Tag: WordPress Staff Directory Plugin

Something that’s been proven to work in business, is that people generally buy from people they already know, like and trust.

Are you looking for inexpensive ways to sell more products online? Then make it easier for your visitors to get to know, like and trust you and your business better.

Adding a faculty member directory to your website can help to generate more trust, increase your online credibility and get interested prospects getting in touch with you.

In this tutorial, we explain how to add a simple and easily updatable simple faculty directory in your web site using a free plugin.

Adding An Employee Directory

In this tutorial, we will install, activate and configure a free plugin called Simple Staff List.

Simple Staff List Plugin For WordPress

(Simple Staff List Plugin For WordPress)

Simple Staff List lets you easily staff members (you could also use it to display partners, etc.).

The first step is to install and activate this plugin.

Log into the WP dashboard and navigate to Plugins > Add New …

(WordPress Plugins Menu – Add New)

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

Click on Install Now …

(Plugins  – plugin search results)

Click on the Activate Plugin link …

(Activate plugin)

After the plugin has been installed and activated, you will see that a new entry will have been added to your WordPress admin menu called Staff Members …

(Staff Members menu)

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

Configuring The Simple Staff List Plugin

Depending on the size of your team and how you want to structure your staff directory, you could just start adding new employee entries at this at this stage, or create various groups (i.e. categories) to place your individualstaff members into.

Staff Members – Groups

To configure your directory categories go to your dashboard menu and choose Staff Members > Groups …

(Staff Members – Groups)

The Groups settings screen …

(Groups screen)

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

(Groups are like WordPress categories)

Add a new group by entering the following information:

1. Group Name – Enter your group category name here
2. Slug – Enter the slug of your group name. Note: make sure that all letters are in lower case and use hyphens instead of spaces.
3. Parent – This section lets you set up a directory hierarchy
4. Description – Enter the group description in this field
5. Click the Add New Group button when done to create your new directory group …

(Groups settings area)

If you manage a business that employs many people, the ability to assign people to different categories can be very useful. For example, you can create a group for investors, developers, departments, etc.

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

(Nested categories)

Remember to click the Add New Group button after entering new items …

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

The item’s details open in the Edit Group screen. Select a new group category from the Parent drop-down menu …

(Edit Group screen)

Click the Update button to save your changes …

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

Click Update Group when done to save your changes …

Add as many groups as you need to until you are done creating your directory structure …

Add as many nested categories as you like …

(Add nested categories your directory)

After you are done setting up your hierarchical structure, you can begin adding your people to your directory.

Staff Members – Add New

From your admin menu, select Staff Members > Add New …

(Staff Members Menu – Add New)

This loads the Add New Staff Member settings screen in your browser …

(Add New Staff Member screen)

This screen provides you with an easy-to-use interface for adding and editing your staff member profile and includes the following fields:

Name Section (1)

• Name: Your staff member’s name
• Permalink: Change the slug for each staff member if you want (this section appears after your first save).

Staff Photo Section (2)

• Photo: Upload a photo of your staff member

Staff Member Info Section (3)

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

Staff Member Bio Section (4)

• Staff Member Bio: Type a profile description for your staff members here. This uses the WordPress Text Editor, so you can add formatting to the content entered into this section.

Groups Section (5)

• Groups: Assign the individual to a group (see the previous section to learn how to set up groups).

Click on the Screen Options tab at the top of the screen …

(Screen options)

You will see options to enable additional page settings …

(Enable additional fields in screen options)

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

(Add Staff Member settings)

After you are done inputting details, assign your new entry to a directory group in the Groups section in your sidebar …

(Groups feature)

Note: If you have not set up groups before adding new staff members, you can add a new group by selecting Groups > + Add New Group …

(Groups > + Add New Group link)

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

A new category will be added. Make sure that the checkbox is ticked …

(Groups box)

Note: Groups cannot be edited when adding or editing an employee’s details. To edit a group 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 entering the person’s details, click the Publish button to add them to your directory …

Click View Post …

To edit your member profile, click on the Edit Staff Member link in the admin toolbar …

(Edit Staff Member link – admin toolbar)

To learn more about using the WP admin toolbar , go here:

• Your WordPress Admin Panel Explained

Note: If a page error shows up like the one shown in the screenshot below, check that your site’s permalinks have been configured correctly …

(Check your permalinks if you get errors)

We have written a detailed tutorial on using WP permalinks here:

• Setting Up WordPress Permalinks

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

Staff Members – All Staff Members

After you have added employee details to your directory, you can view and edit details by clicking Staff Members > All Staff Members in the dashboard menu …

(Staff Members – All Staff Members)

This brings up a table displaying all your directory entries and their details …

(Staff Members details table)

If you need to edit an individual’s details, simply hover your mouse over their list name, and a submenu will appear.

