Groups, Users & Resources

Share Resources with Groups of Users

Groups conveniently let you share Resources with entire teams of Users.

In SwitchBase, Resources are simply the tools team members use while on the job → ex. Forms, Records, Chats, Inboxes, Dashboards, and more.

you must share each resource

1. About Groups

A Group is a secure container for both:

  • The Users that you've assigned to a Group
  • The tools or Resources your Group members need

  • Groups have several advantages:
    • Efficiency → provision a Group once → and any User added automatically inherits all associated Resources
    • Security → protect sensitive data by ensuring only authorized Groups can access specific Records, Dashboards, Chats, or Forms
    • Flexibility → create as many Groups as your venue requires

To see and open your organization's Groups:

  1. Click Groups
  2. Pick any Group found in your Organization → ex. Guest Services Team

2. About Resources

Think of Resources as the essential tools your team needs to complete their work.

  • For example, the resources Shared with this Guest Services Team include:
    • Channels → convenient Chats for Group Channels and individual DMs
    • Dashboards → real-time data visualizations and reporting
    • Forms → allow Record creation via Shortcut or full-length Forms
    • Groups → some Users may be assigned multiple Groups
      • ex. Sierra is only a member of the Guest Services Team
    • Inboxes → AI-driven SMS messages and responses
    • Workflows → automated processes in SwitchBase to make your life easier

3. About Users

Users are the individual members of your teams.

  • The Users page allows you to:
    • Invite New Users → add as many new Users you need
    • Assign Users to their respective Groups → granting them instant access to their shared Resources

About User 'Account Details' Profiles

Pick any User from the list seen above to open their Account Details profile (ex. Sierra).

  • From the profile you can:
    • A. Update Display Names → update a staff member's Display Name and update their Role
    • B. Manage Groups → change Permission Levels for groups of Users
    • C. Review Resources → see if a staff member is missing a Resource
    • D. Remove Users → to manage your staff turnover

Learn How to Add Users

Five General Permission Levels

Permissions lock your Resources and Records from unauthorized Group and User access. For example:

  • The Security Team's Forms, Dashboards, and Chats can be shielded from Users in other Groups
  • Internal Risk Reports can be shared with Users on a need-to-know basis
  • Maintenance issues can be restricted to the Maintenance Group

In SwitchBase, there are five Permission levels to choose from:

  • 1. Owner
    • Owners (aka. Admins) guide and direct operations with complete Role-based access to SwitchBase. They can:
      • Add Users and assign Roles
      • Create, Edit, and Share Groups
      • Create, Edit, and Share Dashboards & Reports
      • Add & Remove Locations, Issues, and more from Forms
      • Start, Share, and Delete Chats
      • Restrict Access Managers, Members, and Viewers by Sharing permissions
      • And more!
  • 2. Access Manager & Inbox Manager
    • Access Managers lead Teams and various operations. They can:
      • Share Group and Resource access
      • Complete and submit Forms
      • React to incident Records as assigned
      • Share Dashboards, Forms, and Chats with Group members
      • Add Group members and assign Roles to limit permissions

What about Multiple Owners or Access Managers?

  • You may wish to grant multiple people Admin or Manager-level permissions to your critical positions → ex. Command Center Manager, Patrol Chief, Head of Maintenance. See A Hike Up Kilimanjaro
  • 3. Member
    • Members often include active Event and Venue Staff. They can:
      • Enter and Create Records
      • View assigned Dashboards
      • Participate in Shared DMs and Group Chats
  • 4. Viewer
    • Viewers have read-only access to Resources, such as venue & event management, team owners, and social media. They may:
      • View assigned Dashboards & Reports
      • Read Shared Chats - but they can't respond
  • 5. Custom
    • Individual Users can be granted granular permissions base on their assignments
      • ex. An Assistant Manager needs some Owner-level permissions, but not all of them

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Find your stuff

Find Users, Groups and Resources

As a designated Admin or Access Manager, it's helpful to know all of the Groups, Users, and Resources available to you within your Organization.

Find your Users

If you have been granted access, here's how to see a complete list of Users:

  1. Open the Admin section
  2. Click the Users button → to open the Users page
  3. View your Organization's current Users

Find your Group Resources

To see a complete list:

  1. Open the Admin section
  2. Click the Groups button → to open the Groups page
  3. View your Organization's current Groups

  • Note: Creating and Shareing Groups is easy. To jump deeper into Groups, visit the Groups article in the Resource Center.

