Crew Modes

Managing attendance, working hours and project sign-offs can vary significantly from one company to another. Some organisations rely on Crew Chiefs, others give responsibility to clients, while some prefer fully self-managed workflows through the mobile app.

Rather than enforcing a single process, SquidWeb allows companies to configure how these responsibilities are handled by using flexible Crew Modes.

Each Crew Mode defines who is responsible for attendance tracking, working hours, check-ins, check-outs and sign-off processes throughout a project.

Configurable workflow settings

Crew Modes are not fixed workflows.

Each mode is built using configurable workflow settings that allow companies to adapt the system to their operational processes.

Depending on your requirements, you can configure parameters such as:

  • Who manages attendance (Crew, Crew Chief or Client)
  • Online or paper-based workflows
  • Hybrid online + paper workflows
  • Pre-call confirmation
  • PPE checks
  • Crew / Client / Planner sign-off permissions

Because these settings are fully configurable, companies can create workflows that match their existing operational procedures instead of adapting their processes to the software.

Example Crew Mode configurations

The following Crew Modes are example configurations included in SquidWeb.

Each one combines different workflow settings to support common operational scenarios.

Crew Chief, Check-In & Check-Out (Paper)

Short Name: CC-P

The Crew Chief manages crew attendance using paper-based workflows.

Characteristics:

  • Crew Chief managed
  • Paper workflow
  • No online attendance tracking

Crew Chief, Check-In & Check-Out (Online + Paper)

Short Name: CC-O+P

The Crew Chief manages attendance online, while paper forms remain available as a backup.

Characteristics:

  • Crew Chief managed
  • Online workflow
  • Paper backup available

Crew Chief, Check-In & Check-Out (Online)

Short Name: CC-O

The Crew Chief manages attendance completely online.

Characteristics:

  • Crew Chief managed
  • Fully digital workflow
  • No paper forms required

Client + Crew Chief, Check-In & Check-Out (Online)

Short Name: C/CC-O

Attendance can be managed collaboratively by the Client and Crew Chief.

Characteristics:

  • Client participation
  • Crew Chief participation
  • Fully digital workflow

Client, Check-In & Check-Out (Online)

Short Name: C-O

The Client is responsible for attendance management.

Characteristics:

  • Client managed
  • Fully digital workflow

Crew + Crew Chief, Check-In & Check-Out (Online)

Short Name: Crew/CC-O

Crew members and the Crew Chief participate in attendance tracking.

Characteristics:

  • Crew self check-in
  • Crew Chief visibility
  • Geolocation support
  • Fully digital workflow

Crew Chief + Crew + Client, Check-In & Check-Out (Online)

Short Name: CC/Crew/C-O

Attendance management is shared between Crew Chief, crew members and the Client.

Characteristics:

  • Crew participation
  • Crew Chief participation
  • Client participation
  • Fully digital workflow

Crew Chief + Crew + Client, Self-Managed (Online, No Pre-Call)

Short Name: CC/Crew/C-O/NoPc

Crew members manage their own attendance and working hours through the mobile app.

Characteristics:

  • Crew self check-in
  • Crew self check-out
  • Working hours confirmation
  • No pre-call confirmation
  • Client sign-off available
  • Fully digital workflow

Crew Chief + Crew + Client, Self-Managed ETT (Online, No Pre-Call)

Short Name: CC/Crew/C-O/NoPc/NoPPE

A variation of Self-Managed designed for ETT workflows.

Characteristics:

  • Crew self check-in
  • Crew self check-out
  • Working hours confirmation
  • No pre-call confirmation
  • No PPE check
  • Client sign-off available
  • Fully digital workflow

 

