Person-Based vs. Position-Based Delegations (and Why It Matters)
Person-Based vs. Position-Based Delegations (and Why It Matters)
Every Delegation in Aptly is issued to a recipient — but how that recipient is defined has major implications for what happens when people change roles, leave positions, or join the organization. Aptly gives you three distinct recipient types, each designed for a different governance scenario. Understanding these types — and the automation that accompanies them — is essential for building a delegation framework that stays current as your organization evolves.
What you'll learn: The three delegation recipient types (Personnel in Position, Position Only, and Specific Personnel), when to use each, how they behave when organizational changes occur, and how Auto-Issue and Auto-Revoke automation keeps your delegations aligned with your structure.
Who this is for: All Aptly users who issue or receive Delegations. Administrators who configure recipient type settings and position automation will find the configuration and automation sections especially relevant.
The three recipient types at a glance
When a Delegation is created in Aptly, the issuer selects a recipient type that determines how the Delegation is linked to people and positions. Your administrator controls which recipient types are available on your tenant — you may see one, two, or all three options depending on your organization's configuration.
| Personnel in Position | Position Only | Specific Personnel | |
| Definition | Delegation is issued to a specific person while they hold a specific position. The Delegation is tied to both the individual and the position relationship. | Delegation is issued to a position, not to any specific person. Authority persists with the position regardless of who currently holds it. | Delegation is issued directly to an individual, independent of position. The person retains authority regardless of any position changes. |
| When to use | When authority should apply to a person only while they occupy a given role (e.g., Samantha Page as CFO). | When authority should persist with the position regardless of the current occupant (e.g., whoever holds the CFO position). | When an individual retains authority regardless of role (e.g., Jane Doe has special signing authority granted to her personally). |
| What you see on the Delegation | Position is listed first, followed by the name(s) of the person(s) to whom the Delegation has been issued. | Position is the only information listed. The Delegation is not issued to any specific users. | Personnel name(s) listed first, followed by the position held by each. Multiple users can be recipients regardless of title. |
| Position automation eligible? | Yes — Auto-Issue and Auto-Revoke can apply. | No — Delegation remains active unless manually revoked. | No — Delegation remains active unless the user is deactivated or the Delegation is manually revoked. |
Personnel in Position — in depth
Personnel in Position is the most governance-aware recipient type. It ties delegated authority to the intersection of a specific person and a specific position — meaning the Delegation is only valid while that person holds that position.
How it works
When issuing a Delegation with this recipient type, the issuer first selects a position, then selects one or more users who currently hold that position. The Delegation can only be issued to users who hold the selected position.
Which positions and users are available for selection depends on the Delegation Pathway set on the Delegation:
| Delegation Pathway | Which positions are selectable | Which users are selectable |
| Matrix | All positions on the tenant | All users holding the selected position |
| Functional | Positions assigned at least one department that aligns with the issuer | Users who share at least one department with the issuer and hold the selected position |
| Direct Line | Positions held by users who report directly to the issuer | Users who report directly to the issuer and hold the selected position |
| Down-Line | Positions with at least one active incumbent in the issuer's downstream reporting line | Users in the issuer's downstream reporting line (direct and indirect) who hold the selected position |
What happens when a person changes positions
Because Personnel in Position Delegations are tied to both the person and the position, a change in the recipient's position triggers specific behavior depending on your tenant's automation settings:
| Scenario | Auto-Revoke ON | Auto-Revoke OFF |
| Existing recipient moves to a different position | Delegation is automatically revoked. Revoked Delegations cannot be edited and remain in the record for audit and history. | Delegation remains active but is flagged as invalid (recipient no longer holds the originally specified position). Requires manual review. |
| New user is assigned the matching position | See Auto-Issue section below — this scenario is governed by Auto-Issue, not Auto-Revoke. | |
Position Only — in depth
Position Only Delegations are issued to a position itself — no specific individual is designated as a recipient. Authority is applicable to whoever currently holds that position name.
This approach is useful when an organization wants to ensure that authority persists with a role in the organizational structure rather than with any particular person. For example, a Delegation to the "Chief Financial Officer" position means that whoever currently occupies that position holds the delegated authority — without requiring anyone to manually update the Delegation when personnel change.
