When a user creates a Project in SiftHub, the system automatically analyzes and parses the questionnaire or proposal as the Primary Document to create an intelligent outline in the Projects tab of the Browser Extension / MS Add-in. This transforms your spreadsheet-based questionnaire or document-based proposal into a structured, collaborative workspace by organizing all sections and questions across each tab of your Primary Document into an intuitive hierarchical outline.
Accessing the Outline
For Google Workspace Users
- Open the Primary Document from your Project details page
- The Google Sheet will open with the SiftHub Browser Extension automatically launched
- The Browser Extension will display the Project, showing the outline for your active Google Sheet or Google Doc tab
For Microsoft 365 Users
- Open the Primary Document from your Project details page
- Once the Excel or Word file opens, open the MS Add-in
- Navigate to the 'Project' tab to view the outline for your active Excel or Word tab
For Web App Projects (Uploaded Files)
Click on the Project Name in your Projects List.
The project will open in the Web App Collaboration View.
The Outline is displayed in the Project Panel on the right side of the screen.
Components of the Outline
1. Section and Question Cards
Each tab in your document is represented in the outline. Content is organized into collapsible sections containing related questions
- Sections: These correspond to the headers or main categories of the primary document (e.g., sections of an RFP or similar structured documents).
Questions: These are the individual questions / requirements under each Section. - Each item or card in the outline corresponds to a question or section in the document and displays:
- Name of Section / Question text
- Status (e.g., "First draft", "Pending Review", "Approved")
- Assigned team member
When a Project is created, each Section and Question gets assigned to the Delivery Manager automatically and is set to the status of "First Draft"
2. Search and Filter menu
- Search bar at the top of each tab for finding a question or section.
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Filter options:
- By Status: To filter questions / sections in a specific status
- By Assignee: To filter questions / sections assigned to a user
- By Due Date: To filter questions / sections where an action is due before a certain due date
- How filters work:
- When a filter is applied, the hierarchy between sections and questions is maintained.
- A section remains visible if it or any of its questions match the filter criteria.
- When a section and some of its questions match the criteria, the matching questions are highlighted while non-matching ones remain visible but unhighlighted.
3. Section / Question Details Page
To access the Section / Question details page -
- Click on a section / question card from the outline or
- Select the corresponding question / section cell in the spreadsheet and clicking on 'Manage Section/Question' icon from the Floating Widget.
The details page allows you to -
- See the name of the section or question text
- See the current status and assignee
- Track activity via the Activity timeline
- Action buttons for collaboration workflows such as:
- Submitting for review
- Requesting content
- Convert between section or question, or remove from the outline
- Access autofilled responses for that question
- Go back and forward between the details pages of each section or question
Navigating the Outline
Outline navigation from the Browser Extension
- Click on any section or question in the outline to view its details page
- Use the expand/collapse arrows to view or hide questions within sections
- Click "Questions" to see all questions in a section
- Switch between the different tabs in the outline to see their sections and questions
- Search or filter to locate specific questions.
Outline navigation from the spreadsheet or document
- Select a cell in a spreadsheet or highlight text in a document corresponding to a question or section
- Click the "Manage Section/Question" button in the Floating Widget to view its details page in the Browser Extension
- Clicking on "Manage Section/Question" for a cell or snippet of text that isn't an identified as a question or section will prompt the user to add it to the outline
Note: Adding sections or questions to the outline in a Google Doc project is not supported currently - Switch between different tabs in your spreadsheet. The outline automatically updates to show sections and questions for the current tab
Note: Creating an outline for Google Docs with multiple tabs is not supported currently.
Outline navigation from the Web App
Click on any Section or Question in the right-hand Project Panel to scroll the main Grid view to that specific item.
Use the Expand/Collapse arrows in the panel to show or hide questions within sections.
Filter by Status or Assignee using the filter icon at the top of the panel to focus on specific items (e.g., "First Draft").
Modifying the Outline
While SiftHub is able to identify most of the sections and questions in the Primary Document and map them to the outline, some of them might be missed in a few rare cases. To handle these cases, SIftHub provides flexible outline modification options such as adding or removing sections and questions or converting between them.
Adding to the Outline
To add a section or question to your outline:
- Select the cell in a spreadsheet containing the un-identified question or section
- Click on "Manage Section/Question" in the SiftHub Floating Widget
- Choose to add either as a section or question
- It will get added in the correct order and position in the Outline
Note: Adding sections or questions to the outline in a Google Doc project is not supported currently
Converting between Sections and Questions:
- Change a Question to a Section when it needs its own group of sub-questions
- Convert a Section to a Question if it's more appropriate as a single response
- Use the dropdown menu in the Section/Question details page to make these conversions
Remove items from the outline:
Remove sections or questions that have been incorrectly identified, from the dropdown menu in the Section/Question details page. Removed items can be added back by selecting their cell and using the
"Manage Section/Question" button
Note: When sections are added, removed, or converted - questions are automatically reorganized to maintain structure - always linking to the nearest available section or defaulting to the tab name when necessary.
Limitations of document outline in Google Doc projects
Creating Projects in Google Doc files presents challenges inherent to the Google API ecosystem. Briefly, these are:
1. The auto-detected outline is not reliably accurate for each document. This is due to certain headers, questions or topics being unusually formatted or phrased.
Note: This will be resolved with an upcoming enhancement.
2. Users may need to manually navigate or scroll to the relevant part in documents containing multiple sections / questions which are identical in name.
3. Adding or editing a section / question in the Google Doc will not reflect in the outline after the project is created.
Status Management
Questions and sections move through the following statuses:
- First Draft: Initial state when created or autofilled
- Content Requested: When input is needed from team members
- Content Updated: When new content has been provided
- Pending Review: When submitted for review
- Approved: When content is finalized
Status updates can be made:
- Individually from the details page
- In bulk by selecting multiple items in the outline
To learn more about updating status, changing assignees, content request and review workflows and other collaboration features, see - Collaboration in the outline