Newsletters and communications
We send regular bi-monthly Newsletters packed with tips and tricks, timely information and updates on our Training Program. To opt-in to receive these Newsletters, simply edit your communication and email subscription preferences in your Crisisworks User Profile. More on updating your communication preferences.
One final update from us for 2024. We all here at Datalink would like to wish you a safe, happy and uneventful festive season!
Crisisworks Holiday period
The Datalink office will have reduced support from Friday 20 December and will reopen Monday 6 January 2025. During this time, we will have someone on support during the non-public holidays, however we won’t be taking live calls, so please leave a voice message or email support@crisisworks.com and we will get back to you within one business day for high priority issues, please indicate the level of urgency in your message.
Priority support is available for Crisisworks customers via our 24/7 paging service. To access urgent assistance, phone +61 3 9521 4400 or 1300 328 254, press 1 for support and when prompted, press 2 to page the on-duty support technician who will return your call within the hour.
Crisisworks 5
Crisisworks 5 is launching soon. Final migration tests are underway, with the first batch of Councils testing their sites this week. The remainder of Council sites will be transition to the new platform in the new year.
What’s New?
Improved Platform: Faster, more resilient, and ready for future enhancements.
Unified Access: A single site for all councils.
Enhanced Security: SSO, MFA, and virus scanning for attachments.
Streamlined Tasks: Break requests into actionable tasks.
Simplified Resources: Management of Resources, Offers and Volunteers.
New Communication feature: Generate one-off letters and reports for Cases and Fire Prevention.
Mobile App: More speed, functionality and resilience.
Updated training and resources for Crisisworks 5 will roll out soon.
Training update
New sessions have been scheduled for January through to March including a new Crisisworks 5 Overview session.
For a list of session dates and to register, go to our Eventbrite page
Did you know about...
Targeted Communications: You can send communications to impacted people (from Cases) based on their location!
This has come up in training recently, it can takes hours to do this in other ways, but can be done in Crisisworks in minutes :-) PLUS: You will have a history of who was sent the messages and their responses!
The high-level steps are:
Create a search area in the library, use the category ‘Inspection Zone’ and tick ‘Include in Search’, see, Adding Geospatial Features in our Help guides.
From the Case datagrid, use the search icon to find properties in the ‘Search Area’ you just created
“Select all”, using the tick
Select ‘Send Communication’ from the bulk action menu across the bottom of the list.
If you or your team need any Crisisworks support or assistance, please contact our Service Desk or, if the matter is urgent, call us on 03 9521 4400 or 1300 DATALINK (1300 328 254).
Crisisworks 5 rollout
We are in the final stages of development and are preparing to launch Crisisworks 5 to our first group of user sites by the end of September. Following that, we will schedule upgrades for the remaining Councils and users throughout October and November. Our goal is to have everyone transitioned to the new version by the end of November. All your current data, including active events, will transfer across to the new version when your site is updated.
Integrations: If your site uses integrations with your organisation’s systems, this may add a bit of complexity to your upgrade. If you’ve already informed us about your integrations in our recent user survey, thank you. If you haven’t yet provided this information, please contact us at support@datalink.com.au with details of your integrations so we can include them in our planning.
VPR Coordinator and VPR Agency User training
We have scheduled some VPR Coordinator and VPR Agency User training this September. We would appreciate it if you could share the registration links below with any VPR Coordinators in your Council and any of your VPR Agency Users. Register via these links:
If you’re not able to make these sessions, check out the video recordings from the sessions we held earlier this year, they are available here on our Knowledgebase. See below for more on our training offerings.
2024 Roadshows
We’ve been busy running Crisisworks Roadshows around the state throughout August and September. We’ve so far had 129 people attend - that’s a great turn out! We still have a couple more planned for the year, one at MAV in East Melbourne, and one in Benalla in the Hume Region. You're welcome to attend these from anywhere in the state. These Roadshow sessions are run using a beta version of the new Crisisworks 5.
Register to attend a Crisisworks Roadshow
Training
We continue to offer online training sessions for all Crisisworks users. These sessions are available monthly and cater to every skill level - from beginners to advanced users. Our goal is to help you boost your confidence and provide direct access to our trainers.
Registration is simple, just open the Help Menu when signed into Crisisworks and click on ‘Register for Online Training’, or bookmark our Eventbrite page for easy access. For the latest dates and session details, please visit our Eventbrite page.
All training sessions are free and included with your Crisisworks subscription. We regularly schedule new sessions based on demand.
Please note: To ensure a personalised experience, we limit the number of participants per session. If a session is fully booked, join the ‘waiting list’ to be notified if a spot becomes available. Sessions may be rescheduled or cancelled depending on attendance.
Self-paced On-demand training
Access self-paced online training videos anytime through the Help tab in Crisisworks.
Crisisworks quick update July 2024
Crisisworks Roadshows 2024
Join us for the highly anticipated Crisisworks Roadshows 2024! Building on the success of the 2023 Roadshows, this year's events focus will be on relief and recovery with the new upgraded Crisisworks 5 platform. These Roadshows are your chance to connect with colleagues from your council region, explore best practices, and harness Crisisworks as a vital tool for emergency management.