Mode Short Name Who manages attendance? Online Paper Pre-Call PPE Check
Crew Chief, Check-In & Check-Out (Paper) CC-P Crew Chief No Yes Yes Yes
Crew Chief, Check-In & Check-Out (Online + Paper) CC-O+P Crew Chief Yes Yes Yes Yes
Crew Chief, Check-In & Check-Out (Online) CC-O Crew Chief Yes No Yes Yes
Client + Crew Chief, Check-In & Check-Out (Online) C/CC-O Client + Crew Chief Yes No Yes Yes
Client, Check-In & Check-Out (Online) C-O Client Yes No Yes Yes
Crew + Crew Chief, Check-In & Check-Out (Online) Crew/CC-O Crew + Crew Chief Yes No Yes Yes
Crew + Crew Chief  + Client, Check-In & Check-Out (Online) CC/Crew/C-O Crew + Crew Chief + Client Yes No Yes Yes
Crew Chief + Crew + Client, Self-Managed (Online, No Pre-Call) CC/Crew/C-O/NoPc Crew + Crew Chief + Client Yes No No Yes
Crew Chief + Crew + Client, Self-Managed ETT (Online, No Pre-Call) CC/Crew/C-O/NoPc/NoPPE Crew + Crew Chief + Client Yes No No No

Flexible workflows for every operation

Every organisation manages workforce operations differently. That’s why SquidWeb’s Crew Modes are fully configurable rather than fixed.

By combining different workflow settings, companies can define who is responsible for attendance, working hours, sign-offs and operational processes while choosing between paper, digital or hybrid workflows.

Whether managing a small team or coordinating large-scale event operations, Crew Modes help ensure that the platform adapts to your business—not the other way around.

 

Crew Cancellation Request

Managing last-minute availability changes can be challenging, especially once a position has already been confirmed.

With the Crew Cancellation Request feature, crew members can request to be removed from a confirmed job directly from the mobile app, helping teams communicate changes faster and more transparently.

How it works

Once a crew member has been confirmed for a job, they can still request cancellation directly from the mobile app — as long as the configured time limit has not been exceeded and the required permission is enabled.

When a cancellation request is submitted:

  • A new ToDo is automatically created for the planner
  • A new activity is logged in the project (web app)
  • The office team is immediately informed and can review the request

This helps planners react quickly while keeping all communication connected to the project workflow.

Company-controlled time limits

The feature includes a company setting that defines how long before job start a cancellation request is allowed.

This gives companies more control over operational flexibility and helps prevent late changes too close to the shift start.

Example:

  • Cancellation requests allowed until 24 hours before job start
  • After the limit is reached, the request option is no longer available in the app

Permission setting:

In order for crew members to see the “Request to be removed” option in the mobile app, the corresponding company role permission must be enabled.

Under:

Company Role → Mobile Project Vacancies → Request Remove

the setting must be configured as: OWN

This allows crew members to request removal only from their own confirmed jobs.

If the permission is not enabled, the cancellation request option will not be visible in the mobile app.

Better coordination when plans change

The Crew Cancellation Request feature helps reduce manual communication, improves transparency between crew and office, and keeps operational workflows up to date when availability changes unexpectedly.

 

Crew item status

Managing crew availability, confirmations and assignment changes can quickly become complex during live productions and event planning. Crew members respond at different times, planners adjust schedules, replacements may be needed, and project requirements can change throughout the workflow.

Without a clear overview, teams often end up relying on spreadsheets, phone calls, emails or messaging apps to keep track of crew updates — making coordination slower and more difficult.

SquidWeb helps planners and coordinators keep everything organised with a real-time crew status system directly integrated into each project.

Booking status overview for every crew member

Each crew assignment can display a specific status depending on the current workflow stage, making it easier to instantly understand the situation of every crew member involved in a project.

These booking workflow statuses help planners instantly understand the assignment stage of every crew item inside a project.

Statuses can change automatically through workflow automation, planner actions, client interactions or crew member responses.

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  • Design — crew item is still in planning and not yet visible to the client
  • Requested — a request has been sent to the crew member for confirmation through the mobile app
  • SpareToFix — special request status used when a crew member was previously confirmed as spare crew and is later requested for an active assignment
  • Confirmed — assignment confirmed directly by the planner
  • ConfirmedWeb — assignment confirmed by the crew member through the mobile app
  • Has Changed — assignment details changed after the last confirmation
  • Has been cancelled — assignment has been cancelled

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  • Suggested — crew member suggested automatically by the automation process

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  • Client Added — project crew item added directly by the client through the mobile app
  • ClientRequest — client requested a specific crew member through the mobile app
  • PlannerRequest — planner requested a specific crew member through the mobile app

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  • CrewRequest — crew member requested to join a specific project crew item

Because every status is clearly visible inside the project overview, planners can react faster and reduce the need for manual follow-ups.

