Tag: Staff Directory WordPress Plugin

Many business experts often raise the point that people tend to buy from businesses they know, like and trust.

If you are searching for simple ideas to grow your business online and increase user interaction with your site, then help your visitors get to know you and your organization better.

Adding a directory of staff to your website can help increase your credibility online and get more prospects to get in touch with you.

This step-by-step tutorial will show you how to create and add a simple and easy-to-maintain directory of staff to your site.

Tutorial: Adding An Employee List Directory

In this tutorial, you will learn how to install, activate and configure a free WordPress plugin called Simple Staff List.

Simple Staff List – WordPress Plugin

(Simple Staff List – WordPress Plugin)

Simple Staff List lets you easily display basic information about your employee on your site.

The first step is to install and activate this plugin.

Log into your admin and from the admin menu section, click on Plugins > Add New …

(WordPress Plugins Menu – Add New)

In the Plugins area, search for “simple staff plugin”. This brings up the Simple Staff Plugin in your plugin search results.

Click on the Install Now button …

(WordPress Plugins  – Add Plugins screen)

Activate the plugin …

(Activate plugin)

After your plugin has been installed and activated, a new menu will display on the main WordPress menu called Staff Members …

(Staff Members)

Here is where you will configure and manage all of the settings and options for your plugin are configured and managed from this menu.

How To Configure The Simple Staff List Plugin

Depending on how many people are in your team and how you want to structure your employee directory, you could begin to add new employee entries after installing the plugin, or create different groups (i.e. categories) to place your individualgroup members into.

Staff Members – Groups

To set up your categories go to your WP dashboard menu and select Staff Members > Groups …

(Staff Members Menu – Groups)

This brings you to the Groups settings panel …

(Groups area)

Note: Configuring groups works in the same way as configuring WordPress categories …

(Groups work just like WordPress categories)

Create new groups by entering the following information:

1. Group Name – Enter your category name here
2. Slug – Type in the URL-friendly version of your group name. Note: make sure that all letters are in lower case and use hyphens instead of spaces.
3. Parent – Use this section if you plan to set up nested categories
4. Description – Enter the group description
5. Click the Add New Group button when finished to create your new directory category …

(Groups section)

If you are a business that employs many people, having the ability to create groups can be very useful. For example, you can create groups for investors, developers, departments, etc.

Create as many groups and nested groups as you want by adding new Groups and then using the Parent drop-down menu to organize these into a directory hierarchy …

(Nested categories)

Remember to click on the Add New Group button after entering each item …

To change Groups for a particular item, hover over a category title and select the Edit link …

Your selected item’s details open in the Edit Group screen. Select a new parent category from the Parent dropdown menu …

(Edit Group screen)

Click Update to save your changes …

To edit the Group name or slug, hover your mouse over the group name and click on Quick Edit …

Click on Update Group  after making changes …

Continue adding group names in this section until you are done creating your directory structure …

Add as many nested categories as you like …

(Add nested categories your staff directory)

After you are done setting up your groups, the next step is to begin adding names to your directory.

Staff Members – Add New

In your admin menu, choose Staff Members > Add New …

(Staff Members Menu – Add New)

The Add New Staff Member settings area …

(Add New Staff Member section)

This section provides an easy-to-use interface for adding and editing your staff member details and includes the following fields:

Name Section (1)

• Name: Your employee’s name
• Slug: Edit your staff members’ permalink URL (you will see this section after your first save).

Staff Photo Section (2)

• Photo: Add a photo here

Staff Member Info Section (3)

• Position: Your staff member’s role
• Email: The staff member’s email address
• Phone Number: Your employee’s phone number
• Facebook URL: Add the person’s Facebook address into this field (note: use the full URL, e.g. http://www.facebook.com/username)
• Twitter URL: Type in your employee’s Twitter username (note: only enter the username, not the full twitter URL)

Staff Member Bio Section (4)

• Staff Member Bio: Enter a profile description for your employees here. As this uses the WordPress Text Editor, you can add formatting to the content entered into this section.

Groups Section (5)

• Groups: This section lets you assign an employee or faculty member to a group (see the previous section to learn how to set up groups).