Who Should Attend:
Current users of Crisisworks who have completed Beginners training or have equivalent hands-on experience
Crisisworks 'Curious' individuals interested in advancing their knowledge
All hands-on sessions will feature Crisisworks 5!
Event Highlights:
These Roadshows offer a blend of informative sessions and practical workshops tailored for both beginners and intermediate users. It’s a prime opportunity to network with fellow councils, seasoned Crisisworks users, and the Datalink Support Team. Share insights, exchange ideas, and deepen your expertise.
Registration Details:
Spaces are limited, so secure your spot early! Registrations are capped based on venue capacity. Ensure your key emergency management staff are registered promptly.
Share your experience:
Are you an experienced Crisisworks user with valuable insights to share, from any of your emergency activations with Crisisworks? We invite you to share your experience/knowledge at one of our Roadshows. These sessions were a real hit last year, with participants getting a lot of value from them…. Email kwilliams@datalink.com.au if you’re interested.
Roadshows dates
MAV (East Melb) - 22 Aug
Swan Hill - 28 Aug
Bendigo - 29 Aug
South Morang - 5 Sep
Stawell - 10 Sep
Camperdown - 11 Sep
Mornington -13 Sep
Warragul - 16 Sep
Crisisworks 5
We will be releasing Crisisworks 5 to a few councils in late August with the remaining councils to be upgraded in September and October. Councils with custom integrations or more complex setups, such as cluster sites, will be upgraded in October.
What will the upgrade look like? Should I hold off any work I’m doing in Crisisworks?
You can continue using Crisisworks 4 as usual right up until your site is upgraded to the new Crisisworks 5. We will notify you in advance of your site’s upgrade, all of your data will be carried over to the new platform overnight.
We’ll have more details in our next update.
Training
We are reviewing and redoing all our materials for the launch of Crisisworks 5.
Stay tuned for more on this in the coming months, in the meantime, our regular training program remains in place free of charge to all our Crisisworks users. We host around eight online training sessions each month and you can access our collection of on-demand sessions via the Help menu in Crisisworks.
Latest News
With quite a number of councils impacted by the recent storms and fires across the state, we’ve kept busy assisting wherever we can. We’ve run several one one-on-one sessions with councils and added extra Secondary Impact Assessment, Beginners and Recovery training sessions for councils. We also helped out with importing and managing rapid impact assessment data. Some of the themes we’ve noted are, inconsistencies with this Initial Impact Assessment data and council staff jumping in to assist with little or no training. Don’t forget, we’re always happy to assist with ‘just in time’ training and advice on how best to use Crisisworks to manage your emergency.
Emergency Recovery Victoria invited us along to their session on the Crisisworks EM-Impact Portal interface on 12 March. ERV circulated a recording of the session to councils, a recording of a previous similar session is available here along with all our on-demand training videos.
The Crisisworks Functional Working Group has been collaborating with us to conduct a review of all the Positions and Permissions in Crisisworks. Most of the changes identified are around the names of positions and coming up with alternatives that are more user friendly. We’re almost done with the back-end work, and will let you know soon when it’s ready for release.
NEW! Playbooks - Crisisworks Better Practice Guides
The first of our Playbooks are now up on the Knowledgebase, our online help documentation. Stay tuned as more will be added in the upcoming months. These Playbooks are designed to empower you to use Crisisworks effectively across all stages of an emergency: preparation, response, relief and recovery.
We understand the challenges of navigating a system amidst a crisis, especially if it’s been some time since you last used it. These Playbooks serve as a guide to help you swiftly grasp Crisisworks features and functionalities so you can establish a streamlined process, making your tasks more manageable in critical situations.
These Playbooks are intended to complement your council’s existing emergency planning and procedures. We’ve prioritised content that will be most useful to the current round of impacted councils, including handling Initial Impact Assessment data, conducting Secondary Impact Assessments, Kicking off an Event and Emergency Relief.
Check them out here: Playbooks - Crisisworks Better Practice Guides
New! VPR Coordinator and VPR Agency User training
We now offer training for the Coordinators and Agency users of the Vulnerable Persons Register. We have scheduled two VPR Coordinator and two VPR Agency User sessions for April to coincide with the latest round of client verifications. We’ve had great interest so far and sessions are filling up fast.
Register for:
11 April - VPR Coordinators
24 April - VPR Coordinators and VPR Agency Users
We will make recordings of these sessions available via the Training Video link under Help in Crisisworks.
Training
We offer a number of ways to access Crisisworks training to help keep your staff engaged and up to date. We host around eight online training sessions each month and you can access our collection of on-demand sessions via the Help menu in Crisisworks.
We have scheduled sessions for the next few months for each of the following sessions. Register here on Eventbrite.
Crisisworks for Beginners
Crisisworks for Evacuation, Relief and Humanitarian Aid
Crisisworks for Recovery Officers
Crisisworks for Recovery Managers
Secondary Impact Assessment Officers
Crisisworks for Coordinators & Administrators
Crisisworks Communications
New! Crisisworks Cleanup & Maintenance
New! VPR Training for Council VPR Coordinators
New! VPR Training for VPR Agency User
This training is included free with your Crisisworks subscription, more dates and sessions are released every month.
