Roles and Permissions in 15Five — Overview

15Five uses a combination of general roles, user statuses, and feature-specific roles to control what each person can see and do. This article describes each role and status so you can understand how access is structured across the platform.

> Note: Your organization may have renamed the Best-Self Review® feature. If you don't see "Best-Self Review®" in your navigation, check with your admin for the name used in your account.

General roles

HR Admin

HR Admins have the same permissions as Account Admins, plus additional access to strategic features. This includes the HR Outcomes Dashboard, demographic attributes and reporting, and the ability to manage and view results for both Engagement campaigns and performance review cycles.

Account Admin

Account Admins have full administrative control over the platform. They can add and deactivate users, assign permissions, adjust company settings, configure features (Check-ins, Objectives, Engagement, HR Outcomes Dashboard), and manage integrations. Account Admins also have access to the HR Outcomes Dashboard by default.

Only trusted leaders or HR/People Ops team members should hold this role.

HR Business Partner (HRBP)

The HRBP role gives HR Admins a way to grant scoped access to performance reviews — limited to specific departments, groups, or reporting hierarchies — without granting full HR Admin visibility. HRBPs can view and manage review cycles for their assigned population, monitor progress, access review data, and support calibrations within their scope.

Related: [What is the HRBP role in performance reviews?]

Billing Admin

Billing Admins can view and manage payment methods, download invoices, and update subscription plans. Account Admins have billing rights by default. The Billing Admin role can be assigned to someone who needs access to financial information only — without giving them full platform control.

IT Admin

IT Admins have access to integration and security settings without full administrative privileges. This includes SSO and SCIM configuration, all integrations (HRIS, Flow of Work, Productivity), integration status and error states, the Security Audit page, and Notifications settings. IT Admins cannot access employee feedback, reviews, engagement data, or HR workflows.

Only HR Admins can assign or revoke the IT Admin role.

Related: Manage the IT Admin role

Group Admin

Group Admins manage group membership and Check-in question configuration for the groups they are assigned. This role lets managers or team leads customize their group's experience without requiring company-wide admin access. Only Managers or Account Admins can be assigned as Group Admins.

Related: Add or Remove a Group Admin

Manager

Managers can view and manage their direct reports' Check-ins, Objectives, performance review submissions, Feedback, and 1-on-1s. They are responsible for reviewing progress, removing blockers, and supporting their team's performance and growth. Managers also have access to basic reporting on their team's engagement and performance trends.

Employee

Employees have access to all core features available to their role — including Check-ins, Feedback, Objectives, and High Fives. They can complete their profiles, manage notification preferences and vacation schedules, and use 15Five to share updates, track progress, and engage with their manager.

User statuses

Every person added to 15Five has both a role and a status. The status reflects where they are in their 15Five account lifecycle. You can view and manage statuses from the Manage People page.

Active The employee has accepted their invitation and is using 15Five. Active users fill a billable seat and are eligible to participate in surveys, reviews, and all platform activities.

Invited The employee has been added to 15Five but has not yet accepted their invitation. This includes users who were invited but have not joined, and users who have not yet been sent an invite. Invited users can participate in Engagement Surveys and performance reviews only if assigned a billable seat.

Deactivated The employee's account has been deactivated. Deactivated users no longer have access to the platform and cannot participate in Check-ins, surveys, reviews, or Objectives.

Feature-specific roles

Some 15Five features have their own specialized roles. These roles give individuals access to manage or oversee specific areas — such as Engagement campaigns, performance reviews, and Objectives — without granting full platform admin rights.

Engagement How to assign an administrative role for engagement campaigns

Performance Reviews Roles in a performance review cycle · Add or remove Review administrators

Objectives Role-based permissions for Objectives

Key Rules

A person can hold more than one role simultaneously (for example, a Manager can also be an HR Admin).
Account Admins have billing rights by default; the Billing Admin role exists to delegate financial access without granting full admin control.
Group Admins can only be assigned to users who already hold the Manager or Account Admin role.
Invited users do not occupy a billable seat unless manually assigned one for Engagement or review participation.
Deactivated users retain their historical data but lose all platform access.

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