Google Suite Administration

Norwescon uses Google Workspace to manage email and shared drives.

When we first started using Google Workspace, it was primarily for department-level email aliases, which are managed with Google Groups, and only a few people (usually the Executive team and a few others as deemed necessary) were given their own username@norwescon.org accounts. Over the past couple years, we have been transitioning towards expanding access to Norwescon accounts to more of the Concom.

Accounts and settings are managed through the Google Workspace Admin page.

User Accounts

Current policy is that any Concom member who communicates with non-Norwescon entities for Norwescon business reasons (business matters, communicating with vendors and partners, coordinating donations and partnerships, working with pros, panelists, and performers, and so on) should do so from a Norwescon account instead of their personal account. Other Concom members may be assigned Norwescon accounts at their Exec's discretion. While not required at this time, it is highly recommended for liability reasons.

Adding A User

When adding a user, we must have their name and a personal email to which the initial temporary password and instructions can be sent. From the "Add a user" link on the Admin main screen, enter the user's first and last name, their personal email for the "secondary email", and enter their chosen Norwescon email for the Primary email. Our default pattern is firstname.lastname@norwescon.org, but we allow users to request custom addresses if desired. Once the fields are complete, click "Add New User".

On the next screen, you will want to use the "Preview and Send" link to have Google send the user an email notifying them of their new account. If you do not do this, you will have to manually send them their initial login credentials; it's easier to let Google handle this. Click "Preview and Send", and then click "Send". They will get an email alerting them of the new account and letting them know that their initial password is temporary and will need to be updated within 48 hours. If they do not meet the 48 hour deadline, you will need to reset their password for them so they can try again.

At this point the user has an account, and can log in to any of Google's services with their Norwescon login credentials. They now have access to send and receive email from their @norwescon.org address by logging in to Google Mail with their Norwescon credentials.

Informational Email Templates

Several text templates exist in the NWC Administrator Files shared drive under the "Email Templates" folder. These contain information for the user, and should be sent to the user in the following situations. Simply open the text file, copy the information, paste it into a new email message, update or remove any placeholder text or irrelevant information, and send the email to the user.

= new user account.txt

Used when setting up a new user account. Includes basic information on how to log in to email, shared inboxes (if assigned), groups (if assigned), and shared drives (if assigned).

When sending this template, you should include the "Norwescon Google Accounts Instructions.pdf" file stored at the root level of the NWC Administrator Files drive as an attachment.

Google Account Switching

PLEASE NOTE: If the user logs into any of Google's services (Mail, Groups, Drive, etc.) and does not see their Norwescon mail, groups, drives, or other expected information, they may be logged in using non-Norwescon credentials. This is common when a user already has a personal Google account (often for Gmail). The user should check the account switcher menu at the very top-right of the Google user interface to verify that they are logged in using the correct credentials.

Departmental Google Groups

Department-level email aliases (such as secretary@norwescon.org) are actually Google Groups. This allows multiple people to be assigned to the group, people can be added and removed as necessary, and new group members can review email messages sent to the group even from before they were added. This can be very handy for continuity, as there may be different people assigned to any given position year to year.

By default, messages sent to a group address will be forwarded along to all members of the group at their email address. They can also log in to Google Groups with their Norwescon credentials to access the group and all of its messages through the Google Groups interface.

User Tracking

We track which users are assigned to which groups using a Google Docs spreadsheet stored in the Executive Team shared drive. If the Secretary is handling Google Workspace administration, no further configuration is needed. If the Secretary designates Google Workspace administration to another Concom member, that member will need to be granted access to the spreadsheet.

The spreadsheet has one tab for each Exec-level department. Each tab lists the groups managed by that Exec, all members assigned to that group (or members who have been removed from that group, designated by strikethrough formatting), and the date that the group member's status was last updated. Execs should review this spreadsheet when they first step into their position or during the annual summer changeover if they are retaining their position in order to ensure that only authorized Concom members have access to the messaging sent to the groups.

Adding Groups to a New User

When a new user account is created, they will need to be added to any groups they should have access to.

