Team Onboarding Guide

Getting Started
with Cowork

Follow the steps below to set up Cowork, connect your Google apps, and try your first agent.

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Before You Begin

Enter your Pelago email to save your spot and track your progress through the onboarding. Your name will appear on the team leaderboard as you complete each chapter.

1

Set Up Cowork

Download Claude Desktop, sign in with your Pelago email, and switch to Cowork mode. Takes about 5 minutes.

Cowork runs inside the Claude Desktop app (not the browser). Pelago has an Enterprise account, so you're already covered — no separate subscription needed.

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macOS: Download from claude.com/download and drag to Applications.
Windows (x64): Download the installer from claude.com/download and run it. Note: arm64 is not currently supported.
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If you already have Claude Desktop, make sure it's updated to the latest version — Cowork requires the most recent release.

When you open Claude Desktop for the first time, click "Continue with Google" and sign in using your @pelagohealth.com email address. This automatically connects you to Pelago's Enterprise workspace — no invite code or separate account needed.

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You must use your Pelago Google account (e.g., yourname@pelagohealth.com). Personal Gmail accounts won't have access to our Enterprise workspace.

Once you're signed in, you'll see a mode selector at the top of the interface.

Chat → Cowork

Click the "Cowork" tab. The interface switches to a task workspace — instead of back-and-forth conversation, you describe what you need and Claude works on it autonomously. For more details, see the official Cowork getting started guide.

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Tip: You can set default instructions that apply to every session under Settings → Cowork → Global Instructions. Use Skills (Chapter 3) for detailed, task-specific guidance.

The Pelago Primer gives Claude context about who we are — our mission, brand colors, voice, tools, and writing guidelines. Adding it to your Global Instructions means Claude knows this in every session without you having to explain it.

  1. Open the Pelago Primer document
  2. Copy everything below the instructions line
  3. In Claude Desktop, go to Settings → Cowork → Global Instructions
  4. Paste the Primer text and click Save
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Once added, Claude will automatically use Pelago's brand colors, tone, and terminology when creating documents, presentations, and communications — no need to re-explain every time.

Verify everything works by giving Cowork a simple task:

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"Create a one-page summary of what Cowork can do, formatted as a Word document."

Claude will show you its proposed approach before executing. Review it, then let it run. You should get a finished .docx file you can open directly.

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Important: Keep the Claude Desktop app open while tasks are running. Closing the app ends the session.
2

Connect Your Tools

Claude can connect to the tools you already use. The following integrations have been reviewed and approved by Pelago IT Security:

📧 Google Workspace 💬 Slack 🐙 GitHub 🎨 Figma 📝 Notion 🛠 Atlassian (Jira) ⚡ Linear

Below we'll walk through connecting Google Workspace step by step. The process for other connectors is similar — find them under the + icon in any session.

Google Workspace connectors (Gmail, Calendar, and Drive) have been enabled for the Pelago Enterprise workspace. You just need to authenticate each one with your @pelagohealth.com Google account. For more details, see Use Google Workspace connectors.

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Claude only accesses your Google data when you explicitly ask — and only retrieves the minimum information needed. Your data stays private to your account.

Open the connectors panel in your chat or Cowork session:

+ (plus icon) → Connectors → Gmail → Toggle On

You'll be redirected to Google's OAuth screen. Sign in with your @pelagohealth.com account and approve access.

What Claude can do with Gmail:

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Search & read emails using natural language • Draft emails with formatting • Access email metadata & attachment info • Organize using labels & threads • View saved drafts
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Security note: Claude can draft emails but cannot send them — you always review and send manually. Claude only accesses data when you explicitly ask.

Follow the same flow to enable Calendar:

+ (plus icon) → Connectors → Google Calendar → Toggle On

Authenticate with Google if prompted (you may already be signed in).

