Agency Setup Guide

Welcome to Rescue Agency Manager (RAM). This guide walks you through setting up your agency in the correct order so each step has what it needs from the step before it.

Why Order Matters

Some features in RAM depend on others being configured first. For example, you can't create assets until you've added Asset Types, and team members can't add certifications until your Certification Templates exist. Following this guide avoids those dead ends.

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Setup Overview

Five steps. The middle step (Walk Through Agency Settings) is where most of the time is spent — it's a single pass through the Agency Settings sidebar to lay the foundation; the steps after it are the heavier data items.

Step	What to Configure	Why This Order
1	Agency Profile	Sets the timezone used by every notification, log, and expiration check
2	Walk Through Agency Settings	Lays the foundation everything else needs (positions, categories, ID format, etc.)
3	Certification Templates	Required before team members can add certifications
4	Assets — Configuration & Types	Required before any asset can be created
5	Team Members	Add users last so they walk into a fully-configured system

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Step 1: Agency Profile (Required)

What: Your agency's identity and core settings.

Why First: The timezone setting drives notification timing, expiration checks, and audit logs throughout RAM. Get this right before anything else.

How to Get There

1. In the left-hand menu, expand Agency and select Agency Settings.
2. In the settings sidebar, expand Organization.
3. Select Agency Profile.

Dashboard tab is read-only

The Agency Info tab on the Dashboard shows a read-only summary of your agency. To edit any field, use the Agency Settings path above.

Configure These Settings

Setting	Why It Matters
Display Name	Shown throughout the UI and on reports
Timezone	Critical — controls notification timing, expiration checks, and logs
Contact Info	Phone, website, email for your organization
Address	Headquarters or primary operating location
Logo	Appears on reports and exported documents

Tax Exemption (For Nonprofit Pricing)

If your agency is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit or government entity, you can apply for tax-exempt status to receive nonprofit pricing discounts.

To apply:

1. Enable the This agency is tax-exempt toggle switch
2. Enter your EIN (Employer Identification Number) in the format XX-XXXXXXX
3. Upload your IRS determination letter or tax exemption documentation

Each EIN can only be used by one agency

RAM enforces that EIN numbers are unique across active agencies. If your EIN is already in use, you'll see an error and can reach out to RAM support for help reconciling. See Agency Profile → Tax Exemption Status for details.

Verification Process:

• Your documentation will be reviewed by Rescue Agency Manager staff
• Once verified, a Verified Tax Exempt badge will display on your Agency profile
• Nonprofit pricing discounts are only applied after verification is complete

👉 See Agency Profile for full details.

✅ Complete this before moving on.

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Step 2: Walk Through Agency Settings

What: A single pass through the Agency Settings sidebar so the rest of RAM has what it needs (positions, ranks, activity categories, asset ID format, notification recipients, etc.).

Why Now: Most of these are quick toggles or single-line entries. Doing them all in one sweep means you don't get blocked partway through Step 5 (Team Members) because you forgot to create Positions, or partway through Step 4 (Assets) because you skipped Asset ID Configuration.

How to Get There

1. In the left-hand menu, expand Agency
2. Select Agency Settings
3. Click each category in the sidebar to expand it; click sections inside to configure them

What's in Each Category

The sidebar groups settings by purpose. Walk through them top to bottom:

Category	Sections
Organization	Agency Profile (covered in Step 1), Positions, Ranks, Communications, Access Roles (permission bundles — see Step 5). Note: Specialties was replaced by Qualifications, which lives at Certifications → Qualifications
Certifications	Certification Templates (covered in Step 3), Certification Settings (validation rules), Certification Notifications (expiration alerts)
Assets	Asset ID Configuration, Asset Types, Asset Notifications (all covered in Step 4). Note: Storage Locations is not here — it has its own page at Assets → Storage Locations
Activities	Activity Settings, Activity Categories, Skill Categories, Saved Locations, Invitation Lists
System	Notifications (system-wide policies, weekly digest, emergency alerts, email branding), Security, Audit & Logs, Integrations, Chat, Map

What to Do Now vs. Later

In this pass:

• ✅ Set up Positions and Ranks now — required before you invite team members in Step 5.
• ✅ Create Activity Categories — most agencies have a small fixed list (Training, Meeting, Operation, etc.).
• ✅ Configure Certification Settings and Certification Notifications — recipients, cadence, validation toggles. The templates themselves are Step 3.
• ✅ Configure System → Notifications — weekly digest cadence, emergency alert recipients, email branding (from name, reply-to).
• ⏭️ Skip Certification Templates — that's the substantial data work in Step 3.
• ⏭️ Skip Asset Types and Asset ID Configuration — those are the substantial data work in Step 4.

Specialties caveat

You can create Specialties now, but you can't fully wire them to certificates until Certification Templates exist (Step 3). Set up the names now if you have a clear list — just expect to revisit Specialties after Step 3 to attach the matching certifications.

