Back to CrisisManager Main Menu
What is ContactSync?
ContactSync is a CrisisManager API that easily synchronizes changes to contact information stored in Active Directory, HRIS, LDAP, and other similar systems to the CrisisManager Online Portal and mobile app. *Note: This feature must be purchased separately from CrisisManager. Please contact your sales representative for more information.
What will Administrators Need?
A CSV file that matches the required format with the desired column headings and desired company contacts. It is recommended that clients connect with internal resources on the HR or IT side that have experience exporting or managing similar data in order to curate the CSV that fits the needs of the organization.
Key Terms and Definitions
There are several key terms and basic definitions that will aid in the implementation of ContactSync:
Contacts - employees, contractors, vendors, or other resources whose contact information is stored inside of an organization’s HRIS, directory or database. Within CrisisManager, Contacts are visible to users who have downloaded a company plan or plans. Contacts are actionable within the plan and serve as helpful information during a training exercise, escalated situation, or emergency.
File Upload - process by which an administrator imports a file containing Contacts into the CrisisManager system. This can be done from within the CrisisManager Online Portal, via an https site, or via an automated script.
File Signature - term describing a CSV file based on its column headings and the number of columns contained within the file. When automating ContactSync, it is important for daily file uploads to have the same file signature to achieve the desired version update on the mobile app.
For example, the file exported from HRIS, Active Directory, or another company data source contains 27 columns, and each column has a unique heading. If another file is exported and contains 27 columns, but the column headings are named differently from those in the first file, each file would have a unique file signature. The same would be true if a third file was exported and contained 28 columns; all three files would have unique signatures.
Mappings - column headings contained within a file that an Administrator would like to display and use for a particular audience. Depending on the needs of an organization, one mapping may suffice, or the Administrator may need to make multiple mappings appropriate for different plan groups.
For example, an administrator uploads a file with 37 columns and would like to show all of the columns and column headings that were uploaded to the CrisisManager system to the executives of the company within their Executive Crisis Plan on the mobile app. He or she may make an Executive Mapping that displays all 37 of the column headings. On the other hand, this same administrator may decide that for the company’s Global Emergency Preparedness Plan available to every company employee, it is only necessary to show 10 columns. The Administrator may create a mapping entitled General Employee Mapping that only contains the 10 desired columns.
Filters - predetermined statements created within the CrisisManager Online Portal that display desired rows of data within a plan on the CrisisManager mobile app.
For example, one of the column headings in a file upload is Location and an administrator wants to display all company Contacts that work outside of headquarters in the International Business Continuity Team plan on the mobile app. This administrator may make a filter that reads: “Location does not equal Headquarters.” He or she could also create two filters that read: “Location does not contain Headquarters” and “Location does not contain HQ” depending on how headquarters is denoted within the file.
Required File Format
The format should be:
- a comma-separated values (CSV) file
- containing a header row
There is no known limit to the number of columns or rows to be contained in one file upload.
Once a file is uploaded, this file signature will be stored in the Online portal. Connected plans will not be automatically updated if there are any changes whatsoever to the file, including:
- changes to the names of column headings (header row)
- addition of columns
- deletion of columns
The file containing a different signature will be stored as a second upload and will require new mappings and filters. This file will need to be connected to a plan within the Online Portal.
