14 User Groups

From the User Groups node, you can assign users and designated escalation persons to user groups, change a user group's name, or create new user groups.

You can also define project teams, partners, departments, business units, divisions, site-related groups and global groups and their assigned users. This configuration is reflected in the User Groups node of the Agile PLM address book for use in addressing email notifications.

Agile PLM administrators set up the user group configuration for their Agile PLM system from the following two nodes:

From the User Groups node, you set up user groups by creating, naming, and assigning users to them. User groups are displayed in the Agile PLM address book. When a user clicks the To button in the Send Object dialog box in Agile PLM clients, the address book opens. You can select a user group in the address book. Any global user group assignments you make in the User Groups node are also reflected on the user's User Groups tab of the user's window or page.
From the Users node, you configure user properties, including user group assignments. Any user group assignments you make from the Users node are also reflected in the Users property of that user group in the User Groups node. When you add new users in the Users node, you can assign them to one or more user groups. You can change these assignments later as necessary, from either the Users node or the User Groups node. For information about how to change a user's properties, see "Modifying User Properties."

If you create a new user group and want to assign existing users, it is faster to configure the new user group's User property than each user's User Group property.

If you have upgraded to Agile PLM from a previous version of Agile Product Collaboration, and want to keep your existing organizational structures in the system, you can create subclasses of user groups called, for instance, Departments, Global Groups, and Partners.

14.1 Creating a New User Group

Before creating a new user group, you should review the user groups you currently have. Run the User Group Configuration report (under the Analytics and Reports tab > Standard Reports > Administrator Reports node): it lists current user groups and the users assigned to them. (See "Administrator Reports.")

To create a new user group in Java Client:

Under User Settings, double-click User Groups. The User Groups window appears.
Click the New button. The Create User Group dialog opens.
From the Subclass drop-down list, select the type of user group.

User Groups is the only subclass available if you have not created another one in that class. To designate a new group to be of a type that has not been created, you must first create it from the Classes node for it to appear in the drop-down list.
Fill in a value in the Name field.
Select if the user group will be Global or Personal.
Click the icon next to the Users field. The address book appears. Move users (from the Names list) or other user groups (from the Groups list) to the Recipients list.
Click OK. The new user group object appears.

The new user group object is available to users from this point on. Its name appears under the User Groups node, and user group assignments are updated in the Users node. The new user group name also appears in the Agile PLM address book.

To create a new user group in Web Client:

From the left navigation pane, click Tools and Settings > Address Book > User Groups. The User Groups page appears.
Click Add. The Create New User Group window opens.
From the Type drop-down list, select the subclass type of user group.

To designate the new user group to be of a type that has not been created, you will have to create that from the Classes node in Java Client before it will appear in the drop-down list.
Fill in a value in the Name field.
Select if the user group will be Global or Personal.
Click Save. The User Group General Information page appears and is ready to edit.
Enter user group properties as needed. For more information, see "User Group Properties."
When you are finished, click Save. Then click the Users tab.
To create the new user group without assigning users, click Finish. The new user group name appears on the User Groups page on the Users tab, and in the Agile PLM address book.
To assign a user to the user group, click Add. You may type a name to find the user, or search a list of existing users.
Select one or more names and drag and drop them onto the table of users for the user group or double-click.

The new user group name appears on the User Groups page, and user group assignments are updated on the Users page. The new user group name also appears in the Agile PLM address book.

14.2 User Group Properties

The following table lists user group properties.

