Rise CRM User Manual

• Dashboards
• Navigator Dashboard
• Admin Dashboard
• Default Dashboard
• Meetings
• New Meeting
• Import Meetings
• Users
• Managing Users
• Importing Users
• Ecosystem Roles
• Entrepreneur Profiles
• Grants
• New Grant
• Entities
• Managing Entities
• Business Profiles
• Referrals
• Provided Services
• Importing Businesses (Entities)
• Events
• Creating Events
• Programs
• New Program
• New Program Enrollments
• User Profile
• Managing Your Profile
• Settings
• Managing Settings
• Managing Referral Statuses and Milestones
• Comments
• Reminders
• Addresses
• Phone Numbers
• Tags

Dashboards

Navigator Dashboard

Admin Dashboard

The admin dashboard contains a myriad of useful information and functionality.

At the top of the dashboard, you will notice several buttons (view reminders, create user and create entity). Just below the aforementioned buttons you will see some information blocks that will tell you how many users, entrepeneurs, and entities are in the system as well as a block with referrals and they're overall status.

Once past the more basic info section you will find a list of your past and future meetings (though you may hide them if you wish).

Default Dashboard

Meetings

New Meeting

While on your main page (dashboard), scroll down to the meetings section and hit new.

Select the appropriate grant.

Enter a title and description of what the meeting is meant to accomplish.

Select the entity involved in the meeting or N/A as well as the location in which the meeting will take place. If choosing a custom location, be sure to note the mileage traveled.

Enter the assumed start and end date/times.

Click create and your new meeting will now appear on your dashboard.

Import Meetings

While on your main page (dashboard), scroll down to the meetings section and hit import.

Choose if you want to just import meetings, or both meetings and attendees.

Choose if you're importing from a CSV file or an Excel file.

Click "Browse...", and select the CSV or Excel file you wish to import.

Click "Import".

The meetings should then appear at the bottom of the dashboard page.

Note: Within the import menu, there are examples on the right you can download.

Users

Managing Users

From the "Users" drop down at the top, you can choose a specific group of users you wish to view.

To create a new user, go to any user screen and click "Create User".

Fill out all the required information.

Once all the information is entered, click "Create".

The user should now appear under the group you assigned them to, and under "All Users"

You can click on the user to pull up a new menu showing all of their information. From here, you may edit or delete the user. You can also add entities, reminders, addresses, phone numbers, meetings, ecosystem roles, or an entrepreneur profile.

Importing Users

"Users" include entrepreneurs and staff members.

Open the Import Users screen

From Users, choose Import. You land on the import screen for users, where you pick the import type, file format, and file, then Import. Use Download Templates on the right when you need the correct column headers.

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Create a user manually

1. Go to Users and open Create user (or use the same action from your role’s dashboard if it appears there).
2. Complete the form: legal name fields, Display name, optional email and 10-digit phone, Application role, and Ecosystem role (or use the ecosystem-role picker elsewhere on the page if your site is set up that way).
3. Optional sections: demographics, marketing opt-in, preferred contact method, profile image.
4. Save. The system creates the account and assigns the role you chose.

If the new user’s application role is Entrepreneur, you stay on the create screen for the next step. For other roles, you are sent to that user’s profile page.

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Add or fill in an entrepreneur profile (manual)

Right after creating an Entrepreneur

• After the user is created, the entrepreneur profile form appears on the same page. Fill it in and save.

For an existing user

1. Open Users, then open that person’s profile.
2. If they are an Entrepreneur (or already tied to entrepreneur data), you’ll see the entrepreneur profile card or a form to create the profile if one does not exist yet.
3. Save when finished.

Typical fields: Assigned navigator, Client status (active/inactive), Lead source, SBDC client, Income sufficiency, Self-employment status, Traditional employment status (outside self-employment). Use the same option keys as in the app (for imports, those keys must match exactly—see below).

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Import users only (one sheet) — CSV or Excel

Use this when you only need user accounts (no entrepreneur profile rows in the file).

1. On the Import Users screen, set Import type to Users.
2. Set Format to CSV or Excel (.csv / .xlsx).
3. Download the Users template (CSV or Excel) so your file uses the correct headers.
4. Fill the sheet and upload it, then click Import.

Important columns (users import)

• Required: first_name, last_name, application_role, import_context
  • application_role must be the exact role name configured in RISE (same as in the role list when creating a user).
  • import_context is required on this import (any short label you use to remember this import is fine).
• Strongly recommended: email — rows are matched/updated by email; without a unique email, behavior is unreliable.
• Optional: name (otherwise display name is built from first + last), middle_name, password (if omitted, a random password is set), phone_number (digits, 10-digit US-style number as stored), account_status (e.g. active/true/enabled/1 for active), ecosystem_roles (comma-separated role tags).

