Invoice Permissions and Best Practices

AccuArk's complex invoicing system includes a granular set of permissions that control which features each user role can access. Properly configuring these permissions ensures that employees see only the tools they need, managers have the oversight capabilities they require, and sensitive operations like credit overrides and status management are restricted to authorized users. This article provides a complete permissions reference, typical role assignments, and best practices for running an efficient invoice workflow.

Invoice-Related Permissions Reference

The following table lists every permission code related to the complex invoicing system, along with a description of what each permission controls.

Typical Role Assignments

The following table shows which permissions are typically assigned to each user role. Your business may adjust these based on specific needs, but this provides a recommended starting point.

Super Admin and Location Admin

Super Admins and Location Admins receive all invoice-related permissions. They have full access to every feature, including status management, credit overrides, team management, and recurring invoice configuration. These roles are responsible for initial system setup and ongoing administration.

Permissions: INV_VIEW_AVAILABILITY, INV_CREATE_PO_FROM_INVOICE, INV_STATUS_VIEW, INV_STATUS_MANAGE, INV_CUSTOMER_APPROVAL, INV_CONFIRM_DELIVERY, INV_VIEW_CREDIT, INV_OVERRIDE_CREDIT, TEAMS_VIEW, TEAMS_CAPTAIN, TEAMS_ASSIGN, TEAMS_MANAGE, RECURRING_VIEW, RECURRING_MANAGE, EMAIL_SEND.

Manager

Managers receive most permissions but are typically excluded from TEAMS_MANAGE (team definitions are an admin function) and INV_STATUS_MANAGE (status workflow configuration is an admin function). Managers can perform day-to-day operations including creating POs, approving customers, confirming deliveries, overriding credit limits, assigning teams, and managing recurring templates.

Permissions: INV_VIEW_AVAILABILITY, INV_CREATE_PO_FROM_INVOICE, INV_STATUS_VIEW, INV_CUSTOMER_APPROVAL, INV_CONFIRM_DELIVERY, INV_VIEW_CREDIT, INV_OVERRIDE_CREDIT, TEAMS_VIEW, TEAMS_CAPTAIN, TEAMS_ASSIGN, RECURRING_VIEW, RECURRING_MANAGE, EMAIL_SEND.

Employee

Employees receive a limited set of permissions focused on their daily work. They can view team assignments, log progress as team captains, and perform basic invoice operations. They do not have access to credit information, PO creation, status management, or recurring template management.

Permissions: TEAMS_VIEW, TEAMS_CAPTAIN.

Accountant

Accountants receive permissions focused on financial visibility and reporting. They can view credit limit information and recurring invoice templates but do not manage teams, create purchase orders, or configure statuses.

Permissions: INV_VIEW_CREDIT, RECURRING_VIEW.

Best Practices for Invoice Workflows

The following best practices are drawn from real-world usage patterns and will help you get the most value from AccuArk's complex invoicing features.

1. Design Your Order Status Workflow Before Creating Statuses

Before creating any order statuses in the system, sit down and map out the stages that an invoice goes through in your business from creation to completion. Common stages include: Quote, Pending Approval, Approved, In Production, Ready for Pickup, Shipped, Delivered, and Closed. Each business has different stages, so design yours based on your actual workflow rather than copying a generic template.

Once you have the stages mapped out, configure each status with the appropriate inventory actions (deduct on which status, restock on which status), deposit requirements (which statuses require a deposit before advancing), and customer approval gates (which statuses need customer sign-off). Planning this upfront prevents the need to restructure statuses later when invoices are already in progress.

2. Use Deposit Gating for High-Value Orders

For orders above a certain dollar amount, configure your order statuses to require a deposit before the invoice can advance past the initial stages. This protects your business from committing labor, materials, and production time to orders that the customer may not follow through on. A common approach is to require a deposit before moving from "Approved" to "In Production." The default deposit percentage can be set per location, ensuring consistency across all invoices.

3. Enable Customer Approval for Custom and Made-to-Order Work

If your business produces custom items, installations, or made-to-order products, enable the customer approval workflow. This requires the customer to formally approve the invoice details — including items, quantities, prices, and specifications — before production begins. The approval is recorded with a timestamp, the approver's name, and an optional signature reference. This creates a documented agreement that protects both your business and the customer if disputes arise later.

4. Configure Auto-Advance with Delivery Confirmation

For businesses that deliver goods, configure a delivery confirmation status that automatically advances the invoice to the next stage (typically "Completed" or "Closed") once delivery is confirmed. This eliminates the manual step of updating the invoice status after delivery. The delivery confirmation captures the recipient name, date and time, and optional notes, providing a complete delivery record.

5. Use Work Orders Instead of Full Invoices for Field Teams

When sending teams to job sites, print work orders rather than full invoices. Work orders include the job details, item lists, quantities, and team assignments but omit financial information such as prices, discounts, and payment details. This protects sensitive pricing information from being visible to field workers, subcontractors, or customers at the job site. Team captains can log progress and update job status using the work order without needing access to financial data.

6. Set Up Recurring Templates for Regular Customers

If you have customers who place the same or similar orders on a regular schedule (weekly supplies, monthly maintenance, quarterly restocking), create recurring invoice templates. Templates define the items, quantities, customer, and generation frequency. The system automatically generates new invoices based on the schedule, saving time and ensuring consistency. Review generated invoices periodically to confirm that quantities and prices are still accurate, especially after price changes.

7. Use Credit Limits to Manage Customer Risk

Configure credit limits for customers who carry balances. AccuArk supports two types of credit limits:

• Soft limits — The system displays a warning when the customer's balance approaches or exceeds the limit, but allows the invoice to proceed. Use soft limits for trusted, long-standing customers where you want awareness without blocking transactions.
• Hard limits — The system blocks the invoice from being saved or advanced when the customer's balance would exceed the limit. Only users with the INV_OVERRIDE_CREDIT permission can bypass a hard limit. Use hard limits for new customers or accounts with payment history concerns.

8. Review Status History Regularly

The status history log records every status change on every invoice, including the timestamp, the user who made the change, and the previous and new status. Review this data regularly to identify workflow bottlenecks. If invoices consistently stall at a particular status for days, investigate whether the bottleneck is caused by a process issue, a staffing shortage, or a configuration problem. Status history data is invaluable for continuous improvement of your order fulfillment process.

9. Train Team Captains on Progress Tracking

Team captains are the front-line users who log progress on jobs. Invest time in training them to use the progress tracking system consistently. Each progress entry should include what was accomplished, any issues encountered, and an estimated completion status. Consistent progress logging gives managers real-time visibility into job status without requiring phone calls or site visits. The My Team Dashboard aggregates this information, making it easy for captains and managers to see the state of all active jobs at a glance.

10. Use Create PO to Streamline Procurement

Whenever you create an invoice with items that are out of stock, use the Create PO feature to automatically generate purchase orders for the shortfall. This is faster and more accurate than creating purchase orders manually, and it ensures the correct quantities are ordered from the correct vendors. Make it a standard practice to check stock availability columns on every invoice and use Create PO before moving the invoice to a production or fulfillment status.

What to Read Next

• Emailing Invoices and Packing Slips — Send invoice and packing slip PDFs to customers directly from the invoice form.
• Creating Purchase Orders from an Invoice — Generate purchase orders for stock shortfalls with a single click.
• Order Status Workflow — Configure the statuses that drive your invoice lifecycle.
• Deposit Collection and Gating — Set up deposit requirements on order statuses.
• Customer Approval Workflow — Enable formal customer sign-off on invoices.
• Recurring Invoices — Automate invoice generation for regular customers.