Administrator Overview

Administrator Guide: Managing Users, Permissions & Organization Settings in Connections Online

1. Understanding Administrator Responsibilities

The role of the administrator is to ensure that Connections Online is set up correctly for their specific organization and that all users have the necessary access to perform their tasks.

Many settings come with default configurations, but may need adjustments to better match your organization’s operations. Administrators should fine-tune settings to ensure a smooth workflow and alignment with internal processes.

2. Full Access & Security Overrides

• Administrators bypass all security settings and can view, edit, and manage any information in their organization.

• They can impersonate users to verify permissions and troubleshoot issues. In the activity logs it will still show if an action was done by an individual impersonating someone else.
  
  

3. Organization Leader & Editor Roles

• Organization Leaders & Editors can perform most administrative functions, including:

  • Adding, editing and removing user accounts .

  • Managing security settings and permissions.

  • Creating, editing, and deleting most information (metrics, tasks, and reports).

• Department Leaders by default have the ability to
  

  • Manage the people on the department and their roles.

  • Managing security settings and permissions.

• Department Leaders & Editors can

  • Create, edit, and delete all data on their department and the department's projects, metrics, dialogs, etc.

• Administrator-Only Functions:

  • Manage Organization Settings.

  • Promote new Administrators. This setting is on the individual edit form.

The Organization Leader and Editor roles are set by editing the individual directly.

The Department Leader and Editor roles can also be set on the individual edit modal but also can be modified on the entries on the department individual tab.

4. Organization Settings (Administrator-Only Management)

Administrators control Organization Settings, which can be found on the organization page from the kebab menu in the header. These settings affect everyone in your organization and they include:

• Project Statuses & Phases – Set available statuses and phases for all projects. This includes modifying the existing project and status names, removing them, and creating your own.

• Performance Periods – Define timeframes for PM charts and reports (yearly or quarterly), thresholds for success, and optional weighting for reports such as the individual performance report

• Keyword Customization – Modify default terminology to better fit the way your organization communicates.

• Color Customization – Configure colors for metrics, PM graphs, project highlights, and lists.

5. Page Settings (Selective page content)

The page settings can be found in the kebab menu ⋮ of the page header on all pages and will default to the current page type you are viewing. These settings determine which page tabs are available to be used, which order they are listed in and what content is shown/hidden on each page. Features that your organization does not use can be toggled on or off by the button on the left side.

Each page type has its own settings, but these settings are for everyone that uses Connections in your organization and are not a personal setting.

Page Tabs: These are the contextual tabs in the page header that show, for example, the metrics list for your department, or the basic role for your individual page. Tan be rearranged by grabbing the icon on the right of the list and moving them around in the list.

Dashboard Charts: These charts are available at the top of the dashboards on the organization, department and individuals connection pages. These charts give an overview of the metrics, projects, dialogs and commitments/goals for the current performance period for the current page.

Page Tiles: These are the content tiles that are on the white space in each page, where the bulk of what you interact with will be.

6. Managing Users: Admin Access & Suspensions

Both of these actions are carried out in the edit modal for the individual.

• Administrator Promotion:

  • Only an existing administrator can promote another individual to become an administrator.

• Suspending Users:

  • Anyone with edit access for an individual can suspend them, preventing logins and removing them from assignment lists. This is usually recommended as opposed to deleting an individual account as it leaves the historical record of them having worked on projects/tasks and being responsible for past metrics. Once an individual is deleted they will be removed everywhere in Connections until they are restored.

7. Activity Logs & Reports (Tracking Changes & User Activity)

• General Activity Logs:

  • Available for all users, showing updates and changes across the system.

• Page-Level Activity Reports:

  • Administrators can check why something is missing or when something changed using the Activity Report in the kebab menu icon ⋮, on the page header.

• User Activity Reports:

  • Found in the reporting section on an individual’s page.

  • Shows user activity over a chosen period, helping administrators:

    • Understand how users are utilizing Connections Online.

    • Track down changes if something is missing or incorrect.

8. Best Practices for Administrators

• Tailor Connections Online to Fit Your Organization: Adjust settings to align with internal workflows.
  • Customize Organization Settings: Modify project phases, keywords, and colors for clarity.
  • Security Role Alignment: Set up security roles such as organization leader/editor, and department leader/editor/member roles to have the necessary permissions to create and edit what is needed.
    • The security overview article will be helpful for seeing what the default security is and explaining the options that are available to you.
• Utilize Support: When in doubt or you need some assistance, our support team will be able to answer questions you may have and help with issues that arise. You can send in a ticket via
  • the help button in the top right of the app
  • by using the widget in the bottom right of our help center
  • or by emailing support@connectionsonline.net
• Limit Administrator Access Thoughtfully: Prevent security risks by promoting only essential users.