Table of Contents
Introduction
Managing Security Groups
Creating Security Groups
Editing Security Groups
Deleting Security Groups
Scenario 1: The Security Group has no users assigned
Scenario 2: The Security Group has users assigned to it
User Rights Overview
Access Levels Overview
Detailed Permissions Breakdown
1. Foresight for Administrators
2. Foresight For Managers
Project Access
Project Management
Financial Access
Reports
Data Fields
Staff Access
3. Staffer Permissions
The Most Common Use Cases
FAQ
Introduction
Foresight Connect is a tool designed to support your company's management processes. As such, it contains extensive financial data, which should be restricted to varying degrees depending on the user's role in the organization.
To simplify the assignment of permissions in Foresight, we recommend the following approach:
- Create Security Groups that align with all permission levels in your organization. Depending on how your company operates, you can categorize them by specific roles, teams, job positions, or departments.
- Once you’ve created the security groups, the next step is to add users to your organization. All you need is their first name, last name, email address, and the permissions they require. At this stage, you’ll assign users to the appropriate security groups you’ve already established.
The guide below provides instructions on creating security groups and a detailed description of all the permissions available in Foresight, making it easier to map permissions to your organization’s structure.
Managing Security Groups
Creating Security Groups
To create Security Groups, just follow the steps below:
| Log in to Administrator Role ➡ Go to the Settings Tab ➡ Go to the Security Groups Section ➡ Click the Add Group button |
Editing Security Groups
| Go to the Security Groups Section ➡ Click the Security Group you need to edit ➡ Grant proper permissions by adjusting switch toggles |
In Foresight, editing a Security Group can be understood in three ways:
- Editing the name of the Security Group
- Editing the permissions assigned to a specific Security Group
- Editing the users assigned to a specific Security Group (Learn more: Lesson 6 - Managing Staffers with Administrator Role).
The walkthrough below will explain how to adjust the permissions of a specific Security Group and how to edit its name:
Deleting Security Groups
In Foresight Connect, there are two scenarios for deleting Security Groups:
- The Security Group has no users assigned to it
- The Security Group has users assigned to it
Scenario 1: The Security Group has no users assigned
To delete a Security Group, follow these steps:
| Go to the Security Groups Section ➡ Click the Security Group you need to delete ➡ Click the Delete button ➡ Confirm the removal by typing DELETE in the confirmation pop-up |
You can freely add and delete Security Groups as long as no users are assigned to them. This can be particularly useful during the initial setup of your organization when you are still mapping out permissions. Frequent changes at this stage are completely normal.
Scenario 2: The Security Group has users assigned to it
| Go to the Security Groups Section ➡ Click the Security Group you need to delete ➡ Click the Delete button ➡ Decide whether you want to reassign Staffers or not ➡ Confirm the removal of the group by typing DELETE in the confirmation pop-up |
If users are assigned to the Security Group, the flow will remain the same; however, the confirmation pop-up will include additional options to reassign the employees associated with that group. This allows for quick and efficient management of organizational changes in Foresight Connect.
User Rights Overview
Access Levels Overview
Foresight permissions are grouped into access levels:
1. System Administrator: Complete control of organizational and system-wide settings.
2. Manager: Responsibility for projects, financials, staff, and more based on permissions.
3. Staffer: Limited access to personal and assigned project data.
Detailed Permissions Breakdown
1. Foresight for Administrators
Description: Manage organization Settings and Integrations. You have full control over organization-level settings, including integrations and general configurations.
Example: Configuring API keys for integration with external tools.
2. Foresight For Managers
Project Access
- View Any Project
Description: Grants the ability to view data from all projects, regardless of assignment.
Example: A finance manager reviewing budgets across multiple projects.
- Manage Any Project
Description: This option allows users to edit data for all projects without being assigned as Project Managers. It requires "View Any Project" to be enabled.
Example: Adjusting timelines for unassigned projects.
Project Management
- Allow User to Add Projects
Description: Enables the user to create new projects in the system.
Example: A project manager adding a new client project to the database.
- Allow User to Delete Projects
Description: Allows deleting projects.
Example: Removing duplicate or obsolete projects.
- Allow User to Copy Projects
Description: Copies project data (demands, assignments, overheads) to a new project.
Example: Duplicating a standard project template for recurring work.
- Allow User to Close Projects
Description: Sets end dates and closes projects, allowing cleanup of associated data.
Example: Archiving completed projects.
Financial Access
- Financial Access for Managers
Description: View and edit project costs and incomes, and assign finance managers to staff.
Example: Generating profitability reports for stakeholders.
- View All Staffer Costs
Description: Grants visibility into all staff-related costs on projects and reports.
Example: Reviewing staff costs on a project.
- Manage Bill Rates List
Description: Add, edit, or remove organizational bill rate lists.
Example: Updating standard hourly rates for billing purposes.
Reports
- View/Manage Custom Reports
Description: Create and view custom reports across all projects and staff.
Example: Designing reports to track team performance.
Data Fields
- Manage Skill List
Description: Add, edit, or remove organizational skills (e.g., technical skills).
