š Overview
When you need to send a message to your field crew, your estimating team, or any other subset of your company, Groups give you a dedicated channel to do it without hunting down individual contacts. A group is a named collection of team members that shows up as a shared message thread in Structur's Messages module, ready for conversation the moment it's created.
Groups are set up once in Settings and then live permanently in the Messages module under the Groups tab. Every member of the group can see the full conversation history and send messages to the thread. This keeps team communication organized by crew or department without requiring separate apps or chat tools outside of Structur.
š Understanding Groups
ā” What It Does
Settings > Groups allows you to:
Create named groups, give each group a clear title, optional description, and a color so it's easy to spot in your list
Add team members to a group, search and select any users in your account as group members
Manage group membership, add or remove members from a group at any time by editing it
Duplicate a group, create a copy of an existing group, members included, as a starting point for a new one
Delete groups, remove groups that are no longer needed
Power group messaging, every group created here appears automatically as a group thread in the Messages module
š When to Use It
Groups are most valuable when you need to:
Message your entire field crew at once without sending individual DMs
Keep communication between your estimating team, project managers, or office staff in a dedicated thread
Separate field communication from office communication so messages reach the right people
Create a permanent group thread that new hires can be added to as they join
Quickly spin up a similar group by duplicating an existing one and adjusting membership
š Step-by-Step Instructions
1. Open Settings > Groups
Click Settings in the left sidebar
Click Groups in the Settings sidebar
Settings opens as a pop-up window. Groups display as cards showing each group's color, name, description, member avatars, and member count. Use the search bar to find a group by name, and the List / Grid toggle to switch how they're displayed.
2. Create a New Group
Click + New Group in the top right
Enter a Title (required), use a name that makes the group's purpose immediately clear, for example "Field Crew," "Estimating Team," or "Project Managers"
Enter a Description (optional), a brief note about what the group is used for
Pick a Color for the group's icon
Search and select Members (required), selected members appear as chips above the search field, with a running count of how many you've selected
Click Create
The group now appears in the Groups list and immediately shows up as a group message thread in the Messages module.
Note: You can also create groups directly from the Messages module by clicking + New Group at the bottom of the Messages panel. Groups created there appear here in Settings > Groups as well.
3. Edit a Group
Click the three-dot menu on the group's card
Select Edit group
The Edit Group modal opens with the current title, description, color, and members loaded
Update the title, description, color, or membership as needed, click the X on a member's chip to remove them, or search to add someone new
Click Save
4. Duplicate a Group
Click the three-dot menu on the group's card
Select Duplicate
This creates a copy of the group, including its current members. Rename it and adjust membership as needed.
5. Delete a Group
Click the three-dot menu on the group's card
Select Delete (red)
Important: Deleting a group removes the group message thread from the Messages module. Message history in that thread will no longer be accessible. Only delete a group if you're certain it and its message history are no longer needed.
ā Best Practices
Name groups by team or function, not by individual project, groups are permanent communication channels. "Field Crew" or "Estimating Team" stays useful over time. A project-specific group may become clutter once that project ends.
Use color to make groups easy to scan, assigning distinct colors to your groups makes them faster to spot in a growing list.
Keep group membership current, add new hires to relevant groups as soon as they join so they're part of team communication from day one.
Use the description field, a short description helps other admins understand the group's purpose, especially in accounts with many groups.
Remove members who leave the company promptly, former team members should be removed from groups so they no longer receive internal communications.
Duplicate a similar group instead of starting from scratch, if a new group shares most of its members with an existing one, duplicate it and adjust membership rather than rebuilding it manually.
Create groups before you need them, having your crew and department groups set up in advance means you can message the right people the moment a project or situation needs communication.
ā Common Questions
Q: Where do groups show up after I create them?
A: Every group created in Settings > Groups appears automatically as a group thread in the Messages module under the Groups tab. All group members can see and send messages in the thread.
Q: Can I create a group directly from the Messages module?
A: Yes. Click + New Group at the bottom of the Messages panel. Groups created there appear in Settings > Groups as well.
Q: Can I add or remove members from a group after it's created?
A: Yes. Click the three-dot menu on the group's card, select Edit group, and update the membership. Changes take effect immediately.
Q: What does the Color picker do?
A: It sets the color of the group's icon in your Groups list, purely for visual organization. It doesn't affect permissions, notifications, or anything else about how the group functions.
Q: What happens when I duplicate a group?
A: Duplicating creates a new group with the same members as the original. Rename it and adjust the membership as needed for its new purpose.
Q: What happens to the message history if I delete a group?
A: Deleting a group removes the group thread from the Messages module and its message history will no longer be accessible. Only delete a group if you're certain the conversation history is no longer needed.
Q: Is there a limit to how many members a group can have?
A: There is no documented limit. You can add as many team members as your account has users.
Q: Can someone outside my company be added to a group?
A: No. Groups are for internal team members only. Only users with active accounts in your Structur workspace can be added as group members.
Q: Does Groups have anything to do with permissions or access control?
A: No. Despite the "manage access together" framing, Groups is purely an organizational tool for messaging. To control what team members can see or do in Structur, use Settings > Permissions instead.
ā ļø Common Mistakes to Avoid
ā Don't | ā Do |
Name groups after specific projects | Name groups after teams or functions that stay relevant over time, "Field Crew" not "123 Main St Project" |
Leave former employees in groups after they leave | Remove users from groups promptly when they leave so they no longer receive internal communications |
Delete a group with important message history | Save key information before deleting a group, message history cannot be recovered after deletion |
Skip the description field | Add a short description so other admins understand the group's purpose at a glance |
Wait to add new hires to groups | Add new team members to relevant groups on day one so they're part of team communication from the start |
Rebuild a similar group from scratch | Duplicate an existing group with similar membership and adjust it instead |