Extra columns in the Users export template (e.g. demographics) may be present in the template file; the importer only processes the fields its validation accepts.

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Import users and entrepreneur profiles together (two worksheets) — Excel

Use this when one workbook should create/update both users and their entrepreneur profiles.

1. Download Users and Entrepreneur Profiles (Multiple Sheets) — this is an Excel workbook with two worksheets in a fixed order:
   • Worksheet 1: Users (same columns/rules as the single-sheet Users import).
   • Worksheet 2: Entrepreneur profiles (one row per profile; links to an existing user from the first sheet or one already in RISE).
2. On the Import Users screen, set Import type to Users and Entrepreneur Profiles (Multiple Sheet).
3. Set Format to Excel and upload the .xlsx file, then Import.

Worksheet 2 — match each row to a user

Each row is one entrepreneur profile for one existing user. Identify that user using the first of these that you fill in:

1. user_id
2. user_email (if no user_id)
3. first_name + last_name (if neither above)—risky if names duplicate.

Navigator (optional): use navigator_id or navigator_name (exact display name).

Other entrepreneur columns

• client_status — optional in the file; if missing, it defaults to inactive.
• sbdc_client — 0 or 1.
• lead_source, self_employment_status, traditional_employment_status, income_sufficiency — if present, values must be the internal keys (not the long labels), for example:
  • Lead source: word_of_mouth, rise-website, facebook, linkedin, instagram, event, referral, other
  • Employment (self or traditional): full_time, part_time, seasonal, side
  • Income sufficiency: more_than_meets, meets, struggle, barely_meet, unable_to_meet, not_drawing_income_from_business
• import_context — optional on this sheet.

Import users first on worksheet 1, then profiles on worksheet 2, so every profile row can resolve a user.

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Errors and related imports

• If the import fails, the screen can list failed rows and messages; fix those cells and try again. No records are created unless all pass the validation checks.
• To import only entrepreneur profiles (users already exist), the Import Users page includes a shortcut to the Entrepreneur Profiles import flow, with its own templates.

Ecosystem Roles

Ecosystem roles are roles you can grant accounts that define what they are. For example, you can give a navigator the "Navigator" ecosystem role within their profile. The buttons for this are down towards the bottom of the page, right above reminders. A user can be given any amount of ecosystem roles at once.

Entrepreneur Profiles

For new users:

At the top of the screen, click "Users", select any group, then click "Create User".

Fill out the user's information. Only first name, last name, display name, and role are required. Make sure to select "Entrepreneur". Click "Create" at the bottom of the page.

On the next screen, you may create an entrepreneur profile. This is optional. If you wish to create one, fill out their assigned navigator, client status, lead source, whether they're an SBDC client or not, whether or not they're drawing income, their income sufficiency, self employment status, and traditional employment status. Then click "Create". Note: Only client status is required here.

Once the entrepreneur profile has been created, you may then view it, edit it, delete it, or view activity logs.

For existing users:

At the top of the screen, click "Users", select the group the user would be under, then click the user you're looking for.

On the next page, scroll down slightly to see the "Create Entrepreneur Profile" box. 

Fill out their assigned navigator, client status, lead source, whether they're an SBDC client or not, whether or not they're drawing income, their income sufficiency, self employment status, and traditional employment status. Then click "Create". Note: Only client status is required here.

Once the entrepreneur profile has been created, you may then view it, edit it, delete it, or view activity logs.

Grants

New Grant

While on your main page (dashboard), navigate to the top of the screen and click "Grants".

Click "Create Grant"

Fill out the appropriate information.

• Name of the grant. 
  
• A description of the grant.
• The grant's status.
• The grant's start date and end date. 
  
• The amount the grant provided. 
  
• Who the funder is. 
  
• The grant code. 
  Note: All fields must be filled in.

Click "Save".

On the next screen, you can edit the grant information, delete the entry, add filters for reporting, or download metrics.

Entities

Managing Entities

While on your main page (dashboard), navigate to the top of the screen and click "Entities".

From this page, you can search for entities that have already been created, or you can create or import new ones.

To create a new entity, click on "Add".

Fill out each field. This includes:

• Entity Name
• NAICS Code
• Owners
• Entity Type
• Tax Classification
• Entity Description
• Entity Email
• Entity Website URL
• DBAs
• Comments
• State
• Locality

You may also add a profile icon and any social links.

Choose if you want to add business details or not.

Regardless of choice, click "Save".

