Stage 1: Onboarding
Get the client's mindset right for a real implementation, not a QuickBooks spin-up. Identify the company (or companies), who is involved, who owns what, and how the roadmap will be framed.
phase_key: onboarding
What this stage accomplishes
- Company basics and module scope are locked early: Core; HR/PR; Commitments; Service; Misc (EM, IN, MS, PC, PM).
- Start date and target go-live are locked here. Kickoff's timeline chart consumes those dates.
- The working roster is named: the people who take departmental handoffs later.
- Implementation role seats are assigned so later stages know who owns each lane (and so Core Config can apply default assignees from this matrix).
- A readiness summary (company info, modules, team + roles) is ready to hand into Kickoff.
Typical work / artifacts
Company basics and module scope
Lock identity and scope first. Company name, abbreviation (implementation id), and which module groups are in play.
Module groups typically considered:
- Core
- HR / PR
- Commitments
- Service
- Misc (EM, IN, MS, PC, PM)
Module groups teach-back
Out of the five groups, Core is always on: AP, AR, CM (cash), GL, JC, JB, HQ, and VA (security).
HR / PR: If the company tracks employees and runs payroll in-house, they always take Payroll. HR usually pairs with it when onboarding runs through the employee portal into Payroll. In-house payroll typically means both HR and PR. If payroll is outsourced to a third party, that is a separate topic (ask Todd). Outsourced clients may still use Payroll lightly to record weekly job cost, but that is not the normal in-house pattern.
Commitments: PO and/or SL. Purchase orders are very common. Subcontracts are heavier for general contractors.
Service: Vista Service Management for companies that dispatch employees to work orders (HVAC, specialty contractors). More SM detail exists beyond Stage 1.
Misc: Take the modules when the client actually has those processes.
- EM when they have an owned/rented fleet and want to (1) record cost, (2) track work-order maintenance, and/or (3) charge equipment to jobs.
- IN when they track internal inventory used on jobs and/or service work orders.
- MS when they haul/sell aggregate or similar material to jobs and also use it on those jobs.
- PC (pre-construction) is essentially unused; do not treat as a real Stage 1 option.
- PM (project management) is little used lately; Trimble ProjectSite is newer/preferred.
Do not teach deferring EM/IN by default. If the client has equipment fleet and/or inventory processes, EM and/or IN are part of the implementation. SRC deferred Misc (EM/IN) only as a scoped Summit Ridge PoC/test choice so Stages 1–3 could move on Core + HR/PR + Commitments. That is not the general Stage 1 pattern.
Unused masks with no posts can still change later; after posts, conversion is required.
Dates
Set start date and target go-live in Onboarding. Stage 2 Kickoff uses those dates on the timeline chart. Do not leave them soft.
Process investment mindset
Client chose to upgrade ERP. Invest in process improvement, not a software swap that clones legacy pain. Start asking early: AP automation vs hand-key invoices; outsource payroll?; how POs get created and sent; similar operating questions. Vista can support almost any needed experience. Openness to change is the point.
Working roster and role matrix
Roster next: the working team who will take departmental handoffs.
The Onboarding role matrix is to identify the leads for each role (Exec Sponsor, Client Project Owner, Implementation Consultant, Controller, Accounting/Payroll/Ops leads, IT, Dept SME, etc.). They are essentially titles. Stage 4 Core Configuration has an "apply default assignees" option that uses this matrix as a shortcut: marked Controller → responsible for GL; marked Payroll Lead → responsible for payroll configuration. Name the leads in Stage 1; those assignments carry forward. Do not over-teach elaborate split-vs-combined org design as the main point of the Stage 1 matrix.
Working role matrix seats:
| Seat | Role |
|---|---|
| Executive Sponsor* | Air cover / final decisions (often CFO); usually does no matrix work |
| Client Project Owner | Day-to-day client ownership |
| Implementation Consultant | Trimble-side implementer / facilitator |
| ERP Lead | ERP process ownership |
| Controller | Financial control |
| Accounting Lead | Accounting lane |
| Payroll Lead | Payroll config and testing (example: Tina owns PR later) |
| Operations Lead | Operations lane |
| IT / Systems | Systems and access |
| Department SME | Subject-matter expertise by area |
AP and AR are handoff areas under those seats, not separate matrix columns.
Role → module defaults (apply default assignees)
Code-confirmed mapping used when Core Config applies default assignees (Step 2):
| Role | Default modules |
|---|---|
| Implementation Consultant | ALL 18 modules |
| ERP Lead | ALL 18 modules |
| Client Project Owner | GL, HQ, JC, PM |
| Controller | AP, AR, CM, GL, HQ, JB, JC, PO, SL, VA |
| Accounting Lead | AP, AR, CM, GL, HQ, IN, JB, JC, MS, PO, SL, VA |
| Payroll Lead | HR, PR |
| Operations Lead | EM, IN, JB, JC, MS, PC, PM, PO, SL, SM |
| IT / Systems | CM, HQ, VA |
| Executive Sponsor | none |
| Department SME | none |
Caveats: Exec Sponsor and Dept SME are unmapped (none). PC is roadmap-only (no Tracker sync). A person with multiple roles gets the union of modules. Step 3 Sync assignees pushes to Tracker with Replace or Add.
* Important tension (open flag): Kickoff's executive sponsor and project owner are typically different from (and often not listed on) the Onboarding working matrix. The matrix is for doers. The sponsor is air cover and final decisions. Overlap is possible but not typical. Product currently seeds Exec Sponsor onto the Onboarding matrix; treat that as a soft leftover, not the process ideal.
Cap / Cadet (TUDS permission only)
Captain vs Cadet is a TUDS permission distinction only: the ability to add users on the fly (a shortcut) rather than only through the normal method. Captain ≈ team leader; Cadets ≈ everyone else. In almost all cases Captains should already be set up, but Captains need the ability to potentially add Captains who help manage team security inside TUDS. That is the bottom line. Nothing else.
Do not conflate Cap/Cadet with Vista security, Exec Sponsor air cover, or Onboarding matrix doer vs sponsor. Those are separate. The soft leftover about Exec Sponsor on the Onboarding matrix remains an open product/docs flag, not a Cap/Cadet question.
Multi-company
Onboarding is currently one-company-at-a-time. Stage 1 only identifies which companies will be set up.
:::note Open flag One-company-at-a-time Onboarding is a known flaw if this goes real. Faster multi-add comes later. HQ group sharing decisions wait until Stage 4: Core Configuration. Do not invent sharing rules here. :::
Connection to Company Tracker / Vista
Company profile, roster, and role matrix feed later Tracker-facing stages (assignees and module scope especially). This stage does not sync Company Tracker panels itself. Tracker setup work begins in earnest at Stage 4: Core Configuration, including apply default assignees and Sync assignees (Replace|Add).
Exit / moves to next stage
Onboarding exits with a readiness summary: company info, modules selected, team + roles. The implementation then moves to Kickoff.
In the product
In Mission Control, complete the Onboarding workspace for the selected company. For step-by-step UI, see Complete the Onboarding Stage. For company selection, stage strip, and exports, see Run the Implementation Playbook.