This includes:

Partners
Managers
Accountants
Auditors
Bookkeepers
Clerks
Administrative staff

If a team member is not added to DataGrows, work cannot be assigned to them, their time cannot be tracked, and key workflow functionality will be lost.

This guide explains how to add users, manage licenses, assign roles, control access rights, and remove users when necessary.

Why User Setup Matters

Many of DataGrows' core features depend on having the correct users configured in the system.

These include:

✅ Task assignments
✅ Workload management
✅ Time tracking
✅ Progress monitoring
✅ Team reporting
✅ Task reviews and approvals
✅ Capacity planning

A properly configured user structure ensures that work flows to the right people at the right time.

Before You Add a User: Check Your Licenses

Before creating a new user, ensure that you have enough licenses available.

Trial Accounts -If you are currently on a trial, you can skip this step.

Debit Order Accounts

Additional licenses will automatically be added to your next billing cycle.

PayFast & Netcash Credit Card Accounts

You must increase your license count before allocating access to a new user.

To Update Your Licenses

Go to Settings.
Select My Plan.
Update the total number of licenses required.
Click Update or Subscribe.

Important: The number entered should reflect the total number of licensed users you require, not just the additional users being added.

How to Add a User

To add a new team member:

Open your Accounting CRM.
Navigate to Setup & Integrations > Setup.
Open the Accountants table.
Click Add Record.

Complete the following information:

Name
Email Address
Employment Status
User Role

Then:

✅ Check Allocate License
✅ Click Save & New or Save

User Login Process

Once a user has been added:

DataGrows sends an email invitation.
The user creates their password.
They log in using their email address and password.

Once logged in, they will have access according to the role assigned to them.

Understanding User Roles

Choosing the correct role is important because it determines what the user can see and do within DataGrows.

Super User

The highest level of access within DataGrows.

Super Users Can:

✅ Configure the system
✅ Add and edit clients
✅ Delete clients
✅ Add and manage users
✅ Access all tables
✅ View all reports
✅ View and manage all tasks

Typically assigned to:

Business owners
Practice managers
System administrators

Best Practice: Keep the number of Super Users limited to key administrative personnel.

Partner

Partners have access to almost everything within the system but cannot delete client records.

Partners Can:

✅ Configure the system
✅ Add clients
✅ Add users
✅ Access all tables
✅ Access all reports
✅ View all tasks

Partners Cannot:

❌ Delete client records

This additional restriction helps protect important client data.

Team Lead

Designed for managers and team leaders who oversee work delivery.

Team Leads Can:

✅ View all task tables
✅ Review team work
✅ View general reports
✅ Add clients
✅ Monitor workloads

Team Leads Cannot:

❌ Access billing information
❌ Access profitability reports

This keeps financial data restricted while still providing visibility into operational activities.

Accountant

The standard role for accounting professionals.

Accountants Can:

✅ Access task tables
✅ Complete and update tasks
✅ View general reports
✅ Manage client work

Depending on configuration, they may:

See only their own tasks
See all team tasks

Clerk

Typically used for junior staff and staff in training.

Clerks Can:

✅ Access task tables
✅ Complete assigned work
✅ View general reports
✅ Manage client tasks

Like Accountants, visibility can be restricted to their own workload if required.

Assistant

Designed for administrative support staff.

Assistants Can:

✅ Update client information
✅ Access My Chats
✅ Access the Adhoc department

Assistants Cannot:

❌ Access most task departments
❌ Complete accounting work

Licensing

Assistant users do not require a paid license.

You may have:

1 Assistant for every 10 paid user licenses.

This provides a cost-effective option for administrative support staff.

Custom Roles

Some firms require unique access requirements.

For these situations, a Custom user role can be created and configured according to your firm's needs.

This allows you to provide access only to the areas relevant to that user.

Filter on Own Data

Within the Accountants table, you'll find a setting called:

Filter on Own Data - this controls task visibility.

When Enabled, users will only see tasks assigned to them.

Ideal for:

Clerks
Junior staff
Focused task management

When Disabled, users will see tasks assigned to all staff members.

Ideal for:

Managers
Team Leads
Partners
Reviewers

Best Practice: Team Leads and Managers should generally have this disabled so that they can monitor workloads across the team.

Changing User Rights

User rights can be updated at any time.

To change a user's role:

Open the user's record in the Accountant table.
Update their Role.
Save the record.

Changes take effect immediately.

Examples include:

Promoting a Clerk to Accountant
Promoting an Accountant to Team Lead
Changing a Team Lead to Partner

Customising User Rights

User Roles are just templates in DataGrows with the above generic rules applied. You can customise your templates to your team and needs.

Go to Setup & Integrations > Setup and click on User Roles

Open the template you want to customise

Each template has groups and tables that you can customise the access to.

