Understand Redelegation Pathways: Matrix, Functional, Direct-Line & Down-Line
What you'll learn: This article explains the four Delegation Pathway types available in Aptly — Matrix, Functional, Direct-Line, and Down-Line. You'll learn what each pathway controls, who becomes eligible as a redelegation recipient under each type, how pathways interact with recipient types, what happens when multiple pathways are selected, and how pathway changes can trigger invalid delegation alerts.
Who this is for: Any Aptly user who issues or receives delegations, and administrators who configure Decisions and manage delegation chains.
What is a Delegation Pathway?
A Delegation Pathway defines to whom a delegation recipient is allowed to redelegate authority. When a user redelegates, the pathway determines which users and positions appear as eligible recipients in the selection modal.
Pathways are set at the Decision level when a Decision is created or edited. When a Delegation is issued for that Decision, the available pathway options carry forward. A parent Delegation can further restrict which pathways are available to downstream redelegations — but it cannot add pathways that were not already enabled on the Decision.
Aptly supports four pathway types: Matrix, Functional, Direct-Line, and Down-Line. Each pathway applies its own eligibility logic to filter the list of available recipients when a user initiates a redelegation.
The four pathway types
Matrix
Matrix is the most permissive pathway. When Matrix is selected, the redelegating user (the Issuer) may issue a redelegation to any user or position on the tenant. There are no departmental, reporting-line, or organizational restrictions on recipient eligibility.
Matrix is well suited for cross-functional authority — for example, capital expenditure approvals that may need to reach team leads across multiple business units regardless of reporting structure.
Functional
Functional restricts redelegation to users and positions that share at least one Department with the Issuer. If the Issuer is assigned to "Finance" and "Operations," recipients must belong to at least one of those same Departments.
Users and Positions may be assigned one or more Departments. A match on any shared Department is sufficient for the recipient to appear as eligible.
Prerequisite: The Functional pathway requires the Departments group type to be enabled at the tenant level. If Departments is disabled, the Functional pathway is not available for selection on new Decisions or Delegations.
Direct-Line
Direct-Line restricts redelegation to users who report directly to the Issuer — that is, the Issuer's immediate reports only (depth = 1 in the reporting hierarchy). For position-based recipient types, only positions that have at least one active incumbent who reports directly to the Issuer are shown.
Direct-Line is appropriate when authority should flow one level down a clear management chain — for example, a department head redelegating budget approval authority to their direct reports.
Down-Line
Down-Line expands on Direct-Line by including the Issuer's entire downstream reporting line — both direct and indirect reports (depth ≥ 1). For position-based recipient types, only positions with at least one active incumbent in the Issuer's downstream reporting tree are shown.
Down-Line is useful when authority needs to cascade through multiple management layers — for example, a regional VP redelegating procurement authority that may need to reach team leads two or three levels down.
Pathway comparison
| Pathway | Who is eligible | Prerequisite | Best suited for |
| Matrix | Any user or position on the tenant | None | Cross-functional authority that spans business units |
| Functional | Users or positions that share at least one Department with the Issuer | Departments group type must be enabled | Department-scoped authority (e.g., within Finance or HR) |
| Direct-Line | Users who report directly to the Issuer (depth = 1); positions with at least one active direct-report incumbent | Manager/reporting-line data configured for users | Authority flowing one level down a management chain |
| Down-Line | Users in the Issuer's full downstream reporting line (direct + indirect); positions with at least one active downstream-report incumbent | Manager/reporting-line data configured for users | Authority cascading through multiple levels of a hierarchy |
How pathways interact with recipient types
Aptly supports three recipient types — Personnel in Position, Position Only, and Specific Personnel. Each pathway applies its eligibility filter differently depending on which recipient type is being used. The table below shows what the Issuer sees in the recipient selection modal for each combination.
| Recipient Type | Matrix | Functional | Direct-Line | Down-Line |
| Personnel in Position | All positions shown; within each, all incumbent users listed | Positions that share a Department with the Issuer; within each, incumbent users listed | Positions with at least one active direct-report incumbent; within each, qualifying users listed | Positions with at least one active downstream-report incumbent; within each, qualifying users listed |
| Position Only | All positions shown | Positions in the 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 shown | Users in the same Department(s) as the Issuer | Users who report directly to the Issuer (depth = 1) | Users in the Issuer's downstream reporting line (direct + indirect) |
Position filtering rule for reporting-line pathways
For Direct-Line and Down-Line, a position is only shown as selectable if at least one active user currently assigned to that position falls within the pathway's reporting scope relative to the Issuer. If a position has multiple incumbents, the position is selectable as long as any one incumbent qualifies. If a position has no incumbents, it is not selectable under these two pathways.
Combination rules: what happens when multiple pathways are selected
A Decision (and therefore its Delegations) can have more than one pathway enabled. When multiple pathways are present, the following rules determine how Aptly resolves eligibility.
Matrix overrides everything
If Matrix is selected alongside any other pathway, Matrix governs. Because Matrix places no restrictions on recipient eligibility, adding Functional, Direct-Line, or Down-Line alongside it has no practical effect — all users and positions remain eligible.
