Groups are used to give Users access permissions to content and functionality within your Channeltivity partner portal. This article explains what Groups are, different kinds of Groups, and best practices for creating a permissions structure that's easy to administer.
What are Groups, and how are they used?
Groups are used to set permissions within your partner portal and ensure your Users have the correct access to portal functionality (Modules) and content.
Module permissions
When you create a Group, you specify the Group's permissions levels for the different Channeltivity modules, such as Deal Registration, and MDF for example. When you then assign a User to the Group, the User can access these modules within Channeltivity. Click here to view a list of available module permissions.
Content permissions
When you add content to your partner portal, such as uploading a Document to the Library, you can use the "Selected Groups" option to specify which Groups should have access to the Document. Any Users assigned to those Groups will then be able to access the uploaded Document. Learn more about setting content permissions.
Assigning Users to Groups
Every Channeltivity User must be assigned to at least one Group to be able to use the partner portal. Group assignment is handled differently depending on the Group:
- For Manual Groups, Users need to be manually assigned. You can do this when you're creating the User or through the Edit User screen.
- Smart Groups (available only for Partner and Distributor Users) are automatically assigned to Users based on the rules you define. For example, if you wanted to create a Smart Group for EMEA-based Gold Partners, you'd set rules to automatically assign all Users at Partners where the Partner Type is "Gold Partner," and the Region is set to "EMEA". Smart Groups are a great way to automate User permissions and reduce administrative overhead.
Multiple Groups = Cumulative Permissions
Users can be assigned to multiple Groups and permissions of all Groups are cumulative. For example, if your User is a member of two Groups, one that gives you access to Deal Registration and another that gives you access to Business Planning, you'll have access to both Deal Registration and Business Planning.
Group Types
There are three types of Groups that correspond with the types of Users available in Channeltivity:
- Internal Groups - Internal Users
- Partner Groups - Partner Users
- Distributor Groups (available with the Distributor module add-on) - Distributor Users
Each User can only be assigned to Groups of their type. The reason for these Group Types is that some permissions are available only to Internal Users (like creating new Partners or approving Deal Registrations), and keeping the Groups separate avoids mistakes with assigning the correct permissions.
Internal Groups are used by Internal Users and include administrative and managerial permissions for your Channeltivity portal. The system comes preconfigured with an Internal Group called "Administrators." The Users assigned to this Group are System Administrators, and you'll only need one System Administrator Group. However, you may want to consider creating other Internal Groups for Internal Users that don't necessarily need System Administration access.
- Admin Users - Internal Users that belong to an Internal Group with the System Administration permission. System Administration includes full access to all modules and administrative functions. Allows creating Users, setting permissions, configuring page layouts, changing settings, and more.
- Non-Admin Users - Internal Users that belong to an Internal Group that does not include the System Administration permission. Learn more about Internal Group permissions here.
Partner and Distributor Groups are used by Partner and Distributor Users, respectively, and give more limited access to your Channeltivity portal.
Groups Functionality Table
| Group Type | Assignable User Type | Smart Group Available | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Internal Groups | Internal Users | No | |
| Partner Groups | Partner Users | Yes | |
| Distributor Groups | Distributor Users | Yes | Only available with the add-on Distributor module |
Planning your Groups and Permissions Structure
To ensure your Group permissions structure will be easy to administer, it's important to do some planning before creating your first Group. This section walks you through the process of planning your Groups.
General Advice: Keep Permissions Simple
Channeltivity features incredibly powerful tools that allow non-technical users to create robust and granular access permissions for individual pieces of functionality and content. However, we strongly recommend aiming for simplicity in your Group and content permissions. Simpler permissions are easier for your whole team to understand and maintain, and greatly reduce your long-term administrative overhead.
Internal Groups
Your Internal Group structure should mirror the different kinds of partner portal permissions your colleagues will need. Here are some questions to get you started:
- Who at your company (both individuals and general roles) will have access to Channeltivity?
