Contact Management

Overview

Open

Contact management covers the production and maintenance of contact lists, as well as email/distribution groups. It is a simple but powerful coordination process for humanitarian response environments where there is a multitude of actors working across a range of clusters/sectors. 

The contact list is usually a public, searchable database of basic contact information for individuals and organizations responding to the emergency. The contact list can help give an overview of the organizational presence and can allow individuals and groups to connect and coordinate. When linked to email/distribution groups, it also allows the dissemination of information and data. Email/distribution groups will often mirror the contact lists or disaggregate lists into multiple groups.

Process

Contact lists can be managed in Excel, Access, and various other software and tools. Some offices are collecting contact information using a Kobo questionnaire. 

Various tools/systems are also available for dissemination, as it relates to contact management. MailChimp is an online distribution tool and Google groups can also be used in conjunction with mailing lists. Many offices simply create email groups in Outlook, based on their contact lists. See the Software page.

The most important component of a contact management system is the process around it. Clear and comprehensive SOPs will help ensure that there are focal points managing contact lists and clear responsibilities for updating lists and email/distribution groups.

Outputs/Resources

Guidance

• Contact Management Guidelines

• Example SOPs for Contact list directory

Templates

• These templates are intended to provide a simple solution that OCHA Contact Management Focal points can use to collect and organize contact information. These include a form and the associated sheet to collect the form replies, to be copied and adapted to various contexts. The templates have been developed both in Office 365 (corporate tool) and Google to allow for flexibility. We recommend choosing the Google-based templates only when Office-based templates cannot be used.

  • Office Form: Simland Operation: Humanitarian Contacts List  and Excel Sheet with replies (accessible to UN accounts only)

  • Google Form: Simland Operation: Humanitarian Contact List and Google Sheet with replies (public)

Best practice

• MailChimp for Contact Management - OCHA Ukraine (2022)