Platform Setup is where Admins define the shared building blocks every idea and business case uses: business units, applications, standard costs, document templates, tags and terminology. Set them up once, before your team starts submitting, so every idea is described, costed and reported the same way. If one team costs a developer day at £400 and another at £650, their ROI figures can’t be compared.
Go to Settings > Platform Setup. It’s available to Admins (any role other than Standard User). It has six tabs:
| Tab | What it’s for |
|---|---|
| Business Units | Your organisational structure, so ideas can be tracked by team |
| Applications | The systems your organisation uses |
| Cost Setup | Standard costs that feed every business case |
| Document | Templates attached to every idea |
| Tags | Labels for grouping and tracking ideas |
| Terminology | Your own names for pipeline stages, idea stages and statuses |
Business Units #
Set up your directorates, departments and teams so every idea links to where it comes from. See Setting up Business Units.
Applications #
List the applications your organisation uses. People pick them in the Smart Assessment, and Admins can change them later on the idea profile. It shows where opportunities cluster and which systems a change will touch.
Cost Setup #
Standard costs, so every business case is costed the same way. Five tabs:
| Tab | What goes in it |
|---|---|
| Software Vendors | The technology vendors you buy from |
| Initial costs | One-off people costs: a day rate for each delivery role, such as Business Analyst, Process Owner or Developer. SilkFlo works out the monthly and annual cost. |
| Initial costs other | Other one-off costs, such as training or implementation |
| Running Costs | Ongoing technology costs, such as software licences |
| Other Running Costs | Other ongoing costs |
On each tab, click Add New, or use the edit and delete icons on a row. Use Search to find a cost. When someone builds a business case, they pick from these instead of typing numbers from scratch. See The Business Case Builder: forecast, track and prove AI ROI.
Document #
Add templates that appear on every idea’s Documentation page, such as a process definition or solution design document, so everyone starts from the same format.
Tags #
Tags group ideas that cut across business units, such as one budget or one strategic theme. Click + Create New Tag on the Project Tags screen, or use Search tags to find one. Only Admins can create tags. See How to use tags to organise your AI and automation pipeline.
Terminology #
Rename what SilkFlo shows so it matches the names your teams already use. For example, rename “Review” to “Concept”. You can rename:
- Pipeline Stages: Review, Assess, Decision, Build, Deployed. These show in the left-hand menu, on workshop boards and in page headings.
- Idea Stages: the stages inside them, such as Analysis, Solution Design, Development and Testing.
- Statuses: such as Awaiting Review, In Progress and Approved.
To rename a term:
- Go to Settings > Platform Setup > Terminology and pick a group from the left-hand list.
- Type your own name in the box next to the SilkFlo name. The Preview above the list shows your stages in order.
- Click Save changes. The new names show for everyone in your organisation. Cancel discards your edits.
Good to know:
- Leave a box empty to keep the SilkFlo name.
- Renamed rows are marked Renamed. Click the reset icon on a row to go back to the default, or Reset group for the whole group.
- Two terms in the same group can’t share a name.
- Renaming only changes the label. Ideas keep their stage and status, and the pipeline works the same.
FAQs #
Can I rename the pipeline stages in SilkFlo? #
Yes. Go to Settings > Platform Setup > Terminology and type your own names for pipeline stages, idea stages or statuses.
What should I set up first? #
Business Units, then Cost Setup, then Terminology if your teams use their own stage names. Applications, documents and tags can follow. See How to set up SilkFlo as the Account Owner for the full checklist.