Color indicators and real-time updates make it easier to quickly identify booking progress and operational activity directly from the planning overview.

Activity status overview for every crew member

Once crew assignments move beyond the booking workflow, SquidWeb also supports operational activity tracking directly inside the planning workflow.

These activity statuses help planners and clients monitor the real-time operational progress of crew members during live productions and event operations.

Operational activity indicators make it easier to instantly identify whether crew members have completed important workflow steps such as:

  • Yellow indicator — Pre-call complete

  • Green indicator — Check-in completed

  • Grey indicator — Check-out completed

Because these activity updates are visible directly inside the planning calendar and project overview, planners can quickly identify pending arrivals, missing check-ins or completed assignments without relying on separate calls or manual follow-ups.

These activity indicators are visible directly inside the planning calendar and mobile workflows, helping planners maintain a live operational overview across active projects.

Faster coordination during live operations

Crew planning is constantly evolving, especially in fast-moving event and production environments. Last-minute changes, cancellations or additional staffing requests can happen at any moment.

With real-time status updates, teams can quickly see when:

  • crew members accept or decline jobs
  • schedules or assignments change
  • additional crew is required
  • replacements need to be organised
  • confirmations are still pending
  • clients request specific crew members
  • crew members proactively request assignments

This creates a more transparent and structured workflow for planners and coordinators while helping reduce communication delays across the team.

Connected web and mobile workflows

Statuses are synchronised between the SquidWeb web platform and mobile app, allowing planners, clients and crew members to stay aligned throughout the entire project lifecycle.

Crew members can receive requests and manage assignments directly from the mobile app, while planners maintain a live overview of every update inside the web platform.

Operational activity indicators such as pre-calls, check-ins and check-outs are also synchronised between the web platform, planning calendar and mobile workflows, helping planners and clients maintain real-time visibility across active projects.

A clearer overview for complex crew planning

By centralising crew statuses directly inside the project workflow, SquidWeb helps teams reduce confusion, improve visibility and coordinate staffing more efficiently.

Whether managing small teams or large-scale productions, real-time crew statuses make it easier to keep projects organised from planning to execution.

Side panels

Working with complex projects often means navigating between different layers of information, from overall project details to specific crews and individual items. This can quickly become time-consuming and harder to manage.

How it works

As you interact with the project, the side panel responds in real time:

  • Selecting the project shows the side panel in Project mode, displaying project-level sections
  • Selecting a crew group switches the side panel to Crew mode, focusing on crew-related panels (e.g. Crew optimizer)
  • Selecting a crew item switches the side panel to Crew item mode, where the content adapts depending on the item:
    • Empty item → shows the Crew optimizer
    • Filled item → shows the Crew profile and related details

There’s no need to manually switch between views — the interface adjusts instantly to your context.

With the Side Panel View Modes, SquidWeb simplifies this process by adapting the panel automatically based on your selection.

More control when you need it

In addition to the automatic behavior, you can also manage the panel manually through the menu:

  • Fold all panels to get a cleaner and more focused view
  • Filter the content by view mode (Project, Crew, Crew Item, etc.)

This combination gives you both flexibility and control, depending on how you prefer to work.

The side panel helps you:

  • Spend less time searching for information
  • Stay focused on the task at hand
  • Navigate complex projects more efficiently
  • Keep your workspace clean and structured

 

AI Project Banners

You can now create a visual banner for each project directly in SquidWeb.

This helps planners quickly recognize projects and adds visual context to project information.

Project banners can be generated using AI or uploaded manually.

How to create a project banner

  1. Open a project in the Web App

  2. Go to the project information section

  3. Click on the banner area

  4. Choose:

    • Generate with AI, or

    • Upload your own image

If you generate a banner with AI, SquidWeb uses the available project information (project name, dates, location) to create a contextual image.