The quickest way to find any user account is to use the search bar at the top of the Admin interface screen. Simply start typing the user's name or Norwescon email address until they appear in the quick results, then click on their entry to load their information.

On the User information screen, scroll down to the Groups section and click anywhere within the box. On the next screen, click the floating yellow circle with a + (plus) symbol. In the small window that pops open, choose one or more groups by typing their name until you can choose the necessary group. Multiple groups can be added this way.

Removing a User's Assigned Groups

The Groups section of the User information screen is also handy for removing a user from one or more groups. For instance, if an Exec steps down or if a Concom member steps away and needs to be removed from multiple groups, it's easiest to do this all at once from this screen than to do it individually for every group they were assigned to.

Adding or Removing Existing Users To or From Groups

You can also add users to (or remove them from) Groups through the Group information screen.

As with users, the quickest way to find any particular group is to use the search bar at the top of the Admin interface screen. Simply start typing the group's name until it appears in the quick results, then click on its entry to load its information.

On the Groups information screen, click anywhere within the Members section to open the list of assigned members. From this screen, you can click on the "Add members" link to add members. You can add one or more members at a time this way.

You can remove members individually by hovering over their row in the list of users and clicking the "REMOVE" link that appears, or you can remove multiple members by clicking the checkboxes for those you want to remove and then clicking the "Remove members" link that appears above the list of users.

Users can be designated as "Member" or "Owner". Most will be added as "Members", the primary person on the alias (department head, Exec, etc.) can be designated the "Owner". This gives them the ability to manage members and adjust other group settings through the main Google Groups user interface.

Google Drive

Google Drives can be managed through the Google Admin interface or through the Google Drive interface.

We track which users are assigned to which drives using a Google Docs spreadsheet stored in the Executive Team shared drive. If the Secretary is handling Google Workspace administration, no further configuration is needed. If the Secretary designates Google Workspace administration to another Concom member, that member will need to be granted access to the spreadsheet.

User Tracking

We track which users are assigned to which drives using a Google Docs spreadsheet stored in the Executive Team shared drive. If the Secretary is handling Google Workspace administration, no further configuration is needed. If the Secretary designates Google Workspace administration to another Concom member, that member will need to be granted access to the spreadsheet.

The spreadsheet has one tab for each Exec-level department. Each tab lists the drives managed by that Exec, all members assigned to that drive (or members who have been removed from that drive, designated by strikethrough formatting), and the date that the drive member's status was last updated. Execs should review this spreadsheet when they first step into their position or during the annual summer changeover if they are retaining their position in order to ensure that only authorized Concom members have access to the data stored in the drives.

Within Google Admin

The quickest way to find the Drive management screen is to use the search bar at the top of the Admin interface screen. Simply start typing "Drive" until the "Manage Shared Drives" option appears, then click on that. You can also navigate using the left sidebar to click on Apps > Google Workspace > Drive and Docs.

The Drive and Docs screen displays a list of all Google Drives created by Norwescon. From this screen, you can manage each drive's settings, adjust which members have access to a drive, or remove a drive (not recommended).

Norwescon keeps a NWC ConCom Team Drive that is made available to all current ConCom members with current documents (such as bylaws, meeting agendas and minutes, public org charts, and so on). Every new Norwescon user account should be given access to this drive; ConCom members without Norwescon accounts may be added to this drive as well by request.

There are also a number of drives used by different teams. Access to these drives is given by request of the relevant Exec or Department head and tracked on the spreadsheet mentioned above.

Through Google Drive

The Norwescon Admin account is assigned as a manager of every Google Drive. This ensures that the Admin can manage drive settings and management as needed. This does technically give the Admin access to the data in every drive; we ask that whomever is acting as Admin not abuse this trust and only access drives they would normally have access to in their other duties.

When logged in to Google Drive with the Norwescon Admin credentials, all organizational drives are visible under the "Shared Drives" option in the left-hand menu. Drive settings and members can be managed by right-clicking on the drive name in the list, or by clicking on the down arrow by the drive name at the top of the interface when the drive is selected. Members can also be managed by clicking on the "Manage Members" link towards the top right of the interface when the drive is selected.