If you chose to add business details, on the next screen, fill out the fields

These are:

• Entity Stage
• Month and Year
• Target Market
• Chamber Link
  
  

Click "Save".

On the next screen, you can edit the entity, delete it, add tags, add phone numbers, add addresses, add a meeting, add comments/notes, create referrals, add provided services, add milestones, add staff positions, or add accessed capital.

Business Profiles

Referrals

At the top of the screen, click "Entities", and then the entity you wish to add referrals for. 

Scroll down to the bottom of the screen, click "Create Referral".

On the next screen, fill out the provider, status, and notes.

Provided Services

At the top of the screen, click "Entities", and then the entity you wish to add services for. 

Scroll down to the bottom of the screen, click "Add Service".

On the next screen, fill out the entity, the name of the service, and the description of the service.

Click "Add Service".

On the next screen, you may edit the service or delete it.

Importing Businesses (Entities)

Open the import screen

From Entities, choose Import. Select the import type, CSV or Excel, choose your file, then Import. Use Download Templates for the correct column headers.

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Create an entity manually

• Go to Entities → Add entity (or from a user’s profile, Add entity to tie an owner).
• Fill in the form and save.

Use a file import when you have many rows or spreadsheet data already prepared.

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Import entities only (one sheet)

For entity rows only (no separate business-profile sheet).

• Import type: Entities
• Format: CSV or Excel
• Download the Entities template, fill it, upload, then Import

Matching: Each row matches on name. The same name as an existing entity updates that record.

Columns

• name — required
• owner_first_name, owner_last_name — optional; both must match an existing user’s first and last name to attach that user as owner
• description, dbas, email, website_url, import_context — optional text
• phone_number — optional; numeric (10-digit style)
• type, tax_classification — optional; use enum keys from Allowed enum values (not the display labels)
• naics_code — optional; must be a code that already exists in RISE (see note under that section)
• state, locality, town — optional; see State, locality, and town under Allowed enum values
• Social URLs — optional; one column each: facebook_url, twitter_url, instagram_url, linkedin_url, youtube_url, meetup_url (valid URLs)
• comments — optional; creates a comment on the entity

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Import entities and business profiles (two worksheets, Excel)

One workbook for entities plus business profiles.

• Download Entities and Profiles (Multiple Sheets)
• Import type: Entities and Profiles (Multiple Sheet)
• Format: Excel (.xlsx), upload, then Import

Worksheet 1 — same columns and behavior as Import entities only.

Worksheet 2 — one business profile per row.

• entity_id — optional; RISE entity ID (used first if present)
• entity_name — optional; exact entity name if entity_id is not used (must match sheet 1 or an entity already in RISE)
• entity_stage — optional; enum key (see Entity stage)
• registered_on_va_scc — optional; 0 or 1
• chamber_link — optional; URL
• target_market — optional; text
• import_context — optional; text

If neither entity_id nor entity_name resolves to an entity, that row does not create a profile.

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Business profiles only

If entities already exist, use the Business Profiles shortcut on the entity import page and its single-sheet templates.

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Errors

Failed rows may list on the screen with a short message; fix the file and import again.

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Allowed enum values for imports

Imports expect the key (left column). Labels are for reference when reading the UI or exports.

Entity type (type)

Key	Label
sole-proprietorship	Sole Proprietorship
s-corp	S-Corporation
c-corp	C-Corporation
b-corp	B-Corporation
corporation-type-unknown	Corporation (Type Unknown)
llc	Limited Liability Company (LLC)
partnership	Partnership
pllc	Professional Limited Liability Company (PLLC)
llp	Limited Liability Partnership (LLP)
pc	Professional Corporation (PC)
cooperative	Cooperative
501c3	Nonprofit - 501(c)(3)
nonprofit-other	Nonprofit - Other
not-yet-formed	Not yet formed
government	Government
other	Other

Tax classification (tax_classification)

Key	Label
disregarded-entity	Disregarded Entity
partnership	Partnership
c-corp	C-Corporation
s-corp	S-Corporation
501c3	Nonprofit - 501(c)(3)
llc	Limited Liability Company (LLC)
trust	Trust
estate	Estate
exempt	Exempt
not-applicable	N/A

Entity stage (entity_stage, worksheet 2)

Key	Label
ideation	Ideation
startup	Startup
growth	Growth
expansion	Expansion
mature	Mature

NAICS code (naics_code)

Not a fixed list in this manual: the value must match a NAICS code already stored in RISE. If import fails on naics_code, use a code from the app’s NAICS list or leave the column empty.

