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Set up a cycle group

Before a cycle can run on an item, it needs a cycle group — the people who take part and the rules for when their work counts as done. This page shows how to pick an existing group for an item and how to build a custom one.

Prerequisites​

  • The item permission to set the participant list for the cycle type you're configuring: Set Reviewers, Set Approvers, Set Endorsers, or Set Acknowledgers — and a license that includes cycle management; see the License capability matrix.
  • To convert a custom group into a named group, the Manage Repository Configuration repository permission.

Steps​

Choose the cycle group for an item​

New items use the repository's default named group for each cycle type (for example Default Approval Group).

  1. Select the item in the repository tree and open the Manage Cycles tab.
  2. Expand the cycle type — Review Cycle, Approval Cycle, Endorsement Cycle, or Acknowledgement Cycle.
  3. Under Cycle Group, select Change.
  4. In Select Cycle Group, pick a named cycle group from the list, then click Save.

The list also offers Custom Cycle Group — a group that exists only for this item and this cycle type.

Build a custom cycle group​

  1. In Select Cycle Group, choose Custom Cycle Group, then click Create Cycle Group. The cycle group editor opens.
  2. Select the + button, then Add User / Group.
  3. Search and pick the participants, then click Confirm. You can add individual users, user groups, and existing named cycle groups. User groups include groups synced from a directory such as Active Directory — add the synced group and its members take part (see Manage users and groups). Only people with access to the repository appear in the list.
  4. Set the section's completion requirement in the dropdown above the member list:
    • All members need to complete the action in any order
    • All members need to complete the action in this order — drag members to set the order
    • {n} of {m} need to complete the action — a quorum
  5. Click Save.

The custom cycle group editor with one member added and the completion requirement set to all members in any order.

Add a multi-stage workflow​

For workflowsWorkflow An automated or semi-automated sequence of tasks that moves work from initiation to completion, often with routing rules and human-task assignments. like "either Bill or Sally first, then Lisa," use subgroups:

  1. In the cycle group editor, select +, then Add Subgroup.
  2. Add the members of the first stage to the subgroup and set its completion requirement (for example 1 of 2 need to complete the action).
  3. Add the second stage's members to the outer section and set its requirement.
  4. Click Save.

Convert a custom group to a named group​

A custom group you want to reuse on other items can be promoted to a named cycle group:

  1. Under Cycle Group, select Change. The current group must be the Custom Cycle Group.
  2. Click Create named cycle group.
  3. Enter a descriptive group name and confirm.

The named group is now available in Select Cycle Group for every item in the repository. The reverse also works: Copy to custom cycle group turns the selected named group into an item-local copy you can edit freely — this overwrites the item's existing custom group.

Verify​

The group you chose shows under Cycle Group on the item's Manage Cycles tab, and expanding Change previews its members and completion requirements.

Limitations​

  • Acknowledgement cycles ignore completion requirements and ordering: when the cycle starts, all members are collected into a flat list, and each person acknowledges once even if they appear in several included groups.
  • A review, approval, or endorsement cycle started with an empty group completes immediately. Acknowledgement cycles never complete on their own.
  • Repository-wide creation and maintenance of named groups happens in the Repository Configuration area and needs the Manage Cycle Groups permission — see Managing repository cycle groups.