The Lay of the Land

When you log in, you'll see the CONTACT's main interface. A handful of elements stay with you everywhere you go, and getting familiar with them is most of what it takes to feel at home. One thing to know up front: the exact set of menu items you see is tailored to your role, so your screen may not look identical to a colleague's — that's intentional, and Section 6 explains why. (The screenshots in this section show CBM's actual setup.)

Directories: Browse, preview and edit records. Each opens in its own tab. Close the tab when you're finished to return to the list.  Applications: Use these tools to perform the tasks associated with your role. My Mentor Profile: Use this application to view and edit your mentor profile. Client Management: Use this application to review and accept client engagements, schedule mentoring sessions, send emails to your clients, and record your mentoring sessions. Most of your work with clients will be done here. My Email: View every conversation associated with the records you manage, including communications with clients, partners, and funders. CRM: This is the CONTACT system in its raw form. Because CONTACT includes Directories, Applications, and Documentation that organize and simplify your work, there is generally no reason to work directly in the CRM. Documentation: Click here to read the documentation. Each shelf is divided into books, which are further divided into sections, making it easy to jump directly to the information you need. Public intake forms: These are links to the forms that allow clients, volunteers, partners, and sponsors to become part of CONTACT.

Search. The search box and/or filters at the top of each screen is the fastest way to jump straight to what you are looking for. 

Your home page. This is the first thing you see after signing in. It's made up of panels — called dashlets — that give you an at-a-glance summary, such as items assigned to you, recent activity, and things coming up. What appears here depends on your role and can be personalized later. Initially, it will not have much information, and you should navigate to your Engagements, or Mentors tab.

Notifications. A bell icon in the top bar alerts you to things that involve you — for example, when a record is assigned to you or a colleague mentions you. A number on the bell means something new is waiting; select it to see what.

Your account menu. At the far top-right, the account menu — the three-dot icon — opens your account options: it shows your name, your personal preferences, and the option to log out. You won't need anything in here to get started.

The activity stream. Across the system you'll encounter the Stream — a running, dated feed of what's happened, newest first. There is a system-wide Stream, and, as you'll see in Section 5, each individual record has its own. Think of it as the system's running narrative of updates.

he top bar: search, create (+), notifications (with a count badge), and the account menu — shown open, with your name, Preferences, and Log Out.