Operations Workspace - Admin Operations Guide

Published by Give.Gives · Updated April 2, 2026

Operations Workspace - Admin Operations Guide

1. Purpose and Business Context

Operations Workspace is the admin finance workspace for the latest closed month settlement process.

This page is where the platform team:

• reviews how much should be paid to merchants, organizations, campaigns, reserved charity funds, and platform revenue

• checks whether merchant settlement rows are ready for payout

• confirms that venue photo requirements are complete

• downloads reports for finance operations

• marks payouts as paid only after offline transfer is completed and verified

This page is not a live current-month cash dashboard for payout execution. It is the monthly settlement workspace for the closed month workflow.

2. Why There Is No Current-Month Settlement

The platform does not treat the current month as a payable settlement month.

Settlement is always generated for the latest closed natural month.

Examples:

• if today is in April, settlement is for March

• if today is in May, settlement is for April

This is why the workspace payout workflow does not operate on the current month.

The reason is simple:

• the current month is still changing

• new paid orders, refunds, disputes, and reversals may still appear

• photo requirements and finance review must be based on a closed, stable month

So if someone asks why there is no “this month settlement,” the correct answer is:

Because settlement is only generated for the latest closed month, never for a month that is still in progress.

3. When Settlement Is Generated

The system generates settlement records for the previous month after the month closes.

Operationally, treat this as:

• on the 1st day of each month, the previous month becomes the active settlement month

• the system generates the previous month's merchant settlement workflow records

• the settlement month then moves into the photo-upload and payout-review process

After settlement opens, the manager-side workflow is triggered:

• the system shows an action required task for venue photo upload

• the settlement workflow also supports manager reminder messaging for the monthly photo requirement

[Placeholder: Screenshot of Operations Workspace showing the selected closed month and payout rows]

4. What Settlement Means Here

In this workspace, “settlement” means:

the reviewed month-end payout process for the latest closed month, based on ledger amounts rather than manual finance entry

For merchant payout workflow, settlement records are generated from ledger-based merchant amounts and then move through these stages:

• waiting_photos

• ready

• paid

Important refund rule

Settlement follows the ledger's natural-month event logic.

Once a month's ledger is generated and used as the basis for settlement, that month is not retroactively rewritten just because a refund happens later.

Instead, refunds are recorded in the month when the refund actually happens.

Example:

• an order is sold in March for $100

• that order is refunded in April for $50

Then the operational result is:

• March settlement stays $100

• April settlement automatically includes a -$50 refund effect

This is very important for finance operations:

• closed-month settlement is not recalculated backward to rewrite the old month

• later refunds reduce the later month where the refund event occurred

So if someone asks why a refund did not change the previous month payout, the correct answer is:

Because refunds are recorded in the month they occur, not retroactively pushed into already-closed settlement months.

waiting_photos

The merchant has a closed-month amount, but at least one related venue has not uploaded the required monthly photos.

ready

All required venue photos are complete, and the row is ready for admin finance review.

paid

The payout has already been marked paid. This is treated as irreversible in the admin workflow.

5. The Required Monthly Process

This is the required operational sequence:

1. The system generates the previous month's settlement.

2. The manager uploads at least 3 photos for every venue in that settlement month.

3. Admin reviews the payout rows in Operations Workspace.

4. Admin downloads the report and sends it to finance staff.

5. Finance completes the offline bank transfer.

6. Admin verifies the transfer and supporting details.

7. Only then should admin Mark Paid.

8. After payout review is complete, download the tax report for finance filing support.

This sequence is mandatory.

6. The Venue Photo Requirement

For merchant settlement, every related venue must upload at least 3 monthly photos before the platform can allow Mark Paid.

This is a hard workflow rule, not a suggestion.

If any venue is missing the 3-photo minimum:

• the settlement row remains blocked

• the manager must upload the missing photos

• admin should not bypass the process

The manager completes this step in Monthly Photos.

[Placeholder: Screenshot of a merchant row showing photo readiness or missing-photo status]

7. How to Use Operations Workspace

Step 1: Open the Closed Month

Use the year and month filters to review the closed natural month that is currently being settled.

If you are handling the standard monthly process, this should normally be the previous month.

Step 2: Review the Summary Cards

The workspace shows month-level totals such as:

• Merchant Due

• Organization Donation

• Campaign Donation

• Reserved Charity Funds

• Platform Revenue

• Net Sales Tax

• Paid Out

These totals help operations understand the month before any payout confirmation happens.

Step 3: Review Merchant Rows First

Merchant rows are the settlement workflow rows that depend on venue photo completion.

Check:

• amount due

• venue list

• workflow status

• photo readiness

• whether the row is already paid

Step 4: Wait Until All Venue Photos Are Complete

If a merchant row is missing venue photos:

• do not try to mark it paid

• have the manager complete the photo requirement first

The system blocks merchant Mark Paid when the photo requirement is not met.

Step 5: Download the Report for Finance Staff

Once the month is ready for finance processing, click Download and provide the report to finance staff for offline payment handling.

Use the downloaded report as the working payout support document for the month.

Step 6: Finance Completes Offline Transfer

Finance staff performs the actual offline bank transfer outside the system.

Step 7: Verify Before Marking Paid

This is the most important control point.

Do not click Mark Paid immediately after sending the report.

Before Mark Paid, the operations/admin team must verify:

• the payout amount is correct

• the offline transfer was actually completed

• the transfer matched the intended recipient

• there is no unresolved discrepancy

Only after verification should Mark Paid be used.

Step 8: Mark Paid

When using Mark Paid:

• admin password is required

• the action is irreversible in normal operations

• an optional public note can be added

• optional payout proof images can be uploaded

Once marked paid, that payout enters the transparency-facing settlement record flow.

[Placeholder: Screenshot of the Mark Paid confirmation dialog]

8. Why This Process Must Be Strict

Give.Gives has a strict financial transparency requirement.

For NGO, Campaign, and other public impact payout records, once a payout is marked paid, the result is used in the public-facing financial transparency / impact data shown to users.

That means Mark Paid is not just an internal checkbox.

It affects what the public sees about:

• who received funds

• when the payout was completed

• how much was paid

• optional public proof and note content

Because of that, the workflow must be followed strictly:

1. complete the photo requirement

2. review the month

3. download the report

4. finance completes offline transfer

5. verify the transfer

6. only then mark paid

This process must be followed exactly. Do not mark payouts as paid in advance.

9. Tax Report Step

After the monthly payout workflow is complete, use Download Tax Report to export the month's tax workbook for finance staff.

This report is used as a filing support workbook and includes:

• state summary

• jurisdiction detail

• transaction detail

• tax notes/read-me sheet

Finance can then use that workbook for manual tax filing preparation and reporting review.

[Placeholder: Screenshot of the Download Tax Report button in Operations Workspace]

10. Day-to-Day Operations Rules

• Never treat the current month as a payout month.

• Always start from the latest closed month.

• Never mark a merchant paid before all related venues have at least 3 monthly photos.

• Always send the report to finance first and wait for offline transfer completion.

• Always verify the transfer before marking paid.

• Treat Mark Paid as a transparency-publishing action, not just a bookkeeping action.

• After month-end payout processing, download the tax workbook for finance staff.