Overview

You can apply User Groups to define different rules attached to a user’s profile. A user’s access to services and other options is determined by the Groups assigned to that user. For example, an organization can configure travel services to allow and disallow certain kinds of bookings to control spending. A company may have a travel policy that allows executives to fly business class, but requires non-executive employees to fly only coach/economy class.

Common group profile options include:

Forms of payment
Policy groups
Policy display configuration
PCCs
GDSs
Company profile

Need to Know

Groups are defined by traditional profile fields only. Custom profile fields cannot be applied to groups.
Groups are cloned over from your template during the cloning process. However, you can create new groups or remove cloned groups from your site.

Workflow

There are several steps to configure and apply User Groups:

Define the groups that you need for the cloned site.
Define the profile fields for the group that you want to create. Because groups are based on profiles, determine any fields that are needed to create a group.
Create and configure the group.
Confirm that service rules rules are activated before test.
Test the service group.
Apply a group to users.

Define Groups

Determine the user groups that will apply to your cloned site. Groups are cloned over from your template during the cloning process. However, you can create new groups or remove cloned groups from your site. To view the existing groups for a cloned site:

From the partner dashboard home page, select the Groups tab to display the Groups Overview screen.

Note: A garbage can with a red X indicates a group is applied to rules.

By default, all users are part of the Everyone group. In this example, there are also three additional groups: Guest, Manager, and VIP. Any user who is not part of one of these groups, is part of the Everyone group.

A brief description of each group identifies the definition of the group. In this example:

The Guest group is defined by the First Name as Guest in the profile.
The Manager group is defined by
The VIP group is defined by a Division profile field.
Default/Everyone, VIP as well as Guest.
- Define VIP Group by VIP indicator profile attribute, and Guest by first name of Guest, all other accounts will fall under the Everyone group.
Default/Everyone, Manager, VIP, as well as Guest.
- Use profile field to capture policy group.

Define Profile Fields

Define the profile field used to capture the policy group.

Note:

Groups are defined by traditional profile fields only. Custom profile fields cannot be applied to groups.
You can dedicate a profile field to be used specifically for configuring different policies. Use this dedicated field any time you want to define more than VIP, Guest and Default/Everyone groups.

In this example MIS Field7 is defined. This field is dedicated as the policy group field for all sites that need more than the basic VIP, Guest and Default/Everyone groups.

From the partner dashboard home page of a cloned site, select the Settings tab.
From the Settings tab, select the Profile Field Settings link.
Select the Configure Profile Fields link to display the Configure page.
Choose a profile field to change. In this example, the MIS Field 7 field name is changed.
In the Display Label column. In this example, the Policy Group display label is entered.
Note: The Field Name is the name used to program profiles and for PNR mapping. The Display Name is label displayed to customers.
In the Data Source column, configure the profile settings.
1. Select Profile Load to allow the field to be captured in an HR feed, profile upload, or web service. Then, select All Users to trigger the field for both new and existing users when an HR feed, profile upload, or web service event is triggered.
2. Select Agent Editable to allow users with Domain Admin Access to the Deem Partner Dashboard/Console to update the field.
3. Select Admin Editable to allow users with Super Domain Admin Access to the Deem Partner Dashboard/Console to update the field.
Select the check box in the Display in Settings column to allow admins and agents to have access to the field in the user’s profile through the partner dashboard. Users can view the field, but cannot update the field.
After all settings are complete, select Save at the bottom of the screen to redisplay the dashboard home page.

Create a Policy Menu (Recommended)

After you define a profile field, it is best practice to create a drop-down menu to define the policy.

From Settings tab in the partner dashboard home page, select Profile Field Settings.
Select Customize Profile Fields to display the Customize screen.
Select the desired field to display the MIS Field screen. In this example, the MIS Field 7 field is displayed.
Select the Field Type arrow to select List.
In Option Labels and Values, enter the list items for the drop-down menu.
- The text before the equal sign = is displayed to the customer.
- The text after the equal sign = is written to the GDS to configure groups, upload HR feeds/profile upload files, and for web services.
  Note: Due to GDS restrictions, do not use special characters, such as %^^&$#@!, after the equals sign.
- This field is case sensitive. Therefore, be sure to enter the data in this field is exactly how it will be entered in the group configuration.
- It is recommended to enter the list in alphanumeric order to make it easier to add and remove data from the field.
- In this example:
  - Default=Default indicates Everyone Group.
  - Manager=Manager indicates Manager Group.
  - VIP=VIP indicates VIP Group.
In Default, select No value as a default. The admin will see “Select One” in the profile, if a policy has not been selected or update through other services such as the HR feed.
Select Save.