State, locality, and town (state, locality, town)

These follow RISE region configuration (states such as VA and NC, with locality and town keys under each—for example county keys like halifax, mecklenburg, and town keys nested under the locality). The importer may normalize some human-readable county or town names to the correct keys when state is set. When in doubt, use the same keys as on an exported entity or as shown when editing an entity in the UI.

In this project, entities import does not use a separate “county” column. The spreadsheet column locality is validated and normalized against config('enums.region_localities') for the given state (EntitiesImport maps either the enum key or the display label case-insensitively to the stored key). Counties, cities, and other places all live in that same region_localities list.

Below are markdown tables you can paste into docs or a PR.

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Virginia — locality enum (state = VA)

Stored enum key (locality)	Import/display label	Typical kind
halifax	Halifax County	County
mecklenburg	Mecklenburg County	County
brunswick	Brunswick County	County
lunenburg	Lunenburg County	County
charlotte	Charlotte County	County
prince_edward	Prince Edward County	County
cumberland	Cumberland County	County
buckingham	Buckingham County	County
nottoway	Nottoway County	County
amelia	Amelia County	County
pittsylvania	Pittsylvania County	County
henry	Henry County	County
patrick	Patrick County	County
fairfax	Fairfax County	County
danville_city	City of Danville	City
martinsville_city	City of Martinsville	City
charlottesville	Charlottesville	City
centreville	Centreville	Place
dumfries	Dumfries	Town

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North Carolina — locality enum (state = NC)

Stored enum key (locality)	Import/display label	Typical kind
durham	Durham	City / locality
garner	Garner	Town
greensboro	Greensboro	City
chatham	Chatham	Locality (label as in config)

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Import behavior (short)

Column	Role
state	Must match a key in region_localities (e.g. VA, NC).
locality	Use the stored enum key (e.g. halifax) or the display label (e.g. Halifax County); import lowercases and resolves labels to keys when they match that state’s map.

Events

Creating Events

Overview

Events represent interactions with entrepreneurs such as skill workshops, grapevine monthly meetings, lunch and learns, and expos. You can create events one by one in the app on the Events page or import events in bulk. Each event is associated to one or more grants, which allows participants to be tracked in grant reporting metrics such as entrepreneurs served. Events can be backdated so they count for metrics after the event has occurred.

Create One Event

1. Click Interactions > Events on the top navigation bar
2. Click Create new event
3. Ensure that the auto-selected grant is correct or select a different grant
4. Fill out the required fields denoted by an asterisk and optional fields as needed

   1. Title

   2. Description

   3. Host: business or entity hosting the event

   4. Start date

   5. End date

   6. Guest attendees: these attendees are counted toward all grant metrics (e.g., entrepreneurs engaged and businesses served)

   7. Staff: These attendees are only counted toward the entrepreneurs served metric. Use this option for situations like a guest speaker or volunteer at an event. They are counted as an entrepreneur engaged, however, their business wasn't directly served.
5. Click Create

Import Multiple Events

Use this method if you want to plan out multiple future events more efficiently than entering them one by one. This only includes the event information, not the attendee registration information. When importing grants, you can only associate an event to a single grant. After the import, you can associate events to multiple grants if needed by editing the events.

1. Click Interactions > Events on the top navigation bar
2. Click Import
3. You can import events in several ways covered below

Import Events and Attendees

Use this method if you are entering events that already occurred or upcoming events for which you have attendee registration information.

1. Click the dropdown button named Hosted Events and Attendees (Multiple Sheets) to download an Excel workbook containing 2 worksheets
   
2. Fill out information for the events in the Hosted Events worksheet
   1. First associated grant
      1. One of the following fields must be entered 
      2. first_grant_id: the system ID of the first grant this event is associated with
      3. first_grant_name: the exact name of the first associated grant
   2. title
   3. description
   4. Entity (business) information
      1. One of the following fields must be entered
      2. entity_id
      3. entity_name: the exact name of the entity that is hosting the event
   5. Dates
      1. Date format can by yyyy-mm-dd, mm/dd/yyyy, and several other options. If the date format is incorrect, the system will notify you. Then try changing the format and re-import the data. Be aware of issues with Excel and CSV files having different formats, especially if you are working between different operating systems (e.g., from Windows to macOS)
      2. start_date
      3. end_date
   6. location: location that an event was held. No specific format is required and it doesn't link to an address in the system.
   7. import_context: A note added to the imported record for traceability later on. This is helpful for large amounts of imported data in which you may need to verify the import results.
      
