Using the Get Started tab

The Get Started tab is MonsterOps's guided setup flow for a new Organization. It walks Owners and Admins through the foundational steps of standing up the company in MonsterOps, from defining Core Values to running the first team meeting. Following the checklist gets you to a working setup faster than picking your way through each section on your own.

How it works

The Get Started tab appears in the left-side navigation between the Organization name (which doubles as the Organization selector) and the Organization section (Core Values, Org Chart, Objectives). It's labeled with the current progress — for example, Get Started 38% — and is visible to everyone in the Organization, though only Owners and Admins can act on it.

Permissions

• Anyone in the Organization can view the Get Started tab and see the current setup progress.
• Navigation arrows (↗) work for everyone, so Members can still jump to the related pages from the checklist.
• Only Owners and Admins can tick checklist items off manually. When a Member hovers over a tick box, the cursor changes to a 🚫 symbol indicating the action is unavailable.

This means Members can use Get Started as a guide — following the checklist and clicking through to the relevant pages — even though only Owners and Admins control the formal completion state.

The Setup progress bar

Above the four phases, a Setup progress indicator shows what percentage of the 13 checklist items has been completed. As you (or another Owner/Admin) tick items off — either by completing the underlying action or by marking them done manually — the percentage climbs.

Navigating the checklist

Each checklist item has two interactive elements:

• An up-right arrow (↗) — clicking this takes you straight to the page where you'd complete the item, so you don't have to hunt for the right section.
• A manual tick box — you can mark an item as done without actually completing the underlying action. This is useful when something has been handled outside the standard flow, but it's generally recommended to complete each item properly so your Organization is set up the way the flow intends.

Each item also has a hoverable information icon that shows a tooltip explaining what the item is, and many items include a visible tip below the checklist entry with practical guidance.

The four phases

The Get Started checklist is split into four phases, walking you from foundational setup through to running your first meeting.

Phase 1 — Company foundations (0/4)

Set the pieces that every team in the Organization will have access to.

This phase establishes the company-wide concepts that all teams share.

Add your Core Values

These show up in navigation and make your operating principles visible everywhere.

Tip: Make sure you pick an icon for each Core Value so it will be displayed in the sidebar.

Build your Org Chart

Define seats, assign people, and capture the responsibilities attached to each role. It's about having the right person in the right seat.

Tip: People can cover more than one seat, and seats can be shared to simplify the Org Chart.

Set company Objectives

These are your company Objectives that teams will align their work back to.

Rename sections and icons to match your company terminology

You can rename each section based on your company language.

Tip: Each team will include the same core operating sections. Rename and change icons as needed.

Phase 2 — Teams and customization (0/3)

Tune the language and visuals to match how your company works.

This phase is about shaping the teams themselves and getting people into them.

Create another team if needed

Teams can also be considered as departments (e.g., Development, Marketing, Sales) or functional pods / strike teams.

Assign a color and icon to each team

Those details make calendars and navigation easier to scan once more teams are added.

Invite your team members

People can belong to multiple teams and multiple Organizations.

Phase 3 — Populate the Leadership team (0/3)

Load in the numbers, priorities, and work items your team will review with every meeting.

This phase focuses on populating the first team — by default named Leadership — with the items that will drive its weekly meetings. The phase title adjusts automatically based on the first team's actual name, so if you've renamed it, the phase will reflect that.

Add your KPIs

Metrics signals should be obvious. The system works best when the team updates metrics every week.

Tip: Ask owners to forecast next week's KPI when entering this week's number. It shifts the habit from reporting to accountability.

Create your quarterly Rocks

Rocks are your key projects for the quarter. Break them into milestones, set due dates, and keep backlog ideas separate from active work.

Tip: Add a due date and clear owner for each milestone to increase accountability. Backlog Rocks mean ideas; Planned Rocks mean they are ready but will be for another quarter.

Add a few Issues

Issues are topics that need to be discussed with the team to determine the next course of action. These will generate To-dos.

Phase 4 — Run your first meeting (0/3)

The weekly is where the whole operating rhythm comes together.

The final phase gets you through running a complete meeting end to end.

Start a meeting and mark attendance

Choose the meeting, confirm who is in the room, and start the session.

Walk through each section with the timer

Move through the agenda in order so your team keeps the same rhythm every week.

Tip: If the room drifts, use the Tangent alert. It is a light nudge, but it helps teams recover focus quickly. Add To-dos and Issues as needed while running the meeting. Pick only 3 Issues to resolve in the meeting so the team stays focused on the most important topics.

Rate the meeting and close it

Collect the final ratings, close the loop on action items, and let completed work roll forward cleanly. Do this consistently and your monthly report will be more insightful.

Best practices

• Work through the phases in order. Each phase builds on the last — for example, KPIs and Rocks in Phase 3 are most useful when you've already set Objectives in Phase 1.
• Use the ↗ arrows to jump straight to each section instead of navigating manually. The flow is designed to reduce hunting.
• Hover the information icons for context if a checklist item isn't immediately clear.
• Avoid manually ticking items off without completing them, unless you've genuinely handled the work elsewhere. Skipped steps tend to surface later as gaps when a team starts running meetings.

Things to keep in mind

• The Get Started tab is visible to everyone. Navigation arrows work for everyone, but only Owners and Admins can tick items off — Members will see a 🚫 cursor when hovering over the tick boxes.
• The Setup progress percentage reflects 13 items across 4 phases. Partial completion is fine — you can come back to finish the flow at any time.
• The Phase 3 title reflects the first team's name. By default this is "Leadership," but it updates if you rename the team.
• It's possible to start operating in MonsterOps without finishing the Get Started flow, but doing so generally means a less complete setup. The flow is designed to surface configuration you'll otherwise be reminded to add later.

Related articles

• Working with your Organization
• Adding and managing Core Values
• Understanding the Org Chart
• Setting and tracking company goals with Objectives
• Organization Settings
• Working with Teams
• Using the Meetings tab