Inviting a User to Join Your Network

Step 1.

Click on the “Staff” link which is located on the left sidebar menu in the OPS Command Center.

Step 2.

At the top of “Staff” page, locate and click on the “Invite” tab.

Step 3.

You will now see a full list of all OPS Network registered users. Search for the user you wish to invite using the search bar located at the top right of the screen.

Step 4.

Once you locate the user, click on the “+Invite” button to the right of the users name.

Step 5.

A menu will appear on the right side of the screen. Enter the rank, badge number and system rights you wish to assign to the user you are inviting to join your network.

Step 6.

Click on the “Send Invitation” button.

Once the user receives this notification and accepts same, you will receive a notification in your command center that they have accepted your invitation. That user is now a member of your agency and nothing further is required.

Note: The “Pending” tab, located on the “Staff” page, will list all invitations that are pending. Initiation on this list will disappear once a user accepts or declines an invitation.

Accepting an Invitation by an OPS User to Join Your Agency

When a registered OPS user wishes to join your agency, they will send a request to your agency. From the OPS Command Center, the administrator (or authorized agent for the administrator) will receive a notification. This notification will appear on the upper right side of the Command Center screen as a notice next to the bell icon. A new request will also appear in the “Pending” tab located at the top of the “Staff” page.

To accept a new member request, follow the below instructions:

Step 1.

Locate the notification in the “Pending” tab on the Staff page or by clicking on the bell icon on the top of the page.

Step 2.

Click on the users name (under the bell icon) and confirm the user is a member of your agency or a person you wish to authorize to have access.

Step 3.

From the “Pending” tab, click “Accept”. You will be asked to confirm that you wish to accept the user into your OPS Network. If so, click “Accept”.

Step 4.

Proceed to your “Staff” page and locate the new member. Click on the edit icon to the right of the member to activate the “permissions” screen.

Step 5.

Assign the rank, badge number and permissions. Click “Update”.

You have now activated the new user and he/she is now a member of your OPS Network.

1. Click on the Staff tab located on the blue sidebar menu.
2. Once you click the Staff Tab, you will see your listed staff.
3. Click on Permission Groups.
4. Once you click on Permission Groups, you will then find a list of pre-loaded Permission Groups. These Permission Groups are the most commonly used for most users. However, agency administrators can modify these or create any number of custom Permission Groups to suite your needs.
5. To create a new Permission Group, click on the blue button labeled “Add a New Group”.
6. Once you click on the blue button labeled “Add a New Group”, a menu will pop up. You can then name the group and set the rules for that group by expanding each part of the OPS Network section (Command Center, Community Access, Extensions, Staff). Each module, extension, staff access and the Command Center allow you to set:
   • Create: User can add information to the tool or module.
   • Read: User can read the information.
   • Update: User can update existing information.
   • Delete: User can delete information.

   Example: Alerts Module  – Create ✓  Read  ✓  Update ☒ Delete ☒

   In this example, the user would be able to create and read an Alert but would not be authorized to update an existing Alert or delete anything in the Alert Module.

7. Once you have created a Permission Group, click the white CREATE button. (To edit a Permission Group, click on the pencil icon next to the desired group and edit accordingly as described above.)

8. Now that you have created a Permission Group, it will appear in your Permission Groups list.

Agency Administrators Only

Setting up your OPS Network is simple and designed for any agency to quickly get their system up and running in no time by following the below steps. Note: Agency administrators can change, modify and alter these fields any time and have control of these set up fields. 

1. Find the “Manage Network Profile” link located under your agency name at the top of the Command Center screen. Once on the “Manage Network Profile” screen, add your basic agency information under the Info tab. This information will be viewed by other officers and agency members when they search the network and find your agency.
2. Click on the About Tab. Here you will add some more detailed information about your agency such as history, links to directions, etc… This is an open text field so you can be as detailed as you wish.
3.  Click on the Photos Tab. The Photos tab allows you to upload galleries and images, if you wish, for other law enforcement visitors to view in order to get to know even more about your agency.

Once you enter a module, you will notice a toggle button at the top right side of the screen. When the toggle is blue, the module is active. Whent he toggle is grey, it is off. To turn the module off, so it is not seen on the Community Interface, simply click on the toggle button, so it slides over and turns grey, to turn it off. Click it again and the toggle will slide over, and turn blue, indicating the module is active on the website.

To search for an agency on the network, go to “Main Dashboard” in the OPS Command Center.

1. Scroll down the page and locate the “Agencies” field.
2. The newest 10 agencies will appear. Use the search function to find any OPS Partner Agency.
3. Once you locate your agency, click on the name.
4. The agency information will appear, to include About Informaition, Photos and a Agency Staff Roster (which can be searched as well for agency personnel).

