1. What is this module about
Via the navigation menu header 'Contacts' the following master data modules are available by default:
Organizations
Persons
Addresses
Unlike most modules that require activation, these master data modules are always available. Each customer always has at least one person, as users are created based on persons or organizations (both are considered 'Contacts' (see Creating users for more information)). It is not mandatory to link this person to an organization and address, but by default, this is available.
1.1 Organizations
Organizations encompass all the entities within or affiliated with your organization, whether internal departments or external suppliers. Any entity worth tracking for organizational purposes, such as managing collaborations, can be added to the Organizations module.
The Organizations module serves as a central hub for organizing and managing these entities, offering several practical benefits:
Integration with Other Modules: Linking organizations to other modules facilitates seamless integration across the different modules. For example:
Service Desk: Connecting requests to specific organizations (e.g., a supplier) allows for more comprehensive data access, aiding issue resolution and resource management.
Contracts: Linking organizations to contracts enables tracking of costs and responsibilities per entity, enhancing strategic decision-making and supplier management.
Beyond integration with other modules, the Organizations module provides valuable insights into your organization's structure and relationships. Gain visibility into the structure, location, ownership, and relationships of different entities within your organization. This overview aids in resource allocation, cost optimization, and strategic planning.
Most of the core concepts of this module can be managed by key users (Contact editors). Therefore, most concepts are described in the user manual, which can be found here: User manual: Organizations, persons, and addresses
The next parts will go into more detail on some of the core concepts of this module that are mostly relevant for administrators:
1.1.1 categories
Each organization that is created is created in a category. For more general information about categories, see: Categories
The following default categories are available for this module:
1.2 Persons
Persons in the software are all the contacts that represent actual persons. This encompasses all the persons within or affiliated with your organization, whether internal employees or external suppliers. Any person worth tracking for organizational purposes, such as managing collaborations or providing access to the system as a user, can be added as a person in this module.
Similar to the organizations, persons are also used as an integration with other modules:
For example:
Service Desk: Assigning requests to specific persons (e.g., a service desk employee) allows for clear tasks assigned to specific persons and the ability to track personal performance.
Contract: Linking the persons who should receive contract reminders for a contract will help to track responsibilities and keep the correct persons informed, enhancing strategic decision-making and contract management.
Most of the core concepts of this module can be managed by key users (Contact editors). Therefore, most concepts are described in the user manual, which can be found here: User manual: Organizations, persons, and addresses
The next parts will go into more detail on some of the core concepts of this module that are mostly relevant for administrators:
1.2.1 Categories
Each person that is created is created in a category. For more general information about categories, see: Categories
The following default categories are available for this module:
Hidden contacts category can be used for any person that is technically needed (for instance for a user account), but should not be shown to other users. A good example of this, is a system administrator. Since administrators can also be employees (application managers), it is often advised to use a separate account for the user activities (e.g., creating reservations) versus the account to do the application management (as mixing these tasks in one account can lead to mistakes, since administrators can often see and do more in a process than is relevant for users). By placing the person object related to the administrator user in the hidden contacts category, other users cannot select this contact by mistake in a process (e.g., when assigning a ticket).
1.3 Addresses
Addresses are mostly not managed separately but in relation to organizations and buildings. To register the addresses of organizations and buildings, this module is also always available by default.
Key users can manage all of this module's core concepts (Contact editors). Therefore, these concepts are described in the user manual, which can be found here: User manual: Organizations, persons, and addresses
By default, all addresses are created in the same (default) category
2. Additional information on this module
More information on the Contact module can be found via the following related articles:
For an (end) user manual, see: User manual: Organizations, persons, and addresses
For more detailed implementation information (including which system groups are involved, data imports, and more information on the startboard and navigation menu options), see: Initialize the environment