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Teams and People Management

Contributor Dashboard

This guide covers how to add, organize, and manage teams and individuals in ManagerDash.

Understanding Contributors​

In ManagerDash, individuals are called "Contributors". Each contributor represents a person you manage or work with.

Contributor Properties​

  • Name: Full name of the person (required)
  • GitHub Handle: GitHub username (required for PR integration)
  • Initials: 2-3 letter abbreviation (optional, auto-generated if not provided)
  • Color: Visual identifier used throughout the app
  • Seniority Level: Optional classification (e.g., E1, E5, L6). This is customizable. See

Adding a Person​

From the Sidebar​

  1. Click the "+ Add Contributor" button in the sidebar
  2. Fill in the form:
    • Name: Enter the person's full name
    • Initials: (Optional) Enter 2-3 letters
    • GitHub Handle: Enter their GitHub username (with or without @)
    • Color: Click the color picker to choose a color
    • Seniority Level: Select from dropdown (optional)
  3. Click Save

From the Home Dashboard​

If no people exist yet:

  1. You'll see an empty state prompt
  2. Click "Add Your First Person"
  3. Fill in the inline form
  4. Click Save

Editing a Person​

From the Sidebar​

  1. Hover over the person's name in the sidebar
  2. Click the three-dot menu (⋮)
  3. Select Edit
  4. Update the fields in the inline form
  5. Click Save or Cancel

What You Can Edit​

  • Name
  • GitHub handle
  • Initials
  • Color
  • Seniority level
  • Team assignment (via drag-and-drop)

Deleting a Person​

⚠️ Warning: Deleting a person removes all associated data including goals, skills assessments, feedback, and PR evaluations. This action cannot be undone.

  1. Click the three-dot menu (⋮) next to their name
  2. Select Delete
  3. Confirm the deletion in the dialog

Teams​

Teams help you organize people into logical groups.

Creating a Team​

  1. Click "+ Add Team" in the sidebar
  2. Enter:
    • Team Name: Required (must be unique)
    • Description: Optional
  3. Click Save

Assigning People to Teams​

Use drag-and-drop to assign people:

  1. Click and hold on a person's name
  2. Drag them to the desired team
  3. Release to assign
  4. The assignment is saved automatically

Unassigning from a Team​

  1. Click and hold on the person's name
  2. Drag them to the "Unassigned" section
  3. Release to remove from team

Viewing Teams​

Expanded Sidebar:

  • Teams show as expandable cards
  • Click team name to view team dashboard
  • See all team members listed below

Collapsed Sidebar:

  • Teams show as compact cards
  • Team members appear as colored circles with initials
  • Click to expand and see details

Sentiment Analysis​

Starting in v1.7.0, ManagerDash includes sentiment tracking to help you monitor team member mood and satisfaction over time.

Understanding Sentiment​

Sentiment tracking allows you to record quick check-ins on how team members are feeling. This helps you:

  • Identify trends in team morale
  • Spot potential issues early
  • Track the impact of organizational changes
  • Maintain regular emotional check-ins with your team

The 3-Point Scale:

  • Sad (Red) - Team member is experiencing low mood or dissatisfaction
  • Neutral (Blue) - Team member is in a middle-ground state
  • Happy (Green) - Team member is feeling positive and satisfied

Recording Sentiment​

Sentiment is recorded from the individual contributor dashboard.

How to Record:

  1. Select a team member from the sidebar
  2. On their dashboard, find the "Record Sentiment" form in the right sidebar
  3. Click one of the three sentiment buttons:
    • Sad face icon (red)
    • Neutral face icon (blue)
    • Happy face icon (green)
  4. Optionally, add context in the text field: "what's driving this sentiment?"
  5. Click Save Sentiment
  6. The form clears and the sentiment is recorded

Context Field: The optional context field lets you add notes about what's affecting the person's mood:

  • "Team morale is high after successful launch"
  • "Dealing with burnout from long hours"
  • "Excited about new project assignment"
  • "Frustrated with technical blockers"

This context helps you remember what was happening during each check-in.

Team Sentiment Chart​

The Team Sentiment Chart provides an aggregate view of your team's mood over time.

Location: Navigate to a team dashboard to see the Team Sentiment section.

Features:

  1. Time Range Filter

    • Last 14 days
    • Last 30 days (default)
    • Last 90 days
    • Filters all sentiment data to the selected time window

  2. Average Sentiment Display

    • Large sentiment icon with color coding
    • Numeric average (displayed to 2 decimal places)
    • Interpretation label:
      • Average ≥ 2.5: Happy (green)
      • Average ≥ 1.5: Neutral (blue)
      • Average < 1.5: Sad (red)

  3. Sentiment Breakdown

    • Three cards showing count and percentage for each sentiment level
    • Visual distribution of team moods
    • Helps identify if mood is consistent or varied

Empty State: When no sentiment data exists for the selected time range, you'll see a message encouraging you to start tracking team sentiment.