To search for a member of your agency, go to “Main Dashboard” in the OPS Command Center.

1. Scroll down the page and locate the “My Agencies” field.
2. Cick on “View Agency Profile”.
3. Click on the “Staff” tab.
4. Scroll through the users or utilize the search function to locate the member.

To search for an OPS Network User on the network, go to “Main Dashboard” in the OPS Command Center.

1. Scroll down the page and locate the “New Users” field.
2. The newest 10 users will appear. Use the search function to find any OPS Member (Searches can be by user name (first, last, first few letters etc..), agency, city, specialty and more.)
3. Once you locate the member, click on the members image.
4. The membersy information will appear, to include About Informaition, Photos and User Bio.

Within the OPS Network, members can create Groups that allow the sharing of information, ideas, strategies and many other things. Groups are great for networking and staying in touch. Groups can be used for anything from Association News to Operational Management. The uses are limitless.

Below you will find the basic information about how to create, join and manage Groups within the OPS Network.

Group Roles:

• Default: User can participate in the Group.
• Moderator: User has the authority to moderate comments.
• Admin: User has full admin rights to the Group.

Creating a Group:

Click on the blue “Create Group” located at the top of the “My Groups” screen, which will be the screen you will see when you click on the “Groups” tab on the main sidebar menu once logged into the OPS Network.

There are three fields required when creating a group:

1. Group Image:
   1. Choose an image that will help identify your new group. Appropriate images are allowed. Any purposely inappropriate images will be banned from the network.
2. Group Name:
   1. Choose the name for your group. Example: “State Narcotics Officers Group”
3. Group Description:
   1. Give a brief and accurate description of your group. It helps to add the type of group to the description. Example: “This is a Public Group to discuss narcotics trafficking in the state.”
4. Privacy Setting:
   1. Public Group: Anyone can find and join this type of group.
   2. Closed Group: Anyone can search and find the group but they have to be invited or request permission to be allowed in the group. The Admin User will approve all users for this type of group.
   3. Secret Group: This type of group cannot be found by searching and only invited members can have access. This type of group will only be seen by those approved and cannot be seen by anyone, including network admin users of OPS Employees. This is a completely secure and secret group setting good for confidential matters and investigations.

Joining a Group:

There are two ways to join a group. You can request to join a Group or be invited to join a Group by the Group Admin.

Requesting to Join a Group:

When you find the group you wish to join, you will see one of two icons on the right side of the group tag:

Globe Icon 🌐 : This icon indicates that the Group is Public and all members are welcome to participate.

Unlock Icon 🔓: This icon indicates that the Group is Closed and requires permission to join or participate. Click on the lock icon and click + Request to Join.

Once you Request to Join, the Admin of the Group will approve or deny same. If you are approved, you will get a notification and the Group will now show on your Groups page.

Inviting a Member to a Group

As an admin of a Group, you can invite members to any of your Groups, regardless of status type: Open, Closed or Secret.

1. To invite a member, open the Group wish to invite them into and click on “Invite” at the top of the page.
2. From the “Invite” page, you can locate member(s) you wish to invite by searching the network.
3. Once you locate the member, click on the + Invite button next to their name.
4. A menu will slide out from the right of the screen. Here you can choose the members role in the group. These roles include:
   1. Default: User can participate in the Group.
   2. Moderator: User has the authority to moderate comments.
   3. Admin: User has full admin rights to the group.
5. Once you choose a role, click on the Send Invitation button.
6. The member will receive a notification that they have been invited to join the Group.
7. When the member accepts, the Admin will be notified and the user will now appear on the Groups Members Page.

Note: Only Sworn Law Enforcement Officers who are actively attached to an active OPS Partner Law Enforcement Agency have access to the OPS Network Communcation tools.

For technical clarity, a module comes from the modular programming paradigm which advocates that software should be composed of separate, interchangeable components called modules. Modules work by breaking down the main program functions into individual parts, each of which accomplishes one function and contains everything necessary to accomplish this. Simply put, it is the most effective way to design a multiple tool solution, like OPS, to work as one fluid system with unlimited options.

Every OPS Network includes numerous modules. Each module serves a specific task within the system and is accessed by the public via the Community Interface and by agency personnel via the OPS Command Center. 

Your content goes here. Edit or remove this text inline or in the module Content settings. You can also style every aspect of this content in the module Design settings and even apply custom CSS to this text in the module Advanced settings.

Module Currently Under Development.

Module Currently Under Development.