Create/Edit and Configure Groups

To create a new group or edit an existing group:

From the Partner Dashboard, select the Groups tab to display the Groups Overview screen.
From the Overview screen, you can either:
- Select Add a New Group to create a new group.
- Select a group name to edit an existing group. The following example shows an Edit Group screen. However, the fields are the same for both Add and Edit functions.
In Group Name, enter an easily recognizable name for the group. In this example, the VIP group is created.
Note: Do not use special characters, such as %^^&$#@!
Optional. In Description, enter a brief definition for group. This description is displayed only to site admins.
In Group Use, select the rules to apply to this group
- Service Rules
  Required. Allows you to apply rules such as policy, policy display, rail services, and car services.
  Note: Typically only Service Rules are applied to all groups because the other rule types are inherited.
- Account Rules
  No longer used.
- Groupware Rules
  Inherited. Calendar or ICal integration. Do not check this box.
- Display Options Rules
  Inherited. Display configuration, date, time, currency and time zone. Do not check this box unless you need groups to default to a different display configuration. For example, groups with users in different regions, such as the US and UK.
- Web Services Rules
  Inherited. Profile synchronization. Do not check this box unless the group synchronizes to a different PCC or company profile.
- Mobile Rules
  Inherited. Allows for access to the Deem mobile app. Do not check this box unless some groups in the site will have access to the app, while other groups will not have access.
- Dynamic Profile Attribute Assignment Rules
  No longer used.
After you select a Rules checkbox, the Group Parameters are displayed.
Select the drop-down arrows to complete one or more parameters that will define the group for the selected rule. This example shows parameters assigned to a Manager group. See the following Group Parameters Examples section for details and more examples.
After parameters are completed for the group, select Save to display the updated Groups Overview list with the new or edited group.

Group Parameter Examples

These examples define group parameters for Step 7 of the Create/Edit and Configure Groups. These examples configure Manager, VIP, and Guest groups. Any users who are not part of these three groups are part of the Everyone group.

Note that:

Data fields are case sensitive.
The group parameter data entered must be exactly the same as the data in the corresponding profile field.
For the Guest data field, duplicate the name in the user account.

Manager Group

Define the Manager value in the first parameter.
- Parameter value [first list]: Select Users.
- Profile attribute [second list]: Select Policy Group.
- Clarification attribute [third list]: Equals.
- Data field: Enter Manager.
Select Add Parameter to display the second parameter row. The second parameter excludes Guest users from also being in the Manager group.
- Parameter value [first list]: Select First Name.
- Profile attribute [second list]: Select Policy Group.
- Clarification attribute [third list]: Not Equal to.
- Data field: Enter Guest.
Select Save.

VIP Group

The VIP group uses the same type of parameters as the Manager group.

Define the VIP value in the first parameter.
- Parameter value [first list]: Select Users.
- Profile attribute [second list]: Select Policy Group.
- Clarification attribute [third list]: Equals.
- Data field: Enter VIP.
Select Add Parameter to display another parameter row. The second parameter excludes Guest users from also being in the VIP group.
- Parameter value [first list]: Select First Name.
- Profile attribute [second list]: Select Policy Group.
- Clarification attribute [third list]: Not Equal to.
- Data field: Enter Guest.
Select Save.

Guest Group

In this example, the parameters for the Guest group are defined as all users with the first name of Guest in the profile. Note that only one parameter is used for this group.

Define the VIP value in the first parameter.
- Parameter value [first list]: Select First Name.
- Profile attribute [second list]: Select First Name.
- Clarification attribute [third list]: Equals.
- Data field: Enter Guest.
Select Save.

Enable Service Rules

Before testing, validate the Service Rules that are activated and enabled for each group. A garbage can with a red X indicates a group is active.

You will need to activate each group that is not currently active. For details and instructions, see Service Rules.

Test Groups

Test the new or edited groups to ensure that profiles are being passed to the appropriate group. There are two methods to test groups. Both methods require profiles built in the site as either test accounts or client accounts:

Test to confirm enabled groups.
Test to confirm associated users.

Confirm Enabled Groups

To confirm a group is enabled:

Select the Users tab.
Select Edit User to display the Users screen.
Select Support Information.
Scroll to the bottom of the Support Information screen to Enabled Services (Group Name).
Confirm that the desired group is enabled.

Confirm Associated Users

To confirm users are associated to a group:

Select the Groups tab.
From the Groups Overview list, select one of the groups you configured to display the Edit Group screen.
Select View Active Users.
Confirm that the appropriate user accounts are listed for the the selected group.