Lesson 1.4 – Navigating the Dashboard and System Menus

Welcome to the FastFund Online interface. Because FastFund is a modern Software as a Service (SaaS) application, its User Interface and User Experience (UX/UI) are designed to be completely responsive. Whether you are working on a large desktop monitor, a tablet, or a mobile phone, the screen layout will automatically adjust to fit your device seamlessly.

In this lesson, we will explore the primary areas of the FastFund interface: the Status Bar, the Main Menu, the Main Work Space, and the interactive Financial Dashboard.

1. The Status Bar

Located at the very top of your screen, the Status Bar is your command center for system-wide settings and module navigation. The second line of the status bar displays your current company name and the specific module you are working in. You can click the module name drop-down to easily switch between the Accounting, Fund Raising, and Payroll applications.

[INSERT SCREENSHOT: Display the top Status Bar highlighting the Company Name drop-down, the Module drop-down, and the cluster of icons on the far right.]

On the right side of the Status Bar, you will find several critical navigation icons:

• Gear Icon (Company Administration): Available only to Company Administrators, this icon opens the setup area for company data, integrations, and user management.
• Open Book Icon (User’s Guide): Clicking this opens the specific online User’s Guide for the module you are currently working in.
• Question Mark Icon (Customer Support): Opens the support request form to contact the Araize support team.
• Right Pointing Arrow Icon (Exit/Sign-Out): Always use this icon to securely log out when finishing a work session.
• User Name Drop-Down: Clicking your name gives you access to your personal Account Settings, Preferences, Messages, and a secondary Sign Out option.

2. The Main Horizontal Menu

Just below the Status Bar is the light blue Main Menu. This horizontal menu contains the primary functions you will use daily. The items you see here are controlled by your specific user permissions, but generally include:

• Dashboard: Returns you to your home screen and graphical KPI metrics.
• Lists: Access your constituent database, chart of accounts, campaigns, appeals, and gifts.
• Transactions: The core entry area for donations, pledges, in-kind contributions, and batch processing.
• Cost Allocations: Manage Point of Entry allocations for splitting gifts.
• Utilities: Access tools for merging names, searching for duplicates, and importing/exporting data.
• Reports: Generate standard accounting-style reports, donor histories, and custom queries.

3. The Main Work Space and Screen Responsiveness

The large white area below the Main Menu is the Main Work Space. Whenever you select an option from the menus—such as a constituent list or a transaction entry screen—it will display in this area.

Because the system is responsive, resizing your browser window or viewing the system on a mobile phone will condense the menus. On smaller screens, the standard left-hand vertical taskbars are hidden. To access them, simply click the Hamburger Icon (three horizontal lines) in the top right corner of the screen.

[INSERT SCREENSHOT: Show a side-by-side comparison of the full desktop Main Work Space and the condensed mobile view featuring the Hamburger icon in the top right.]

4. Dashboard Financial Data

When you first log in, the Main Work Space displays the Fund Raising Dashboard. This is a visual representation of key performance indicators (KPIs) and metrics that monitor the financial health of your fundraising efforts in real-time. By default, these metrics reflect Fiscal Year-To-Date data.

Key Dashboard widgets include:

• Donations This Month / Donations This Year: Displays the total cash gifts and pledge payments, the number of donations, average amount, and number of new donors.
• InKinds This Year: Summarizes non-cash contributions.
• Pledge Summary: Displays the total open pledge balance.
• Donations by Month Line Graph: A visual plot of your donations. You can hover your mouse pointer over the dot on each month’s axis to see the exact total.
• Appeals and Gifts Pie Charts: Visual breakdowns of your top ten appeals and gift designations.
• Actionable Links: Many of these dashboard elements feature a Directional Arrow Icon in the upper right corner. Clicking this icon allows you to “drill down” directly into the corresponding detailed report (such as the Fund Summary or Appeal Summary report).