Roles & Permissions Matrix

Complete guide to user roles, permission levels, and access control for scouts, parents, leaders, and treasurers

Viewing documentation for: Treasurer

All Roles Treasurer Leader Parent Scout

Treasurer focus

Prioritize account setup, controls, and financial verification responsibilities.

  • Validate billing, payment confirmation, and reporting requirements first.
  • Coordinate leader access while keeping treasury-only controls restricted.

TroopForge uses a role-based permission system to control what each user can view and manage within your organization. Understanding these roles is essential for properly setting up your troop and ensuring the right people have the right level of access.

The Four User Roles

TroopForge defines four distinct user roles, each with specific permissions and responsibilities:

Scout (Age 13+)

Individual scout accounts with limited access to their own information and events. Scouts under 13 cannot have user accounts but still have member records and scout accounts managed by parents and leaders.

Parent

Adult family member accounts with access to view and manage their family's information, register family members for events, and monitor family scout account balances.

Leader

Troop leadership with extended permissions to create events, manage rosters, view all members across any sub-troop, and invite new users to the system.

Treasurer

Full organizational administrator with complete access to all features including billing, member management, event oversight, payment confirmation, and system-wide reporting.

Permission Matrix

This table shows what each role can view and manage within your organization:

Feature Area Scout (13+) Parent Leader Treasurer
Member Records Own record only All family members All members in organization All members in organization
View Events Yes Yes Yes Yes
Event Signup Self only All family members All members All members
Create/Manage Events No No Yes Yes
Confirm Payments No No No Yes
Reporting Access No Reports area access No Reports area access Organization reports Organization reports
Family Management Scouts do not access family records directly View own family Create/edit all families Create/edit all families
Sub-Troop Management No Parents can view sub-troops for their family members View all sub-troops Create/edit sub-troops
Invite New Users No No Yes Yes
Import Roster No No Yes Yes
Billing & Subscription No No No Yes

Note: Parents and scouts can still view statements and transaction history for accounts they are allowed to access.

Role Details and Use Cases

Scout (Age 13+)

What Scouts Can Do:

  • View their own member profile and scout account balance
  • Browse upcoming events and sign themselves up
  • View their transaction history and account activity
  • Submit withdrawal requests if enabled by the treasurer
  • Access their own family information

Important: Many troops keep scouts under age 13 parent-managed for safety and compliance reasons. Their member records and scout accounts are still managed by parents and leaders.

Parent

What Parents Can Do:

  • View all family members' profiles and scout account balances
  • Register any family member for events (including scouts under 13)
  • View consolidated family transaction history
  • Submit withdrawal requests on behalf of any family member
  • Monitor upcoming events and payment status for all family members
  • Access family account statements and transaction history for linked family members

Use Case: Parents are the primary users for managing younger scouts. They handle event registrations, monitor balances, and track payments for their entire family from a single account.

Leader

What Leaders Can Do:

  • View and manage all member records across any sub-troop in the organization
  • Create and manage events for the troop
  • View event rosters and track attendance
  • Create family and member records for new scouts
  • Invite new parent and scout users to the system
  • Import rosters from external systems
  • Leaders and treasurers can access organization reports and filter by sub-troop where available
  • Assign members to sub-troops

Use Case: Leaders handle day-to-day troop operations including event planning, roster management, and member onboarding. They have broad access to manage members but cannot confirm payments or access billing settings.

Multi Sub-Troop Membership: Leaders can be assigned to multiple sub-troops simultaneously. For example, an adult volunteer might serve as both a Cub Scout den leader and a Scouts BSA assistant scoutmaster.

Treasurer

What Treasurers Can Do:

  • Full access to all leader capabilities
  • Confirm external payments (cash, check, PayPal) submitted by families
  • Approve or deny withdrawal requests from scout accounts
  • Manage organization billing and subscription settings
  • Create and manage sub-troops
  • Configure transaction request categories
  • Generate organization-wide financial reports
  • Archive and restore members and families
  • Perform account transfers and advanced financial corrections when allowed by your plan
  • Reverse eligible transactions for error correction
  • Access full audit trail and transaction history

Use Case: The treasurer is the organizational administrator with complete control over financial operations, member management, and system configuration. This role is typically held by the troop treasurer or committee chair.

