4 concepts not to mix up
OOTI keeps a team member's access, sale price and cost separate. Changing one never changes the others.
Concept | What it is | What it controls | Where to find it |
Team member profile | The person's profile in the firm | Their existence in OOTI, without access | Team members > TEAM MEMBERS |
Role | The position (project manager, junior architect, graphic designer…) with a billable rate | The sale price of one hour billed to the client | Team members > ROLES |
Contract | The salary record (gross salary, employer charges coefficient) | The loaded hourly cost for the firm | Costs > Salaries |
Permissions | The user's group of rights, at team level and at project level | What the person can see and do | First name > Users > Permissions |
Example: a team member costs the firm €52.91 per hour (contract) and is billed to the client at €100/h (role). The difference is your hourly margin.
Before you start
Required permissions
To invite: Super Admin status.
Team level: view and manage members, view billable rates, manage skills, and manage salaries if you enter contracts.
Project level: view and manage project members.
Information to gather
The list of your team members with their first name, last name and email address.
The positions in your firm and their hourly billing rate. If you work with daily rates, convert them on an 8-hour-day basis.
To go further: salaries and working hours, used for contracts.
Check that you are on the right account
A DEMO account with sample data is available to you. Nothing created there can be transferred to your real account. Before creating your team, check at the top right (First name > Switch organization) that you are on your real organization.
Step 1: Create your team members' profiles
You have two options: add your team members one by one, or import the whole team at once.
Option A: Add a team member manually
In the menu, click Team members, TEAM MEMBERS tab, then the + TEAM MEMBER button.
Fill in the form.
Click SAVE.
To complete the profile, click INFO. Click the photo icon to add a picture.
Click SAVE.
Good to know: creating a profile does not give any access to OOTI. As long as the team member has not been invited, they do not use a paid license.
Option B: Import the whole team
Go to Team members > TEAM MEMBERS > ACTIONS > Import.
Click DOWNLOAD A SAMPLE FILE.
Fill in the file. It shows which columns to leave empty, which fields are required and which are optional.
Go back to OOTI and click in the upload area to select your file, or drag and drop it. Your data is read after a few moments.
If a column shows "Do not link this field", match it to the right column name.
Click NEXT, then FINISH.
Step 2: Create and assign roles
A role matches a position in your firm and carries a billable rate: the price of one hour billed to the client. It does not give any access rights.
Create a role
Go to Team members > ROLES. You can also go through your first name at the top right > Settings > Team > Roles.
Click MANAGE ROLES, then + ROLE.
Name the role (e.g. Project manager) and enter the hourly billable amount.
Click SAVE.
This rate is a default value: you can change it project by project. To rename a role, click it; to delete it, click the options … > Delete.
Display time in days (optional)
If your firm works in days rather than hours:
Click your First name > Settings > Modules, then TIME at the top right.
Turn on Display time in days. Your time reports and budgets are then shown in days.
Click SAVE.
Assign a role to each team member
Stay on Team members > ROLES: roles are on the left, team members on the right.
Drag a team member's profile onto a role, or click "no role" under their name to choose one.
Click the eye icon to show billable rates and loaded salaries.
Team members who already have a role appear greyed out but can still be changed.
What about the team member's cost?
The loaded hourly cost is not entered in the role but in a contract, via Costs > Salaries > + contract. This is what lets OOTI calculate the profitability of your projects.
Step 3: Check permissions and invite
The invitation gives access to OOTI: this is when the team member starts using a license. First check what they will be able to see, then invite them.
Check permissions
Click your First name > Users. The list shows each user's teams and projects with the related permission.
Click the Permissions tab to see the groups. By default: Admin, Accountant, Director and Member.
Click a group to see its enabled permissions on the right.
If needed, tick Super Admin on a user: they will be able to see and do everything.
Permissions work on two independent levels: the team (overall use of the platform) and the project (what is visible in each project). A new invitee gets the Member group by default on both levels. The Accountant group gives access to salaries: only give it to the right people.
With the Pro plan, you can create your own groups via + PERMISSION, and choose the one applied by default to new invitees.
Send the invitation
Go to Team members > TEAM MEMBERS.
Click the team member's profile.
Click Send invitation by email.
Your team member receives an email from OOTI. By clicking the link, they create their own password and access the platform. If they can't find it, ask them to check their spam folder.
Important: never ask a team member to create their own account on the OOTI website. This would create a firm separate from yours. Always use the invitation.
Add your team members to their projects
Once invited, a team member only sees the projects they are a member of.
For a single project: open the project, then Settings > Members.
For several projects at once: go to Users, click the number badge in the Projects column, then Add all or Add selection.
Frequently asked questions
Does creating a team member profile use a license? No. Only the invitation gives access and uses a paid license.
My team member did not receive the invitation. Ask them to check their spam folder. If the problem persists, contact us through the chat bubble.
My team member can't find their project to log time. They are not yet a member of that project. An administrator needs to add them to the project members.
My firm bills by the day. Enter the hourly rate on an 8-hour-day basis, then turn on "Display time in days".
A team member moves from a fixed-term to a permanent contract. Two options: create a new contract (the history is not kept) or change the status of the current contract and add a note. For a fixed-term contract, enter the end date from the start.
An intern needs to use OOTI. If they have a license, create a contract for them with the intern status.
How do I include the cost of partners? Either as a salary (linked to their time on projects), or as overheads (spread across all projects, with no notion of time).
A team member leaves the firm. Enter an end date on their contract: they move from the Active tab to Ended. To remove their access, go to Users, then options … > Revoke access.
The account owner changes. Go to Team members, then options … > Transfer ownership. The account owner cannot be deleted or archived.
Mileage allowances and overtime. You can set a mileage rate directly on the team member's profile. Overtime premiums are turned on in Team members > Team members > Time.
Any questions? Feel free to contact us through the chat bubble.