Required Roles: Workspace Manager, Editors, Reviewers, Approvers
​Required Permissions: Access to relevant cabinets/folders and associated workflows in the Controlled Documents module

In Kivo, controlled documents follow a structured lifecycle worflow from creation to approval and beyond dep. This lifecycle is enforced through configurable workflows that define how documents are drafted, reviewed, and approved.

This article describes the typical lifecycle of a controlled document in Kivo and highlights where workflows, metadata, and numbering come into play.

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Workflows is made up of a series of steps that define the document lifecycle. Multiple different workflows can be created to accomodate the unique needs of each organization and different types of documents that exist within the organization. Once these unique workflows are created, they are applied to specific cabinets or folders. All subfolders will inherit the workflow as well. Each step represents a stage in the document lifecycle and serves a specific purpose.

Available workflow step types include:

Each workflow step can be configured to support your organization’s process, including:

These configurations help standardize how documents move through their lifecycle while reducing manual effort and improving visibility.

This overview provides a high level understanding of how workflows drive the document lifecycle in Kivo. For a deeper dive into workflow configuration, step behavior, and advanced options, refer to the dedicated Document Workflow Configuration article.

Documents do not always need to move through workflow steps in a strict, sequential order. When needed, users can easily return to a previous step after a rejection to address feedback or make updates. Similarly, if the workflow configuration allows, users may move past certain steps and proceed toward approval when appropriate.

This flexibility ensures workflows can adapt to real world scenarios while still maintaining control, traceability, and compliance.

Once workflows are created in Workspace Settings, they can be applied to specific cabinets and folders. Applying a workflow defines the set of steps that documents in that location will follow throughout their lifecycle.

In addition to controlling the workflow steps, this configuration also determines which users and groups are allowed to participate in each step. This ensures that responsibilities such as drafting, reviewing, and approving documents are assigned only to the appropriate individuals.

By combining workflow structure with role based participation, organizations gain a high level of control over the document approval process. This creates necessary safeguards, supports compliance requirements, and helps ensure documents are reviewed and approved by the right people at the right time.

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The document lifecycle begins when a document is created within a cabinet or folder that has a workflow applied. Users can create a document by selecting New Document, uploading a file, or creating a placeholder, depending on their permissions and the configuration of the workspace.

When creating a new document, settings may allow the user to select from one or more predefined templates. Templates help standardize document structure and ensure required sections and formatting are applied consistently. During creation, Kivo prompts the user to enter all required information, such as the document title and other key metadata, ensuring the document is properly named and numbered based on your organization’s configuration.

Once the document is created, the selected document Type, Category, and Artifact are applied automatically. From these foundational selections, Kivo pulls in all associated metadata fields and applies the appropriate workflow tied to that cabinet or folder. This ensures the document immediately follows the correct lifecycle, permissions, and governance rules without requiring manual setup.

By enforcing templates, metadata collection, and workflow assignment at creation, Kivo ensures every document enters the system with the correct structure, classification, and controls in place from the very beginning.

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The Collaboration step is where document drafting and editing take place. During this stage, contributors actively work on the document content, making updates, revisions, and improvements before it is submitted for review. This step supports iterative development and is typically used for editable file types such as Word documents. Non editable file types, such as PDFs, may automatically bypass this step depending on workflow configuration.

Before editing can begin, a workflow must be started on the document. Once the workflow is initiated, users can begin the Collaboration step if it is included in the workflow. Depending on workflow settings, users may also be allowed to bypass certain steps. For example, collaboration may be skipped if the document has already been drafted or does not require editing.

When starting a collaboration, the user selects which individuals will participate in the drafting process. At this time, the initiator can also include a message to provide context or instructions and set a due date for the collaboration task. This ensures contributors understand expectations and timelines from the start.

