Business scenarios for user roles

BILL is enabled for different roles to be assigned to different individuals, allowing for the application to be uniquely configured to best suit the current business process.

This article provides a few suggested best practices, depending on your workflow.

Jump to:

• Small business with one user managing payables
• Small business with several users working in payables
• Small business with the owner and an accountant managing payables
• Medium-sized business with an AP department
• Create custom user roles

Small business with one user managing payables

In this scenario, a business assigns all payables activities to one individual, typically an accountant or firm principal. The User Roles in BILL can be set up as follows:

• The accountant or principal user is assigned the role of Administrator in BILL, which enables them to handle all aspects of the Payables process, including paying bills via BILL.

Small business with several users working in payables

If the company has a few individuals involved in entering bills into BILL, the user roles can be set up as follows:

• The accountant or principal user is assigned the role of Administrator in BILL, enabling them to handle all aspects of the Payables process, including paying bills via BILL
• The data entry user is assigned the role of Clerk in BILL, which enables them to enter and update Bills, as well as enter and update Vendors.
• If you prefer to limit the ability of the data entry user to only enter Bills and not manage Vendor information, a custom role can be created.

Small business with the owner and an accountant managing payables

This business may rely on an accountant to enter bills and maintain the company’s payables. The accountant also uses QuickBooks or another accounting system to manage other aspects of the finances. The company owner, or a finance person, pays the bills.

In this scenario, user roles in BILL can be set up as follows:

• The owner is assigned the role of Administrator in BILL, which enables them to handle all aspects of the Payables process, including paying bills via BILL. In this plan, the Administrator's primary task is to pay bills.
• The accountant is assigned the role of Accountant in BILL, which enables them to handle most aspects of the Payables process, except paying bills via BILL. In this plan, the Accountant's primary task is to enter bills and sync with the accounting system.

Medium-sized business with an AP department

This business may rely on an Accounts Payable Department or an outsourced CPA firm to manage Payables. The process of entering, managing, approving, scheduling, and paying a bill is spread across several individuals, each of whom handles only a piece of the overall process.

In this case, user roles can be set up in BILL as follows:

• The data entry user (for example an A/P Clerk) is assigned the role of Clerk in BILL, which enables them to enter and update bills as well as enter and update vendors. If you prefer to limit the ability of the data entry user to only enter bills and not enter or edit vendors, a custom role can be created.
• Each department head (for example a Marketing Director and an Office Manager) is assigned the role of Approver in BILL. They can then approve individual bills assigned to them for payment from their own department budget.
• The authorized check-signer (for example the Controller or CFO) is assigned the role of Payer or Administrator in BILL.
  • If you need a clear separation of duties in the organization, use the role of Payer.
  • If the person paying the bills may also be routinely performing other tasks such as syncing with the accounting system, managing users etc, use the role of Administrator.
  • For tighter controls, create a custom role.

The BILL system ensures that each role is strictly defined so that only individuals specifically authorized to pay bills can, in fact, pay bills. Bills move from individual to individual (for example, from bill processor to bill approver to bill payer) via the automated workflow in BILL, with automatic notifications to each individual as their participation becomes required.

Create custom user roles

If one of the standard user roles doesn't quite cover the permissions you'd like a user to have, you can create a custom user role.

1. Select Settings
2. We're currently rolling out a fresh new look for our Settings page, so you may see one of 2 designs. Please follow the steps that match what your Settings page looks like.
   
   Select Roles under Permissions if your Settings page looks like this:
   
   Select Roles under Roles & Permissions if your Settings page looks like this:
   
3. To use an existing role as a base (for example, if you want a role very similar to Approver, but that can also edit bills), select that role, hover your cursor over Details and select Clone
   • To create a role from scratch, select New
4. Enter a unique role name
   • Ideally, the name of the new role should be descriptive
5. Type in a short description of this role
   • The description is not required, but it is recommended to help limit confusion
6. Assign permissions to this new role by checking the boxes of the permissions you are granting
7. Select Save

Once completed, the page refreshes to the Roles page, and you will see the new role at the bottom of the list, and you can then assign the role to a user.