Key characteristics
Position Only Delegations display only the position name on the Delegation record — no individual users are listed. Position automation (Auto-Issue and Auto-Revoke) does not apply because the Delegation is not tied to any specific individual. The Delegation remains active unless it is manually revoked.
As with Personnel in Position, which positions are available for selection depends on the Delegation Pathway (Matrix, Functional, Direct Line, or Down-Line).
Specific Personnel — in depth
Specific Personnel Delegations are issued directly to one or more individuals, completely independent of what position they hold. If a user changes positions within the organization, there is no impact to their delegated authority.
This recipient type is appropriate when authority is granted to someone personally — for example, a board member with special signing authority, or an individual who needs authority that does not depend on organizational structure.
Key characteristics
The Delegation displays the user's name first, followed by the position they currently hold. Multiple users can be added as recipients regardless of their title. Position automation (Auto-Issue and Auto-Revoke) does not apply. The Delegation remains active unless the user is deactivated or the Delegation is manually revoked.
Auto-Issue and Auto-Revoke: position automation explained
Auto-Issue and Auto-Revoke are tenant-level automation features that apply only when the Personnel in Position recipient type is enabled. Together, they allow Aptly to keep Delegations aligned with your organizational structure automatically as people move into and out of positions.
Both settings must first be enabled by an administrator at the tenant level (in Settings → Account Settings → Delegations → Recipient Types). Once enabled at the tenant level, individual Delegations can opt in to Auto-Issue on a per-Delegation basis.
Auto-Issue
When Auto-Issue is enabled on a Delegation, any user who currently holds — or later assumes — the selected position will be automatically issued the Delegation without requiring manual action, as long as the Delegation remains active.
If the Delegation includes Delegation Pathway restrictions, Auto-Issue only applies to users who meet the pathway criteria:
| Pathway | Auto-Issue requirement |
| Matrix | No additional restrictions — any user assigned the position qualifies. |
| Functional | The user's department must match that of the issuer. |
| Direct Line | The issuer must be a direct manager of the recipient. |
| Down-Line | The recipient must be within the issuer's downstream reporting line (direct or indirect). |
Important: If a user does not meet the pathway criteria at the time they are assigned the position, they are skipped for Auto-Issue. However, if the user is later assigned a valid department or manager that satisfies the pathway restriction, the system re-evaluates and auto-issues the Delegation at that time. Changes to a user's department or manager trigger a recheck for all eligible Auto-Issue Delegations.
Auto-Revoke
When Auto-Revoke is enabled at the tenant level, users who meet any of the following criteria will have their Personnel in Position Delegation automatically revoked:
The user leaves the designated position, the user no longer shares departmental alignment (for Functional pathway Delegations), the user no longer reports to the issuer (for Direct Line pathway Delegations), or the user becomes inactive.
This applies regardless of how the position, department, or manager is updated — whether via the Aptly UI, API updates, or SCIM-based synchronization.
Revoked Delegations cannot be edited and remain in the record for audit and history purposes. Auto-revocation cannot be undone — a new Delegation must be issued if the authority needs to be reinstated.
How recipient types interact with Delegation Pathways
All three recipient types work with all four Delegation Pathways (Matrix, Functional, Direct Line, and Down-Line), but the pathway determines which positions and users are available for selection. The table below summarizes the filtering logic:
| Recipient type | Matrix | Functional | Direct Line | Down-Line |
| Personnel in Position | All positions; within each, show incumbent users | Positions sharing department(s) with the issuer; show incumbent users | Positions with at least one active direct-report incumbent; show qualifying users | Positions with at least one active downstream-report incumbent; show qualifying users |
| Position Only | All positions | Positions in same department(s) as the issuer | Positions with at least one active direct-report incumbent | Positions with at least one active downstream-report incumbent |
| Specific Personnel | All users | Users in same department(s) as the issuer | Users who report directly to the issuer | Users in the issuer's downstream reporting line |
Which recipient type should you use?