If you click on the Screen Options tab …

(Screen options)

You will see options to enable additional features …

(Enable additional fields in screen options)

Now that you know what each section does, enter your staff member’s details …

(Add Staff Member fields)

Once you are done inputting each of you staff member’s details, assign the new item to a directory group in the Groups box located in your sidebar …

(Groups feature)

Note: If you have not set up your directory groups before adding staff member details, you can add a new group in this screen by selecting Groups > + Add New Group …

(Add a new group inside your Groups box)

A field for entering a new group name will display, with a dropdown menu that lets you assign your new entry to a parent group. Enter your new group and click on the Add New Group button …

A new group will be created. Remember to tick the checkbox to assign an individual to the group …

(New group added)

Note: Groups cannot be edited when new employee details are being added or edited. To edit an item, go to the Groups section of the plugin’s settings (see “Groups” section of the tutorial above for details).

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After filling in your team member’s details, click the Publish button to add them to the directory …

Click View Post …

To make changes to your staff member’s profile, click on the Edit Staff Member link in the WP admin toolbar …

(Edit Staff Member link – admin toolbar)

For a detailed tutorial about using the admin toolbar , go here:

• The WordPress Control Panel Explained

Note: If you have set up groups and get ’not found’ page errors like the one shown below, check that your site permalinks have been set up correctly …

(Not found error? Check your permalinks)

We have written a detailed tutorial on using permalinks in WordPress here:

• Configuring WordPress Permalinks

Repeat the above process to continue adding new members to your directory directory.

Staff Members – All Staff Members

After you are done entering employees to your directory, you can view and edit their details by clicking Staff Members > All Staff Members in your menu …

(Staff Members – All Staff Members)

This brings up a table listing all the staff profiles and all details you have added related to each entry …

(Staff Members details list)

If you need to edit individual details, just hover your mouse over their listing, and a menu will appear.

Click on Edit if you need to make changes to the item’s Staff Bio, or Quick Edit to change details such as their name, slug, group, and publish status. You can also delete someone from your directory by clicking on Trash, or view the entry on your site by selecting View …

(Edit Staff Members info)

Depending on what you are using the plugin for, your table can get quite long.

You can use the Search Staff Members search feature to find items if necessary …

(Search members)

The plugin also allows you to specify which fields to display in this section. To show or hide fields on your screen, click the Screen Options tab at the top of your page …

(Screen Options)

Tick or untick the checkboxes to display or hide specific fields. You can also specify how many staff members are shown per page. Click the Apply button when done to save your preferences …

Staff Members – Order

Simple Staff List also features a drag-and-drop interface that lets you specify the order in which your employee profiles appear on your directory pages.

Click Staff Members > Order on your dashboard menu …

(Staff Members Menu – Order)

To reorder your entries, click and drag the entry to the new location …

(Reorder listings using drag and drop)

Your directory will be automatically reorganized …

(Reordered list items)

Once you are done adding employees’ details to the directory, the next step is to make your directory display to your visitors.

Staff Members – Order

The plugin also features a drag-and-drop interface allowing you to arrange the order in which entries display on your directory pages.

Select Staff Members > Order on the menu …

(Staff Members Menu – Order)

To reorder your items, click and drag the item to a new position …

(Rearrange items using drag and drop)

Your staff list will automatically be reordered …

(Reordered list)

After adding all staff details to the directory, the next step is to make your directory show to your visitors.

Simple Staff List – Additional Notes

The Simple Staff List plugin also lets you create the layout and style of your employee directory listings using template tags and CSS (Cascading Style Sheets).

Templates Menu

To customize the layout and style of your directory, select Staff Members > Templates from your WordPress admin menu …

(Staff Members – Templates)

This opens the Templates page …

(Customize your directory template)

To customize your directory listings, reorganize any of the permitted template tags inside the [staff_loop] [/staff_loop] code.

For example, here is a screenshot of the Default Template …

(Default Staff Loop Template)

The This code displays your directory listing as shown below …

(Default Plugin Template Listing)

Notice that there are no Facebook or Twitter addresses showing in the above example. To make these fields show in your directory, you will need to include the [staff-facebook] and [staff-twitter] template tags, as shown in the screenshot below …

(Template tags can be added to Staff Loop Template)

Your directory listings will now display Facebook and Twitter links as as the screenshot below shows …

(Employee profiles with social media links added)

Note: If you want to customize your directory but don’t want to mess with editing code or are unsure of how to edit the template as shown above, please contact us for assistance.