- What will they need to do within your partner portal?
- Do you have Partner Managers that should only be able to see their assigned Partners?
Once you've answered the questions above, create a table to document your findings, like so:
| Department/Role | Functionality Permissions | Content Permissions |
|---|---|---|
| Portal Administrators | Administrator | Everything |
| Channel Managers | Partner Manager access to - Partner Module - Deal Registration - MDF Read-only access to - Library | Everything |
| Channel Sales | Administrative access to - Deal Registration Read-only access to - Library | Everything |
| Channel Marketing | Administrative access to - Library - Home Page - Co-Branded Collateral | Everything |
| Accounting | Administrative access to - MDF Read-only access to - Library | Everything |
In most cases, the different roles in the example above can be created directly as Internal Groups within Channeltivity, with each Internal User belonging to one or more of them.
Tips:
- While it's possible to make everyone at your company a member of the Administrators Group, we don't recommend it. In general, you should limit the number of Admins and give most of your colleagues more limited access. This avoids problems with uninformed co-workers making settings changes with unintended consequences.
- It's definitely possible to go overboard with permissions. With the exception of Admin access, it's generally okay to give Users more permissions and visibility than they need. This keeps your Internal Groups simple and easier to manage.
Partner and Distributor Groups
Similarly, your Partner and Distributor Groups should be structured around the desired User experience for Partners and Distributors. This includes access to Library content, welcome messages, and functionality like Deal Registration. Ask yourself questions like these:
- How should the portal experience differ between partner/distributor types, tiers and geographies? Are there any partner program features such as MDF that are only available to certain partners?
- Is there any content that only certain partners/distributors should have access to? Maybe certain products can't be sold in some geographies? Or your referral partners shouldn't have access to Deal Registration or MDF guidelines and promotions?
- Within a Partner Organization, are there certain Users that should have different access than others? For example, only some of a Partner's Users have the ability to submit MDF Requests?
Again, create a table with the findings to document your permissions requirements:
| Partner/Distributor Roles | Functionality Permissions | Content Permissions | Assignment Criteria |
|---|---|---|---|
| Referral Partner | Access to - Library - Referral Module | Referral Guide Product Documentation Sales & Marketing Materials | Partner Type is "Referral Partner" |
| Silver Reseller | Access to - Library - Deal Registration - Co-Branded Collateral | Reseller Guide Product Documentation Sales & Marketing Materials | Partner Type is "Silver Reseller" |
| Gold Reseller | Access to - Library - Deal Registration - Co-Branded Collateral | Reseller Guide Product Documentation Sales & Marketing Materials | Partner Type is "Gold Reseller" |
| Distributor | Access to - Library - Deal Registration - Co-Branded Collateral | Distributor Guide Product Documentation Sales & Marketing Materials | All Distributors |
Unlike Internal Groups, where User assignments are always manual, Partner and Distributor Groups can be configured to automatically assign Users to Groups based on rules that you define. These Smart Groups are a great way to automate User permissions and reduce administrative overhead. The new fourth "Assignment Criteria" column in the table above documents the criteria that should be used to determine which Users fall into each role.
As with your Internal Groups, you should be able to have each row in the table be its own Group, with three important exceptions:
- Consolidate any roles that have identical permissions across functionality and content. In the example above, you can safely lump Silver and Gold Resellers into a single "Resellers" Group.
- Question your requirements if you still end up with more than 10 Groups. Is it really necessary for your functionality and content permissions to be that granular? Is there any harm in making German language brochures available to everyone instead of Users in German-speaking countries? Streamlining your Group permissions will facilitate content management and administration long into the future.
- If you notice that you have a lot of entries due to different content permissions, make use of Smart Permissions instead of creating Groups. Learn about Smart Permissions.
Once you've finalized the Group structure for both your Internal and Partner/Distributor Groups, you can go ahead and create your Groups in Channeltivity.