Assessment Register
A number of Councils impacted by the latest round of storms and bushfires have successfully used the new Assessments Register to import and triage their rapid or initial impact data. This work was prioritised to deliver substantial benefits to users by offering the chance to cleanse and selectively use only quality IIA data. This approach will reduce the confusion and complications that previously arose from directly importing data into recovery cases.
Check out our new Playbook on IIA Data and the accompanying overview video.
Tip of the day - WORK SUMMARIES!
You might know about the Crisisworks Rostering and Availability functions, but did you know you can also manage staff work times and expenses for an event in Crisisworks? Staff can use the Work Summary module to add their work times, just like a timesheet, record expense claims, and managers can also enter work times and expenses on behalf of other staff. The module includes three registers: Work Summary, Work Time Entry and Work Expenses.
Check out the Work Summaries page on our KnowledgeBase for more details.
Contact us
Previous Newsletters can be found here
If you or your team need any Crisisworks support or assistance, please contact our Service Desk or, if the matter is urgent, call us on 03 9521 4400 or 1300 DATALINK (1300 328 254).
Periodically we send bulk emails to notify Crisisworks users of major updates, planned outages or unplanned outages, we also send this regular newsletter. These mailing lists are generated from users' own individual Crisisworks Profile settings. To change these settings, simply log into Crisisworks and click on your name to edit your User Profile, then scroll down to the Communication Preferences and Email Subscriptions section.
Crisisworks support available
With a number of Victorian councils experiencing flood emergencies yet again this season, we wanted to remind you that if you or your team need any help getting what you need out of Crisisworks, we’re here to help!
Please contact our Service Desk or, if the matter is urgent, call us on 03 9521 4400 or 1300 DATALINK (1300 328 254).
Training
We have online training sessions scheduled every week and we can add more sessions if the demand is there. Register here on Eventbrite, the following sessions are scheduled for January, and we’ll have dates for February and March up by the end of the week.
Wed 10 Jan - Crisisworks for Beginners
Thu 11 Jan - Crisisworks for Evacuation, Relief and Humanitarian Aid
Tue 16 Jan - Crisisworks for Recovery Officers
Wed 17 Jan - Crisisworks for Recovery Managers
Thu 18 Jan - Secondary Impact Assessment Officers
Tue 23 Jan - Crisisworks for Beginners
Tue 23 Jan - Crisisworks for Coordinators & Administrators
Wed 24 Jan - Crisisworks Communications
These online training sessions are included free with your Crisisworks subscription, more dates and sessions are released every month.
On-demand Training Videos
We also have Online Training Videos available under the Help menu when signed into Crisisworks - simply click on ‘Online Training Videos’, or via our website. Current videos include:
Introductory Video (43 mins)
Coordinators Video (60 mins)
Recovery Introduction (28 mins)
Recovery System Administration (30 mins)
Relief Centre Registration Module (21 mins)
Field Inspections Mobile App Quick-start (11 mins)
Fire Prevention Notices Video (36 mins)
Contractor Setup and Use Video (7 mins)
Work summaries incl. timesheets (22 mins)
Rostering (47 mins)
Mobile App Quick Start Videos
Crisisworks Assessments Update
Just prior to Christmas, we released stage one of our new Assessment Register. This new register will allow you to import initial impact assessment data (from FRV or SES) into a separate register called Assessments under the Recovery Module rather than importing the data directly into your Recovery Cases. This will be a much cleaner approach and will give you a chance to review the data and select the records that need a Secondary Impact Assessment and then copy them over to create Recovery Cases. This update will only impact you if you experience a large incident - but please always get in touch with us here at Datalink so we can assist with your IIA imports.
Working offline on the Crisisworks mobile App
Crisisworks can be used out on site, in the field and offline via the Crisisworks App on your smartphone or tablet. By using the app, you can enter and update everything in Crisisworks without the need to take handwritten notes or be in front of your computer. It saves time and energy.
The Crisisworks App has an offline mode. When your network coverage is very weak, it will try to use the internet connection instead of its own offline abilities so you will need to manually switch into offline mode. Watch our short Field Inspections Mobile App Quick-start video (11mins) to learn more or contact us for assistance.
Tips: Before going offline be sure to:
Login to Crisisworks on your mobile device while you are still online
Download the asset database from the settings
“Star” the records that you want to have available for offline use (up to a couple of hundred)
Contact us
If you or your team need any Crisisworks support or assistance, please contact our Service Desk or, if the matter is urgent, call us on 03 9521 4400 or 1300 DATALINK (1300 328 254).
Periodically we send bulk emails to notify Crisisworks users of major updates, planned outages or unplanned outages, we also send this regular newsletter. These mailing lists are generated from users' own individual Crisisworks Profile settings. To change these settings, simply log into Crisisworks and click on your name to edit your User Profile, then scroll down to the Communication Preferences and Email Subscriptions section.
Email notification: opt-out / opt-in
One final update from us for 2023. We all here at Datalink would like to wish you a safe, happy and uneventful festive season!
See below for details on our Christmas hours, a new release to help with impact assessment data and some clarification on the VPR advice from our previous newsletter.