Usage Menu

As well as allowing you to customize your directory templates, the Simple Staff List plugin allows you to display your listings differently using modified shortcodes.

In your menu, choose Staff Members >Usage …

(Staff Members – Usage)

This opens the Usage screen …

(Simple Staff List plugin shortcodes)

This screen displays all different shortcode variations that the plugin allows you to use.

For example, a useful shortcode variation you can add to your page to display a list of individuals belonging only to a specific group is the shortcode [simple-staff-list group=”group name”], (e.g.:[simple-staff-list group=”Gold Level associates”])

You can also make your listings display in ascending or descending order by using the shortcode [simple-staff-list order=”DESC”] (descending).

Options Menu

Click Staff Members >Options in your dashboard menu …

(Staff Members – Options)

This opens the Options screen …

(Simple Staff List – customizable fields)

This section lets you modify some of the labels used in the plugin

Finally, you can also export your staff members data by going to your menu and clicking Tools > Export …

(Export Staff Members info)

If you need plugin help or support, go to the Simple Staff List support page and contact the plugin author.

Additional Staff Directory Plugins

Simple Staff List isn’t the only adding a directory of your staff. For example, here are some other free plugins you can use for creating an employee directory on your site:

Modern Team Staff Directory

(Modern Team Staff Directory – Plugin For WordPress)

Modern Team Staff Directory helps you collect your team information and showcase it anywhere on your site in beautiful grids, columns and tables. This premium plugin features over a dozen presets and provides editors that make it easy to edit and update your directory.

(Modern Team Staff Directory – Responsive Templates)

Go here to learn more:

• Modern Team Staff Directory

Staff Directory

(Staff Directory – Plugin For WordPress)

The Staff Directory plugin lets you easily display a list of team/staff/faculty members. The plugin supports staff categories and can be used for churches, schools, etc.

You can also create custom fields …

(Custom Details Fields. Screenshot source: plugin website)

Learn more here:

• Staff Directory – Plugin For WordPress

Faculty And Staff Directory

(Faculty And Staff Directory – WordPress Plugin)

This plugin was developed to provide a simple and flexible faculty and staff directory for a small college or university.

The plugin also installs a widget that allows you to feature profiles in a widget area.

More info:

• Faculty And Staff Directory

Company Directory

(Company Directory – WP Plugin)

Company Directory lets you easily add your employees to your site. Different layouts are included, including list and customizable single views, as well as fields like title, email, phone, pic and member bio, allowing you to present your company and capabilities.

Visitors will be able to click through from your list, grid, and table views to read more about each employee in a customizable single view …

(Display your staff and faculty members in an easy to view format. Screenshot source: Company Directory website)

This plugin also uses simple shortcodes.

Learn more here:

• Company Directory – Plugin For WordPress

Employee Spotlight

(Employee Spotlight)

Employee Spotlight displays team members, partners or just one single person in a 4-column circle grid page. This page can be easily created with a setup assistant on plugin activation.

The Employee Spotlight plugincomes with two sidebar widgets that let you display featured and recent employees selected in the editor, plus two responsive views which adjust to the screen size of the viewer’s device.

Detailed information about  each faculty member can be displayed in their own page, as well as in summary …

(Responsive layout with employee circle grid. Screenshot sourced from Employee Spotlight plugin website)

Learn more here:

• Employee Spotlight – WordPress Plugin

Staffer

(Staffer – WordPress Plugin)

This plugin uses custom post types for staff management and supports the display of staff members via a shortcode, allowing you to easily create and manage an employee directory on your website …

(Staffer archive page. Screenshot source: Staffer website)

Staffer works with many popular WordPress themes, and also allows for custom template use and custom content wrappers.

Learn more here:

• Staffer – WP Staff Directory Plugin

If the directory plugins listed above aren’t what you’re looking for, just go online or visit the WordPress plugin directory and search for:

• Add Staff Directory To WordPress
• WordPress Staff List
• WordPress Plugin Staff Directory
• Simple Staff List Template WordPress
• etc.

Hopefully, now you know how to add an easy-to-update simple employee directory in your site without coding skills.

Images of models used to display fictitious staff members in this tutorial were sourced under creative commons license from pixabay.com

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