The Press Release Module is designed to do the following:

1. Allow agencies to easily create and distribute Official Press Releases to their Community Interface.
2. Allows Press Corps and members of the media to subscribe to receive Official Press Release PDF’s sent diretly to them.
3. Distribute PDF “Official” Press Releases to the media.
4. Allow instant sharing of Press Releases to social media platforms.

All of the above is done automatically once set up and is a convenient and efficient way to get important news and announcements out to the public.

Creating a Letterhead Template:

To create a Press Release Letterhead, you have numerous options.

1. Go to the Press Module in your Command Center.
2. Choose “View Letterheads” and then choose “Create Letterhead”.
3. When creating a Letterhead, the first field will ask you to give your Letterhead a title. This title will be used to identify the Letterhead you wish to use when generating a Press Release.
4. Now select a template. There are two options:
   1. Choose nothing and start from scratch.
   2. Choose the pre-formatted template and modify to fit your needs.
5. The pre-formatted templates are standard templates and by replacing the images and text, you will have a basic Letterhead to be used when creating a Press Releases.
6. If you choose no template, you can create a custom Letterhead to your liking by doing one of the following:
   1. Add your images, text and logo to design your Letterhead (much like creating a Word document).
   2. Scan and save your agency Letterhead as an image and paste at the top of the editor. You can then add “Press Release” under the image, or any additional text you prefer.
7. Once you are satisfied with you Letterhead click “save” (you can create as many as you like).

Creating a Press Release:

1. Go to “View Press Releases”.
2. Click on “Create Press Release”
3. From here, you can choose to “Upload a File” (which will allow you to upload a pre-completed PDF Press Release from a file) or “Build a Press Release” (which allows you to easily generate your Press Release right from the OPS Press Release Module).

Build a Press Release

Step 1 – Add your Press Release Title.

Step 2 – Choose your Letterhead Template (as described above).

Step 3 – Add the body of your Press Release.

Upload a File

Step 1 – Add your Press Release Title

Step 2 – Upload the PDF file.

You will see that at the bottom of your “Create Press Release” text area, there are social media icons. By clicking on these icons, the Press Release will automatically be shared on these platforms once published.

Once you have completed one of the above, you can then choose to “Preview” your Press Release, Save it for future publication or “Publish”. Once published, the OPS Network will take care of posting it to your Community Interface and chosen social media accounts as well as distributing it to your Press subscriber list.

Sharing and Collaborating

Agency members, and members from other agencies with permission, can easily collaborate, review, modify and approve Press Releases as a group. To collaborate on a Press Release:

Step 1 –  Follow the above procedure to “Build a Press Release”.

Step 2 – Using the internal OPS text editor, create the main text for your Press Release.

Step 3 – Save your Press Release.

Step 4 – Using the internal OPS messenger, notify the collaborating parties that you have created a Press Release and advise them of your instructions (review, modify, approve, etc…) Of course, each agency can devise thier own procedure.

EXAMPLE MESSAGE: “I have created a Press Release regarding the Community Picnic. Joe, Lisa and Rob, please review and modify it as needed. Joe, please review first and advise Lisa when complete. Lisa, please advise Rob when you are complete. Rob, let me know once you are done and I will complete the Press Release and publish.”

Step 5 – Each member can then enter the Press Module and interact with the Press Release. They can make additions, strikethoughs on existing text items to remove, etc… Additions should be highlited in red, while removals should be strikethoughs. in order for the next collaborater to see the changes easily. All of these tools are provided in the internal OPS text editor. Each collaborator simlpy saves the Press Release once complete.

Step 6 –  Each collaborating member can then see the changes, add to them or appove them. Open discussion is easy via the direct messenger.

Step 7 –  Once all collaborators are done reviewing, the original author can then accept the changes by removing the red changes and strikethroughs, etc..

Step 8 – With approval, any member can also Publish the Press Release at anytime.

With a little practive, internal and external agency members can easily collaborate on a Press Release.

That is it! Once set up, the OPS Press Release Module will save you time, allow you to engage your media and community and connect you like never before.

Module Currently Under Development.

Module Currently Under Development.

The Recruitment Module allows agencies to setup a Recruitement/Careers page and then easily create career and job postings. Unlike most modules, which can be found as stand alone tools under the Community Tab in the OPS Commmand Center, the Recruitment Module is embedded into the Website Editor under the “Careers Page” tab. The reason for this is so that agency admins can easily post job listings and at the same time adjust the Recruitment Information portion of the page if needed.