Account Owner: The person who creates the TroopForge account automatically becomes a treasurer. Additional treasurers can be added by inviting members with the treasurer role.

Special Cases and Guidelines

Scouts Under Age 13

Many troops choose to keep scouts under 13 parent-managed for safety and legal compliance (COPPA). In this model, younger scouts still have:

  • A member record with their information
  • A scout account for tracking fundraisers and event payments
  • Full transaction history and financial records

Parents and leaders can manage activities for younger scouts, including event registrations and account monitoring. If a user account is created later, it links to the existing member record and preserves historical data.

Assigning Roles

Roles are assigned when a user is invited to join the organization. Treasurers can invite leaders, parents, and scouts. Leaders can invite parents and scouts:

  • Scout role: For scouts age 13+ who should only access their own information
  • Parent role: For parents and guardians managing their family
  • Leader role: For adult volunteers who run events and manage members
  • Treasurer role: For troop treasurer or committee members handling finances

Best Practice: Start with the most restrictive role that fits the person's needs. You can always grant additional permissions later if needed.

Multiple Roles in the Same Family

It's common for families to have members with different roles. For example:

  • Mom is a parent with access to family accounts
  • Dad is a leader who also runs events
  • Teenage scout has their own scout account

Each person sees the system through the lens of their assigned role. A dad with the leader role will see leader-level navigation and permissions, while the mom with the parent role will see parent-focused views. Both can still manage their own family's information and accounts.

Scout-to-Adult Conversion

When a scout turns 18 or becomes an adult leader, their account can be converted from a scout role to a parent or leader role. This conversion maintains all historical transaction data and account balances. The treasurer handles this conversion and may reassign the member to a new family if they're no longer part of their parent's household.

Changing User Roles

Account admins (leaders and treasurers) can change a user's roles from organization user settings. Role changes take effect immediately throughout the system. Common scenarios include:

  • Promoting a parent to leader when they take on volunteer responsibilities
  • Adding treasurer permissions to the committee chair
  • Converting a scout to parent when they age out and start their own family

Users with Multiple Organizations

A single user can belong to multiple organizations with different roles in each. For example:

  • Parent in their child's Cub Scout pack
  • Leader in their older child's Scouts BSA troop
  • Treasurer for a third organization at the district level

Users switch between organizations using the organization selector in the navigation bar. Their permissions are specific to each organization and don't carry over. See the Organization Structure guide for more details.

How Roles Affect the Interface

TroopForge adapts the navigation menu and available features based on your assigned role:

Role Main Navigation Items
Scout Events, Transactions
Parent My Family, Events, Transactions
Leader Families, Members, Sub Troops, Events, Reports
Treasurer Families, Members, Sub Troops, Events, Reports, Pending Requests

Settings Access: All users can access User Settings (profile, password, connected accounts). Only leaders and treasurers see Organization Settings (organization configuration, invitations, roster import). Only treasurers can access Billing settings.

Common Questions

Can one person have multiple roles?

Yes, users may hold multiple roles in the current system. Best practice is assigning one primary role, but if multiple roles are enabled, the most permissive applicable access applies.

How many treasurers should we have?

We recommend having at least two treasurers for continuity: the primary troop treasurer and the committee chair or another backup. This ensures someone always has access to manage billing and approve critical financial operations.

What's the difference between leader and treasurer?

Leaders can create events, manage members, and handle most day-to-day operations but cannot confirm payments, access billing, or perform certain financial actions. Treasurers have complete access to all features including payment confirmation, financial reporting, and subscription management.

Can parents see other families' information?

No. Parents can only see their own family members' information, balances, and transaction history. Leaders and treasurers have broader visibility across all families in the organization.

What happens when a scout turns 18?

The treasurer can convert the scout's role to parent or leader as appropriate. All transaction history and account balances are preserved during this conversion. The scout may be reassigned to a new family record if they're no longer part of their parent's household.

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