SPLX OS separates two distinct structures: departments group people for directory filtering, while the org chart maps accountability seats — the roles your organization runs on. Both are worth setting up. This guide walks through both in the order that makes them most useful.
Before you start
You need admin or owner role for both departments and the org chart. The People module must be enabled at Settings → Modules.
Step 1: Create departments
Go to People → Departments at /people/departments.
Click New department to open the creation dialog. Provide a name (required). Optionally, select a manager — the dropdown shows profiles that are already linked to OS accounts. Click Save.
Repeat for each department in your organization. Common starting points: Operations, Finance, Sales, and Field.
A few things to know about departments:
- Deleting a department does not remove people from their profiles — they simply lose the department label until reassigned.
- Non-admin users are redirected away from the Departments page; it is admin-only.
Step 2: Create top-level seats
Go to People → Org Chart at /people/org-chart.
Click Add seat in the top-right corner. Provide:
| Field | Notes |
|---|---|
| Title | Required. Use the role name, not the person's name (e.g., "Director of Operations") |
| Description | Optional. Summarize the seat's accountability |
| Order | Optional integer hint for sibling ordering |
Click Save. The seat appears on the chart as a top-level node.
Create one seat for each top-level leadership position in your organization. Bayou & Co. started with three: "Managing Director", "Operations Lead", and "Client Services Lead".
Step 3: Add child seats
To build hierarchy, add seats underneath existing ones. Click the parent seat to open its side panel. There is currently no "Add child seat" button in the side panel — add the child seat via Add seat from the toolbar, then drag it into position in edit mode (see Step 5).
Step 4: Assign people to seats
Click any seat to open its side panel. Under Assignments, select a profile from the dropdown and click Add. The dropdown only shows profiles not already assigned to this seat.
A seat can hold multiple assignments (useful for co-leads or interim arrangements). To remove an assignment, click the × next to a person's name.
Step 5: Rearrange the chart
Click Edit in the toolbar to enter edit mode. Each seat card gains a grip handle on its left edge.
- Reparent a seat — drag a card and drop it on top of another card to make that card the new parent.
- Reorder siblings — drag a card into the gap between two sibling cards to insert it at that position.
A circular dependency guard prevents dropping a seat under one of its own descendants. If you attempt this, the change is rejected with a toast.
Changes in edit mode are buffered — nothing is saved until you click Done. Click Cancel (or press Escape) to discard all pending moves.
Tip: The org chart does not auto-save. If you navigate away while in edit mode without clicking Done, all your pending moves are lost.
Step 6: Move a person between seats
To reassign someone from one seat to another: open the source seat's side panel, click × next to the person's name to unassign them, then open the destination seat and add them there.
What to do next
With the chart in place, each seat gives you a natural anchor for performance reviews. See How to run a 1-on-1 check-in to schedule periodic reviews tied to a person's seat.