Evergreen

This article refers to the out-of-the-box ZoneBilling Evergreen functionality. For information on prior implementation practices leveraging custom workflows, please refer to the article Legacy: Setting Up Evergreen Functionality.

Summary:

Evergreen refers to a contract which, unless canceled, is ongoing in perpetuity. In these scenarios, the Subscription and Subscription Item(s) End Dates are automatically extended at a defined cadence prior to the original End Date. By default, all Subscription Items on a given Evergreen Subscription are extended, unless otherwise specified.

Updating the Subscription or Subscription Item to remove the Evergreen settings, or utilizing the Subscription Cancellation or Termination functionality, will cease the Evergreen actions.

Define the Evergreen Notice Period

The ‘Evergreen Notice Period in Days’ determines when the Evergreen process should execute.

A scheduled process executes nightly, and checks for Subscriptions and Subscription Items with End Dates within the ‘Evergreen Notice Period’, and extends the End Date(s) by the period specified on the Subscription.

This setting can be found on the ZAB Preferences record and applies to all Evergreen Subscriptions and Subscription Items.

For example, if the ‘Evergreen Notice Period in Days’ is set to ‘15’, the Evergreen process will find all Subscriptions where the End Date is within today or the last 15 days.

Indicate Subscriptions as ‘Evergreen’

On the ZAB Subscription form, under the “Renewal” tab, you will see two fields called ‘Evergreen Period (Frequency)’ and ‘Evergreen Period (Interval)’. These fields work in tandem to define by what period the Subscription End Date should be extended by the Evergreen process.

For example, setting a Frequency of ‘1’ and Interval of ‘Months’ will result in the End Date being extended by 1 Month each time the Evergreen process runs.

Exclude Subscription Items from Evergreen

By default, if a Subscription has an ‘Evergreen Period (Frequency)’ and ‘Evergreen Period (Interval)’ set, the Evergreen Process will extend the End Dates of all child Subscription Items by the same period.

If a specific Subscription Item on an Evergreen Subscription should not be extended, use the ‘Exclude from Evergreen’ checkbox located on the ‘Renewal’ tab of the Subscription Item.

Example: How to Setup a Subscription as Evergreen

1. Navigate to the ZAB Preferences record and make sure the ‘Evergreen Notice Period in Days’ is defined. If it is not, set a notice period.
   
   • For example, set ‘1’ as the notice period.
2. Create or edit a Subscription record. On the ‘Renewal’ tab, define the ‘Evergreen Period (Frequency)’ and ‘Evergreen Period (Interval)’ by which this contract should be extended.
   
   • Set the Subscription End Date as tomorrow’s date and select the Frequency and Interval as ‘1 Months’.
3. Create two Subscription Items on this Subscription.
   • Select ‘Exclude from Evergreen’ = True on one, and False (null) on the other.
4. The Evergreen process is scheduled to run nightly.
   • When the process next runs, the Subscription End Date will be extended by 1 month.
   • The End Date on the Subscription Item marked ‘Exclude from Evergreen’ = True will not be updated.
   • The End Date on the Subscription Item where ‘Exclude from Evergreen’ = false will also be extended by 1 month.

Configuration Best Practice

When utilizing the out-of-the-box Evergreen, it is recommended to hide the legacy fields to reduce user confusion. Managed Display can be leveraged to hide the ‘Default Evergreen Period in Months’ field on the ZAB Preferences record and the ‘Evergreen Period in Months’ field on the ZAB Subscription.

If the “Legacy Evergreen Functionality” is in use, it is recommended to hide the new out-of-the-box Evergreen fields from the ZAB Preferences and ZAB Subscription and Subscription Item forms.