice browser window, giving the impression that nothing was happening. Resolved 3/2/2016

• Bunch reports (PDF): Users were encountering a "Your action cannot be completed" error when trying to generate bunch reports. Resolved 3/2/2016

• Document categories: On the Letters/Documents content link of a contact or other record, the chevron (>>) was not displaying when the number of document category tabs exceeded the width of the screen. Resolved 2/22/2016

SmartOffice Anywhere Changes

Note: SmartOffice Anywhere changes are also summarized on the Release History page in SmartOffice Anywhere Help.

Enhancements

• Ability to mask sensitive data at server level:  Enterprise SmartOffice administrators now have a server-level configuration option that they can enable to mask the contents of certain sensitive fields for all SmartOffice Anywhere users. In config.xml, the following element was added to the element:

true

Setting the contents of this element to true masks home address, e-mail address, Social Security number, vehicle license plate number, driver license number, photo, date of birth, birthplace and telephone number information for all contacts. (PMG-552731)

• Deployment-level control over SmartOffice Anywhere access: Enterprise SmartOffice administrators can now control access to SmartOffice Anywhere for all users at the server level. The following line in the licenses.xml file controls this access:

To disable access to SmartOffice Anywhere for all users, remove that line from licenses.xml. (PMG-558049)

• Ability to link referral contacts: The Referred By field was added to contact and business records, enabling SmartOffice Anywhere users to link contacts together to track referrals. To edit the new field, open a contact or business, click or tap the menu button in the Personal Information section, and then select Edit. (PMG-581376)

• Policy creation from contact and advisor detail: On the contact and advisor detail screens in SmartOffice Anywhere, a New button was added to the Policy section to allow users to create policy records. (PMG-587448)

Resolved Issues

• SmartOffice Anywhere sessions were not timing out according to the Session Timeout setting configured on the Security Policies content link in SmartOffice Pro's Office Settings. This issue was resolved. (PMG-558052)

• On the policy detail screen in SmartOffice Anywhere, the issued class was not appearing for the primary insured in the Contacts section. This issue was resolved. (PMG-569464)

• When users added referrals during the activity outcome workflow in SmartOffice Anywhere, the appropriate note was not being recorded in the contact's SmartPad. This issue was resolved. (PMG-572636)

• Enterprise SmartOffice administrators were finding that the Use PIN check box was appearing on users' sign-in screens even when the server config.xml file did not contain the element. This issue was resolved. (PMG-577835)

• In the Policies section of Settings, submitting a request for a full data refresh from an agency while a full refresh was already in progress was causing issues. Now, when a full refresh is already in progress, the user sees a message to that effect in SmartOffice Anywhere, and the new request is not submitted. (PMG-583301)

• When the Disable default outcome tracking for new activities user preference was selected in SmartOffice Pro, new activities  in SmartOffice Anywhere were still being tracked by default. This issue was resolved. (PMG-583574)

• An issue that caused the search button to stop working in the SmartOffice Anywhere app was resolved. (PMG-586471)

• Two issues with the Alert Center in SmartOffice Anywhere were resolved (PMG-586472):

• The alerts were not arranged in descending order by time.

• The alert list was not loading when the Alert Center button was clicked a second time.

• Several issues with creating and displaying policies in SmartOffice Anywhere were resolved (PMG-587446):

• In the Holding Type drop-down list, the Homeowner, Auto, and Umbrella options were missing.

• In the Holding Type drop-down list, all holding types were available even when all holding types were unchecked in SmartOffice Pro (User Preferences - Policies/Investments).

• In the Case Manager field, users without the SmartCaseManager license were available for selection.

• In the Case Manager field, SmartView for Advisors users were available for selection.

• Users without the SmartCaseManager license were unable to see policy records.

• When a policy date was specified, the policy was not being created.

• Users without the SmartCaseManager license were still seeing the Case Manager field in new policies.

• The follow-up date on requirements was missing.

• Policy owner service (POS) requirements were not displaying the proper status date.

• In the SmartOffice Anywhere app for iOS, users who entered an office name on the setup screen were being asked to enter it again on the sign-in screen. This issue was resolved. (PMG-587476)

• While importing contacts in SmartOffice Anywhere, users were able to click the Next and Run Import buttons multiple times. This issue was resolved. (PMG-587763)

• In Settings, the E-mail Posting and Exchange Sync options were still present even though those settings no longer configurable through SmartOffice Anywhere. Those options were removed. (PMG-587781)

• Issues with editing advisor contact information were resolved. In addition to being unable to delete phone numbers, addresses and e-mail addresses, users could not select the Do Not Call option for a phone number. (PMG-587784)

• While creating an advisor or agency record in SmartOffice Anywhere, users were finding that the Sub-Type drop-down list was not working. This issue was resolved. (PMG-588111)

• The following fields were missing from agency records in SmartOffice Anywhere: Marketing Manager, Office Code, Region Code, Code and Status. These fields were restored. (PMG-588112)

• When users completed the first-time setup wizard in SmartOffice Anywhere, the system was creating an e-mail posting setup for the user, even though e-mail posting configuration was removed from SmartOffice Anywhere. This issue was resolved. (PMG-588793)

• An issue with the Permission to Keep in Touch activity outcome in SmartOffice Anywhere was resolved. When users selected the Review Date or Birthday option to schedule an activity, the application was not displaying an alert about contacts containing no review date or birthday. (PMG-589144)

• On small-screen devices, some of the options related to the Permission to Keep in Touch activity outcome in SmartOffice Anywhere were not wrapping properly. This issue was resolved. (PMG-590056)

• When a SmartOffice Anywhere user chose to rescheduled a calendar activity as a task during the activity outcome workflow, the new activity was still being created as a calendar activity. The application now creates a task in this scenario. (PMG-590082)

• A keyboard navigation issue affecting the SmartOffice Anywhere iOS app was resolved. While creating an activity, a user who placed focus on the Activity Location field and then tapped the keyboard Next button was seeing no result. The user had to tap View More to see that the focus had moved to the hidden Participants field. This issue was resolved so that all hidden fields are displayed automatically in this scenario. (PMG-590107)

• An issue that occurred when users marked Call-type tasks as Done in SmartOffice Anywhere was resolved. Selecting the No Contact Made activity outcome option and then selecting Contact Later Today was creating a timed activity with the current time. (PMG-615010)