Holiday period support
The Datalink office will have reduced support from Monday 25 December and will reopen Monday 8 January 2024. During this time, we will have someone on support during the non-public holidays, however we won’t be taking live calls, so please leave a voice message or email support@crisisworks.com and we will get back to you within one business day for high priority issues, please indicate the level of urgency in your message.
Priority support is available for Crisisworks customers via our 24/7 paging service. To access urgent assistance, phone +61 3 9521 4400 or 1300 328 254, press 1 for support and when prompted, press 2 to page the on-duty support technician who will return your call within the hour.
Crisisworks Assessments update [new]
We just released stage one of our new Assessment Register. This new register will allow you to import initial impact assessment data (eg FRV) into a separate register called Assessments under the Recovery Module rather than importing the data directly into your Recovery Cases. This will be a much cleaner approach and will give you a chance to review& clean the data and select the records that need a Secondary Impact Assessment and then copy them over to create Recovery Cases. This update will only impact you if you experience a large incident - but please always get in touch with us here at Datalink so we can assist with your IIA imports. For more information see the online documentation page
Correction…Vulnerable Persons Register
In our previous newsletter we talked about how Victoria Police access Crisisworks, we weren’t as clear as we could have been. To clarify, Victoria Police log directly to the VPR which gives them access to view all vulnerable people across the whole of Victoria. Council’s should direct any access requests from Victoria Police to their REMI. If you are asked to provide a list of vulnerable people for police - DON’T, as this is an incomplete picture.
Security update affects Mobile users
Due to an increase in security requirements and changes to the cloud services, mobile users may get ‘The server returned an error’ message when they return to their device after 24 hours. To resolve, sign out and sign in again, just enter your council’s Crisisworks site name in the site address, eg darebin, to access http://darebin.crisisworks.com .
Contact us
If you or your team need any Crisisworks support or assistance, please contact our Service Desk or, if the matter is urgent, call us on 03 9521 4400 or 1300 DATALINK (1300 328 254).
Periodically we send bulk emails to notify Crisisworks users of major updates, planned outages or unplanned outages, we also send this regular newsletter. These mailing lists are generated from users' own individual Crisisworks Profile settings. To change these settings, simply log into Crisisworks and click on your name to edit your User Profile, then scroll down to the Communication Preferences and Email Subscriptions section.
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You have received this email because you are subscribed to newsletters or are a key Crisisworks user. Opt-out by editing your communication and email subscription preferences in your Crisisworks User Profile, please do not reply to this email unless you wish to contact our Service Desk. For information on how to edit your preferences, go to Email notification: opt-out / opt-in
Welcome to the latest Crisisworks Newsletter, our final for 2023! The Datalink Team would like to wish you all a merry, safe and emergency free holiday season and we look forward to working with you all in the year to come.
Don't forget, if you are activated this season, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with the Datalink team who can help guide you through the start to ensure you get the most out of Crisisworks.
Latest news
Roadshows
Over 75 council staff took part in the Crisisworks Roadshows held across eastern Victoria in October. The Roadshows provided great learning opportunities for emergency teams and featured hands-on training and exercise simulation for beginners through to advanced users. The Crisisworks Team at Datalink would like to sincerely thank the host Councils who generously helped out with planning, logistics and venues, thanks…City of Greater Shepparton, City of Wondonga,Yarra Ranges Shire, Yarra City Council, Latrobe Council and the City of Greater Dandenong. If you would like to get involved in the 2024 Roadshows and host a session for your region, please get in touch via the email link below.
Recent Activations and Crisisworks Use
We’ve seen a number of councils activated for floods and fires in the recent months and several new councils starting to use the Fire Prevention module. Crisisworks has been used for the first time by a Queensland council in response to the Tara bushfires. We also have an agency in the state who have been successfully using Crisisworks for some time now to manage their health and community services.
App update
There have been some issues reported to our helpdesk around downloading of offline data on the Crisisworks app. We have resolved the issue and issued an update to the app stores. Please make sure your device is running the latest version.
Useful Tips!
Vulnerable Persons Register
Did you know that Victoria Police don’t use Crisisworks to access the Vulnerable Persons Register? Instead, they log directly into their own system, any queries you get from VicPolice should be directed to their REMI. If you are asked to provide a list of vulnerable people for police DON’T, as this is an incomplete picture. When they login to their own system, their list will cover people from multiple LGAs
Importing Initial Impact Assessment (IIA) Data
The importing of Initial Impact Assessment data (from FRV or SES) is not a straightforward process, but we’re here to help! Please let us know in advance if you're expecting to receive IIA data, we need at least 2 days notice so we can schedule in the work required to clean up the data in import for you. Contact support@datalink.com.au.
FPN Reminder
With councils well into Fire Prevention season, here’s some timely tips from based on some of our recent helpdesk calls:
Make sure your FPN template is up to date and in line with the CFA Act and their Schedule 15.
Check that signatures are set up correctly for each of your Fire Prevention Officers. The Officer conducting the Inspection should be the default signatory on your Fire Prevention Notices.
Switch your Crisisworks app to offline mode if you’re in a patchy network area. For instruction on this, check out the mobile app quick start guide for tips.
