Ordering Mobile Devices

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Designate an Account Administrator

Each department is responsible for ordering mobile phones for members of their department.

Departments should designate an Account Administrator who will be the primary owner of department phone accounts.

Account Administrators are responsible for:

• Placing orders for mobile devices and service
• Paying mobile account bills
• Auditing mobile accounts on a quarterly basis

Account Administrators may designate any of these tasks within their department but are ultimately responsible for managing the completion of these responsibilities.

The IT Department is available to assist in the ordering of mobile phones but Account Administrators are responsible for managing their department’s accounts.

Create guidelines for mobile device eligibility 

Each department is responsible for outlining which roles are permitted or required to have a mobile phone. Before ordering a phone for a new employee consult with your department or division manager to determine if a phone is required for the position.

Look for available lines first

Start by reviewing the phones on your account.  It’s possible you have 1 or 2 spares that you can assign to a new person.  They may have been devices used by people that have recently left, and their old phone number and/or device can now be reassigned.  If you do have these, identify the phone number and the device assigned to this number. If you have conducted an account audit or review monthly billing you should know which lines are eligible for upgrades.

If you can’t find a spare line can contact the IT Department to find an available line

Great service is about knowing what your customer wants and needs.

• Check with the user to see what type of device they want to use (iPhone, Galaxy, etc).
• Accessories – Does the user need accessory preferences (charger, protection case)?
• How will they be using the new device? For most users the Consumption Voice Plan will be the best option, but it is important to check if the phone will be used for a lot of conference calls, or out-of-network calls.

• Does the employee already have a phone? If so, they may be eligible for an upgrade. Click here to check their upgrade eligibility.
• Swap eligibility with another line – If the phone line is not eligible for an upgrade you can trade eligibility with another line.  If you do not currently have eligible lines in your department you can contact Digital to determine which lines you can swap.

• Double-check the customer’s preferences – Have you asked what type of phone operating system he or she prefers? Do they need accessories? Be sure to double-check prior to ordering.
• Go to https://sso.verizonenterprise.com/amserver/sso/login.go Select “My Business Account”
• Sign In with your user name and password. If you do not have an account contact the IT Help Desk. After logging in you will arrive at the “Manage Lines and Accounts” screen. All City of San Rafael mobile numbers are displayed here.
• Search for the phone number you are ordering for – In the search box, type in the phone number want to upgrade or edit
• You don’t need to order the latest device – Consider purchasing a year-old model rather than a brand-new model. Verizon offers perfectly good phones for free (S7 and iphone 6s) They change every 3 months so check to see if a phone you want is now free. Spending $200 for a iPhone 7 when a 6s is free needs to be clearly justified.
• Follow the screen prompts to select the phone you want to purchase.
• Most phones should have the Consumption Voice Plan –  City accounts are eligible for an unlimited data plan with free in-network calling. Most staff members will save money with this plan unless they’re using more than 400 minutes outside the plan each month (talking with land lines, other networks, or long distance).
• Compare plans – Make sure you compare plans to see if they are the same, and keep the plan unless you do in fact want or need to change the plan
• Purchase accessories – Make sure you have the customer’s preferences prior to ordering
• Double-check mailing address – Do you want IT staff to activate the phone? If so send it to the IT Department at City Hall. Alternatively, the Account Administrator can be in charge of activating the phone.
• Continue following prompts to finish purchase – Make sure the names and phone numbers match. Click confirm on the remaining screen prompts.

• After the phone has been received, follow the following instructions to activate the phone
• If the phone is a replacement phone you will want to make sure that the original phone has been backed up.
  • iPhones can be backed up through the iCloud or iTunes. Click here to learn more about backing up iPhones.
  • For Samsung devices click here to learn how to backup data.
• Once the old phone has been backed up, power it down before activating the new phone.
• Once the phone has been activated, you can instruct the user on loading applications.
  • Outlook is the preferred application for checking email
  • OneDrive, Word, and Excel should be loaded for ease of access to files and documents.
• Once the new phone has been activated, return the old device to the IT Department. They will remove all personal data from the phone.