Example: Adding new skills to track employee qualifications.
- Manage Time Off Types
Description: Define and manage time-off categories such as vacation and sick leave.
Example: Adding "Parental Leave" as a new category.
- Manage Seniorities Type
Description: Edit or remove seniority levels (e.g., Junior, Senior).
Example: Standardizing seniority definitions across teams.
- Manage Default Role List
Description: Add, edit, or remove default roles (e.g., Project Manager, Designer, Senior Engineer).
Example: Creating a "Creative Director" role to reflect team structures better.
- Manage Department List
Description: Add, edit, or remove department names (e.g., IT, Creative, Marketing).
Example: Adding "Operations" as a new department to match organizational changes.
- Manage Cost Centers Type
Description: Define and manage cost center types for the organization.
Example: Adding a "Research & Development" cost center for budget tracking.
- Manage Status List
Description: Add, edit, or remove employee statuses (e.g., Active, Terminated, On Leave).
Example: Creating a "Probation" status for new hires.
- Manage Clients List
Description: Add, edit, or remove client records for the organization.
Example: Removing outdated client profiles or adding a new client for project management.
- Manage Current Status List
Description: Add, edit, or remove project statuses (e.g., In Progress, Completed, On Hold).
Example: Updating the status of a project from "In Progress" to "Completed" after its closure.
- Manage Type List
Description: Add, edit, or remove project types (e.g., Full Project, Service Offering).
Example: Adding a "Consulting Service" type to categorize specific projects.
Staff Access
- Edit Any Profile Including Assigning Skills
Description: Allows managers to edit profile data for any staff member, including experience, skill assignments/ratings, and other attributes.
Example: Updating an employee's skills after a training program or adding new certifications to their profile.
- Allow User to Add Staff
Description: Grants permission to add new staff members to the system.
Example: An HR manager onboards a new hire by creating a user profile on the platform.
- Allow User to Delete Staff Members
Description: Enables managers to delete staff profiles from the system.
Example: Removing profiles of former employees to maintain an updated system database.
- Manage Contract Capacity
Description: Allows editing a staff member's contract details, including capacity, start dates, and end dates. Combined with “View All Staffer Costs,” it also enables editing cost rates.
Example: Adjusting an employee's contract to reflect a change in work hours or extending their contract for a new project.
- Manage Time Off Requests
Description: Provides adding, editing, or deleting time-off requests and managing their statuses.
Example: Approving a vacation request or updating a leave record to reflect schedule changes.
3. Staffer Permissions
- Edit Own Profile including assigning skills as a staffer
Description: Update profile information such as skills and experience.
Example: Logging a new certification.
- View My Calendar as a staffer
Description: View active and planned project assignments.
Example: Checking work schedules for the week.
- Request Time Off as a staffer
Description: Submit, edit, or retract time-off requests.
Example: Requesting a vacation.
The Most Common Use Cases
1. HR Manager with Time-Off Control
Permissions: Manage Time Off Requests, Manage Time Off Types, Edit Any Profile Including Assigning Skills.
Use: The HR Manager can approve or deny leave requests, modify time-off categories (e.g., add maternity leave), and update staff profiles (e.g., add new certifications).
2. Project Manager Overseeing All Projects
Permissions: View Any Project, Manage Any Project, Allow User to Add Projects, Allow User to Delete Projects, Allow User to Copy Projects.
Use: The Project Manager can review all projects, adjust timelines, create new projects, and manage their lifecycle, including duplicating or deleting redundant projects.
3. Finance Manager for Budgeting
Permissions: Financial Access for Managers, View All Staffer Costs, Manage Bill Rates List.
Use: The Finance Manager can oversee project costs and incomes, view staff costs, and adjust billing rates to ensure accurate profitability reports.
4. Team Member Tracking Assignments
Permissions: View My Calendar as a Staffer, Request Time Off as a Staffer.
Use: Team members can view their assignments, plan workloads, and submit or modify leave requests.
5. System Administrator Configuring Settings
Permissions: Manage Organization Settings and Integrations, All Administrator-Level Access.
Use: The System Administrator configures organization-wide settings, manages integrations, and assigns appropriate roles and permissions across the platform.
FAQ
1. Can managers edit projects without being assigned?
Yes, managers can edit projects without being assigned if they enable the "Manage Any Project" and "View Any Project" permissions.
2. How do I restrict financial visibility to specific managers?
Assign the "Financial Access for Managers" permission for general financial oversight and pair it with "View All Staffer Costs" to allow specific access to cost-related data for selected projects.
3. Can staff request time off without HR approval?
No, staff time-off requests require approval from a manager or HR with the "Manage Time Off Requests" permission.
4. What happens if a project is closed?
When a project is closed using the "Allow User to Close Projects" permission, associated data (e.g., demands, assignments, overheads) is archived, and no further modifications can be made.
5. How do I assign a specific role to an employee?
Navigate to the "Staff" tab, select the profile, and use the "Allow User to Add Staff" permission to assign roles or update their profile.