Table 14-1 User Group properties

Property	Description
Name	Permits you to enter a user group name of up to 29 characters.
Type	Select a subclass. The ready-to-use subclass is User Group. The administrator can create other subclasses in the User Groups class; these will appear in this drop-down list.
Description	Description of the user group.
Status	Whether the user group is active or inactive. An active group appears in the address book, an inactive group does not.
Global/Personal	Global user groups can be used for all users. Personal groups are seen and used only by their creators.
Roles	Roles applied to groups apply to all the users in the group.
Job Function(s)	The user group's assigned job functions. A user group may be assigned multiple job functions. This property determines which job functions can be selected for the user group in a functional team. A job function is a workplace job function, for example, Developer, Product Manager, or QA. For more information, see "Administering Approval Matrix."
Resource Pool	Permits this user group to be used as a resource pool for assignment in Product Portfolio Management objects
Define as Partner Group	If the user group is to be a partner (members can create and submit package objects), select Yes. The user group will then appear in the list of valid partners when you set any user's Program Manager for Partners property. See "Setting Up User Groups as Partners."
Allow Escalation Designation Approval	If the user group has identified one or more designated escalation persons (DEPs), this setting determines when the DEPs can approve, reject, or acknowledge a routable object. Settings: After Escalation – the user group's DEP can approve a routable object only after it has been escalated. A notification is sent to the DEP when the escalation period has elapsed. Always – the user group's DEP can always approve or reject a routable object. A notification is sent to the DEP immediately when the routable object enters a review-type or a released-type workflow status. (For more information about designated escalation person status, see "Assigning Escalation Persons to User Groups.")
Owner	Names the creator of the user group; for information purposes. The owner is the creator by default, but can be modified by a user.
Max Number of Named Users	Maximum number of users the user group can have. Settings: Blank (default) – The number of users is unlimited. Any positive integer – Defines the maximum number of users contained in the user group. The number can exceed the number of user licenses, but it cannot be less than the number of users already assigned to the user group.
Lists, Project Type, Region, Division, Product Line, Customer, Launch Year, Labor Rate, Overhead Rate, and Bill Rate	See "User Properties Defined."

14.3 Modifying a User Group

The following sequence applies to modifying any property of a user group.

To modify the User Groups settings in Java Client:

Under User Settings, double-click User Groups. The User Groups window appears.
Double-click a specific user group, say, Customer Support. The Customer Support window appears. The user group tabs are General Info, Users, Escalations, Attachments, History, and Share.
In any editable field, enter a new value or select from the drop-down list.
When you have finished, click Save.
To revert to the original settings or start over, click Close. You will be prompted whether you want to save new settings on the window; click Yes if you do or No if you do not.

Note:

If your company uses an LDAP system with PLM, if the User Group "synch" function enabled, you cannot remove or add users on a user group's Users tab that have been synchronized (that is, where users have been added to a user group through LDAP). See "Synchronizing Users and User Groups."

To modify the User Groups settings in Web Client:

Click Tools and Settings > Address Book > User Groups. The User Groups page appears.
Click a specific user group, say, Customer Support. The User Group: Customer Support page appears. The user group tabs are General Info, Users, Functional Teams, Escalations, Attachments, Share, and History.
On the General Info tab, click Edit.
In any editable field, enter a new value or select from the drop-down list.
When you have finished, click Save.
To revert to the original settings or start over, click Cancel. You will be prompted whether you want to cancel new settings on the page; click OK if you do or Cancel if you do not.

14.4 Assigning Escalation Persons to User Groups

When a workflow status exceeds its escalation time period without a signoff, user groups or individual users can be notified. These entities are called designated escalation persons. The Allow Escalation Designation Approval property determines when the designated escalation person can approve, reject, or acknowledge a routable object.

To assign designated escalation persons to a user group in Java Client:

Under User Settings, double-click User Groups. The User Groups window appears.
Double-click the name of the user group you want. The user group's tabbed window appears.
Click the Escalations tab to bring it forward.
Click the Add button. Use the drop-down list to select the reusable criteria for this escalation, such as All Change Orders.
Click next to the Notify Users field. In the Select Users window, select and move appropriate users (from the Users list) or other user groups (from the User Groups list) to the Recipients list, and click OK.
Click Save. The escalations are added to the Escalations tab.

To cancel your changes, click Close.

Now, if the escalation period for the specified criteria passes without a signoff, those users who were selected receive an escalation notification email.

To assign designated escalation persons to a user group in Web Client:

Click Tools and Settings > Address Book > User Groups. The User Groups page appears.
Click the name of the user group you want. The user group's tabbed object page appears.
Click the Escalations tab to bring it forward.
Click Add. In the Add Escalations page select the Criteria from the drop-down list to select the reusable criteria for this escalation, such as All Change Orders.
Click the Address Book button next to the Notify Users field. Use the selection window to search for users or groups and drag and drop them onto the table of users for the escalation or double-click.
Click Add More or Add (There is also a Cancel button.) The escalations are listed on the Escalations tab.

Now, if the escalation period for the specified criteria passes without a signoff, those users who were selected receive an escalation notification email.