Sentiment Reminders​

ManagerDash can remind you to check in on team member sentiment.

How Reminders Work:

  • Default reminder window: 14 days (2 weeks)
  • If you haven't recorded sentiment for a team member within the window, a reminder appears
  • Reminder message: "Record sentiment for {name} because you haven't checked in on their mood in {window}"
  • Reminders are configurable in the reminder rules settings

Managing Reminders:

  • Reminders appear on dashboards and in the reminders section
  • Recording sentiment for a person clears their reminder
  • You can customize the reminder frequency in Settings

Best Practices for Sentiment Tracking​

  1. Regular Cadence: Record sentiment weekly or bi-weekly during 1-on-1s
  2. Use Context: Always add a note about what's driving the sentiment
  3. Look for Trends: Use the team chart to identify patterns over time
  4. Act on Data: If sentiment drops, have a conversation to understand why
  5. Privacy: Sentiment data is stored locally and only visible to you
  6. Consistency: Track sentiment for all team members, not just those with issues

Collapsing/Expanding​

  • Click the arrow icon in the top-right of the sidebar
  • Collapsed view shows icons and initials only
  • Expanded view shows full names and details
  1. Action Buttons: Add Team and Add Contributor
  2. Teams: All teams with their members
  3. Unassigned: People not on any team
  4. Settings: At the bottom (Preferences, Manage Teams, Export Data)

Notification Indicators​

Starting in v1.6.0, the sidebar shows visual notifications to help you stay on top of important tasks:

Pending Feedback Indicator:

  • A badge appears next to a person's name if they have pending feedback
  • Helps you quickly identify who has feedback ready to deliver
  • Click on the person to view and manage their pending feedback
  • The indicator disappears once feedback is marked as delivered or converted to notes

This makes it easier to track which team members have feedback awaiting your attention during 1-on-1s.

Team Dashboard​

When you select a team, you see:

Top Navigation​

  • Goals Tab: Team-wide goals
  • Skills Tab: Aggregated team skills view
  • Report Tab: Team performance report

Features​

  • Track team-level objectives
  • Compare skills across team members
  • Team Sentiment - View average team mood with time-based filtering (v1.7.0)
  • Generate team reports

Individual Dashboard​

When you select a person, you see:

Top Navigation​

  • Goals Tab: Individual goals
  • Skills Tab: Skills assessment
  • PR Review Tab: GitHub pull requests
  • Feedback Tab: Feedback history
  • Report Tab: Individual performance report

Features​

  • Complete personal development tracking
  • PR quality evaluation
  • 360° feedback collection
  • Record sentiment check-ins with optional context notes (v1.7.0)
  • Comprehensive reporting

Best Practices​

Naming Conventions​

  • Use consistent naming (e.g., "First Last")
  • Keep initials short and clear
  • Choose distinct colors for easy identification

GitHub Integration​

  • Always add GitHub handles for developers
  • Use the exact GitHub username (case doesn't matter)
  • Test by fetching PRs after adding

Team Organization​

  • Create teams that match your org structure
  • Keep team sizes manageable (5-10 people)
  • Use descriptive team names
  • Record sentiment regularly (weekly or bi-weekly) to track team morale trends and identify potential issues early

Regular Maintenance​

  • Update seniority levels as people grow
  • Remove inactive team members
  • Reorganize teams as your org changes

Seniority Levels​

Seniority levels help categorize experience and expectations.

Setting Up Levels​

Go to Settings → Manage Teams to configure:

  • Code: Short identifier (e.g., "JR", "SR")
  • Title: Full title (e.g., "Early Career Engineer")
  • Description: Role expectations

Assigning Levels​

  • Assign when creating or editing a person
  • Used in skills assessment for context
  • Appears in reports

Common Issues​

Duplicate GitHub Handle Error​

Problem: "A contributor with this GitHub handle already exists" Solution: Each GitHub handle must be unique. Check existing people or use a different handle.

Team Name Conflict​

Problem: "A team with this name already exists" Solution: Choose a different team name (case-insensitive check).

Can't See Person After Adding​

Problem: New person doesn't appear Solution: Check the "Unassigned" section at the bottom of the sidebar.

Drag and Drop Not Working​

Problem: Can't move person to team Solution:

  • Make sure you're dragging from the drag handle icon
  • Ensure sidebar is expanded
  • Try refreshing the app

Tips​

  1. Use Colors Strategically: Assign similar colors to team members for quick visual grouping
  2. Initials Display: In collapsed view, initials help identify people quickly
  3. Quick Access: Recently selected people/teams are easier to access
  4. Keyboard Navigation: Use Tab to navigate through forms quickly
  5. Bulk Setup: If adding many people, keep the form open and save repeatedly
  6. Sentiment Context: Use the sentiment context field to note what's driving mood - helps identify patterns over time