Non-Matrix pathways are combined as a union
When Matrix is not present, eligibility is the union of all selected pathways. For example, if both Functional and Direct-Line are enabled, a user is eligible if they meet either the Functional criteria (same Department as the Issuer) or the Direct-Line criteria (direct report of the Issuer). The recipient does not need to satisfy both — meeting either pathway is sufficient.
| Pathway combination | Effective eligibility |
| Matrix (alone or with any others) | Unrestricted — any user or position on the tenant |
| Functional + Direct-Line | Eligible if in the same Department or a direct report of the Issuer |
| Functional + Down-Line | Eligible if in the same Department or anywhere in the Issuer's downstream reporting line |
| Direct-Line + Down-Line | Effectively the same as Down-Line alone (Down-Line already includes all direct reports) |
| Functional + Direct-Line + Down-Line | Eligible if in the same Department or anywhere in the Issuer's downstream reporting line |
Where pathways are configured
At the Decision level
When creating or editing a Decision, the administrator selects which Delegation Pathways are available. This setting determines the maximum set of pathways that any Delegation under that Decision can use.
At the Delegation level (restricted by the Decision and parent Delegation)
When a root Delegation is created for a Decision, the available pathway options are restricted to those enabled on the Decision. When a redelegation is created from a parent Delegation, the available options are further restricted to those present on the parent. A child Delegation can use fewer pathways than its parent, but it cannot add pathways that the parent does not include.
What happens when pathways change: invalid alerts
Because Delegation Pathways flow from a Decision through a chain of Delegations, changes at any upstream level can affect downstream records. Aptly does not silently alter downstream Delegations. Instead, it flags affected records with invalid alerts so administrators can review and remediate.
Invalid Pathway alert
An Invalid Pathway alert appears on a Delegation when a pathway option that was previously configured on the Delegation is removed from the source Decision or parent Delegation. For example, if "Functional" is removed from a Decision, any Delegation under that Decision that still has "Functional" selected will receive an Invalid Pathway alert.
When a user edits a Delegation with an invalid pathway, the invalid pathway type is automatically removed and is no longer available for selection. If the user discards their edits without saving, the invalid pathway remains on the record until it is resolved.
Invalid Recipient alert (pathway-related)
When a pathway option is removed from a Delegation — either manually by a user or as a result of editing and saving a Delegation with an invalid pathway — Aptly performs a downstream validation check. For all child Delegations that originate from the edited Delegation, Aptly evaluates each recipient against the updated pathway logic. Recipients who no longer qualify are flagged as Invalid Recipient.
Additionally, if a recipient who has become invalid had themselves issued further redelegations, the Issuer on those child redelegations may be flagged as Invalid Issuer.
Pathway changes caused by organizational data updates
Invalid alerts can also be triggered by changes to underlying organizational data rather than direct pathway edits:
- Functional pathway: If a user's or position's Department assignment changes or is removed, Aptly evaluates impacted Delegations and flags recipients who no longer share a Department with their Issuer.
- Direct-Line / Down-Line pathways: If a user's manager or reporting-line assignment changes, Aptly evaluates impacted Delegations and flags recipients who no longer fall within the Issuer's reporting scope.
Key terms
| Term | Definition |
| Issuer | The user creating the delegation or redelegation. Pathway eligibility is always evaluated relative to the Issuer. |
| Active incumbent | An active user currently assigned to a position. For Direct-Line and Down-Line pathways, a position is only selectable if it has at least one active incumbent who falls within the Issuer's reporting scope. |
| Delegation Pathway | The setting on a Decision or Delegation that prescribes to whom a recipient may redelegate authority. Options are set at the Decision level and can be further restricted within each Delegation. |
| Reporting scope | The set of users who fall within the Issuer's management hierarchy. For Direct-Line this is immediate reports only (depth = 1). For Down-Line this is all downstream reports (depth ≥ 1). |
Frequently asked questions
Can I change the pathway on an existing Delegation?
Yes, as long as the Delegation is in an editable status. However, the available pathway options are always restricted to those present on the source Decision and, for redelegations, those present on the parent Delegation. You cannot add a pathway that is not available upstream.
What if Matrix is selected with other pathways — does it matter?
When Matrix is present alongside any other pathway, Matrix governs. The additional pathways have no practical effect because Matrix already permits redelegation to any user or position. In practice, this means selecting "Matrix + Functional" behaves the same as selecting "Matrix" alone.
Why don't I see certain positions when redelegating under Direct-Line or Down-Line?
Under reporting-line pathways, a position only appears in the selection modal if at least one active user assigned to that position is within the Issuer's reporting scope. Positions with no incumbents, or with incumbents who do not report to the Issuer (at the appropriate depth), are not shown.
What happens if the Departments group type is disabled after Functional is already in use?
If the Departments group type is disabled, the Functional pathway is no longer available for selection on new Decisions or Delegations. Existing Delegations that already use the Functional pathway may remain as-is, but downstream validity checks may flag recipients if department alignment can no longer be evaluated. Consult your administrator before disabling the Departments group type if Functional pathways are in active use.
Can a child Delegation add a pathway not present on the parent?
No. Delegation Pathways are always restricted to the options available on the source Decision and, for redelegations, the parent Delegation. A child can use fewer pathways than its parent, but never more.
Related articles
- Redelegating Authority — Step-by-step tutorial for issuing a redelegation
- Invalid Delegations: What It Means and How to Resolve It — Full reference on invalid alerts and remediation
- Delegation Recipient Types & Position Automation — How recipient types work and how Auto-Issue / Auto-Revoke interact with pathways
- Creating a Decision Authority — How to set pathway options when configuring a Decision
- Delegation Documents and Pathway (Module Settings) — Enabling the Pathway tab on delegations
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