If you've ever had to wrangle user permissions in a new tool, you know how quickly things can get messy. A few mis-clicks, and suddenly the intern has access to billing, or nobody knows who can edit what. This guide is for admins, managers, and anyone stuck with the job of keeping a growing team organized in Pfl. I'll lay out what works, what to watch out for, and the realistic way to keep your team moving without turning into the permission police.
Why Permissions Matter (and Where They Go Wrong)
Permissions aren't just checkboxes—they decide who can see, change, or delete what. Get them wrong, and you risk lost data, security headaches, or just endless Slack pings asking, “Can you let me in?” Most teams start with good intentions but end up with a spaghetti mess of custom roles, duplicated teams, and old accounts that should have been deleted ages ago.
Here’s what usually trips people up: - Too many custom roles. You think you’re tailoring, but mostly just adding confusion. - Nobody knows who owns what. When ownership is unclear, things stall. - Onboarding and offboarding fall through the cracks. Ex-employees with access = bad news.
Pfl gives you some solid tools for permissions and collaboration, but you have to set them up thoughtfully. Let’s break down how to do it without making your life harder.
Step 1: Get to Know Pfl’s Permission Model
Before you start changing settings, you need to understand how Pfl actually works. Pfl uses a mix of:
- User roles: Predefined sets of permissions like Admin, Editor, Viewer.
- Team-based access: Permissions can be granted to whole teams, not just individuals.
- Resource-specific sharing: You can share specific projects, folders, or docs with selected users or groups.
What works: Predefined roles are your friend. They make onboarding and troubleshooting faster.
What to ignore: Don’t get sucked into creating a new custom role for every edge case. 80% of the time, the built-ins will do the job.
Pro tip: Map out (on paper!) the main things people need to do—then match those needs to roles, not the other way around.
Step 2: Set Up Your Core Teams
In Pfl, teams aren’t just for show. They’re the backbone for assigning access and structuring collaboration.
- Start simple: Create teams that mirror real work groups—Engineering, Marketing, HR. Don’t make teams for “Fun Committee” or temporary project squads unless you have a real reason.
- Assign owners: Every team needs a responsible owner or two. This avoids the “everyone thought someone else was handling it” problem.
- Review memberships regularly: People change roles, move teams, or leave. Set a calendar reminder to review team lists every month or quarter.
What works: Teams make it easy to grant or revoke access in bulk. Great for onboarding.
What doesn’t: Overlapping teams and unclear ownership. If you’re not sure who’s in charge, neither is anyone else.
Step 3: Assign Roles (and Resist the Urge to Overcomplicate)
Here’s how to make role assignment less painful:
- Default to least privilege: Give people the lowest level of access they need to do their job. It’s a hassle at first, but you’ll thank yourself later.
- Use team-based roles when you can: Assign permissions at the team level, not user-by-user. It’s easier to manage and audit.
- Document your choices: Keep a simple written record—Google Doc, Notion, whatever—of who has what roles and why.
Common Roles in Pfl
- Admin: Full control. Can change settings, manage users, and see everything.
- Editor: Can create and edit content, but can’t mess with billing or core settings.
- Viewer: Read-only. Good for stakeholders who just want to check on things.
Pro tip: Every Admin should know who the other Admins are, and how to remove access in an emergency. Don’t have more than you need.
Step 4: Share Resources the Smart Way
Pfl lets you share individual resources—like projects or folders—directly. But just because you can doesn’t mean you should.
- Prefer team-level sharing: If multiple people need access, add them to a team and share with the team.
- Avoid one-off invites: Those random “can you let me see this?” requests pile up and are hard to track.
- Check for inherited permissions: Sometimes users have access because they’re in a team you forgot about.
What works: Team-based sharing keeps things clean and auditable.
What to ignore: Granting access to individual files or folders as a shortcut. It leads to headaches once the number of resources grows.
Step 5: Onboarding and Offboarding Without Tears
The real pain in any permission system is onboarding and offboarding. Here’s how to make it less awful:
- Create onboarding checklists: Spell out which teams and roles a new hire needs. Don’t rely on memory.
- Automate where possible: If Pfl supports SSO or directory sync (check your plan), use it. Saves time and reduces errors.
- Have a single owner for offboarding: When someone leaves, one person is responsible for removing access everywhere. No exceptions.
- Set reminders to review inactive accounts: Quarterly is better than never.
Pro tip: Keep a “pending removal” list—accounts flagged for deletion but not yet removed. Review before hitting the button in case you miss something important.
Step 6: Regularly Audit and Adjust
Nobody gets permissions right forever. Teams change, people move, and the tool itself will evolve. Make audits part of your routine:
- Schedule permission reviews: Put it on your calendar. Once a quarter is a good start.
- Look for over-permissioning: Too many Admins? Users in five teams? Clean it up.
- Check for unused accounts: If someone hasn’t logged in for 90 days, ask why.
What works: Regular reviews catch most problems before they blow up.
What doesn’t: The “set it and forget it” approach—which leads to confusion and, eventually, a data breach or embarrassing mistake.
Step 7: Foster a Culture of Permission Hygiene
Tech can only do so much. The rest is about people:
- Make it easy to ask for access: Set up a clear, simple process (not a maze of forms).
- Explain the why: Tell your team why you’re strict about permissions. Most people get it if you’re honest.
- Encourage reporting: If someone sees something weird (like access they shouldn’t have), they should feel safe flagging it.
Pro tip: Periodically run (short) training or send a quick reminder on best practices. Nothing fancy—just keep it top of mind.
Honest Takes: What Works, What Doesn’t, What to Ignore
Works: - Sticking to standard roles and teams. - Documenting your decisions. - Automating onboarding/offboarding.
Doesn’t: - Customizing every role to the nth degree. - Letting old accounts pile up. - Relying on memory or ad hoc Slack requests.
Ignore: - Fancy integration features you’re not actually using. - Granular permissions for things nobody cares about. - Overly complex org charts.
Keep It Simple, Iterate Often
You don’t need a five-year permissions plan. Start simple, document your choices, and revisit them as your team grows. Most permission problems come from trying to predict every edge case or letting things drift without review. Pfl gives you the tools—you just need to use them with a bit of discipline and common sense.
Keep things tidy, don’t overthink it, and remember: you can always adjust as you go.