Overview

SOPs let you manage property-specific call-handling instructions directly in Happy Property Manager. These instructions tell Happy Force technicians and JoyAI how to respond when residents report specific maintenance issues after hours — covering everything from emergency escalations to routine call handling. This article explains how to get started, how to create and manage instructions, and how to use Property Notices.

Getting Started

How to enable SOPs:

SOPs are enabled by your Customer Success Manager during your launch or onboarding session. Before activation, you'll review and confirm your instructions in a session with your CSM. Contact your CSM to schedule this if you haven't already.

Where to find them:

From Happy Property Manager, navigate to “Settings > SOPs”

Who can make changes:

The ability to create, edit, duplicate, or delete SOPs is restricted to users with the permission “Create and Edit SOPs” enabled on their role.

Creating and Managing SOPs

Each instruction is tied to a specific issue type and can be assigned to one or more properties.

To create a new SOP

1. Navigate to Settings > SOPs in Happy Property Manager
2. Select New SOP
3. Choose the topic from the list (e.g. broken window, no heat)
4. Write the instructions you want technicians and JoyAI to follow
5. Set your escalation rules (see below)
6. Assign the instruction to the relevant properties using the property selector
7. Save — changes take effect immediately

To edit an existing SOP

1. Open the instruction you want to update
2. Make your changes
3. Save — the update is immediately visible to technicians in HF Hub and picked up by JoyAI

Escalation Rules

For each instruction, you can configure two escalation settings:

• Should the resident call 911? — Set to “Yes” if this issue should prompt the resident to call emergency services
• Notify the on-call team? — Choose “No”, “Yes (always)”, or “Only when a temperature threshold is met”. For the threshold option, set a target temperature, choose whether it triggers above or below that value, and pick °F or °C (for example, notify when the temperature drops below the set value on a no-heat call)

These rules apply to both Happy Force technicians handling the call and JoyAI's automated responses.

Standard vs. Custom SOPs

Your account comes pre-loaded with a set of standard SOPs maintained by HappyCo, covering common emergency and maintenance scenarios such as:

• Fire detected / fire risk
• Water leak or flooding
• Power outage
• No heat / no AC
• Resident lock-out
• Resident injury

Standard SOPs start with a status of “Inactive”. During onboarding, your CSM helps you activate and customize them for your properties. You can duplicate standard SOPs and edit their instructions, but you can't delete them, or edit their names.

Custom SOPs are ones you create yourself, including by duplicating a standard SOP, for scenarios specific to your portfolio.

Duplicating an SOP

To reuse an existing SOP as a starting point, duplicate it:

1. Open the SOP you want to copy
2. Select Duplicate
3. You’ll be prompted to give the copy a new name

The duplicate copies all of the original's instructions, escalation settings, and property assignments and is always created as a custom SOP. The newly duplicated SOP has a default status of “Inactive”.

Deleting an SOP

Only custom SOPs can be deleted. To delete a custom SOP:

1. Open the SOP you want to delete
2. From the "dots" menu, select Delete SOP
3. You'll be prompted to confirm your choice. Click Delete
4. The SOP will be deleted

Statuses

Each SOP is either Active or Inactive:

• Active — the SOP is used in call handling by Happy Force technicians and JoyAI
• Inactive — the SOP is saved but not applied to calls

Activate an SOP once its instructions are ready; deactivate one to take it out of use without deleting it.

Activity Log

The Activity Log shows a full history of every change made to your instructions, including who made the change and when. Use this to audit updates, resolve discrepancies, or confirm that a recent change was applied.

To view the Activity Log:

Navigate to Settings > SOPs in Happy Property Manager and click the Activities tab.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need to do anything before SOPs are turned on?

Yes — your Customer Success Manager will schedule a review session to confirm your instructions are accurate before activation. Your properties will not go live with SOPs until this is complete.

Can I update my instructions at any time?

Yes. Changes take effect immediately after saving. Happy Force technicians see the update in HF Hub and JoyAI picks it up for subsequent calls.

What if I want to handle an issue that isn't in the built-in list?

You can create a custom SOP for any issue. The built-in standard SOPs cover the most common scenarios, but you are not limited to them.

Do SOPs apply if we don't use Happy Force?

Yes — if you use JoyAI for after-hours calls, JoyAI reads your instructions regardless of whether you have a Happy Force subscription.

Who can see and edit SOPs?

Any user with the permission “Create and Edit SOPs” enabled for their role can both see and edit SOPs.

What should I do if I think an instruction isn't being followed correctly?

Check the Activity Log to confirm the instruction is current, then contact your Customer Success Manager. If the issue is urgent, contact HappyCo Customer Support.