Working offline on the Mobile App
The Crisisworks mobile app has an offline mode. When coverage is very weak, it will try to use the network connection instead of its own offline abilities so you will need to manually switch into offline mode, this is covered our mobile app quick guide. Before going offline be sure to:
Login to Crisisworks on your mobile device while you are still online
Download the asset database from the settings
Star the records that you want to have available offline (up to a couple of hundred)
Crisisworks Training
Be sure to include Crisisworks Training as part of summer fire season preparations for your team.
We continue to offer FREE online Crisisworks training with new sessions scheduled every month. The courses are broken down into 1-2 hour sessions on specific areas of Crisisworks so you can start as a Beginner and build your skills through to advanced. Our training is designed to improve your confidence and give you direct access to our trainers to help ensure you're well-prepared and using Crisisworks effectively.
Registration is easy - just open the Help Menu when signed into Crisisworks and click on Register for Online Training, or jump directly to Eventbrite.
Upcoming online sessions
Beginners
Communications
NEW! Crisisworks Cleanup and Maintenance
Fire Prevention
Relief, Evacuation and Humanitarian Aid
Secondary Impact Assessment Officer
Recovery Managers
Recovery Officers
Coordinators & Administrators
For dates and registrations, go to our Eventbrite page.
NOTE: We limit the numbers for each session to keep them small and workable. If the event is full, join the ‘waiting list’ to get notified if a place becomes available. Sessions may be rescheduled or cancelled subject to numbers.
On-Demand Videos
We also offer a number of on-demand training videos, these are also available from the Crisisworks Help menu. Here’s a few you might like to check out in preparation for the summer season:
Crisisworks App Quickstart and working offline with your mobile device
Secondary Impact Assessment for EHOs, featuring Troy Schonknecnht (EHO)
Contact us
If you or your team need any Crisisworks support or assistance, please contact our Service Desk or, if the matter is urgent, call us on 03 9521 4400 or 1300 DATALINK (1300 328 254).
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You have received this email because you are subscribed to newsletters or are a key Crisisworks user. Opt-out by editing your communication and email subscription preferences in your Crisisworks User Profile, please do not reply to this email unless you wish to contact our Service Desk. For information on how to edit your preferences, go to Email notification: opt-out / opt-in
Crisisworks evening maintenance for Tuesday October 31st (no outage)
Dear Crisisworks user,
This evening your Crisisworks service will enter a maintenance window.
Once this maintenance has completed, the list of changes can be viewed from within the Crisisworks dashboard once you sign in.
Purpose: apply software updates and patches to 4.44.72
Impact: No outage
Time and Date: Monday 31-10-2023 19:00 - 24:00 AEDT
Crisisworks is engineered so that this upgrade can occur with no outage.
Our software also undergoes extensive testing prior to each release. If you notice any problems resulting from this upgrade, then our service desk can be contacted as follows:
By email: support@crisisworks.com
By phone: 03 9521 4400 or 1300 C-WORKS
You have received this email because you are subscribed to the Crisisworks software upgrades and maintenance list. You can opt-out by following the link below. Please do not reply to this email unless you wish to contact our Service Desk.
Sincerely,
Crisisworks Support
This evening your Crisisworks service will enter a maintenance window.
Once this maintenance has completed, the list of changes can be viewed from within the Crisisworks dashboard once you sign in.
Purpose: apply software updates and patches to 4.44.71
Impact: No outage
Time and Date: Monday 02-10-2023 17:00 - 21:00
Changes in this release:
Improved login speed.
Crisisworks is engineered so that this upgrade can occur with no outage.
Our software also undergoes extensive testing prior to each release. If you notice any problems resulting from this upgrade, then our service desk can be contacted as follows:
By email: support@crisisworks.com
By phone: 03 9521 4400 or 1300 C-WORKS
You have received this email because you are subscribed to the Crisisworks software upgrades and maintenance list. You can opt-out by following the link below. Please do not reply to this email unless you wish to contact our Service Desk.
Sincerely,
Crisisworks Support
Opt-out | About our Maintenance Windows
Crisisworks Roadshow dates and ticketing
We’re excited to announce the October Crisisworks Roadshow for the Hume, Metro and Gippsland regions.
This will be a user group event with a mix of information sessions and hands-on practice aimed at both beginner and intermediate users. It will be a great opportunity to network with other councils, Crisisworks power users and the Datalink Support Team, share ideas and ask questions to further develop your skills and knowledge.
We will do our best to accommodate all who wish to attend, however registrations are capped according to the venue’s capacity, so get in quick to register your key emergency management staff.
October 17 - Shepparton (tickets)
October 18 - Wodonga (tickets)
October 20 - Wantirna South, Melbourne (tickets)
October 24 - Richmond, Melbourne (tickets)
October 25 - Morwell (tickets)
October 26 - Keysborough, Melbourne (tickets)
We received some great feedback from the series of Roadshows we ran earlier this year in western Victoria, so we’re hoping this round will be even better! However, these sessions don’t take the place of regular training, see Online Training below for information on how to sign up to our monthly webinar training sessions.
