Adding and setting up steps
Steps are the stages an idea moves through after the Inbox, such as “Qualify”, “Evaluate” and “Implement”. You add them with Add step, then set each one up with a name, description, colour, panel, reminders and visibility settings.
Who can do this: Admins in a workflow. Collection managers and Admins in a collection.
Where to edit steps
Steps work the same way in a workflow and in a collection. Only the place differs.
- In a workflow (a template for new collections): open Menu > Admin > Workflows and click the workflow. The steps are listed in the sidebar.
- In one collection: open the collection and choose Manage. The steps are listed in the left sidebar, under Inbox. Click a step, then the Step tab.
Changes to a workflow only affect collections created from it afterwards. Changes to a collection only affect that collection. See What is a workflow?
Add a step
- Click Add step in the sidebar.
- Enter a Name (up to 30 characters). Each step in a workflow or collection needs a different name.
- Click Save.
The new step is added at the end. Drag it to where you want it.
A new step starts with no questions, the colour blue, no panel, reminders off and reactions allowed.
Reorder steps
Drag a step up or down in the sidebar. The new order is saved straight away. The Inbox always comes first, because it is not a step.
Step setup
Click a step to open it. On the left is the Questions card. On the right are the Setup and Settings cards and the Danger zone. For questions, see Question types and settings.
The Setup card has these fields:
| Field | What it does |
|---|---|
| Panel | People who review every idea while it is in this step. Click the button to pick members. |
| Reminder days | Sends a reminder email when an idea has stayed in this step for this many days. Set 0 to turn reminders off (it shows Off). |
| Name | Shown on the step label on ideas. Up to 30 characters. |
| Description | Explains what happens in this step. Up to 200 characters. People see it when they hover over (or tap) the step label on an idea. |
| Color | The colour of the step label. Choose from 10 colours. |
When you change something, click Save in the Unsaved changes bar at the bottom.
Panel members
The panel is for people whose expertise matters at this step, such as a safety lead or a finance controller. Panel members:
- see every idea while it is in this step, even ideas hidden from other members;
- get an in-app notification and an email asking for their input when an idea moves into the step;
- answer and rate the step’s questions on each idea while it is in this step, in the step’s section on the idea with Answer, Rate or Edit;
- see the step’s Voting and Scoring overview, including who gave each score. Collection managers and Admins see this for every step.
Panel members must be active members, Managers or Admins of your hive. Guests and deactivated people cannot be on a panel, and that also applies to the steps of a workflow. Only collection managers, Admins and the panel members themselves can see who is on a panel.
Read more in Reviewers and panels.
Reminder emails
If Reminder days is set to, say, 5, Hives emails the collection’s managers and the idea’s assignees when the idea has been in the step for 5 days. It repeats every 5 days (day 10, day 15 and so on) for as long as the idea stays there. Only people who can see the idea get the email.
Step settings
The Settings card has three switches. Their labels include the step’s name.
| Setting | What it does |
|---|---|
| Hide ideas while in (step) | Hides ideas in this step from ordinary members and share-link visitors. Collection managers, Admins, the idea’s submitter and contributors, its assignees, and the step’s panel and reviewer still see it. |
| Allow reactions while in (step) | Lets people like or vote on ideas while they are in this step. It does not affect comments. |
| Enable reviewer | Shows a review card on ideas in this step, so a collection manager can assign one person to review each idea. The reviewer marks the idea as reviewed. See Reviewers and panels. |
Reactions also need to be turned on for the whole collection. If they are off, the reactions switch is greyed out with the note “Reactions are turned off for this collection.” Click Change in Settings to turn them on. See Collection settings explained.
Delete a step
- Click the step.
- Under Danger zone, click Delete.
- Confirm with Delete.
Good to know: The confirmation only says the step and its data will be deleted. In a collection, this is what happens:
- Every idea in the step goes back to the Inbox. Nobody is notified.
- The step’s questions and every answer to them are permanently deleted, including ratings.
- The dates ideas entered the step, the reviews given at the step and the step’s automatic comments are deleted.
This cannot be undone. The collection export does not include step answers, so note down anything you want to keep before you delete the step.
Deleting a step in a workflow only changes the workflow. Collections already created from it keep their copy of the step.
Common questions
Can I rename a step that already has ideas in it? Yes. Change the Name and save. The ideas and answers stay.
Can steps move ideas automatically? No. A collection manager, Admin or assignee moves ideas. See How to move an idea to another step.
Where are the Inbox settings? The Inbox has its own settings card. See The submission form and the Inbox.