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

(Edit Staff Members details)

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

You can use the Search Staff Members search field to locate entries …

(Search Staff Members search box)

The plugin also lets you specify which fields to display in this section. To hide or hide fields on your screen, click on Screen Options …

(Staff Members Screen Options tab)

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

Staff Members – Order

Simple Staff List also features a drag-and-drop interface that allows you to arrange the order that entries show on your directory pages.

Choose Staff Members > Order in your dashboard menu …

(Staff Members – Order)

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

(Reorder items using drag and drop)

Your directory will be automatically reorganized …

(Reordered list)

After adding all employees’ details to your directory, the next step is to display the directory to your site users.

Staff Members – Order

Simple Staff List also features a drag-and-drop interface that allows you to arrange the order in which entries show on your directory page.

Click Staff Members > Order on the menu …

(Staff Members – Order)

To rearrange the order of your entries, click and drag the entry to its new position …

(Rearrange items using drag and drop)

Your staff list will automatically be reordered …

(Reordered list entries)

After adding your employees’ details to your directory, the next step is to add your directory on your site.

Simple Staff List – Additional Notes

Simple Staff List allows you to edit the style and layout of your employee directory entries using template tags and CSS (Cascading Style Sheets).

Templates Menu

To customize the style and layout of your staff list, select Staff Members > Templates from your menu …

(Staff Members – Templates)

This opens the Templates screen …

(Simple Staff List Templates screen)

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

For example, here is the default template used for displaying listings …

(Default Simple Staff List Staff Loop Template)

The above code displays the listing shown below …

(Default Template Listing)

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

(Template tags can be added to Staff Loop Template)

Here is what your directory should now look like …

(Directory listings with social media links added)

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

Usage Menu

In addition to being able to customize your directory templates, the Simple Staff List plugin allows you to display your staff profiles differently using modified shortcodes.

In your WP admin menu, select Staff Members >Usage …

(Staff Members Menu – Usage)

This brings up the Usage screen …

(Simple Staff List shortcodes)

This screen displays all the shortcode variations you can use.

A useful variation you can insert in your page, for example, to display only members of a specific group is the shortcode [simple-staff-list group=”group name”], (e.g.:[simple-staff-list group=”sales trainers”])

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

Options Menu

Select Staff Members >Options on your main menu …

(Staff Members – Options)

This opens the Options page …

(Simple Staff List – customizable options)

Here you can edit labels like Staff Members URL Slug and Staff Member title

You can also export your staff members data from the Tools > Export page …

(Export Staff Members plugin info)

If you need plugin support, visit the plugin site.

Additional WordPress Plugins For Creating Simple Employee Directories

Simple Staff List is not the only plugin you can use. For example, here are a few other plugins you can check out to create a directory on your website:

Modern Team Staff Directory

(Modern Team Staff Directory – WP Staff Directory Plugin)

This plugin 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)

Learn more here:

• Modern Team Staff Directory – WP Plugin

Staff Directory

(Staff Directory)

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

You can also insert custom fields …

(Custom Details Fields Screen. Screenshot sourced from Staff Directory website)

More info:

• Staff Directory – Plugin For WordPress

Faculty And Staff Directory

(Faculty And Staff Directory – WP Plugin)

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

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

To learn more about the plugin go here:

• Faculty And Staff Directory – WordPress Plugin

Company Directory

(Company Directory – WordPress Plugin)

The Company Directory plugin lets you easily add your staff, team or faculty to your site. Different layouts are included, including list and table views, plus as fields like job title, email, phone number, pic and member bio, allowing visitors to get to know 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 in an easy-to-view format. Screenshot source: Company Directory plugin website)

This plugin also uses a simple shortcode system.

For more details, visit the plugin site here:

• Company Directory – WP Staff Directory Plugin

Employee Spotlight

(Employee Spotlight – WP Plugin)

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

This plugin comes with two sidebar widgets that let you display featured and recent employees selected in the editor, and two responsive views which adjust to the screen in the viewer’s device.

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

(Responsive layout with employee circle grid. Screenshot source: Employee Spotlight plugin website)

More info:

• Employee Spotlight – Plugin For WordPress

Staffer

(Staffer – WP Staff Directory Plugin)

The Staffer 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 online staff directory …

(Staffer archive page. Screenshot sourced from plugin website)

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

Learn more about this plugin here:

• Staffer – WP Plugin

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

• Add Staff Directory To WordPress
• WordPress Staff Directory Plugin
• WordPress Plugin Staff Directory
• Staff Directory Plugin WordPress
• etc.

Hopefully, this step-by-step tutorial has helped you learn how to add an easy-to-manage employee directory to your web site.

Models used to portray sample staff members in this tutorial were sourced under creative commons license from pixabay.com

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