Call for Presenters
We are still looking for speakers for the Shepparton, Wantirna South and Keysborough events. If you’re an experienced Crisisworks user, have some great learnings or would like to share some of the innovative ways your council uses Crisisworks, we’d love to hear from you! Guest speakers present for approximately 15 minutes with a Question & Answer session at the end.
Online Training
Datalink offers FREE hands-on facilitated webinar training sessions for Crisisworks. We run sessions every month designed to improve your confidence and give you access to our trainers to help ensure you're well prepared and using Crisisworks effectively. These sessions are free and are included as part of your Crisisworks subscription. They run regularly with more dates and sessions being released, based on demand.
Registration is easy - just open the Help Menu when signed into Crisisworks and click on ‘Register for Online Training’, or jump directly to Eventbrite.
Upcoming sessions
Beginners
Communications
Preparing for Fire Prevention Season
Fire Prevention
Relief, Evacuation and Humanitarian Aid
Secondary Impact Assessment Officer
Recovery Managers
Recovery Officers
Coordinators & Administrators
For dates and registrations, go to our Eventbrite page
NOTE: We limit the numbers for each session to keep them small and workable. If the event is full, join the ‘waiting list’ to get notified if a place becomes available. Sessions may be rescheduled or cancelled subject to numbers.
Self-paced On-demand training
You can access on demand, self paced Online Training Videos via the Help tab in Crisisworks.
Did you know about...
View Currently On Duty in the Event menu lets you see your whole team including their most up to date contact information
Crisisworks Rostering lets you easily create rosters by drag and drop, you can also manage timesheets and account for staff expenses
Search Areas or Zones can be defined in the Crisisworks library to let you search and filter within your own custom defined areas
If you or your team need any Crisisworks support or assistance, please contact our Service Desk or, if the matter is urgent, call us on 03 9521 4400 or 1300 DATALINK (1300 328 254).
As part of our ongoing commitment to providing excellent service to Victorian Councils, we would like to ask you to complete this very short 6-question survey. It should only take you 3 minutes.
The anonymous survey data will be aggregated and provided to the MAV in 2 weeks and will be used to help us improve our support services.
We are emailing you because you have submitted at least one support ticket in the last 12 months.
We appreciate your feedback to help improve our Support services.
Please find a link to the survey:
https://forms.gle/gnRBHfLzAsMb4DSX6
We look forward to continuing to assist you with your Crisisworks system.
Thanks in advance for your help.
Regards,
Crisisworks Support Team
support@crisisworks.com
03 9521 4400
Welcome to the latest Crisisworks update for August.
Crisisworks Roadshow update
Planning is underway for the next series of Crisisworks Roadshow sessions, this time for our Melbourne and north west council regions, with six sessions planned for 16-27 October. As soon as we have the dates and venues locked in we’ll send round the registration link. These sessions will comprise an element of training, some peer to peer learning and an update on new features and Crisisworks tips.
Call for guest speakers - If you have some great insights or experiences of Crisisworks and would like to share at one of these sessions, we’d love to hear from you. We hope to see you there!
Online Training
We run free hands-on facilitated Crisisworks training sessions each and every month designed to improve your confidence and give you access to trainers to help ensure you're well prepared and using Crisisworks effectively. Registration is easy - just open the Help Menu when signed into Crisisworks and click on ‘Register for Online Training’, or register directly via Eventbrite.
August / September sessions
Crisisworks for Beginners
NEW - Crisisworks for Communications
Preparing for Fire Prevention Season
Crisisworks for Relief, Evacuation and Humanitarian Aid
Secondary Impact Assessment Officer
Crisisworks for Recovery Managers
Crisisworks for Coordinators & Administrators
We limit the numbers for each session to keep them small and workable. If the event is full, join the ‘waiting list’ to get notified if a place becomes available. Sessions may be rescheduled or cancelled subject to numbers.
See also, our series of on demand training videos, under the Help tab in Crisisworks, or go to https://crisisworks.com/training-videos-index/
Integrating Crisisworks with your council systems
Progress is being made integrating Crisisworks with various council systems using the Crisisworks Application Programming Interface (API). An integration with Technology One was recently achieved and although implementations differ between councils, some councils have managed to integrate their Pathway system with Crisisworks for inspections. Contact us and we can set up a meeting between your technical team and Datalink to see what we can make possible for you.
Crisisworks - tips!
This is a new segment in our newsletter, Crisisworks Tips! - improvements and things you may not know about Crisisworks. We hope you’ll find them useful, if you have any queries, get in touch at support@datalink.com.au.
Get ready for the summer season with our Crisisworks training videos. You’ll find videos on recovery, relief, system administration, Fire Prevention Notices, conducting impact assessments for Environment Health officers, quick start guides for the mobile app and much more. Check them out at https://crisisworks.com/training-videos-index/
Did you know we can customise your outbound email template in Crisisworks to include your council branding. Request this modification via our Service Desk, email support@datalink.com.au
Use the Expertise module to track qualifications and skills for users in Crisisworks so you can easily identify staff with the skills and experience you need. Users can update their own skills and the list of skills can be customised to suit your council's needs. Go to Expertise Module Help for more information.