14.5 Adding User Groups as Default Reviewers in a Workflow

In an Agile PLM workflow, three criteria-specific properties—Approvers, Acknowledgers, and Observers—can be filled out for each Review and Released status. These properties define the default users and user groups to be the default reviewers to signoff (approve, reject, acknowledge) when a routable object moves through the workflow. You can select users, user groups, or functional teams in these criteria-specific properties.

To select user groups from the Java Client Address Book on the Workflow Criteria window:

Select and open the desired workflow.
Click the Status tab.
In the Status table, click the desired review-type or released-type status.
In the Criteria table, double-click a row to display the Workflow Criteria:<criteria name> window. The criteria-specific properties for that criteria are displayed.
In a reviewer field (Approvers, Acknowledgers, or Observers), double-click the row to display the address book.
In the Address Book, click the User Groups tab.
On the User Groups tab, double-click the Global folder to display the global user groups.

Note:
Personal user groups cannot be selected for workflow criteria-specific properties.
Select one or more names and then click the Add button to move your selection into the Recipients list.
- To select multiple user names, use the Shift-click or Ctrl-click, and then the Add button.
- To remove a name or multiple names, select using the same techniques and click the Remove button.
If you select a user group and you want only the group name to appear in the Recipients list, use the Add button. If you do this when selecting approvers, acknowledgers, or observers, only the group as a whole becomes a reviewer, and any single member of the group can approve, reject or acknowledge. All members of the group receive email notifications.

When a user group is assigned as a reviewer (approver, acknowledgers, or observer), any member of the user group may sign off a routable object (passing through the status in which the user group was named), and the individual's signoff is, in effect, for the entire user group; no one else needs to or can approve, reject, or acknowledge the routable object. Once one member of the user group has approved, rejected, or acknowledged the routable object, it no longer appears in the Workflow Routings tab or Inbox of the other users in the group.

However, other members can approve or reject (approver and observers) the routable object after the first user has responded. If a member rejects the routable object that was previously approved by another group member, the user is warned that his signoff will overwrite the previous signoff for the group.
If you select a user group, and you want to see every name in that group in the Recipients list, then use the Add all the users in the selected group button (this button only appears on the User Groups tab). If you do this when defining the Approvers, Acknowledgers or Observers workflow criteria-specific properties, each individual becomes a separate default approver, acknowledger, or observer.
When you are finished, click Save in the Address Book.

Important:

When the Group Signoff Expansion criteria-specific property is set to All, any user group selected in the Approvers, Acknowledgers, and Observers criteria-specific property is expanded (all users in the user group are added to the routable object as individual reviewers) at the time the routable object enters the review-type or released-type status of the workflow. If a job function is filled by a user group, then that user group is expanded at the time the routable object enters the review-type or released-type workflow status.

To add or remove users or user groups on the Workflow tab of a routable object:

In Web Client, use the Add Reviewers and Remove Reviewers button on the routable object Workflow tab to add or remove approvers, acknowledgers or observers.
In Java Client, use the Add Approver/Observer button and Remove Approver/Observer button on the routable object Workflow tab to add or remove approvers and observers.

For more information, see the "Working with Routable Objects" chapter of Getting Started with Agile PLM.

14.6 Setting Up User Groups as Partners

This section collects the various elements that must be set up to enable Agile partners to send packages and to have program managers manage their package submissions. A "partner" may be defined as a company that works with your company and that has Agile users who need to send packages; or, a partner could be any Agile user that represents a company to your company.

Note:

The term "program manager" refers to the change analyst who manages package objects (instances of the Packages class); here it does not refer to the Agile role "Program Manager." Also, this use of "program" is not involved with the Programs base class.

To create partners and program managers to function together in Agile:

Define Agile partners, which are Agile users—usually external—who belong to a user group that has been defined as a partner. Each user group object has a Define as Partner Group property. When set to Yes, the user group will appear on the list of partners available under any user's Program Manager for Partners property.
Partners can be assigned the Partner role, which gives them the privileges to create and submit packages.
Define one or more Agile users—usually internal—as a program manager of each partner. The Program Manager for Partners user property lists all "Partner" user groups, which you set up in Step 1. You pick the partner groups for each program manager, that is, you can have one user be program manager for one or more of the partner groups, and another user can be program manager for the same or different partner groups.
Program managers for partners need to be assigned the Content Manager role, which enables them to work with Agile package objects. Again, as stated in the Note above, do not be misled by the Agile role called Program Manager; that role deals with functionality in the PE/PPM solution.