SmartSuite enables real-time collaboration by showing you who is viewing or updating records. This functionality comes into play in two main scenarios:
Plan Availability | All plan types |
Permissions | Guests, General Access, Solution Creators, or Administrators: All members can view record updates. |
Related Reading |
There are TWO places where "who's viewing a record" comes into play:
In an open Record - SmartSuite will show others who are viewing a record at the same time.
In Grid View - SmartSuite displays member labels to visually show where other members are engaging with content.
Who's Viewing an Open Record
SmartSuite displays members viewing a record to promote real-time collaboration.
Grid View Highlights
In Grid View, you can view specific fields that other Members are updating. While the user has a field selected, the field will be highlighted in color and display the editing Member’s name.
IMPORTANT NOTE: We do not lock fields as updates are being made. Updates to fields are applied based on the time of the update, with the last update setting the display value of the field.
Cells will highlight as Members make updates to records. Simply clicking into a cell will not show a highlight - it's only as content is being added or updated.
The visual below shows Johnny making an update to the date (left) that Jeff is able to see in real-time (right).
Practical Scenarios and Use Cases
1. Real-Time Collaboration
Scenario: A project manager and a team member are working on a task list simultaneously.
Solution: Both can see updates live, preventing duplicate work or conflicting edits.
2. Issue Tracking in Grid View
Scenario: A QA team logs bugs in Grid View while developers track fixes in the same solution.
Solution: Highlighted cells make it clear which fields are actively being updated.
3. Cross-Functional Team Synergy
Scenario: Marketing and Sales teams jointly update campaign metrics.
Solution: Immediate updates reduce lag, enabling coordinated adjustments.