Quickstart: Set Up Your Security Operations in Under 15 Minutes

Before You Begin

Welcome to GuardianHub. This guide assumes you've just created your account via the onboarding flow and landed in your dashboard. You should have admin or operations manager role permissions. If you haven't signed up yet, head to the signup page and pick a plan that matches your team size.

Step 1: Create Your First Site

Sites are the foundation of GuardianHub. Each site represents a physical location your guards protect. From your dashboard, click Sites in the sidebar, then the New Site button. Fill in the site name, address, and postcode. Optionally upload a site image or floor plan. Choose the risk level — Low, Medium, High, or Critical — which determines default patrol frequency and guard requirements. Click Save, and your site appears in the sites table immediately.

• Site name and full address are required
• Risk level drives default patrol and staffing recommendations
• You can add contacts, documents, and instructions later from the site detail page

Step 2: Add Your Guards

Navigate to Staff in the sidebar and click Add Guard. Enter the guard's first name, last name, email, and mobile number. Upload their SIA licence — GuardianHub automatically extracts the licence number and expiry date using OCR. Set their employment type (full-time, part-time, relief) and hourly rate. Assign them to one or more sites. The guard receives an email invitation to download the Guard App and set their password.

Step 3: Configure Patrol Checkpoints

Open your site detail page and go to the Patrol Setup tab. Here you define NFC tags, QR codes, or GPS checkpoints that guards must scan on patrol. Give each checkpoint a name like "Main Gate," "Car Park Level 2," or "Server Room." Set the expected order and time windows. GuardianHub generates a printable QR sheet for physical deployment. Guards scan these checkpoints using the Guard App during their rounds.

Step 4: Build Your First Rota

Head to Rotas from the sidebar. Select your site and the week you want to schedule. GuardianHub's AI engine suggests an optimised rota based on site risk level, guard availability, and shift pattern templates. Review the suggestions — you can drag guards between shifts, adjust times, or manually assign. Click Publish Rota, and every guard gets a push notification with their shifts for the week.

Step 5: Go Live and Monitor

That's it — you're operational. Guards clock in via the app, scan checkpoints on patrol, and log entries in the Occurrence Book. From your Command Centre dashboard, you see live guard locations, patrol completion rates, and any incidents in real time. Check the ACS Compliance dashboard periodically to ensure your documentation stays audit-ready.

What Next?

Now that you're live, explore the platform's deeper capabilities. Set up lone worker check-in intervals, configure incident report templates for your clients, build SOPs for common scenarios, and connect your evidence vault for ACS audits. Each feature has its own dedicated guide in this documentation.