Most organizations use a combination of recipient types. The right choice depends on the nature of the authority being delegated and how your organization handles role transitions.
| If your governance need is… | Consider this recipient type |
| "Authority should follow the role, and we want automation to handle transitions when people move in or out." | Personnel in Position with Auto-Issue and Auto-Revoke enabled |
| "Authority belongs to the role itself — we don't need to name specific individuals." | Position Only |
| "This person has been granted special authority that stays with them regardless of what position they hold." | Specific Personnel |
| "Authority should follow the role, but we want manual control over issuance and revocation." | Personnel in Position with Auto-Issue and Auto-Revoke disabled (invalid flags will alert you to review) |
What happens downstream: the Invalid Delegation safeguard
When organizational changes cause a Personnel in Position Delegation to fall out of alignment (and Auto-Revoke is not enabled), Aptly does not silently ignore the mismatch. Instead, it flags the Delegation as Invalid — a built-in governance safeguard that ensures mismatches are surfaced for review rather than left unaddressed.
Common triggers for Invalid Recipient
The most common cause of an Invalid Recipient flag on a Personnel in Position Delegation is a position mismatch: the recipient no longer holds the position that was originally specified on the Delegation. This can occur due to a promotion, lateral move, reorganization, or role reassignment — whether updated via the UI, API, or SCIM synchronization.
What "Invalid" means in practice
An invalid flag is a review indicator — it does not automatically change the Delegation's status. The Delegation remains active. It is the responsibility of the appropriate user (typically a manager or administrator) to resolve the invalid flag by editing the Delegation: replacing the invalid recipient, removing the recipient, or revoking the Delegation entirely.
For a complete walkthrough of identifying and resolving all types of invalid Delegations, see Invalid Delegations: What It Means and How to Resolve It.
Administrator configuration: enabling recipient types
Recipient types are configured at the tenant level. To view or modify which types are available:
- In Aptly, open Settings.
- Under Account Settings, select Delegations.
- Locate Recipient Types and click Edit Details to modify.
From this panel, administrators can enable or disable each recipient type using checkboxes, and toggle Auto-Issue and Auto-Revoke on or off (these toggles only appear when Personnel in Position is enabled).
Locking rule
If a recipient type has already been used on one or more issued Delegations, it typically cannot be disabled until it has been removed from all associated Delegations. This safeguard prevents administrators from inadvertently invalidating active Delegations.
Frequently asked questions
Can I use multiple recipient types within the same tenant?
Yes. Your administrator can enable any combination of the three recipient types. Different Delegations can use different types depending on the governance need.
If Auto-Revoke is off and a recipient changes positions, what happens?
The Delegation remains active but is flagged as invalid (specifically, an Invalid Recipient alert). It must be manually reviewed and resolved by editing the Delegation.
Does Auto-Issue work retroactively when I enable it on an existing Delegation?
When you enable Auto-Issue on a Delegation, all users who currently hold the selected position must be issued the Delegation at that time. Users who later assume the position will also be automatically issued the Delegation going forward.
What happens if I deactivate a position that has active Delegations?
The impact depends on your tenant's delegation configuration. If Auto-Revoke is enabled, Delegations previously issued to that position may be revoked automatically (and auto-revocation cannot be undone). If Auto-Revoke is disabled, existing Delegations will remain active but may be flagged as invalid for review.
Can I change a Delegation's recipient type after it has been issued?
Recipient type is set during Delegation creation and is part of the Delegation's fundamental structure. Consult your administrator about any available editing options, which may vary depending on tenant configuration.
Do Position Only Delegations get flagged as invalid when the position occupant changes?
No. Position Only Delegations are tied to the position itself, not to any individual. Changes in who holds the position do not affect the Delegation's validity.
Related articles
Delegation Recipient Types & Position Automation — The admin settings reference for configuring recipient types and automation toggles.
Invalid Delegations: What It Means and How to Resolve It — A step-by-step guide to identifying and resolving each type of invalid Delegation alert.
Delegation Pathways — How Matrix, Functional, Direct Line, and Down-Line pathways control who can receive Delegations.
Creating a Root Delegation — Walkthrough of creating a Delegation, including recipient type selection.
Redelegating Authority — How recipient types carry forward (or are restricted) when redelegating downstream.
Positions (Account Settings) — Managing positions that underpin Personnel in Position and Position Only Delegations.
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