Guide for Salon Managers

10-12 minutes

Tutorial 16.3: Guide for Salon Managers

Introduction

As a Manager in Luminate, you handle day-to-day operations and team supervision. You're the bridge between the administrative team (Owners and Admins) and the front-line staff. Your role includes managing appointments, approving leave for your team, viewing reports, and ensuring smooth daily operations.

This guide explains your complete permission set—what you can do, what you can see, and where your role's boundaries lie. Perfect for senior stylists who've been promoted to a supervisory position or floor managers overseeing daily operations.

Who this is for: Team members assigned the Manager role in Luminate.

What you'll learn:

Your complete access level and permissions
Managing appointments and the roster
Approving leave for staff members
Viewing reports (without export)
Processing transactions and refunds
Understanding your role's limitations

Time to complete: 10-12 minutes

Prerequisites

Before you begin:

You should have received a login invitation and completed setup
Helpful to have read Tutorial 1.3: Understanding Roles and Permissions
Familiarise yourself with the basic navigation (Tutorial 1.1)

What Managers Can Do

Managers have operational access focused on team supervision and daily management:

Feature Area	Manager Access
Dashboard	Full access with all statistics
Appointments	Create, edit, cancel any appointment
Waitlist	Full management
POS/Transactions	Process sales, view transactions
Refunds	Yes - Process refunds
Customers	Full customer management
Staff	View only - Cannot add or edit staff
Staff Accounts	No access - Cannot manage logins
Roster	Full schedule management
Leave	Approve Staff and Receptionist requests only
Services	Create, edit, delete services
Products	Full inventory management
Reports	View only - Cannot export
Salon Settings	No access
Notifications	No access
Messages	Full access - View, send, close, archive
Billing	No access

The Manager Dashboard

Location: Sidebar → Dashboard

As a Manager, you see the full management dashboard:

Quick stats - Today's appointments, revenue, and key metrics
Sales breakdown - Revenue by category and payment method
Staff performance - Team productivity for the period
Revenue trend - Daily revenue graph
Appointment stats - Booking and completion rates
Client metrics - Customer activity data
Skin test alerts - Customers needing patch tests

Use the period selector to view different timeframes:

Today - Current day only
This Week - Monday to today
This Month - First of month to today

Appointment Management

Location: Sidebar → Appointments

You have full control over the appointment calendar.

Viewing Appointments

The calendar shows appointments for all staff. You can:

Switch between Today, Week, and Month views
Filter by specific staff members
See appointment status through colour coding
View appointment details by clicking on them

Booking Appointments

Click an empty slot on the calendar or use Book Appointment
Select or create the customer
Choose the staff member
Select the service(s)
Confirm the date and time
Click Save

Editing Appointments

Click on the appointment
Click Edit
Make your changes
Click Save

You can also drag appointments to reschedule them on the calendar.

Cancelling Appointments

Click on the appointment
Click Cancel
Confirm the cancellation
Optionally record a reason

Managing Appointment Status

Update appointments as customers progress:

Scheduled → Arrived (when customer arrives)
Arrived → In Progress (when service begins)
In Progress → Completed (when finished)

Roster Management

Location: Sidebar → Roster

Managers can fully manage the staff roster.

Creating Shifts

Click on an empty slot for a staff member and date
Set the start and end times
Add break duration if applicable
Configure recurrence (weekly, specific days)
Click Save

Editing Shifts

Click on any existing shift to:

Change times
Adjust break duration
Modify recurrence
Delete the shift

Duplicating Rosters

To copy a week's roster:

Navigate to the source week
Click Duplicate Week
Select the target week
Choose which staff to include
Handle any conflicts
Confirm the duplication

Public Holiday Indicators

The roster shows warnings when you try to create shifts on public holidays. The system won't prevent it but will ask you to confirm.

Leave Approval (Limited)

Location: Sidebar → Leave

Managers can approve leave requests, but with hierarchy restrictions.

Who You Can Approve

Role	Can You Approve?
Staff	✓ Yes
Receptionist	✓ Yes
Manager	✗ No
Admin	✗ No
Owner	✗ No (auto-approved)

Key point: You cannot approve leave for other Managers or Admins. Those requests go to Admins or the Owner.

Approving Requests

Navigate to Leave
Look for requests from Staff and Receptionists
Review the dates and leave type
Click Approve or Reject
Optionally add a note

Your Own Leave

You can request leave like any other staff member:

Go to Leave → Request Leave
Select leave type and dates
Submit the request

Your requests go to an Admin or Owner for approval.

Processing Transactions and Refunds

Location: Sidebar → POS

Managers can process sales and refunds.

Processing Sales

Navigate to POS
Select or create a customer
Add items (services, products)
Apply any discounts
Record payment method(s)
Complete the transaction

Processing Refunds

Unlike Staff and Receptionists, you can process refunds:

Find the transaction in the POS list
Click to open details
Click Refund
Choose full or partial refund
Confirm the refund

When to refund:

Customer returns a product
Service was not delivered as expected
Double-charge correction
Pre-payment cancellation

Viewing Reports (No Export)

Location: Sidebar → Reports

Managers can view all reports but cannot export them.