Find your Form & Shortcut Resources

To see a list of your Form Resources:

  1. Open the Admin section
  2. Click the Forms button → to open the Forms page
  3. View your Organization's current Forms

  • Note: Creating and Sharing Forms and Shortcuts is simple. Jump deeper by visiting our Forms section in the Resource Center.

Find your Dashboard Resources

To see all of your available Dashboard Resources:

  1. Head to your Navigation panel
  2. Click the Show more under your pinned Dashboards → to open the Dashboards list

  • Note: Learn all about Dashboards and Dashboard Sharing in the Dashboards article in our Resource Center.

Find your Conversation (Chat) Resources

To see all of your available Chat Resources:

  1. Head to your Navigation panel
  2. Click the Show more under your pinned Chats → to open the Conversations list

  • Note: Learn all about Chat Conversations in the Chats article in our Resource Center.

What is a Role in SwitchBase

About Roles

  • Each organization will host one, or even several Roles
  • Roles award additional underlying permissions within switchbase
  • Mostly, you will not need to worry about Roles
  • Typically, Roles are strictly limited to an organizational Owner/Admin Role, an Access Manger Role, and perhaps a staff-level User Role

  • Learn all about Roles and even more about Users in our Users & Roles article.

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A Hike Up Kilimanjaro

Making Leadership decisions

You may be tempted to think, "Why not place everyone into a leadership role — make them all Access Managers or even Owner/Admins — and be done with it?” This certainly would remove any permission-based limitations. Albeit, this could pose a significant security and data integrity risk.

Keep in mind that Member status is NOT an impediment to the completion of most of the tasks within a Group! This is the very User level that can create Records, Add Events, respond to incidents, review results, and act during emergencies. For most users, being a Group Member is permission enough.

Any Access Manager can create, innocently enough, go rogue and make some questionable changes without your knowledge! Given this power, we recommend giving Access Manager and Admin status only to those with the authority to make managerial and administrative-level decisions. Plus, there is such a thing as too many cooks in the kitchen!

Advantages of multiple Owners/Admins

That being said, it is helpful to have backup Owners and multiple Access Managers in critical parts of your operation!

Imagine if a Group Owner/Admin — named Alpha — takes a few weeks off to hike Kilimanjaro. Alpha can’t add Users and Events during the fortnight trek up the volcano. (There are no 5G bars up there. No bars of any kind, for that matter!)

Luckily, Alpha upgraded Theta as the designated backup Command Center Owner-Admin in her absence. While Alpha is on the mountain, Theta can avoid any bottlenecks and address any unexpected explosions during Alpha’s volcanic absence that can toss critical events onto the ashen cinders of neglect. (Did we overdo the volcano thing?)

Quiz time...

Help Alpha decide what permission level should be assigned to each of her colleagues:

Question 1: First up is Delta. Delta is a Marketing Manager running Experience Management surveys and Social Media for the venue. For Delta, information is everything as he digs into customer experiences, looking for new posts and planning future Marketing campaigns. What access level should Delta have?

  • If you guessed Viewer, you’re right! Delta simply needs read-only viewership permission to assess the guest experience Reports and to make changes to his social media campaigns. Delta is not involved in the recording of incidents nor in the dispatch and rapid-reaction functions.

Question 2: Next we have Beta. Beta is the venue's Maintenance Supervisor who opens Dashboards multiple times each day to review incidents, plan repairs, fill out work orders, and to help address guest issues. What user role should we assign to Beta?

  • That's right — Access Manager! Beta needs to be able to edit Records, add Work Orders, and edit responses to guest concerns, and give access to other Team Members. Viewership alone won’t cut it.

Question 3: Finally, we have Omega, the venue's COO. As such, Omega logs into SwitchBase Dashboards to review feedback from all the various touchpoints along the guest experience journey. Omega must also prepare reports for the Management team. What permission level does Omega need?

  • Viewer access is all that’s required here, since Omega is chiefly a consumer of Dashboard data and Reports. Just because Omega needs access to Dashboards doesn’t mean she needs to hold Access Manager. or even Member access. Viewership is all that's required.

How did you do?

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Groups, Users & Resources