3. Fill out information for attendees in the Hosted Event Attendees worksheet 
   1.  Event information to associated attendees to events
      1. One of these fields must be filled out 
         1. hosted_event_id: system ID of the event (only relevant when adding attendees to an existing event)
         2. hosted_event_title: exact title of the event already in the system or in the other worksheet
   2. Attendee (user) information
      1. One of these fields must be filled out
         1. user_id: system ID of the attendee if they already exist
         2. first_name: first name of the attendee
         3. last_name: last name of the attendee
         4. email: unique email address of the attendee
         5. event_role
            1. One of these exact values must be used to denote the type of attendee. Currently, there are 2 only 2 options, however, this could be expanded later.

            2. guest: these attendees are counted toward all grant metrics (e.g., entrepreneurs engaged and businesses served)

            3. staff: These attendees are only counted toward the entrepreneurs served metric. Use this option for situations like a guest speaker or volunteer at an event. They are counted as an entrepreneur engaged, however, their business wasn't directly served.
         6. phone: 10-digit phone number for the attendee. Only enter the numeric digits and no spaces, hyphens, parentheses, etc.
         7. import_context

Import Events Only

1. Click the dropdown Hosted events
2. Click CSV or Excel to download a template
   
3. Fill out the template based on the information above
4. Select the format, upload the file, and click Import
5. Correct any errors as necessary

Import Attendees Only

1. Click the dropdown button named Hosted Events and Attendees (Multiple Sheets) to download an Excel workbook containing 2 worksheets
   
2. Skip the Hosted Events worksheet as this is only for new events
   
3. Fill out information for attendees in the Hosted Event Attendees worksheet 
   1.  Event information to associated attendees to events
      1. One of these fields must be filled out 
         1. hosted_event_id: system ID of the existing event
         2. hosted_event_title: exact title of the existing event
   2. Attendee (user) information
      1. One of these fields must be filled out
         1. user_id: system ID of the attendee if they already exist
         2. first_name: first name of the attendee
         3. last_name: last name of the attendee
         4. email: unique email address of the attendee
         5. event_role
            1. One of these exact values must be used to denote the type of attendee. Currently, there are 2 only 2 options, however, this could be expanded later.

            2. guest: these attendees are counted toward all grant metrics (e.g., entrepreneurs engaged and businesses served)

            3. staff: These attendees are only counted toward the entrepreneurs served metric. Use this option for situations like a guest speaker or volunteer at an event. They are counted as an entrepreneur engaged, however, their business wasn't directly served.
         6. phone: 10-digit phone number for the attendee. Only enter the numeric digits and no spaces, hyphens, parentheses, etc.
         7. import_context

Programs

New Program

Whilst on your main page (dashboard), navigate to the top of the screen and click "Interactions". This opens a drop down menu, from which you click "Programs".

Click "New Program".

Select the associated grants.

Fill out the appropriate information.

• Name of the program.
• A description of the program.
  Note: All fields must be filled in.

Click "Create".

You should be taken back to the main Programs screen and the program you created should be there. From here you may edit or delete the program, or add enrollments.

New Program Enrollments

Whilst on your main page (dashboard), navigate to the top of the screen and click "Interactions". This opens a drop down menu, from which you click "Programs".

Find the program you wish to add enrollments for. If you don't see one, click "New Program" and create it.

Click "Enrollments" within the program you wish to add to.

Click "Add to". Fill out the user information.

• The user who is being added to enrollment.
• The effective date.
• Their role.
  Note: All fields must be filled in.

Click "Save".

The enrollment should now appear. You may edit or delete the enrollment from here.

User Profile

Managing Your Profile

From any page, in the top right there should be your name with an arrow pointing down next to it. Click this, and then click "Profile".

From here, you may edit your account name, email address, password, or delete your account.

To change your password, enter your current password, new password, and repeat the new password, then click "Save".

To delete your account, simply scroll down and click "Delete Account". Back up any data you wish to retain first. This action is irreversible. 

Settings

Managing Settings

From any page, in the top right there should be your name with an arrow pointing down next to it. Click this, and then click "Manage Settings".

From here, you may import results, create and manage referral statuses, view NAICS code groups, as well as create and manage milestones.

Managing Referral Statuses and Milestones

From any page, in the top right there should be your name with an arrow pointing down next to it. Click this, and then click "Manage Settings".

Referral Statuses

At the top of the settings page, you will find "Referral Statuses". On the right, you can enter the title of the referral and then click "Create". It will then appear towards the left. You can then click on the three red lines next to it wherein you may edit the title or delete the status.

Milestones

At the bottom of the settings page, you will find "Milestones". From here, you can click "Create new milestone". You can then enter the milestone name, the slug (which is a unique identifier for grant reporting. and a description of the milestone. Then, click "Add". It will then appear to the right. From there, you may delete or edit it.

Comments

Reminders

Addresses

Phone Numbers

Tags