Positions & Ranks (the bit you most likely need to do)

Positions are job roles a member can hold (Team Leader, Safety Officer, Medical Officer). Ranks are seniority levels (Captain, Lieutenant, Member, Probationary). A member has many positions but one rank.

Feature	Positions	Ranks
Purpose	Job roles and responsibilities	Seniority/hierarchy levels
Per Member	Multiple	One
Examples	Team Leader, Safety Officer	Captain, Senior Member

👉 See Positions & Ranks for examples and assignment instructions.

✅ Complete the sidebar walk-through before moving to Step 3.

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Step 3: Certification Templates

What: Define the certifications and records your agency tracks (CPR, SARTECH II, HazMat, background checks, etc.).

Dependency Alert

You must create Certification Templates before team members can add their certifications and records.

How to Get There

• From Agency Settings: open Agency Settings → expand Certifications in the sidebar → select Certification Templates.
• Direct URL: the standalone page at /agency/<id>/unified-record-templates is unchanged and still works.

Click the New Template button to create a certification or record template (requires appropriate permissions).

Create Templates For Each Certification Type

For each template, define:

• Subject Type — Person or Animal
• Record Type — Certification, Training Record, Background Check, etc.
• Template Name — What members see (e.g., "CPR/AED", "NIMS 100")
• Assignment Type — Required, Optional, or Restricted
• Expiration Rules — How long certifications are valid
• Notification Timing — When to warn about expiring certs (30, 14, 7, 1 days)

Common Certification Templates

Template	Record Type	Typical Validity
CPR/AED	Certification	2 years
First Aid	Certification	2 years
NIMS 100/200/700/800	Training Record	No expiration
SARTECH I/II/III	Certification	3 years
Swift Water Rescue	Certification	2-3 years
FBI Background Check	Background Check	5 years

Tying Specialties Back In

If you started Specialties in Step 2 and skipped attaching certificates, now is the time. Open Agency Settings → Organization → Specialties and attach the matching Certification Templates to each Specialty.

👉 See Record & Certification Templates for full details including all record types, field locking, and best practices.

✅ Create your certification templates before adding team members.

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Step 4: Assets — Configuration & Types

What: Decide how assets are identified, where they live, what categories you track, and who hears about expirations. Asset ID Configuration, Asset Types and Asset Notifications live under Agency Settings → Assets; Storage Locations has its own page at Assets → Storage Locations. The order below matches the natural setup flow.

Dependency Alert

Asset Types must exist before you can create any assets in your inventory. Asset ID Configuration should be set before assets are created (changing prefixes after assets exist is messy).

How to Get There

Open Agency Settings → expand Assets in the sidebar.

4A: Asset ID Configuration

Why first: The ID format is hard to change once assets exist. Get it right at the start.

Setting	Description
Auto-Generation	Enable/disable automatic ID creation
Default Prefix	Text before the number (e.g., "ASSET", "RAM")
Number Padding	Digits in the number (3 = 001, 4 = 0001)
Type-Specific Prefixes	Different prefixes per asset type

Example type-specific prefixes:

Asset Type	Prefix	Example ID
Radio	RADIO	RADIO-001
Medical Kit	MED	MED-001
Vehicle	VEH	VEH-001

4B: Storage Locations (Optional but Recommended)

👉 Assets → Storage Locations in the left sidebar — this one is a page of its own, not a section of Agency Settings.

Define where assets are physically stored. The hierarchy goes from largest to smallest:

Facility (e.g., "Main Station")
  └── Area (e.g., "Gear Room")
        └── Section (e.g., "Shelf A")
              └── Bin (e.g., "Bin 12")

You can also designate Mobile Assets (vehicles, trailers) as storage locations for the gear they carry. To build out the inside of one, open the asset and use its Internal Storage section — same hierarchy, scoped to that asset.

Members with Inventory — View can browse this page read-only; changing the structure needs Inventory — Edit.

Skip if: you only have a few assets or track locations informally.

Why this matters:

• Standardizes check-in/check-out workflows
• Makes it easy to find equipment
• Improves inventory reports
• Tracks what's on which vehicle

4C: Asset Types (Required)

RAM ships with a library of common asset types you can add with one click, plus the ability to create custom types.