New team member at Crisisworks
Hi, Kerrie here, I am very excited to join the Datalink team! Many of you will know me from my years working for Surf Coast Shire Council in emergency management. I’ve long been a Crisisworks fan and champion, so I’m really looking forward to this next chapter here at Datalink.
One of my first projects is to develop a set of ‘playbooks’ to help quickly get you up and using Crisisworks efficiently during an event. I will also be involved in training, Crisisworks support and working with you on various working groups.
I will be in touch with each of our MAV council customers in the coming months, but if you’d like to get in touch, I’d love to hear from you, email me at kwilliams@datalink.com.au, or call on 4311 1202. Kerrie Williams
Conferences & Events
We’re exhibiting at the AFAC23 in Brisbane next week, come see us at stand 472!
Welcome to the latest Crisisworks update for June.
Summary:
New Crisisworks Team member
Subscription renewals
Crisisworks Roadshow update
Integrating your council systems
New Compliance modules
New training material available
Online training update
Did you know?
Crisisworks has helped Australian local councils manage more than 5,000 events
Crisisworks compliance has been used for more than 60,000 council inspections and 20,000 infringement notices
Compliance modules including Fire Prevention, Permit to Burn and Notice to Comply are included with your Crisisworks subscription
New Team Member
We’re very pleased to announce the recruitment of a new Crisisworks team member - Kerrie Williams …. she will be starting on July 10th & brings with her enormous experience in council emergency management and also Crisisworks. Kerrie will be helping coordinate various Crisisworks committees and groups for Victorian councils and has been deployed to help with Crisisworks after many disasters. One of her roles will also be to complete the playbooks to help translate some of your emergency management processes into steps in Crisisworks. She will also be involved in Crisisworks training and support for Victorian councils.
Subscription Renewals - Discount options
It is that time of the year. Under the new MAV bulk buying arrangement, Victorian councils have access to some great pricing discount options, with discounts for multi-year commitments or pre-paying. Ask us for a quote to get the best available rate for your council. Let us know if your council prefers to be invoiced in June instead of July 1st. If your council requires a purchase order number to appear on your Crisisworks renewal invoice, please send a purchase order through to accounts@datalink.com.au prior to June 30.
We need to know your most current billing contact details. Only a small number of councils have entered these into Crisisworks. Please check and update your key contacts, making sure you have a current billing contact in your system.
Crisisworks Roadshow update
In March and April the Crisisworks team conducted the first leg of a regional roadshow tour for Victorian councils, visiting Ballarat, Camperdown, Horsham and Echuca. The tour was well received with more than 100 people attending. There were opportunities for both people new to Crisisworks and advanced users to learn more and get hands-on training, participate in simulated exercises and meet the Crisisworks team. The second leg of the roadshow is planned for late October in north and eastern Victoria and metropolitan areas. More information including locations, dates and guest speakers will be released in the next month or so. But please keep this date range in mind.
If you are keen to host or present as a guest speaker please get in touch with us.
We hope to see you there!
Integrating Crisisworks with your council systems
Progress is being made integrating Crisisworks with various council systems using the Crisisworks Application Programming Interface (API). An integration with Technology One was recently achieved and although implementations differ between councils, some councils also have managed to integrate their Pathway system with Crisisworks for inspections. Contact us and we can set up a meeting between your technical team and Datalink to see what we can make possible for you.
New Compliance modules
Recently Crisisworks users have been finding a whole lot of new ways to utilise the compliance and inspection features of the system. As a result, solutions are now available out-of-the-box for Fire Prevention, Permit to Burn and Notice to Comply. It is also being trialled for other types of inspections including pools, roads, footpaths and hoarding. If any of these are areas of interest or if your council has a use case for the inspection module, talk to us and see what we can make possible.
New training material available
The training team has been busy upgrading Crisisworks courses and delivery modes. You’ll find some new content and courses available including self-paced videos:
New training videos
This month in conjunction with the DFFH we conducted a well received webinar for Victorian councils affected by the recent floods assisting them to compile their secondary impacts for upload via the EM-Impact portal using the Crisisworks integration. We’ve recorded this video for you in case you need further assistance with this.
Crisisworks also conducted a well received series of webinars in conjunction with the DFFH on Environmental Health so your EHOs can get a better understanding of how to use the system in their field.
Visit the Crisisworks Training Videos website to watch.
Training Sample Records (Workbooks)
One of the outcomes of the recent Roadshow was a series of examples you can use for your internal training sessions and exercises. We’ve collaborated with councils to develop useful samples including Requests, Information, Logs and Situation Reports that you can use during training and exercises. You’ll find this in the Library of our Crisisworks training system. Contact us if you would like a copy with the latest sample records.
Webinar Courses
The Crisisworks webinar series provides you with FREE facilitated hands-on sessions aimed at improving your confidence using the system, giving you access to trainers and helping to ensure that you’re prepared and using the system correctly.
Registration is easy - just open the Help Menu when signed into Crisisworks and click on ‘Register for Online Training’, or register via Eventbrite.
Sessions are filling up fast but we have just introduced a ‘waiting list’ option to ensure you get a place when one becomes available. More will be scheduled over the coming weeks.