Where the banner appears

Once created, the banner is displayed:

  • In the project information section in the Web App

  • In the mobile app project view for planners

  • In the mobile view for clients

This provides a consistent visual reference across devices.

Why use project banners

Adding a banner helps:

  • Quickly recognize projects

  • Improve visual organization

  • Add context to project information

  • Reduce confusion in large project lists

Project banners are optional but recommended, especially when managing multiple projects at the same time.

Rate Card parameters

When creating a project, selecting a contact does more than just assign a client — it also determines which rate card is used.

Each contact can have a default rate card linked to it. Once you select that contact, the system automatically applies the corresponding rate card and fills in the relevant parameters.

How it works

  • Create a new project
  • Select a contact
  • The default rate card assigned to that contact is automatically applied
  • Project fields are filled based on that rate card
  • Create the project
  • You can see and edit all the rate card parameters applied on the project details container
  • Open the rate card by double-clicking the label in the project
  • Review and edit all parameters from one place

If multiple rate cards match:

If a contact has more than one matching rate card, the system selects the first active one and applies its parameters to the project.

 

Command Palette

Did you know you can navigate SquidWeb without clicking through menus?

With the Command Palette, you can quickly search and open pages, trigger actions, and access panels — all from one place.

How to open it

Press Ctrl + K (Windows) or Cmd + K (Mac)

🔎 Search and navigate

Simply start typing to:
• Find pages and modules
• Jump directly to specific sections (Accounting, Planning, Settings, etc.)
• Open contacts, projects, emails, etc

⌨️ Use quick commands

You can refine your search using special prefixes:
• > → Show available actions
• @ → Open panels (main panel or side panels)
• open → Shows open tabs

Navigate using:
• ↑ ↓ to move
• Enter to select
• Ctrl + Enter to open in a new window

💡 Why use it?
• Faster navigation
• Fewer clicks
• Full keyboard control
• Improved productivity for power users

The Command Palette helps you move through SquidWeb more efficientl, especially when working across multiple projects and modules.

 

Watch a short tutorial here:

 

 

 

 

Add location pictures and access the mobile view directly from the web app

With the location pictures feature in the SquidWeb mobile app, planners can now add images to specific locations to help crew members easily recognize and find the exact place on site.

Visual references reduce confusion and improve preparation — especially for larger venues, multi-entrance buildings, or unfamiliar sites.

How to add location images

From the mobile app

• Open the location

• Upload one or multiple images

• Select one image as the main image

From the web app

You can also manage location images directly from SquidWeb:

• Go to location details

• Click “Open location details on mobile app”

• A mobile modal view opens inside the web app

• Upload images and select the main image

The mobile interface opens in a modal window and logs you in automatically, so there is no need to switch devices.

Where is this available?

The mobile view for locations can currently be accessed from:

• Locations page → location details

• Inside a project → select project crew → location details

Why this matters

Adding visual references improves:

• Faster orientation on site

• Fewer misunderstandings

• Better preparation before arrival

Location pictures ensure your crew knows exactly where they’re going — before they even arrive.

🎥 Watch the full tutorial here

 

 

Parallel Request

With SquidWeb, planners can request the same crew member across multiple projects — even when working times overlap. This provides maximum flexibility when planning complex schedules or reacting to last-minute changes.

Crew members are transparently informed through the mobile app and can clearly see all overlapping job requests. They can review each job, switch between requests, and actively decide which assignment to confirm or refuse.

This workflow ensures that changes, including time-critical scenarios such as Spare to Fix rebookings, are handled in a controlled and transparent way. Planners stay flexible, crew members stay in control, and double bookings are avoided through clear communication and active confirmation.

Parallel Requests

Adding Helptexts to Documents to be seen in Squid Mobile!

The possibility to add any text and clickable link to all document types has arrived!

The actual adding of the text needs to be done via Admin permissions, ideally put together a Google Doc. with all helptexts and links and the product support team will update the documents.

Once the helptext is added it can be seen via Squid Mobile!

 

Check out this video: