Before assigning a responsibility, check the permissions that make it possible. Creating a task, approving work, managing members, and voting are separate actions; a role can allow some without allowing all.
Separate three questions
When setting up a role, decide:
- Who can hold it? Membership may be open, invited, vouched, or subject to other enabled eligibility rules.
- What can its members do? Permissions can cover tasks, proposals, learning modules, and membership management.
- Where can they vote? Voting classes and poll permissions determine eligibility. A role's name or place on an organization chart does not grant voting power by itself.
These questions are related, but they are configured separately. A Treasurer might prepare a spending proposal without having authority to send the funds alone.
Joining and leaving roles
Some roles are available to claim. Others require vouches or an invitation. An applicant may need to accept a role after qualifying, and some invitations have a review period before they become available.
Who can remove a member also depends on the rules. Authorized role managers can handle some membership changes. Some governance grants are protected so that only another vote can change them. Do not assume every role is permanent or that every removal needs a vote.
Use the membership status and explanations shown for your organization. Poa supports organizations with different versions of the access system, so the available controls can differ.
Task permissions
Task authority can be scoped to a project. Common permissions include:
| Permission | Responsibility |
|---|---|
| Create | Add work to a project |
| Claim | Take or apply for available tasks |
| Review | Approve submitted work or request changes |
| Assign | Choose an assignee or accept an application |
| Self-review | Approve work you claimed, when permitted |
| Budget | Change project participation and bounty limits |
| Edit | Change task details, with separate authority for reward changes where configured |
Project managers have operational powers for their projects, but budget authority is separate. Check the actual permissions rather than assuming a senior-sounding title grants every action.
A practical setup
A volunteer translation project might start with three roles:
- Contributor: claims work and votes in the classes that include contributors.
- Reviewer: reviews submissions and helps contributors finish work to the agreed standard.
- Coordinator: creates projects and tasks, assigns work where needed, and prepares proposals.
Someone might translate their first page as a Contributor, then become a Reviewer after gaining experience. The group decides which responsibilities overlap and explains how people can take on more, raise concerns, or hand work over.
Review authority as the group grows
Revisit permissions when members leave, projects change, or responsibilities become concentrated in one person. Check that another authorized person can take over essential work when a coordinator steps away. Keep an understandable path for new members to take on responsibility.
If an action is unavailable, confirm your role is active and ask a role manager which permission or requirement is missing. Hosts can use vouching to help experienced members welcome the next person into a role.