Getting Started with the Client Workspace

The Client Workspace is a separate, branded site where your clients can follow the work you're delivering for them. Your team keeps working in Forecast as normal, and the workspace shows your clients a view of that same work.

This article explains what the workspace is and the order to set it up in. Each step links to a more detailed article.

• What your clients get

• How it's set up

• Setting up a client, step by step

• Admin client workspace settings 

• Where to go next

Once set up, your client's users can log in and:

• See the projects you've shared with them, including progress, phases, tasks and a timeline.

• Track hours used against their retainers, period by period.

• Read and post comments on projects and tasks.

Settings live in two places in Forecast:

• On the client: the workspace branding, the settings that control what the client can see, and the list of people who can log in. These apply to every project the client sees, so the same client can't end up with different settings on different projects.

• On each project: whether that project appears in the client's workspace at all. A project only appears once you turn it on.

1. Configure the client's workspace. Add your logo, color and choose what the client can see. See Configuring the Client Workspace for a Client.

2. Share the projects you want the client to see. Turn on Show in client workspace in each project's settings. See Enabling Client Workspace and Managing Phase Approvals on a Project.

3. Invite the people who need access. Choose a role and which projects each person can see. See Adding a User to the Client Workspace.

4. Preview what your client sees. Before you tell your client the workspace is ready, check it from their point of view. See Previewing the Client Workspace as Your Client. 

Tip: It's worth sharing projects before inviting users. That way, the first time your client logs in, their projects are already there.

Admin client workspace settings 

A nice-to-have rather than a need-to-have.

1. Admins will now have access to Client Workspace in the dropdown to configure settings.
2. Here, you can configure your reply-to address and reply-to domain.
3. You can configure defaults for new client organizations. Options include Show Invoices, Allow File Uploads, and Phase Status (firm-wide).

• What Your Clients Can and Can't See in the Client Workspace: a reference for what reaches your client and what stays internal.

• Using the Client Workspace (for your clients): a guide you can share with your client.

• Troubleshooting Client Workspace Access: fixes for common access problems.

• Retainers in the Client Workspace: how retainer usage is shown to clients.

Client Workspace is available as a paid add-on module. To enable it for your team or talk through pricing, reach out to your Account Manager.