Shared questions allow you to share a question and its response from one form to another within the same process.
Common Uses
Below are some common scenarios where shared questions are used.
- Reminding an applicant of their response to an LOI question while they are completing the application.
- Showing an applicant the amount they have been awarded as they are filling out a follow up form.
- Showing evaluators the applicant's responses for easy reference as they are completing the evaluation form. This is especially helpful if the side-by-side view is not enabled.
Additional Information
If a shared question's required type is set to optional or required on the form to which is it is shared, the applicant will be able to edit their previous response. Because the response is shared, any edits to the response on one form will automatically update the response on any other forms where the question is shared.
If applicants should not be able to edit the response, it is important to make a shared question's required type read-only on the form for which it is shared. This is especially important to consider when sharing questions from the approval form or any other questions originally answered by an administrator to a form that the applicant will complete.
Questions cannot be shared from an evaluation form. This is because each question on an evaluation form for the same request could be answered multiple times by multiple evaluators. If evaluation responses for each request are being compiled, consider building an evaluation report instead.
Questions cannot be shared to or from an installment form. This is because a singular installment form can be used for multiple installments on a request. If a question was shared from an installment form, the form with the shared question would not know which response to pull and display if there were multiple installments with multiple answers.
Shared Questions in Universal Application
Any application question can be added as a shared question to an evaluation or decision form. That shared question will retain its relationships across forms. For example, if a shared question is a common question on the application, it will be a common question on the evaluation or decision form. Shared questions from the application to the decision form will update in both directions. Evaluators cannot edit shared questions, so the shared question can only be updated on the application.
Follow Up Forms
Shared questions on follow up forms will only update when edited on the application. These questions cannot be edited on the follow up form. Common questions from the application form to a common follow up can be shared. An opportunity specific question can be shared from the application form to the related opportunity specific follow up form. Shared questions cannot be added to pseudo-common follow up forms. Questions shared from decision forms are considered opportunity specific questions and can only be shared to opportunity specific follow ups.
The table below provides additional considerations when using shared questions in Universal Application.
Source Form | Type of Follow Up the Shared Question can be Added to | How It Updates |
Application Form | ||
Common question from the application | Common follow up | Answers may only be edited on the application (the update is one-directional, from the application to the follow up form). |
Opportunity specific question from the application | Opportunity specific follow up (must be the same opportunity as the question) | |
Psuedo common question from the application | Cannot be added to any follow up. | |
Approval or Denial Form | ||
System question from the decision form | Opportunity specific follow up | Answers can be edited on both forms as long as they are not set to the visibility of "read only” (the updates are bi-directional and flow back and forth like typical shared questions). |
Opportunity specific question from the decision form | Opportunity specific follow up (must be the same opportunity as the question) | |
Pseudo common question from decision forms | Cannot be added to any follow up. |
Add a Shared Question
- Click Tools on the upper navigation bar, and then click Process Manager.
- Click the process name.
- Navigate to the form where a shared question will be added and click the pencil icon next to it.
- Click Shared.
- Select the question from the list, and then click Add Selected Question.
- If the question already exists on this form, it will be grayed out in the pop-up indicating that it cannot be shared to this form.
- The Shared On column shows forms to which each question is already shared.
- The icon pointed out below indicates that this question is shared on other forms in the process.
- If editing an approval or denial form, the default questions will have the shared question icon even if they are not shared yet.
- If editing an approval or denial form, the default questions will have the shared question icon even if they are not shared yet.
Changes to a Shared Question
The following changes to a question are reflected across all forms where the question is shared.
- Label
- Maximum text length
- List items
The following changes to a question are not reflected across forms where the question is shared.
- Instructions
- Visibility
- Required type
Additional Resources
The following resource provides additional training on this topic.