Access levels Explained:

When marked as “on” -

Can View – the user has access to the feature

Can Update - the user has access to make changes to the feature

Can Delete - the user has the ability to delete records from the feature

Can Insert – the user has the ability to Add Records to the feature

Can Archive - the user has the ability to mark records as complete in the feature

Can View Archive - the user has the ability to view the corresponding Archive table of the feature

You can grant and customise access to tables & departments.

Below is a table of the available features and the type of each.

Table: is found in the left-hand navigation top Menu.

Department: access is given at the expand/collapse level and not per table.

Sub-tabs: within main tables can also be customised & restricted as needed.

Feature	Type
All Tasks Due Detail	Table
Subtasks Due	Table
Audit Tasks Due	Table
My Chats	Table
Clients	Table
Client Roles	Table
Related Parties	Table
Firm Reports	Table
Reports	Table
Additional Bank Accounts	Client Sub-tab
Additional Information	Client Sub-tab
Authorised Shares	Client Sub-tab
Client Workflow	Client Sub-tab
Directors	Client Sub-tab
Members	Client Sub-tab
Required Documents	Client Sub-tab
Small Business Tax	Client Sub-tab
Trust Register	Client Sub-tab
Adhoc Tasks	Department - Tasks
Accounting	Department - Tasks
Audit	Department - Tasks
CIPC	Department - Tasks
Financials	Department - Tasks
Payroll	Department - Tasks
Tax	Department - Tasks
SARS	Department - Tasks
Communication	Department - Communication
Time Management	Department - Time Management
Billing	Department - Approvals & Billing
Setup - Billing	Department - Approvals & Billing
Integration	Department - Setup & Integration
CIPC Annual Return Details	CIPC Enterprise Details Sub-tab
CIPC Directors	CIPC Enterprise Details Sub-tab
CIPC Enterprise History	CIPC Enterprise Details Sub-tab
CIPC Outstanding Annual Returns	CIPC Enterprise Details Sub-tab
Setup	Department - Setup & Integration
Accountant Tasks	Accountant Sub-tab

Custom Users

You can set the same customised access to the above features to individual users when using the Custom Role and copying from a template. You can then further customise that user’s access. This only applies the changes to their individual logins. Your default template choices will still apply to users under those roles.

Allocating or Removing Access

The Allocate License checkbox controls whether a user can log into DataGrows.

Allocate License Checked

✅ User can access the system.

Allocate License Unchecked

❌ User access is removed.

This allows you to keep user records for historical purposes while preventing future logins.

Do not delete accountants who leave your firm. You will lose timelog and task records edited by them.

User Actions & Accountant Actions

DataGrows includes various bulk actions available through the Actions menu.

Examples include:

Bulk updates
Workflow actions
System utilities

By default:

✅ Super Users automatically have access.

Other user roles can be granted access through the:

User Actions Table

To grant access:

Navigate to Setup → User Actions.
Open the required action.
Enable Can Use Action.

Custom User Permissions

For Custom users, permissions can be configured individually.

To manage these:

Open the user's record.
Navigate to Accountant Actions.
Select the actions and permissions they should have.

This allows for highly customised access control.

Removing a User

In most cases, we recommend removing access rather than deleting the user.

This preserves:

Historical tasks
Time records
Audit trails
Work history

Recommended Method: Remove Access

To remove a user safely:

Step 1

Open the user record.

Step 2

Uncheck:

Allocate License

Step 3

Update Employment Status to:

Resigned
Dismissed
End of Contract

Step 4

Use the:

Reassign All Clients and Tasks To

field to transfer their workload to another team member.

This ensures that no work falls through the cracks.

Adjusting Licenses After User Removal

If you're paying through PayFast:

Go to Settings → My Plan
Adjust the total license count
Click Update

This prevents unnecessary license charges.

When Should You Delete a User?

Deleting users should be extremely rare.

Delete a user only if:

You do not need historical records
Tasks have been reassigned
Access has already been removed

To Delete a User

Select the user record.
Click Actions.
Select Delete Selected.

Warning: Deleting a user removes them from historical records and cannot be easily reversed.

Assigning Tasks to Users

Once users have been added, they can be assigned work through:

Client Role Assignments
Department Assignments
Task-Level Assignments

This ensures tasks are automatically allocated to the correct people as they are generated.

For a detailed explanation of task assignment workflows, please refer to the Assigning Tasks to Users training guide.

Key Takeaways

✅ Every team member should be added to DataGrows to ensure work can be assigned correctly.
✅ Licenses must be available before allocating access.
✅ Choose the appropriate role for each user based on their responsibilities.
✅ The Filter on Own Data setting controls whether users see only their work or the wider team's workload.
✅ Access can be added or removed using the Allocate License checkbox.
✅ User Actions control access to bulk functions within the system.
✅ It is usually better to remove access than delete a user entirely.
✅ Always reassign a departing user's tasks and clients before removing access.

Remember: The effectiveness of DataGrows depends on having the right people in the system with the right permissions. A well-structured user setup leads to better task allocation, clearer accountability, and more efficient team collaboration.

Adding Users & Managing User Rights in DataGrows