Reference

Cadenio Glossary

Clear definitions of concepts used throughout the product.

6 min · All users

This glossary covers the fundamental concepts used throughout Cadenio. A shared language accelerates adoption and avoids ambiguity between teams.

Reference

Core concepts

Flow / Template: The reusable blueprint that defines a process. Contains tasks, phases, fields, logic rules, approval gates, and due-date rules. Equivalent to a 'template' in other tools.
Run: A live instance of a Flow. Each run has its own owner, assignees, status, timeline, and evidence. Runs are independent — changing the Flow does not affect in-progress runs.
Task: The smallest unit of work in a Flow. Can be a checklist item, a form to fill, an approval gate, or a signature step. Tasks have owners, due dates, and completion criteria.
Phase: A logical group of tasks within a Flow. Phases add structure (e.g., 'Documentation', 'Review', 'Approval') but don't change execution logic by default.
Field: A data-collection element inside a task. Types: text, long text, number, date, dropdown, checkbox, file upload, signature, URL.
Approval Gate: A special task type where one or more approvers must formally approve or reject. Supports ANY (one approver sufficient) or ALL (every approver must act) policies.
Signature: A digital signature collected within a task. Ties a user's identity to a decision with timestamp. Used for compliance and legal proof.
SLA (Service Level Agreement): A deadline contract for a task or run. Includes alert thresholds and escalation rules that fire automatically when the deadline is breached.
Escalation: An automatic notification sent to a manager or senior role when a task is overdue or an SLA is breached. Chains can span multiple levels.
Smart Logic / Conditional Logic: Rules that evaluate field values during a run and adjust execution — show/hide tasks, auto-assign, repeat loops.
Data Source: A reference table (clients, suppliers, cost centers) maintained once and connected to dropdown fields in any Flow. Always-current validated values.
Group / User Group: A named collection of users used to assign tasks or grant permissions at scale. Update the group and every Flow reflects it automatically.
Preset: A predefined permission profile (Viewer, Member, Team Lead, Process Manager) that simplifies access configuration.
Audit Trail: The immutable log of every action in a run — who did what, when, including approvals, comments, file uploads, and assignments.
Webhook: An HTTP POST sent to an external URL when a specified event occurs in Cadenio (run started, task completed, approval decision, etc.).
API Key: A credential used to authenticate programmatic access to the Cadenio REST API.
Owner: The user responsible for a run or task. Owners receive notifications and are accountable for completion.
Folder: A container for organizing Flows. Permissions can be granted at folder level.
Deny-by-default: The access model where new members start with no access until explicitly granted. Prevents accidental data exposure.
External Participant: A person outside the organization who receives a task link to fill, upload, comment, or complete — without needing an account.

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Core concepts

Flow / Template

The reusable blueprint that defines a process. Contains tasks, phases, fields, logic rules, approval gates, and due-date rules. Equivalent to a 'template' in other tools.

Run

A live instance of a Flow. Each run has its own owner, assignees, status, timeline, and evidence. Runs are independent — changing the Flow does not affect in-progress runs.

Task

The smallest unit of work in a Flow. Can be a checklist item, a form to fill, an approval gate, or a signature step. Tasks have owners, due dates, and completion criteria.

Phase

A logical group of tasks within a Flow. Phases add structure (e.g., 'Documentation', 'Review', 'Approval') but don't change execution logic by default.

Field

A data-collection element inside a task. Types: text, long text, number, date, dropdown, checkbox, file upload, signature, URL.

Approval Gate

A special task type where one or more approvers must formally approve or reject. Supports ANY (one approver sufficient) or ALL (every approver must act) policies.

Signature

A digital signature collected within a task. Ties a user's identity to a decision with timestamp. Used for compliance and legal proof.

SLA (Service Level Agreement)

A deadline contract for a task or run. Includes alert thresholds and escalation rules that fire automatically when the deadline is breached.

Escalation

An automatic notification sent to a manager or senior role when a task is overdue or an SLA is breached. Chains can span multiple levels.

Smart Logic / Conditional Logic

Rules that evaluate field values during a run and adjust execution — show/hide tasks, auto-assign, repeat loops.

Data Source

A reference table (clients, suppliers, cost centers) maintained once and connected to dropdown fields in any Flow. Always-current validated values.

Group / User Group

A named collection of users used to assign tasks or grant permissions at scale. Update the group and every Flow reflects it automatically.

Preset

A predefined permission profile (Viewer, Member, Team Lead, Process Manager) that simplifies access configuration.

Audit Trail

The immutable log of every action in a run — who did what, when, including approvals, comments, file uploads, and assignments.

Webhook

An HTTP POST sent to an external URL when a specified event occurs in Cadenio (run started, task completed, approval decision, etc.).

API Key

A credential used to authenticate programmatic access to the Cadenio REST API.

Owner

The user responsible for a run or task. Owners receive notifications and are accountable for completion.

Folder

A container for organizing Flows. Permissions can be granted at folder level.

Deny-by-default

The access model where new members start with no access until explicitly granted. Prevents accidental data exposure.

External Participant

A person outside the organization who receives a task link to fill, upload, comment, or complete — without needing an account.