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Set up initiatives

This feature is only available in ArcGIS Online with Hub Premium.

Learn more about feature compatibility

ArcGIS Hub initiatives allow you to bring together related projects and measure progress toward shared objectives. ArcGIS Hub Premium customers can use initiatives to organize and communicate efforts to meet long-term goals.  You can use associations to connect related projects and initiatives. Initiatives can be featured on one or many sites, and sites can link to one or many initiatives.

License:

The initiatives feature requires a license to ArcGIS Hub Premium.

Create an initiative

Signed-in organization members with the ability to create an item can create an initiative from the global navigation (if enabled) and from the relevant workspace of a configured catalog. For more information, refer to Configure roles and privileges.

To create an initiative, complete the following steps:

  1. Sign in to ArcGIS Hub.

    • From the global navigation header, click the Create button and choose Initiative.

    • To create an initiative and add it directly to a configured catalog, navigate to the relevant site or project workspace (Catalog, Content pane). Click the Add content button and select Initiative.

    • To create an initiative and add it directly to a project's configured catalog, go to the project view. Click the Content tab, click the Add content button, and select Initiative.

  2. Provide a name for the initiative in the Title field and select a catalog type from the available options:

    • For the Blank catalog and Quick start catalog... options, click Next.

    • For the Catalog with existing group option, click Select group. Select a group, click Add, and click Next.

  3. Select a group to control who can view or edit.

    Note:

    Group selection is optional if creating from the Create button (global navigation). Group selection is required if creating and adding directly to a configured catalog.

    For groups selected, members of shared update groups can edit initiative information. Members of view-only groups can search and view the initiative, if it is not shared to the public.

  4. Click Create to create the initiative.

Manage an initiative

Initiative owners can edit and manage an initiative in the workspace. If an initiative is shared with a shared update group, any member of that group can edit it. In the workspace, click the Save button to save changes made in each pane before browsing to a different pane.

To manage an initiative, complete the following steps:

  1. Sign in to ArcGIS Hub.

    Your user workspace appears in the Overview pane.

    Note:

    If you are already signed in, click your username in the upper corner and select View workspace to open your user workspace.

  2. Click the Initiatives tab.

    This allows you to view your recently modified initiatives in a table.

  3. In the table, find the initiative you want to manage and click the Manage button .

    If the initiative is not listed in the table, use the following steps to find additional initiatives to manage:

    1. Below the table, click View all initiatives.

      Your workspace's Content pane appears with the filter for initiatives configured.

    2. Click the Manage button .

  4. Click the Details pane and add or edit the following information to appear in the initiative view (except discoverability information).

    The initiative view header displays a map with the initiative location, if set. If not, an item thumbnail image shows. If this is not available, only the initiative name appears.

    • Title—Title changes are not applied to the site URL. Refer to Brand a site with header and theme options to add the site's title to its header.

    • Summary

    • Thumbnail—This image displays in search and galleries and in ArcGIS Online.

    • Select Add additional details to add a Description.

    • Select Increase discoverability to add Tags and Categories.

    • Location—You can provide a location by address, organizational extent, or drawing a custom map feature. When choosing an address, provide necessary additional details in the Room, floor, or building field. If you select No location, the initiative will not display on maps.

    • Select the options under Progress details or Hero banner to edit these settings. Use the Timeline to organize and show stages of your work over time. The Hero banner allows you to feature a map or an image above the initiative's title.

    You can also edit some of these details in ArcGIS Online.

  5. Click Catalog and select the Content pane or the Events pane to configure a catalog of content or events.

  6. In the Metrics pane, you can add metrics to show progress or other measurable aspects of the initiative.

  7. In the Projects pane, you can use associations to help organize projects with common goals. Associated projects appear on the initiative view. Create an association group so that others can manage associations (request, accept, remove). After you create an association group, use the following tabs:

    • Projects—Find projects and manage associations.

    • Members—Add members and send messages.

    • Settings—Set visibility for viewing associations and configure association group membership.

    Note:

    If you feature a map on the initiative view, it will display locations of associated projects, if set. The extent of the map will match the initiative extent, if set.

  8. Click Settings and select the General pane to configure Map settings. Here, you can also prevent accidental deletion of the initiative or delete the initiative.

  9. Click Settings and select the Sharing pane to set the Sharing level. Share the item with groups to allow members to view or edit the item. View-only group members can search and view the item, if it is not shared to the public. Shared update group members can edit initiative information in the workspace.

    Learn more about using groups and access and sharing.

Display an initiative

You can showcase initiatives on a Hub site or page for staff and/or community members to discover. Add initiatives using the gallery card, header links, search catalog, and so on.

To display an initiative, complete the following steps:

  1. Edit a site or page layout.

  2. To add an initiative to the items below, follow the steps to add existing content:

    Every site has an additional search page dedicated to initiatives shared with a site. Users can browse initiatives by attributes such as location and status. Add a link to the site header or to a button on the site that goes to the initiative page, using the relative URL: / initiatives.