This guide will take you through the most common actions that you will take working on a request in NextRequest. If you have any questions as you work your way through the tasks please reach out to support@nextrequest.com.
Task 1: Create a test request
In order to test out the various features in NextRequest you will need to first create a test request. It is important when creating a test request to use a different email address than the one associated with your existing NextRequest account. We recommend using a personal email or a second work address if you have one. To submit a request follow these steps:
- Go to your agency’s NextRequest portal
- If you are currently Signed In, click the Sign Out link in the upper right
- Click the MAKE REQUEST button in the top left
- Enter request description
- Select your own department in the ‘Departments’ field, or if no department field is available skip this step
- NOTE: If you select a department besides your own you may not be able to access your request
- Enter an email address for the requester (a different address from your NextRequest account email). This can be a personal email address or of another colleague.
- Click the MAKE REQUEST button
Task 2: Find the notification email and go to request
If you are the Point of Contact for your department or have been set to be automatically added to a request when it is assigned to your department, you will have been sent an email notification when the request was created. Locate the notification (it should have the subject “[Opened] [Your Agency] records request YY-XX” and click the view request button in the email.
If you are not set to automatically be assigned to the request you can still locate the request by signing in, clicking the ALL REQUESTS link at the top of the page and then locating your request in the list.
If you didn’t receive the notification check your spam/junk folder and if it’s not there notify support@nextrequest.com and we can take a look.
Task 3: Add another member of your team as support staff
You can ask other people to assist you with fulfilling a request and in some cases you may be asked to help with requests that somebody else is responsible for. In this task you’ll add another user as Support Staff. You’ll still be the Point of Contact but they’ll also be on the request and can help as needed. To do so follow these steps:
- Scroll down until you see the ‘Staff’ section in the bottom left
- Click the + icon under the label Support
- Click in the box that says ‘Select support staff’
- Select another member of your department from the drop-down menu
- (Optional) Add a message for the new user
- Click the ‘Save’ button
Task 4: Post an internal message on the request
As part of fulfilling a request you may need to communicate with other staff working on the request. You can post an internal message on the request that will only be viewed by other internal users, not the requester (or the public). To do follow these steps:
- Click the Internal Message icon (
) in the top right of the screen in the toolbar - Type your message in the box and/or select a template from the drop down menu
- Click the ‘Add Message’ button
- Look for the message in the Request Timeline below the message window
Task 5: Upload a document to the request
You can upload documents and release them to a requester, all within NextRequest. The requester can log into the system and download the files or view them within NextRequest. To upload a document follow these steps:
- Click the Paperclip icon (
) in the top right of the screen - Click the ‘Upload Files’ button
- In the menu that appears, you can either click the box to browse for files OR drag and drop your file(s) into the box.
- If you choose to browse your computer for files, select the file(s) you would like to upload
- (Optional) Enter the name of a new or existing folder that you would like the documents to be stored in
- DO NOT change the visibility setting of the documents from Staff Only at this stage. You’ll be releasing the document(s) later
- Click the ‘Save’ button
- Go to the ‘Documents’ section in the middle of the right side panel. You’ll see the document(s) listed here and you can filter by visibility using the drop down menu at the top of the documents section. Currently they are only visible to members of your department, not the requester or the public
Task 6: Release the document
Once documents are ready to release you can choose to release them to the requester only or to the entire public. To release a document follow these steps:
- Locate the document you want to release in the ‘Documents’ section in the right panel. You can check the boxes next to multiple documents to select more than one.
- Click the Change Visibility icon (
) - Select either the ‘Public’ or ‘Requester’ button
- (Optional) When you release a document you have the option to attach a message with any information or updates you'd like to send to the requester. This message will appear as an external message on the timeline and will come as a separate notification in the requester's inbox.
- Click the ‘Save’ button
- Check the timeline for the document released entry
Task 7: Post an external message on the request
You can use external messages to provide information to the request. You can use these messages to do things like give the requester a time or cost estimate, or to clarify the scope of the request. When you have supplied all responsive documents that you are able to, you should send a message to the requester explaining what has been done. To message the requester follow these steps:
- Click the Envelope icon (
) in the top right of the screen - (Optional) Click the ‘Insert Template’ button and select a template (or multiple templates) from the list
- Type your message in the box
- Check the box ‘Yes, send to requester’
- Click the ‘Send Message’ button
Task 8: Close the request
When you are done fulfilling the request you can close it out and notify the requester. To close the request follow these steps:
- Click the Close button (
) in the top right of the screen above the message window - Click the box where it says ‘Select closure responses...’
- Select a reason from the drop-down menu
- (Optional) edit the closure response text
- Click the ‘Close Request’ button
- Look around the request page - you’ll notice that the status at the top of the screen is now ‘Closed’ and several buttons have disappeared. If you need to update the request you can do so by clicking the Reopen button (
) in the top right.
Task 9: Publish the request
You can see the request visibility in the visibility bar at the top of the screen (currently orange and reading “Visibility: Department”). This means that the request is currently visible to members of your department and the requester only. Certain requests may be sensitive enough that you want to permanently restrict access, however requests that are appropriate for the public can be a resource for future visitors to the NextRequest portal. In some cases it may prevent a new request from being filed because the visitor finds what they need in a previous request! While you can change the visibility of a request at any time, the most common workflow is to publish a request after closing it out. To publish a request follow these steps:
- Click the ‘Pencil’ icon in the visibility bar at the top of the screen
- Select the ‘Published’ option
- Click the ‘Save’ button
- The visibility bar at the top will change to white and the text will say “Visibility:Published”