CRO organization swag program

Welcome to the CRO org’s complete guide for ordering GitLab swag. Whether you’re sending gifts to customers or ordering merch for off-sites, this handbook covers everything you need to know.

Note: Make sure you’re shopping from the CRO org storefront in Brilliant, not the public GitLab swag shop. These storefronts have different inventory and approval processes.

How to send swag to someone

Follow these steps to place and track your swag order.

Prefer a video demo of the process? Check out this demo from our Brilliant account team.

Step 1: Create a record of your order 📝

1. Open this issue template.
2. Fill out all required fields.
3. Submit the issue.

Good news! You do not need to wait for approval before proceeding to Step 2. This record is simply for our Finance Business Partners to review all the context about each order.

Step 2: Shop and place your order 🛒

1. Log into Brilliant (via Okta) and access the CRO org storefront.
2. Browse available items within your budget and add them to your cart (not sure about budget? Ask your ASM).
3. At checkout, you’ll need to:
   • Enter recipient shipping information (name, address, etc.). The recipient’s phone number is required for recipients outside the US in order to clear customs.
   • Select your specific department from the dropdown menu.
   • IMPORTANT: Paste the link to your GitLab issue (Step 1) into the text box at checkout. Skipping this step will delay your order.
   • Review all order details for accuracy.
4. Submit your order! It will now move to step 3.

Step 3: Finance review and approval 🔍

Your order will go through the GitLab FP&A team for review before it’s processed and shipped by Brilliant’s warehouse. Here’s how that works:

1. Your order is automatically routed via email to the Finance Business Partner for your department.
2. They’ll review your order in the Brilliant tool within 2 business days.
3. If approved, you’ll receive an email confirmation that your order is now being fulfilled.
4. If there are questions, your Finance Business Partner will contact you through the GitLab issue you created in Step 1.

Step 4: Order fulfillment ➡️

Once approved by GitLab’s FP&A team, your order moves into fulfillment with Brilliant:

1. Your order will be processed and shipped directly to the recipient. You’ll receive tracking information by email.
2. The recipient will receive their items within the shipping timeframe shown at checkout.

For questions about your order after it’s placed, contact support@brilliantmade.com.

General swag program questions on the GitLab side? Tag your EBA in the #swag Slack channel.

Important notes on shipping 📦

Shipping can be unpredictable, especially if the order has to go through customs. Please be sure to allow plenty of time ahead of planned events or offsites, especially for larger orders.

Standard turnaround times 📅

For orders being shipped within the US:

• Allow 3-7 business days once the order has been approved by your Finance Business Partner and has entered fulfillment.
• This means it’s best to allow ~2 weeks from the time you initiate the order.

For orders being shipped to EMEA, APJ, or LATAM:

• Please allow at least 3 weeks (5-20 business days) for standard shipping to ensure there’s a buffer for customs. This timeline begins once the order has been approved by your Finance Business Partner and has entered fulfillment.
• This means it’s best to allow ~4 weeks from the time you initiate the order.
• If you need something sooner or have an approaching event deadline, see the notes about expedited shipping below.

Shipping costs

• Standard shipping: Costs are covered by the CRO org’s overall swag budget and will not impact your individual team budget no matter where your order is going.
• Expedited shipping: We do have expedited shipping options available if you’re working with a tight turnaround, particularly for a recipient outside the US. Note that expedited shipping charges will be tracked by your Finance Business Partner and should be used only when absolutely necessary. You can include the justification for your expedited shipping need in your issue.

Warehousing notes

• Our inventory is currently managed in a US-based warehouse. We cover shipping costs to ensure equitable pricing across all regions, no matter where your order is being shipped.
• We recognize that this does not solve the challenge of varying delivery timelines. We hope to have budget to add more warehouses in EMEA and APJ in the future.

Tips for shipping to recipients outside the US

• Be sure to include the recipient’s phone number for customs. Do not include your own phone number in this field, or it may delay/return your package.
• For larger orders, avoid adding a company name in the “company” field if possible. This can sometimes flag a shipment as a B2B package and cause delays in customs with certain countries.
• Not sure about the recipient’s address info? Consider using the “allow clients to choose their gift” option outlined below. This allows the customer to enter their own shipping info.

How to send someone a gift card 💳

Don’t see what you’re looking for in the CRO org internal shop? Have too tight of a turnaround time to send a physical gift?

If you would prefer to send someone a gift card so that they can shop from the public-facing GitLab Swag Shop instead, you can use this issue template to request a gift card. This may look familiar, as it’s our previous ordering process and still how non-CRO-org team members order swag.

General swag program questions? Tag your EBA in the #swag Slack channel.

FAQs ❓

Q: Do I need to wait for approval in my GitLab issue before placing my order in Brilliant? A: No! You can immediately proceed to placing your order in the Brilliant storefront. The issue simply acts as a record for when the Finance Business Partner is reviewing.

Q: Who will be reviewing and approving my order? A: Your team’s designated Finance Business Partner will review your request. You can find the list of Finance Business Partners by team on the Finance Business Partner handbook page.

Q: How long will it take for my order to be approved by FP&A after I submit it? A: Finance Business Partners aim to review and approve orders within 2 business days. Once they’ve approved, you will get an email confirmation that your order has entered fulfilment by Brilliant.

Q: Will shipping costs count against my team’s budget? A: No, not for standard shipping. Expedited shipping will be tracked for each team to ensure it’s being used only when necessary. See more shipping notes in the shipping section above.

Q: How do I know how much budget my team has remaining? A: If you’re not sure how much budget you have to work with, check in with your ASM or Finance Business Partner. Your Finance Business Partner is tracking team budgets each quarter and will consider this when reviewing your order.

Q: What if I want to send something that’s not available in the storefront? A: If you see something in the public-facing GitLab swag shop that you’d like to send to a customer, you can opt to send them a gift card (see process outlined above) instead to purchase the item themselves. We cannot send a physical item from the public swag shop, this will need to be done via a gift card.

Q: Can we create a custom item for a customer? A: We do not typically offer custom items for customers, as they’re costly and require at least 2-3 months of lead time (internal design request, item selection, production, shipping, etc.). If you have a high-priority customer request and plenty of lead time, please ping us in the #brand channel with your business justification and manager approval for the custom request.

Q: I have a question that’s not outlined here. A: Please tag your EBA in the #swag channel in Slack.