Available Reports

Report	What It Shows
Daily Revenue	Income by date and source
Staff Performance	Team productivity
Hours Worked	Rostered hours
Top Customers	Best clients
Accounts Receivable	Unpaid balances
Gift Vouchers	Voucher activity
SMS Usage	Message sending stats
Leave Report	Staff leave data
VAT Report	Tax collected by period

Viewing Reports

Navigate to Reports
Select the report type
Set your date range
Apply any filters
View the data

Why No Export?

Export capability is reserved for Owners and Admins because:

Exported data leaves the system
Financial exports may have compliance implications
The Owner controls what data is extracted

If you need exported data, ask an Admin or Owner to generate it for you.

Customer Management

Location: Sidebar → Customers

You have full customer management access.

Adding Customers

Click Add Customer
Enter contact details
Record any preferences or notes
Set marketing consent
Click Save

Editing Customers

Update contact information
Add notes and preferences
Manage marketing consent
View appointment history
Check transaction history

Deactivating Customers

For customers who shouldn't appear in active lists:

Open the customer profile
Click Deactivate
The customer is hidden but data is preserved

Service and Product Management

Location: Sidebar → Services / Products

Managers can manage both services and products.

Services

Create new services with duration and pricing
Edit existing services
Set commission rates
Configure tiered pricing (by staff level)
Assign colour coding

Products

Add retail products
Set prices (retail and cost)
Track stock levels
Adjust inventory
Configure SKUs

Messages

Location: Sidebar → Messages

Managers have full messaging access, including inbox management.

What You Can Do

View all conversations
Read customer messages
Reply to messages
View customer-specific history
Close and reopen conversations
Archive threads

What You Cannot Do

Configure messaging settings (notification templates, auto-responses)

For settings changes, ask an Admin.

What Managers Cannot Access

Understanding your boundaries prevents confusion:

Staff Management

You can view staff profiles but cannot:

Add new staff members
Edit staff details
Create or remove login accounts
Change staff roles
Deactivate or anonymise staff

Settings

You have no access to:

Salon settings and configuration
Notification settings
Public holiday management
Staff level configuration
Leave policy settings

Reports Export

You can view reports but the Export button is not available. Request exports from Admins or the Owner.

Payroll

No access to payroll reports or staff pay management. Payroll is handled by Owners and Admins.

Billing

No access to subscription or payment information.

Daily Workflow for Managers

Morning Routine

Check dashboard for today's overview
Review pending leave requests from Staff and Receptionists
Check waitlist for booking opportunities
Review today's appointments for any issues
Ensure staff are rostered correctly

Throughout the Day

Monitor appointments - Handle reschedules and issues
Process transactions - Assist with payments
Supervise staff - Help with questions
Handle customer issues - Resolve problems
Check messages - Respond to customer enquiries

End of Day

Review completed appointments
Process any pending transactions
Mark no-shows on the calendar
Check tomorrow's schedule
Flag any issues for Admin/Owner

Weekly Tasks

Review staff performance in reports
Plan the roster for the coming week
Process outstanding leave requests
Check customer feedback via messages
Report issues to Admin/Owner

Common Pitfalls

"I can't approve my colleague's leave request"

Check their role. Managers can only approve Staff and Receptionist leave. Manager leave goes to Admins or Owners.

"I can't find the Export button on reports"

This is expected. Export is not available to Managers. Ask an Admin or Owner to generate exports for you.

"I can't edit a staff member's profile"

Managers have view-only access to staff. Ask an Admin to make changes.

"A customer is asking about refund policy"

You can process refunds. Explain the salon's policy (check with Admin/Owner if unsure) and process the refund if appropriate.

"I need to change the roster settings"

Roster creation is within your access, but roster settings (like default shift lengths) may require Admin access. You can create and edit individual shifts.

Tips and Best Practices

Prompt leave responses - Staff appreciate quick decisions. Check pending requests at the start of each day.
Use the dashboard daily - The dashboard gives you a quick overview of salon health.
Document issues - Keep notes on recurring problems to share with Admins during weekly reviews.
Know your limits - Rather than trying workarounds, escalate to Admins for tasks outside your access.
Train your team - Help Staff and Receptionists understand the system so they can be more self-sufficient.
Communicate upward - Keep Admins informed of operational issues before they become problems.
Monitor performance - Regular review of staff performance reports helps identify training needs.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why can't I approve another Manager's leave?

The role hierarchy prevents Managers from approving each other's leave. This ensures proper oversight—Manager leave is approved by Admins or Owners.

Can I see my own performance statistics?

Yes. The Staff Performance report includes your data, and you can also see personal stats in your dashboard profile.

What if I disagree with an Admin's decision?

Speak with them directly or escalate to the Owner. The system enforces the role hierarchy, but human communication solves most disagreements.

Can I be promoted to Admin?

Yes, if the Owner or current Admin changes your role. This is done through the Staff profile editing function (which you can't access, but they can).

What's the difference between Manager and Admin?

Key differences:

Staff management - Admins can add/edit staff; Managers view only
Report export - Admins can export; Managers cannot
Settings access - Admins can modify settings; Managers cannot
Leave approval - Admins can approve all staff; Managers only Staff/Receptionists
Staff accounts - Admins can create logins; Managers cannot

Can I access the salon from home?

Yes. Log in with your credentials from any device. Your access is the same whether you're in the salon or remote.

Last Updated: January 2026 Verified against application code: January 2026