Document Access and Permissions

Boardwise uses multiple layers of permissions to ensure the right people can access the right documents. As a corporate secretary, understanding how these layers work helps you control access and troubleshoot issues when someone cannot see a document.

How Document Access Works

Document access in Boardwise is determined by three factors that work together:

1. Organization role - Your baseline access across the organization
2. Group membership - Your membership in boards and committees
3. Meeting invitations - Access granted through meeting attendance

A person can view a document if any of these grants them access. The system checks all three and allows access if at least one applies.

Organization-Level Document Access

Your organization role determines your baseline document permissions.

Admin

Admins can see all documents across the organization, including:

• All documents in the document library
• All committee and board documents
• All meeting documents, regardless of invitation status

Member

Members can:

• View documents in the organization-wide library
• View documents in committees and boards they belong to
• View meeting documents when invited with full access

Guest

Guests have the most limited access:

• Cannot view the general document library
• Can only see documents in groups they belong to
• Can only see meeting documents when specifically invited

Key point: Guests rely entirely on group membership and meeting invitations for document access. This makes the Guest role appropriate for external advisors who should only see specific committee materials.

Committee and Board Documents

Documents stored in a committee or board folder are restricted to members of that group.

How Group-Scoped Documents Work

When you create a folder or upload a document to a specific board or committee:

• Only members of that group can see the document
• Organization Admins can always see all documents
• Non-members cannot see the document, even if they have the Member organization role

Example

A document uploaded to the Finance Committee folder is visible to:

• All Finance Committee members (regardless of their organization role)
• Organization Admins
• Meeting attendees (if the document is attached to a meeting)

The document is not visible to:

• Board members who are not on the Finance Committee
• Members of other committees
• Anyone without a specific permission path to the document

Assigning Documents to Groups

To restrict a document to a specific committee or board:

1. Upload the document directly to a folder that belongs to that group
2. The document inherits the group restriction from its folder

Documents in the main library (not associated with any group) are visible to all Members and Admins.

Meeting-Linked Documents

Documents attached to meetings have special access rules based on meeting invitations.

Access Levels for Attendees

When someone is invited to a meeting, they receive one of two access levels:

Full Access

• Can view all documents attached to the meeting
• This is the default for required attendees and committee members

Agenda Only

• Can see the meeting agenda and basic information
• Cannot view attached documents
• Useful for guests who need to know about the meeting but should not see materials

How Meeting Access Works

Meeting documents are accessible to:

• Meeting organizers and anyone who can schedule meetings
• Attendees with full access
• Organization Admins

Even if someone belongs to the committee holding the meeting, they can only view meeting documents if they are:

• Invited to the meeting, or
• Have scheduling permissions, or
• Are an Admin

This gives you control over sensitive meeting materials that should not be broadly visible even within a committee.

Setting Access Levels

When inviting someone to a meeting:

1. Add them as an attendee
2. Select their access level (Full or Agenda Only)
3. Save the invitation

To change an existing attendee's access:

1. Edit the meeting
2. Find the attendee in the list
3. Change their access level
4. Save

Folder Permissions and Inheritance

Folders in Boardwise follow a straightforward permission model based on group association.

Organization-Wide Folders

Folders not assigned to any group are accessible to:

• Admins (full access to view, create, edit, delete)
• Members (can view contents)
• Guests cannot see organization-wide folders

Group-Scoped Folders

Folders assigned to a specific board or committee:

• Are visible only to members of that group
• Admins can always access them
• Non-members cannot see these folders even if they can see other organization documents

Subfolders

Subfolders inherit their visibility from their parent folder's group association:

• A subfolder inside a Finance Committee folder is also restricted to Finance Committee members
• Creating a subfolder does not change who can access it

Document Retention

Folders can have retention policies that determine when documents should be reviewed or archived. Subfolders can inherit retention settings from their parent folder or set their own. Retention settings do not affect who can view documents, only how long they are kept.

Troubleshooting: Why Someone Cannot See a Document

If someone reports they cannot access a document, check these items in order:

Step 1: Check the Person's Organization Role

Go to People, find the person, and verify their organization role.

• If they are a Guest, they can only see group-specific and meeting-linked documents
• If they are a Member, they should see organization-wide documents

Step 2: Check if the Document is Group-Scoped

View the document details to see if it belongs to a specific committee or board.

• If the document is in a committee folder, the person must be a member of that committee
• Check their group memberships in their People profile

Step 3: Check Meeting Invitation Status

If the document is attached to a meeting:

• Verify the person is invited to the meeting
• Check their access level (must be Full, not Agenda Only)
• Confirm the meeting is not in Draft status (draft meetings are hidden from non-schedulers)

Step 4: Verify the Document is Not in Trash

Trashed documents are hidden from normal views. Check the trash to see if the document was accidentally deleted.

Common Scenarios

External advisor cannot see committee documents

They are probably a Guest at the organization level. Add them as a member of the relevant committee to grant access.

Board member cannot see a meeting document

Check if they are invited to the meeting. Even board members need meeting invitations to see meeting-specific documents.

New hire cannot see any documents

Verify their account is fully set up and they have been assigned an organization role other than Guest.

Someone can see the folder but not a specific document

The document may be attached to a meeting they are not invited to, or the document itself may have a group restriction they do not meet.

Best Practices

Use Groups for Committee-Specific Materials

When documents should only be seen by a committee, store them in a folder assigned to that group. This is cleaner than manually managing access.

Use Meeting Access Levels Thoughtfully

For sensitive materials, invite stakeholders with Full access and observers with Agenda Only. This prevents accidental exposure of confidential documents.

Audit Access Periodically

Review who has access to sensitive folders and committees. Remove access for people who no longer need it by ending their group membership or changing their organization role.

Communicate Access Expectations

When you add someone to a committee or invite them to a meeting, let them know what documents they will be able to see. This prevents confusion and demonstrates transparency.