Contacts · Article 1 of 2
Understanding contacts
In Navigator, a contact is a person linked to one or more participants — a nominee, guardian, carer, family member, or support coordinator. Contacts are distinct from customers and play a key role in how your team communicates with the people around a participant.
Contacts vs customers
- A customer is the NDIS participant — the person whose plan is being managed.
- A contact is someone connected to that participant who acts on their behalf, receives information, or makes decisions for them.
Contacts can log into the Navigator portal on behalf of a participant. What they see and do depends on the permissions set on the link between them and the participant. A contact may approve invoices, receive monthly statements, and be linked to more than one participant at the same time.
Relationship types
When a contact is linked to a customer, their relationship is recorded. Navigator supports a wide range of types:
- Guardian, Nominee, Spouse, Parent (Mother, Father)
- Sibling (Brother, Sister), Child (Son, Daughter, Grandson, Granddaughter)
- Extended family (Aunt, Uncle, Nephew, Niece, Cousin, Grandfather, Grandmother)
- Professional (Support coordinator, Support worker, Case manager, Case worker, Local area coordinator, NDIS planner, Psychosocial recovery coach, Healthcare provider, Doctor, Employer)
- Friend, Colleague, Carer, Other
One contact can be linked to multiple participants with different relationship types on each link.
What information a contact record holds
| Field | What it's for |
|---|---|
| First name / last name | Required. Displayed across Navigator. |
| Email address | Portal login, invoice approvals, monthly statements. |
| Phone numbers | Multiple supported. Used for SMS approval requests. |
| Company | Optional. Useful for professional contacts. |
| Invoice approval channel | How the contact receives approval requests — email, SMS, app notification, or none. |
| Alerts | A note visible to your team whenever the contact record is open. |
Churn risk tracking
Like customers, contacts can be flagged as a churn risk. This is useful when a contact is expressing dissatisfaction or you want to schedule a follow-up.
- Churn risk flag — marks the contact as at risk
- Churn risk reason — a note explaining why
See Duplicate contacts and Creating & managing contacts for more.