Tutorial 1.3: Understanding Roles and Permissions

Introduction

Luminate has five different user roles: Owner, Admin, Manager, Staff, and Receptionist. This guide explains what each role can do, which features they can access, and how to choose the right role when adding team members. Essential reading before you start inviting your team.

Who this is for: Salon owners and administrators who need to understand access levels before adding team members.

What you'll learn:

• The five user roles and their purpose
• Detailed permissions for each role
• How to choose the right role for each team member
• Role hierarchy and approval workflows

Time to complete: 10-15 minutes

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Prerequisites

Before you begin:

• You should have completed Tutorial 1.1 (Welcome to Luminate)
• Helpful to have a list of your team members and their responsibilities

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The Five User Roles

Luminate uses a role-based permission system. Each role has specific abilities and restrictions designed to match common salon job functions.

Role	Purpose	Typical User
Owner	Full control of everything	Salon owner, business owner
Admin	Day-to-day operations management	Senior manager, operations manager
Manager	Team supervision and scheduling	Floor manager, senior stylist
Staff	Individual service provider	Stylist, therapist, technician
Receptionist	Front desk operations	Receptionist, booking coordinator

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Role Details

Owner

The Owner role has complete access to all features. This is the highest permission level.

Key Abilities:

• All Admin, Manager, Staff, and Receptionist abilities
• Manage billing and subscription
• Create and manage multiple salons
• Add and remove other Owners (multi-owner setups)
• Export all data
• Process refunds
• Access all settings

Best For: Business owners who need full control. In most salons, only 1-2 people need Owner access.

Special Notes:

• Owners bypass all permission checks
• Only Owners can manage subscription/billing
• Owners automatically have access to all salons they own

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Admin

Admins handle day-to-day operations without access to billing.

Key Abilities:

• All Manager, Staff, and Receptionist abilities
• Create and manage staff accounts (invite, remove)
• Process refunds
• Export reports to Excel/CSV
• Manage all salon settings (except billing)
• Bypass POS PIN requirements
• View and manage all staff data
• Approve leave for all staff

Cannot Do:

• Access billing or subscription settings
• Create new salons
• Add/remove Owners

Best For: Operations managers, senior managers who run the salon but shouldn't access finances.

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Manager

Managers supervise teams and handle operational approvals.

Key Abilities:

• All Staff and Receptionist abilities
• Process refunds
• View (but not export) reports
• Manage the roster (create/edit/delete shifts)
• Approve leave requests from Staff and Receptionists (not other Managers)
• View all staff performance data
• Manage waitlist entries
• Access all customer data

Cannot Do:

• Export reports
• Create staff login accounts
• Change salon settings
• View billing information

Best For: Floor managers, senior stylists with supervisory duties.

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Staff

Staff members manage their own work and customers.

Key Abilities:

• View their own schedule
• Book and manage appointments
• Add and manage customers
• Process transactions (sales)
• Request leave (requires Manager/Admin approval)
• View their own performance statistics

Cannot Do:

• View other staff members' detailed performance
• Process refunds
• Access reports beyond their own stats
• Modify the roster
• Change any settings

Best For: Stylists, therapists, technicians - anyone providing services.

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Receptionist

Receptionists are the front-line booking team with broad viewing access but limited management powers.

Key Abilities:

• View all staff schedules (not just their own)
• Book appointments for any staff member
• Add and manage customers
• Process transactions
• Manage the waitlist
• View the roster (read-only)
• Handle customer communications
• Request leave (requires Manager/Admin approval)

Cannot Do:

• View detailed staff performance data
• Process refunds
• Modify the roster
• Access reports
• Change settings

Best For: Front desk staff, booking coordinators who manage the diary but don't provide services.

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Permission Comparison Table

Feature	Owner	Admin	Manager	Staff	Receptionist
Appointments
View own schedule	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
View all schedules	✓	✓	✓	-	✓
Book appointments	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Customers
View customers	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Add/edit customers	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Delete customers	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Transactions
Process sales	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Process refunds	✓	✓	✓	-	-
View all transactions	✓	✓	✓	-	-
Staff
View staff list	✓	✓	✓	-	-
Add/edit staff	✓	✓	-	-	-
Send login invites	✓	✓	-	-	-
Roster
View roster	✓	✓	✓	Own	✓
Edit roster	✓	✓	✓	-	-
Leave
Request leave	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Approve leave	✓	✓	Limited*	-	-
Reports
View reports	✓	✓	✓	Own	-
Export reports	✓	✓	-	-	-
Settings
Salon settings	✓	✓	-	-	-
Billing/subscription	✓	-	-	-	-
Other
Manage waitlist	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Bypass POS PIN	✓	✓	-	-	-

*Managers can only approve leave for Staff and Receptionists, not for other Managers or Admins.