To add a job posting:

1. Go to the Community Tab in the Command Center.
2. Open the Website Editor.
3. Locate the Careers Page tab and click on same.
4. You will see the main image and page exlpanation areas where you can set up the Rcruitment Page.
5. Under these fields, click on the blue button labeled “Create New Posting”.
6. You can now complete the fields to add a job posting. You can create as many as needed and they will appear on the Recruitment Page on your website, which can be found by clicking on the Careers tab on the top menu bar of you Community Interface.

When creating a job posting, the user has the option to upload a PDF for the applicant to download. Thier is also an option to add an external link to another online application, such as a statewide civil service page. Each post allows the user to use both the PDF button and link button at the same time, seperately or not at all.

The Resource Links Module allows agencies to share a library of usefull links for the communtiy. From links to social services, other law enforcement, county, state, federal and city governemnt resources, shelters, etc….

Find the Resource Links Module by clicking on the Community Tab in the OPS Command Center. Find the module labeled “Links” and click on same. Once inside, you will see the list of loaded links. To add and manage links:

Categories:

In this tab, the user can create the categories for the links that will be shared. Example: Social Service Programs, Law Enforcement Agencies, Homeless Shelters, etc..

Create New link button:

When a user clicks this button, they will then:

1. Choose a category for the document.
2. Name the Link.
3. Add the link url (web address).

The Link will now appear on your main Links page and within the proper category on the Community Interface/website’s Links page.

Note: To change the order of the categories, as they appear on the Community Interface/website’s Links page, go to Catergories in the Links Module and then use your mouse to change the category order. When the “Save Page Order” button is clicked, the new order will appear to the public.

Your content goes here. Edit or remove this text inline or in the module Content settings. You can also style every aspect of this content in the module Design settings and even apply custom CSS to this text in the module Advanced settings.

Module Currently Under Development.

Module Currently Under Development.

OPS starts with the Community Interface. This is the face of your OPS system and serves as the portal that the public will interact with. It is 100% responsive and works on all devices, from computers to tablets to mobile smartphones.

Here each department will present basic information to the public such as contact information, agency structure, news and more. This is also where the public will find the easy to navigate modules and tools that they will interact with and utilize.

Your content goes here. Edit or remove this text inline or in the module Content settings. You can also style every aspect of this content in the module Design settings and even apply custom CSS to this text in the module Advanced settings.

Your content goes here. Edit or remove this text inline or in the module Content settings. You can also style every aspect of this content in the module Design settings and even apply custom CSS to this text in the module Advanced settings.

Your content goes here. Edit or remove this text inline or in the module Content settings. You can also style every aspect of this content in the module Design settings and even apply custom CSS to this text in the module Advanced settings.

Your content goes here. Edit or remove this text inline or in the module Content settings. You can also style every aspect of this content in the module Design settings and even apply custom CSS to this text in the module Advanced settings.

Your content goes here. Edit or remove this text inline or in the module Content settings. You can also style every aspect of this content in the module Design settings and even apply custom CSS to this text in the module Advanced settings.

OPS starts with the Community Interface. This is the face of your OPS system and serves as the portal that the public will interact with. It is 100% responsive and works on all devices, from computers to tablets to mobile smartphones.

Here each department will present basic information to the public such as contact information, agency structure, news and more. This is also where the public will find the easy to navigate modules and tools that they will interact with and utilize.

Your content goes here. Edit or remove this text inline or in the module Content settings. You can also style every aspect of this content in the module Design settings and even apply custom CSS to this text in the module Advanced settings.

Your content goes here. Edit or remove this text inline or in the module Content settings. You can also style every aspect of this content in the module Design settings and even apply custom CSS to this text in the module Advanced settings.

Your content goes here. Edit or remove this text inline or in the module Content settings. You can also style every aspect of this content in the module Design settings and even apply custom CSS to this text in the module Advanced settings.

Your content goes here. Edit or remove this text inline or in the module Content settings. You can also style every aspect of this content in the module Design settings and even apply custom CSS to this text in the module Advanced settings.

Your content goes here. Edit or remove this text inline or in the module Content settings. You can also style every aspect of this content in the module Design settings and even apply custom CSS to this text in the module Advanced settings.

Your content goes here. Edit or remove this text inline or in the module Content settings. You can also style every aspect of this content in the module Design settings and even apply custom CSS to this text in the module Advanced settings.

Your content goes here. Edit or remove this text inline or in the module Content settings. You can also style every aspect of this content in the module Design settings and even apply custom CSS to this text in the module Advanced settings.

Your content goes here. Edit or remove this text inline or in the module Content settings. You can also style every aspect of this content in the module Design settings and even apply custom CSS to this text in the module Advanced settings.