Category	Examples
Communications	Radios, Repeaters, Satellite Phones
Medical	AED, First Aid Kit, Oxygen Kit, Trauma Kit
Rescue Equipment	Ropes, Harnesses, Litters, Technical Rescue Gear
Vehicles	Trucks, ATVs, Boats, Trailers
Technology	GPS Units, Drones, Laptops, Cameras
Protective Gear	Helmets, PFDs, Turnout Gear

When creating asset types, you can configure:

• Requires Insurance — Track insurance expiration
• Requires Registration — Track registration documents
• Has Expiration — Items that expire (medical supplies)
• Requires Calibration — Equipment needing regular calibration
• Is Composite — Assets with subcomponents

4D: Asset Notifications

Email alerts for expirations and due dates. Pick recipients and timing for each:

Notification Type	What It Tracks	Recommended
Asset Expiration	Items that expire (medical supplies, batteries)	30 days
Inspection Due	Scheduled inspections	30 days
Maintenance Due	Scheduled maintenance reminders	30 days
Insurance Expiration	Vehicle/equipment insurance renewals	30 days
Registration Expiration	Vehicle/equipment registrations	30 days
Lease Expiration	Leased equipment end-of-term	30 days
Service Due	Scheduled service appointments	14 days
Medical Supply	Expiring medical inventory (epi-pens, meds, etc.)	30 days

Recipients:

• All Admins — Every admin user gets notified
• Specific Users — Select individual team members (e.g., Equipment Manager, Fleet Coordinator)

Best Practice

Assign an Equipment Manager or Logistics Coordinator as the recipient to centralize asset tracking. You can split recipients across notification types if responsibilities are divided across people.

👉 See Asset Management for full details on creating assets and tracking.

✅ Complete all four asset sub-steps before creating assets.

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Step 5: Team Members

What: Add users to your agency.

Why Last?

When users join now, they'll see a fully configured system. They can immediately:

• Add their certifications (templates exist from Step 3)
• Have positions and ranks assigned (defined in Step 2)
• Check out assets (types exist from Step 4)

How to Get There

In the left-hand menu, click Team Roster → Add Member.

Adding a Member

1. Enter First Name, Last Name, and Email
2. Choose their Access Tier (Admin or User)
3. Configure password (auto-generate recommended)
4. Enable email invitation
5. Add contact information and emergency contact
6. Set membership type and status
7. Click Create User

Access Tiers

Tier	What it means
Admin	Full access to all settings and data, bypasses all permission checks
User	Access is controlled by the Roles assigned to this member

Assign Admin tier sparingly

Give Admin to agency leadership and whoever manages the system. For everyone else, use the User tier and assign appropriate Roles to grant the specific access they need.

What Happens Next

• Member receives invitation email with login credentials
• They must change their password on first login
• Every new User-tier member is automatically assigned the Agency User role (baseline read access)
• You can assign additional Roles from Agency Settings → Organization → Roles
• You can assign positions and ranks on their profile

👉 See Team Management for full details including all fields, password options, and bulk import.

✅ Add team members after core setup is complete.

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Quick Reference: Setup Dependencies

Before You Can...	You Must First...
Send any notification	Set the Agency Profile timezone (Step 1)
Assign certifications to members	Create Certification Templates (Step 3)
Create an asset	Create Asset Types (Step 4C)
Use predictable asset IDs	Set Asset ID Configuration before any assets exist (4A)
Assign positions to members	Create Positions (Step 2 → Organization → Positions)
Assign ranks to members	Create Ranks (Step 2 → Organization → Ranks)
Wire Specialties to certificates	Create Certification Templates (Step 3)
Assign assets to storage	Set up Storage Locations (Step 4B)
Assign roles to members	Invite members first (Step 5) — roles are assigned after accounts exist

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Setup Checklist

Use this checklist to track your progress:

Step 1 — Agency Profile

• Display name set
• Timezone set correctly
• Contact info and address filled in
• Logo uploaded
• Tax-exempt status submitted (if applicable)

Step 2 — Walk Through Agency Settings

• Positions created (Organization)
• Ranks created (Organization)
• Specialties named (Organization — circle back after Step 3)
• Communications channels added (Organization)
• Certification Settings reviewed (Certifications)
• Certification Notifications recipients chosen (Certifications)
• Activity Categories created (Activities)
• Skill Categories defined (Activities)
• System → Notifications: weekly digest, emergency alerts, email branding

Step 3 — Certification Templates

• Templates created for every cert your agency tracks
• Specialties linked to their certificates

Step 4 — Assets

• Asset ID Configuration set (4A)
• Storage Locations defined (4B — optional)
• Asset Types added (4C)
• Asset Notifications recipients + timing configured (4D)

Step 5 — Team Members

• Team members invited
• Positions and ranks assigned
• Roles assigned to User-tier members (Agency Settings → Organization → Roles)

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Detailed Documentation

For comprehensive guides on each feature:

Topic	Guide
Agency Profile	Agency Profile
Certifications	Record & Certification Templates
Specialties	Agency Specialties
Positions & Ranks	Positions & Ranks
Team Members	Team Management
Assets	Asset Management
Notifications	Agency Notification Settings
Roles & Permissions	Roles & Permissions

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Need Help?

• User Guides: User Guide
• Support: Contact us through the app's Support menu
• Questions: Use the in-app feedback button

Your agency is ready for launch!