Actors in software design are not individual people but roles doing different things. Hence an individual may have several roles but their use of software system is governed by the role they are performing during specific interaction. There are four actors in iDelegate.
For technically minded there is a use case diagram below. For plain-speak – read on.
iDelegate administrator
The administrator is a role who sets up and administers the iDelegate. They can change content and add and delete users. The administrator in iDelegate is not an IT person. Most likely, the executive in charge of the implementation of the Delegation of Authority framework within the organisation (usually the CEO, CFO or CHRO) will nominate an administrator from their team. In use, the iDelegate app will have very few administrators.
Note that even an iDelegate administrator is not able to manually change certain things in the system, such as timestamps (critical for audit and traceability reasons). Nor can they accept Delegations of Authority on somebody else’s behalf.
We have written a detailed guide for iDelegate administrators which you can read online.
Delegate
The delegate is a role to whom some authority has been delegated by their line or functional manager. A delegate is not always a physical person – a group of people can act as a delegate too (e.g. an Investment Committee authorised by a Company Board).
The delegate can only see her or his delegations, and accept or reject them (with comments), thus signing off on own accountability. Naturally, a delegate who manages others can also be a delegator.
We have written a detailed Delegate / Delegator Guide which you can read online.
Delegator
The delegator is a role who can delegate some or all of their authority to others, normally to their direct or functional reports. They are usually physical persons from the CEO down, although the Company Board will initially act as a collective delegator to the CEO. Therefore the delegator is practically always a delegee as well.
The delegator in iDelegate can only see her or his delegations and those of their subordinates. They can delegate some or all of their authority to their direct or functional reports. They cannot delegate authorities which they themselves do not possess. Delegators can also track reach and acceptance of accountabilities by their delegees.
We have written a detailed Delegate / Delegator Guide which you can read online.
Auditor
Auditor is a role that can select and review delegations and delegation trail of pretty much anyone in the system. Auditors cannot change anything at all.
We have written a detailed Auditor Guide which you can read online.