PIER User credentials are for accessing the "internal" site(s) for tasks such as creating and sending documents. PIER Contacts are for "outside" people interacting with the site for tasks such as submitting an inquiry or joining a mailing list.

PIER Users

Credentials for PIER Users are established via Settings>>PIER Users>>Add User.  These are unique among all PIER Sites, and can be linked to multiple sites. When new credentials are created, they are linked to the current Site. Within each site, PIER Users are assigned to one or more Permissions groups, and each PIER User can be assigned to Approval Lists.

When new sites are launched, the PIER Users can be duplicated to the new site. Furthermore, users can be associated to other sites in a "Family" simply through the "Edit Sites" icon (available in the Settings>>PIER Users>>User List listing) on a site where they are already linked. Through this screen one can also assign the additional user's permission groups.

To link a PIER User that is not already a member of the Site Family, a three step process is involved:

• Settings>>PIER Users>>Link User. Enter the PIER Username and select permissions group(s).
• When that user signs on, they must accept the "Link Request" invitation to the new site.
• On the "receiving site", the "Settings>>PIER Users>>User Link Requests" screen has to be visited and the pending links have to be approved.

Under Settings>>PIER Users>>Group List there are various Groups named with "Permissions" assigned to each of them. A PIER User can be a member of multiple groups, and their capabilites are determined by the aggregation of individual permissions with the groups.

A typical PIER Site usually starts with several groups:

• An "Administrators" group that has complete permissions on the site,
• A "Power Users" group with a slightly smaller set of permissions (to perform day-to-day tasks and configure items, but not set other permissions)
• A "Users" group (to perform day-to-day tasks), and
• A "Basic Users" group for tasks such as creating documents.

Depending on the requirements of the site, groups can be created for a variety of functions such as "people working with inquiries", or "people proofing documents", etc.

A full list of Permissions and their definitions is available under "Settings>>PIER Users>>Permission List".

Distinct from their Permissions Groups assignment(s), PIER Users can also be assigned as "Approvers" for Documents across the Site or for specific Folders, depending on how Approvals have been structured (See "Documents").

To log on using your PIER User credentials, visit "www.piersystem.com" and enter your PIER Username and password. Be sure to have cookies enabled on the browser.

If you find that one person has multiple PIER User credentials, they can be combined to a single name after logging on and visiting "Settings>>PIER Users>>Edit Personal Info" and then touching "Associate Sites". Entering the second set of credentials will join the current user to everything associated with the second user.

PIER Contacts

PIER Contacts are managed under the "Contacts" Tab. Contact records represent "outside" individuals who have requested information themselves, have been identified and added individually by a PIER user, or were identified and uploaded in batches by PIER users. Contacts are organized in two ways (1) into Contact Directories, and (2) by Contact Groups.

Contact Directories

Contact Directories are the repositories for the contact information records with complete information for each person of interest. Each directory can be designed to have specific information required in them.

Contact directories can be marked as "public" and allow visitors to self-register, or can be left as non-public so that only PIER Users can add Contacts to them. Neither designation will make information in contact records available to the public.

To explore directories, their visibility and settings, select the "Edit Directories" link on the Contacts tab.

Selecting a Contact Directory from the Contacts Tab will render a list of the Contact Records in that Directory. This listing shows basic information from each contact, with the following points of interest:

• An "I" is shown in the second column grouping if there are Inquiries associated with the Contact Record. Contact records can not be deleted if there is an Inquiry associated with them.
• Several standard Contact Directory fields are displayed, but NOT any Custom Fields.

An "MS Excel" link is available to download the entire contents of all the Contact Records in the directory, including Custom Field values.

Selecting a Contact from this list will render a "tabbed" view for the Contact Record:

• The Detail tab shows the "Display" fields specified in the Directory definition (including Custom Fields, by label), Guest and Group information.
  
  This tab also shows any Inquiries associated with the Contact record, and the history of any documents targeted to this contact in a distribution.
  
  
• The Edit tab allows updates on the information for the Contact Record, including the ability to select a different Directory for the Contact to reside within.
  
  Of note is the "SMS" value next to the Phone fields, which shows the status value of the particular phone number regarding "Texting" that can be sent to that number. (For more information, see the "Everything SMS" document.)
• The Groups tab is available to manage some of the "Group" memberships, - "display" of Smart Group memberships and "assignment" to Basic groups (see below). 
• The Guest Info tab is available to manage special "Guest" status of Contact Records. (For more information, see the "Guests" document.)

Contact Groups

Contact Groups are referral lists to contact records in the directories. These are of two types - "smart" and "basic". Smart groups are rules-based lists such as "people with last name 'brown'" or "people with 'TX' in the State field value". When a new contact is entered that fits the criteria of a smart group, they are automatically counted in the smart group. 

Basic Groups are lists of indivual contact records that have been singled out and added to the group. The Executive group may include "Bill", "Sandy", "Lisa" and "Ralph", - who have no other common distinguishing feature that would make a "rule" possible for a Smart Group. To explore Contact Groups, select "Edit Contact Groups" on the Contacts tab.

There is a facility for combining duplicate Contact records under a single record available under "Settings>>Contacts>>Combine Contacts". The function begins with a search, then a complete "merge" screen, and a final confirmation screen. All inquiries for both Contact Records will be linked to the resulting Contact record.

Beyond the distinction how each type of credentials are used in accessing the system, information distributions can be targeted toward any of the groupings mentioned above. You can choose to send a document (for instance, via email) to the PIER Site Users, to Contact Directories, to Contact Groups, or any combination of these.

Additional Information

• Glossary - PIER Terminology - Selected Industry Terms
• Documents: PIER Users need permissions to create documents, and need to be on the list of "Approvers" to move them toward Publishing.
• Distributions : Sending information out to specific groups
• Web Site : Public facing view of the PIER Site
• Inquiries : Submitted by Contacts and answered by Users
• Reporting : Specific reports show PIER User activity
• Message Center : The Message Center is designed for PIER Users only
• SMS : How Contact phones are set for receiving messages
• Gateways : How Inquiries are received, how Document gateways need PIER User credentials
• Guests : How Contacts can be managed as Guests