How Ninety's Observer Role Works

The Observer role in Ninety provides view-only access to your company's tools and data. Observers can see team information and participate in meetings, but they cannot make changes to content. This role is perfect for team members who need visibility without editing permissions.

What is the Observer role?

The Observer role is Ninety's view-only user type, designed for team members who need to stay informed about company operations without the ability to edit content. Observers have no license cost to your organization, making them an economical way to provide company-wide visibility.

Key Observer characteristics:

View-only access to all assigned team content.
No license fee (free role).
Cannot edit, create, or delete any content.
Can participate in meetings as attendees.
Mobile app access for on-the-go viewing.

Common use cases for adding Observers

Executive leadership oversight: C-suite executives who need visibility across all teams, board members requiring operational insight, or coaches and advisors monitoring the company's progress.

New team member onboarding: New hires learning company processes before full access, contractors familiarizing themselves with team operations, or temporary staff needing limited access.

Compliance and audit requirements: Compliance officers monitoring processes, auditors reviewing organizational structure, or HR team members tracking performance metrics.

External stakeholders: Coaches observing client progress, consultants providing ongoing guidance, or partners requiring operational visibility.

Cost management: Team members who rarely need editing access, seasonal team members requiring temporary visibility, or large organizations managing license costs.

What Observers can do

Observers can view the information in the following tools for teams they're assigned to, as well as anything shared from the leadership team:

Vision: View company Core Values, long-term goals, Marketing Strategy, 1-year goals, and current Rocks.
Org Chart (primary chart only): View organizational structure, see all Seats with their roles and responsibilities, and review reporting relationships.
Rocks: View all team Rocks with their details, due dates, and completion status, plus Rock history and archived quarters.
Data: View all team KPIs and their data, performance trends, weekly numbers, and targets.
Issues: View current Issues with their details, priorities, and assignments, plus Issue history.
To-Dos: View all To-Dos assigned to their teams with details, due dates, and completion status.
Meetings: Join and observe team meetings, view meeting agendas and previous meeting notes, and access meeting history.
Knowledge Portal: View all accessible Knowledge content, including processes, procedures, and training materials.
Directory: View team member profiles, contact information, and team assignments.

Observers can also join team meetings to follow the agenda and participate in discussions, and Observers on companies with a paid subscription can download our mobile app to view their team's Issues list and more. Just as with the web app, Observers cannot create new items (Issues, Headlines, To-Dos, and so on) in the mobile app.

What Observers can't do

Editing restrictions. Observers cannot create, edit, or delete content, including Rocks, To-Dos, Issues, KPIs, Vision content, Org Chart Seats, Knowledge Portal content, and meeting agendas.

Item ownership limitations. Observers cannot own items in Ninety, so they cannot be assigned Rocks, To-Dos, KPIs, or Issues. When adding users to Ninety, if you know they'll be assigned items like these, consider giving them a paid user role like Team Member, Manager, or Admin.

Administrative restrictions. Observers cannot access billing information, user management, company settings, integration management, or data import and export functions. They cannot add or remove team members, change user roles, modify company settings, or manage integrations.

Meeting limitations. While Observers can join meetings, they cannot start or facilitate meetings, control the meeting's flow, edit meeting agendas, create or assign items such as To-Dos, modify items such as Rocks or Issues, add a meeting rating, or receive the meeting recap email.

What's the difference between the Observer role and Inactive status?

When applying a user role to someone in your Directory, we offer two free options: Observer and Inactive. Here's a breakdown of these roles:

Observer role: Can log into Ninety, view all assigned team content, participate in meetings, and use the mobile app. No license cost.
Inactive status: Cannot log into Ninety. Used for Org Chart display only, with no system access. No license cost.

Tip: Choose Observer for people who need to see company information. Choose Inactive for people who should only appear on the Org Chart.

How to add an Observer

To add a new Observer to your account:

Click Add Teammates from the left navigation.
Select Observer from the Role access dropdown.
Add an email address.
Select their team(s) in Ninety with the Team(s) dropdown.
Click Add another user to continue or Add teammates to complete this action.

New users need to activate their accounts. Have the new team member check their email for the activation link (from helpful@ninety.io). You can also send them a direct link by clicking the ellipsis at the end of the user's row in the Directory and selecting Copy unique invite link. Learn more in Adding and Inviting Users to Your Account.

Upgrading from the Observer role

If an Observer needs editing capabilities, consider these role upgrades:

Team Member: Can be assigned To-Dos, Rocks, and KPIs.
Manager: Full editing access to their teams' tools, plus the ability to manage team members.
Admin: All Manager capabilities plus user management and company settings.

Remember: Upgraded roles require paid licenses. Plan your role strategy to balance access needs with budget considerations. Learn more in Adding, Removing, and Reassigning Licenses.

Best practices for setting up Observers for success

Team assignment strategy: Assign Observers only to teams they need to see, consider cross-functional visibility requirements, and review team assignments quarterly.

Communication guidelines: Inform the team about Observer participants, set expectations for Observer meeting participation, and clarify Observer role limitations.