The assignment rules feature in the ELMO system allows administrators to assign multiple forms to users. By setting specific conditions, administrators can ensure that users who meet these criteria are automatically assigned the appropriate forms. This helps facilitate the onboarding process for new users by ensuring they receive the necessary documentation to complete.
How to create a new Assignment Rule with a Form
Assignment Rules apply only to General Users. They do not apply to, and will not assign forms to, users who are in an Onboarding User state. Workflows are the primary method for assigning items to Onboarding Users.
1. Go to Administration → General → Assignment Rules.
2. Click on New Rule.
3. Under the Details tab, the Name, Description, and Type fields must be completed.
• Name: This is the title of the assignment rule.
• Description: This should include a brief description of the assignment rule.
• Type: This is the type of assignment rule you require. From the drop-down list, you can select what the assignment rule will be assigning. To assign forms set the type to Form.
4. Within the Users tab, add the conditions of the assignment rule. The options available are based on data fields set up within your system. To add conditions, click on the Add Condition button.
The available Conditions are the Default fields and Custom Profile fields, select the condition you desire to use.
5. Select one or more forms under the Forms tab.
6. Click Save.
7. A pop-up appears allowing you to review and confirm the changes to the assignment rule, including the number of users who will be encapsulated in the rule based on the condition(s). Click on Confirm to proceed or Undo to make any changes.
8. Once the assignment rule is confirmed, the page will be refreshed and the settings will be greyed out and locked.
9. The newly created Assignment rule will display on the list.
How to Edit an existing Assignment Rule
1. Go to Administration → General → Assignment Rules.
2. Click Edit on the Assignment Rule.
3. Click on the lock symbol to unlock the rule for editing.
4. A pop-up message will appear, click OK.
5. Make the required changes with the available options.
6. Click Save and pop-up box will appear. This highlights the Before and After of what has been changed and the affects it will have.
7. Click Confirm.
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If Form status is Not yet started will have their assignments removed if the users are no longer applicable to the rule. If Form status is In Progress or Completed, then the assignments will remain.
Troubleshooting Common Issues
A form was assigned to a user twice.
This typically happens when a form is assigned by an assignment rule and also manually or through a separate workflow. To prevent this in the future, you can enable the "Unique Assignment" setting on the form itself.
Navigate to Administration → Documents → Forms.
Edit the relevant form.
Enable the Unique Assignment toggle and save.
This will prevent the form from being assigned to a user more than once, regardless of the assignment method.
An employee who was reactivated was reassigned an old form.
When a user's account is reactivated, the system re-evaluates all active assignment rules. If the reactivated user meets the conditions of a rule, they will be assigned the corresponding form, even if they completed it in the past (unless "Unique Assignment" is enabled).
Impact of Changing Assignment Rules
If you change the conditions within an assignment rule, forms that have already been assigned may or may not be unassigned, depending on their current status:
Not Started: If the form has not yet been started by the user, a change to the rule condition should unassign the form from the user. The system recognises the user no longer meets the criteria.
In Progress or Complete: Once a user has started a form or marked it as complete, it will not be automatically unassigned, even if they no longer meet the rule's criteria. The assignment is considered active, and the form remains on their profile.
Impact of Changing User Profile Data
If a user's profile data is manually updated by an admin—for example, a field used as part of the condition in the assignment rule, the system does not automatically unassign the form.
Example: The assignment rule is set to assign a form to anyone with Position A. User A is initially assigned the form because they hold the Position A position. If an admin later changes User A's position to be Position C, the form will remain on User A's profile. This applies even if the document was not yet started. The system doesn't retroactively check profile changes against assignment rule.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Can I use an assignment rule to schedule a form to be sent out on a future date?+
No. Assignment rules trigger as soon as a user's profile meets the specified conditions. It is not possible to schedule a form assignment for a future date (e.g., 6 months after their start date) using this feature.
Can I assign a form based on information the employee provided in another form?+
No. Assignment rules can only use the data fields available in a user's profile (e.g., Location, Position, Department). They cannot use answers or data from other completed forms as conditions.
An employee was assigned a form through a workflow and an assignment rule. Will they see two copies?+
This depends on the form's settings. If the "Unique Assignment" option is enabled on the form, the employee will only be assigned one copy. If it is disabled, they will receive a duplicate assignment.
Why isn't my assignment rule working for anyone?+
First, check that the rule is set to Active. If it is, double-check the conditions to ensure they are not impossible to meet (e.g., using "Match All" for two different departments). Finally, confirm you selected "Form" as the Rule Type when creating the rule.