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How to Choose the Right Role

Decision Guide

Ask these questions when assigning a role:

1. Do they need billing access?

   • Yes → Owner
   • No → Continue

2. Do they need to export reports or manage staff accounts?

   • Yes → Admin
   • No → Continue

3. Do they manage the roster, approve leave, or process refunds?

   • Yes → Manager
   • No → Continue

4. Do they provide services to customers?

   • Yes → Staff
   • No → Receptionist

Common Scenarios

Team Member	Recommended Role	Reason
Salon owner/partner	Owner	Needs billing and full control
General manager	Admin	Runs operations, no billing needed
Senior stylist (supervises juniors)	Manager	Approves leave, manages roster
Stylist/therapist	Staff	Provides services, manages own schedule
Front desk	Receptionist	Books for everyone, no services
Apprentice	Staff	Learning, limited to own work

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Role Hierarchy

Roles follow a hierarchy for certain operations:

Owner
  └── Admin
        └── Manager
              └── Staff / Receptionist

Leave Approval Chain:

• Staff/Receptionist leave → Approved by Manager, Admin, or Owner
• Manager leave → Approved by Admin or Owner only
• Admin leave → Can self-approve, or approved by another Admin or Owner
• Owner leave → Self-approved (no approval required)

Data Visibility:

• Higher roles can see data for roles below them
• Staff cannot see other Staff's detailed performance
• Receptionists can see schedules but not performance data

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Step-by-Step Instructions

Viewing a Staff Member's Current Role

1. Navigate to Staff in the sidebar
2. Click on the staff member's name
3. Their role is displayed in their profile

Changing a Staff Member's Role

1. Navigate to Staff in the sidebar
2. Click Edit on the staff member's profile
3. Find the Role dropdown
4. Select the new role
5. Click Save Changes

Note: Only Owners and Admins can change roles.

Understanding Permission Errors

If someone reports they "can't access" something:

1. Check their current role
2. Compare with the permission table above
3. Decide if they need a higher role
4. Or explain why that permission is restricted

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Common Pitfalls

"My staff member can't process refunds"

Refunds require Manager, Admin, or Owner level. This is intentional - refunds affect finances and should be limited to supervisory roles.

"My receptionist can't see the reports"

Reports are not available to Receptionists. If they need performance data, consider upgrading them to Manager, or have a Manager share relevant information.

"I made everyone an Admin for convenience"

This removes important safeguards. We recommend limiting Admin access to 1-2 trusted people. Too many Admins can lead to conflicting changes and reduces accountability.

"A staff member left and still has access"

Remove their login access immediately via Staff → [Name] → Remove Login Access. See Tutorial 4.2 for details.

"The role dropdown doesn't show Owner"

Only existing Owners can create new Owners. If you need another Owner, ask an existing Owner to make the change.

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Tips and Best Practices

1. Start with lower permissions - You can always upgrade. It's harder to take permissions away.

2. Document who has what role - Keep a record outside Luminate of who has Owner/Admin access for security purposes.

3. Regular role audits - Quarterly, review who has elevated access and whether it's still needed.

4. One Owner minimum - Always ensure at least one active Owner exists. If the only Owner leaves, you lose billing access.

5. Separate personal and work accounts - If an Owner is also a practicing stylist, they can use their Owner account for everything. No need for a separate Staff account.

6. Use Manager for shift supervisors - If someone manages the floor but isn't senior management, Manager is the right level.

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Related Tutorials

• Tutorial 1.1: Welcome to Luminate - Basic navigation
• Tutorial 1.4: The Onboarding Checklist - Complete setup
• Tutorial 4.1: Adding New Staff Members - Create staff profiles
• Tutorial 4.2: Managing Staff Login Accounts - Send invitations
• Tutorial 16.1-16.5: Role-Specific Guides - Detailed guides for each role

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Frequently Asked Questions

Can someone have multiple roles?

No, each person has one role. Roles are cumulative in terms of abilities (Admin can do everything Manager can do, etc.), so assign the highest role they need.

Can I create custom roles?

Not currently. The five roles cover most salon scenarios. If you have a specific need, consider which existing role is closest to what you need.

What happens if I change someone's role?

The change is immediate. They'll have the new permissions next time they load a page or log in. They won't lose access to any data, but they might not be able to perform certain actions.

Can a Staff member see another Staff member's appointments?

They can see other appointments on the calendar (to understand salon availability) but cannot access detailed performance data or personal information about other staff.

Can I restrict a role further?

Not beyond what's built in. Each role has fixed permissions. If you need more restriction, use a lower role and manually share information as needed.

What if someone needs just one extra permission?

You'll need to upgrade their role to one that includes that permission. For example, if a Manager needs to export reports, they'll need to be upgraded to Admin.

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Last Updated: January 2026