Once collaboration is active, the Home tab becomes the central place to track progress. It displays who is involved in the collaboration, the status of each participant’s work, and the most recent updates. From this view, users can:

Kivo integrates seamlessly with Microsoft Word to enable real time collaboration. When editing in Word, Kivo creates a shared editing session using Microsoft’s collaboration capabilities. All permitted users can work on the document simultaneously, see each other’s edits and comments in real time, and have their changes automatically saved back to Kivo.

This integration allows teams to collaborate efficiently using familiar tools while maintaining full version control, auditability, and workflow governance within the DMS.

The Collaboration step ensures documents are thoroughly drafted and refined before entering formal review, setting a strong foundation for the remainder of the document lifecycle.

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The Review Content step is used to gather feedback and validate the accuracy and quality of the document content. During this stage, participants review the document and provide comments and suggestions to help refine it before moving into more formal review or approval steps.

This step is similar to Collaboration, but the intent is different. Rather than actively drafting or making major edits, reviewers focus on providing feedback and confirming whether the document is ready to move forward. The document remains live and editable during this step, allowing updates to be made as feedback is addressed.

Completing the step signals acceptance of the current content, while rejecting it indicates that further updates are needed.

The Review Content step helps ensure content is reviewed and refined early, reducing issues later in the approval process.

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The Final Review step is the last quality check before a document moves to formal approval. At this stage, the document is no longer open for editing or commenting. Reviewers can view the document but cannot make changes, ensuring the content being reviewed is exactly what will be submitted for approval.

The purpose of Final Review is to confirm that all feedback from earlier steps has been addressed and that the document is complete, accurate, and ready for approval. This step provides a clear signal to the document author and stakeholders that the document has passed its final content checks.

Final Review acts as a controlled checkpoint in the workflow, preventing last minute changes while giving reviewers confidence that the document is ready to move forward.

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The Approval step is the final stage of the document lifecycle, where designated approvers formally approve the document and make it an official, approved version. This step ensures accountability, traceability, and compliance based on your organization’s needs.

When entering the Approval step, the workflow defines who is required to approve the document. Organizations can also configure how approvals are collected, choosing between Kivo Approval or e-Signature via DocuSign.

As approvers take action, their status is tracked within the workflow. Once all required approvals are completed, the document is officially approved.

At completion:

The Approval step provides a secure, auditable, and flexible way to finalize documents, supporting both streamlined internal approvals and fully compliant electronic signatures when required.

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Documents can be revised at any time, whether due to an identified change, ongoing improvements, or an upcoming review date. When a revision is needed, a qualified user can start a new workflow on the approved document and select Start Draft.

Starting a draft creates a new editable version of the document and re-enters it into the workflow. This new draft typically begins with a Collaboration step, allowing contributors to update and refine the content before moving through review and approval again.

Revisions are tracked using minor version numbering. For example, the first draft created after version 1.0 will be version 1.1. Additional revisions will continue incrementing the minor version number until a new major version is approved.

This process can be repeated as many times as needed, ensuring documents remain current while maintaining a clear version history, full traceability, and compliance throughout the document lifecycle.

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Maintaining visibility into open workflows is essential to ensure document revisions continue to move forward and do not stall. The Workflow Status Report in Kivo’s Reports module provides teams with a centralized view of all documents that are currently in draft or active workflow states.

This report displays each document along with its current workflow step, making it easy to understand where documents are in the lifecycle. It also includes the last updated date, allowing teams to quickly identify documents that may have stalled and require additional follow up or attention.

By regularly reviewing the Workflow Status Report, teams can proactively manage document progress, balance workloads, and ensure revisions move efficiently toward review and approval without unnecessary delays.

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Document Basics: Doc Card Anatomy

Add/Remove a user from a Collaboration Session

Authoring a New Document

Kivo Document Management Overview

Approving a Document - Sign & Approve Workflow

Approving a Document - Simple Approval Workflow

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[Kivo] > [Document Management - Getting Started] > Document Lifecycle Overview