What Claude can do with Calendar:

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View events & shared calendars • Create, modify & delete events • Find mutual availability across attendees • Manage attendees & respond to invitations • Set up recurring meetings

Enable Drive the same way:

+ (plus icon) → Connectors → Google Drive → Toggle On

What Claude can do with Drive:

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Search & retrieve Google Docs • Add documents to conversations by pasting URLs • View file permissions & recent modifications • Save generated files to your Drive (requires code execution enabled)
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Try it: Ask Claude "What meetings do I have today and are there any emails I need to respond to?" — this confirms both Gmail and Calendar are working.
3

Try Your First Agent

Cowork comes with pre-built agents that handle common workflows. Pick one below, follow the steps, and you'll have your first agent running in under 2 minutes. Click any prompt box to copy it.

Prerequisites

Gmail Calendar connected from Chapter 2

How to set it up

  1. Open a new Cowork session
  2. Paste the prompt below
  3. Claude will pull your calendar events and scan your inbox, then deliver a structured briefing

Prompt

Give me my daily briefing. Check my calendar for today's meetings and flag any that need prep. Then scan my Gmail inbox for emails that need a response — prioritize by urgency. End with my top 3 priorities for the day.
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Tip: Try this every morning as your start-of-day routine. You can also schedule it to run automatically.

Prerequisites

None — just paste or type your notes

How to set it up

  1. Open a new Cowork session
  2. Paste your raw meeting notes (or upload a file / transcript)
  3. Add the prompt below — Claude will restructure everything into a clean format

Prompt

Format these meeting notes into a structured summary. Include: meeting title and date, attendees with roles, key discussion points (2-3 sentences each), decisions made, and an action items table with columns for Task, Owner, and Due Date. Flag any action items that are missing an owner or deadline.
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Tip: If you use Granola for meeting transcripts, Claude can pull those directly. Just ask: "Get my last meeting transcript from Granola and format the notes."

Prerequisites

Gmail Calendar Slack for best results (works without them too)

How to set it up

  1. Open a new Cowork session
  2. Paste the prompt below — optionally include any project context or bullet points you want highlighted
  3. Claude will compile activity from your connected tools and draft a polished status report

Prompt

Generate my weekly status report for this week. Review my calendar meetings, recent email threads, and Slack activity. Format it with these sections: Accomplishments (what got done), In Progress (what's underway), Blockers (anything stuck), and Next Week (what's planned). Keep it concise — aim for something I can share with leadership in under 2 minutes of reading.
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Tip: Run this every Friday afternoon. Claude will output a clean document you can paste into email or Slack.

Prerequisites

None — Claude uses web search to gather intel

How to set it up

  1. Open a new Cowork session
  2. Replace [Competitor Name] in the prompt below with the company you want to research
  3. Claude will research the competitor and deliver an interactive battlecard

Prompt

Research [Competitor Name] and create a competitive battlecard. Include: company overview, key products/services, target market, recent news and funding, pricing model (if public), strengths and weaknesses, and how we differentiate from them. Format it as a clean, shareable document.
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Tip: Ask Claude to output the battlecard as a Word doc or presentation you can share with the team.

Prerequisites

Slack connected

How to set it up

  1. Open a new Cowork session
  2. Copy the prompt below — it already includes Pelago's key channels
  3. Add any additional channels specific to your team at the end
  4. Claude will scan recent activity and surface what matters

Prompt

Give me a digest of what happened in Slack today. Start with these key channels: #dept-commercial-organization #pelago-general #updates-commercial #updates-competitive #updates-info-articles For each channel, summarize: decisions made, announcements, questions asked, and any threads I should weigh in on. Flag anything that needs my attention. Also check these additional channels: [add any team-specific channels here, e.g. #your-team-channel, #your-project-channel]
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Tip: Great for catching up after PTO or a meeting-heavy day. Add your own team channels at the end of the prompt — you can always edit the list later.

Prerequisites

Gmail for context-aware drafts, or None for standalone drafting

How to set it up

  1. Open a new Cowork session
  2. Describe who the email is to, the key points, and the tone you want
  3. Claude will draft the email — you review and send it yourself

Prompt

Draft an email to [recipient/team] about [topic]. Key points to cover: [bullet 1], [bullet 2], [bullet 3]. Tone should be professional but warm. Keep it concise — no more than 3 short paragraphs. Save it as a Gmail draft.
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Tip: You can also reply to existing threads. Try: "Find the email thread from [person] about [topic] and draft a reply."

You're all set!

Welcome to Cowork. Go build something great.

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