Beginners
20 June - 10.30am
30 June - 10.30am
Recovery Officers
22 June - 11.00am
Recovery Managers
16 June - 10.30am
Coordinators & Administrators
21 June - 10.30am
28 June - 2.00pm
Crisisworks for Communications
15 June - 2.00pm
Relief, Evacuation & Humanitarian Aid
22 June - 2.00pm
Secondary Impact Assessment
23 June - 10.30am
Crisisworks for Fire Prevention
29 June - 10.30am
Conferences & Events
Once again we’ll be exhibiting at the Disaster & Emergency Management Conference (DEMC) on the Gold Coast (11th-12th July). In recent years we’ve found it an invaluable way to reach the increasingly national Crisisworks customer base. If you’re there make sure you visit us at stand 19.
We’re also planning to be at AFAC23 in Brisbane so if you’re going, come and say hi.
Crisisworks evening maintenance for Friday March 24th (no outage)
Dear Crisisworks user,
This evening your Crisisworks service will enter a maintenance window.
Once this maintenance has completed, the list of changes can be viewed from within the Crisisworks dashboard once you sign in.
Purpose: apply software updates and patches to 4.44.68
Impact: No outage
Time and Date: Friday 24-03-2022 19:00 - 22:00
Crisisworks is engineered so that this upgrade can occur with no outage.
Our software also undergoes extensive testing prior to each release. If you notice any problems resulting from this upgrade, then our service desk can be contacted as follows:
By email: support@crisisworks.com
By phone: 03 9521 4400 or 1300 C-WORKS
You have received this email because you are subscribed to the Crisisworks software upgrades and maintenance list. You can opt-out by following the link below. Please do not reply to this email unless you wish to contact our Service Desk.
Sincerely,
Crisisworks Support
Hello everyone.
We are excited to be delivering Crisisworks LIVE with the first of our Regional Roadshows visiting the Barwon South West, Grampians and Loddon Mallee REMPC areas next month.
Limited tickets are now available to councils outside of these REMPC areas so come join us for a full day program compromising of guest speakers, hands-on training, presentations and a simulated exercise to give you the skills and confidence to start using Crisisworks more.
To register visit Eventbrite: https://www.eventbrite.com.au/o/datalink-internet-systems-crisisworks-32033788777
We are also pleased to announce our March training program featuring:
Crisisworks for Relief, Recovery & Humanitarian Aid - Tue 21 Mar 2023 at 11.00am
Crisisworks for Coordinators & Administrators - Tues 21 Mar 2023 at 2.00pm
Crisisworks for Recovery Officers - Wed 22 Mar 2023 at 10.30am
Crisisworks for Beginners - Wed 22 Mar 2023 at 2.00pm + Thu 30 Mar 2023 at 11.00am
Crisisworks for Recovery Managers - Thu 23 Mar 2023 at 2.00pm
Contact Management in Crisisworks - Tue 28 Mar 2023 at 2.00pm
Crisisworks for Communications - Tue 29 Mar 2023 at 2.00pm
To register visit Eventbrite: https://www.eventbrite.com.au/o/datalink-internet-systems-crisisworks-32033788777
Looking forward to seeing you all soon, either on the screen or in-person at one of the Roadshows!
The Crisisworks Team
Crisisworks evening maintenance for Thursday February 23rd (no outage)
Dear Crisisworks user,
This evening your Crisisworks service will enter a maintenance window.
Once this maintenance has completed, the list of changes can be viewed from within the Crisisworks dashboard once you sign in.
Purpose: apply software updates and patches to 4.44.67
Impact: No outage
Time and Date: Thursday 23-02-2023 18:00 - 20:00
Changes in this release:
Improved the reliability and performance of FPN Task Report
Added field to Uniting Care form and corresponding reports
Crisisworks is engineered so that this upgrade can occur with no outage.
Our software also undergoes extensive testing prior to each release. If you notice any problems resulting from this upgrade, then our service desk can be contacted as follows:
By email: support@crisisworks.com
By phone: 03 9521 4400 or 1300 C-WORKS
You have received this email because you are subscribed to the Crisisworks software upgrades and maintenance list. You can opt-out by following the link below. Please do not reply to this email unless you wish to contact our Service Desk.
Sincerely,
Crisisworks Support
Crisisworks evening maintenance for Monday February 13th (no outage)
Dear Crisisworks user,
This evening your Crisisworks service will enter a maintenance window.
Once this maintenance has completed, the list of changes can be viewed from within the Crisisworks dashboard once you sign in.
Purpose: apply software updates and patches to 4.44.66
Impact: No outage
Time and Date: Thursday 13-02-2023 18:00 - 21:00
Changes in this release:
Removed limit for all Asset Contacts reports
Crisisworks is engineered so that this upgrade can occur with no outage.
Our software also undergoes extensive testing prior to each release. If you notice any problems resulting from this upgrade, then our service desk can be contacted as follows:
By email: support@crisisworks.com
By phone: 03 9521 4400 or 1300 C-WORKS
You have received this email because you are subscribed to the Crisisworks software upgrades and maintenance list. You can opt-out by following the link below. Please do not reply to this email unless you wish to contact our Service Desk.
Sincerely,
Crisisworks Support