Customer Release Notes
Release notes explain what changed for administrators and operational users. They should focus on behavior, workflows, labels, reports, permissions, and actions that users may notice.
Current Release Summary
| Area | Customer Impact |
|---|---|
| Documentation | Expanded customer-admin documentation with role guides, playbooks, workflow references, page references, troubleshooting, glossary, and quick-start scenarios. |
| Screenshots | Documentation uses screenshots that match the current customer portal. |
| Administration | Added practical guidance for onboarding, offboarding, role assignment, ownership, approvals, overdue work, and monthly health checks. |
| Reporting | Added deeper explanation of dashboard metrics, KPI formulas, scheduled reports, and management report packs. |
| GRC Workflows | Added cross-module guidance for assessments, risks, policies, vendors, audits, issues, and evidence. |
What Administrators Should Review After an Update
- Review changed module pages for new workflow or status behavior.
- Check role and permission guidance when new actions are introduced.
- Review release notes before management reporting.
- Validate scheduled reports if report filters or metrics changed.
- Communicate user-facing changes to control owners, risk owners, policy owners, and auditors.
Release Note Format
Each future release should include:
| Section | Purpose |
|---|---|
| What Changed | Short business explanation of the change. |
| Who Is Affected | Roles or modules impacted. |
| Admin Action Required | What administrators should check or update. |
| Reporting Impact | Whether dashboards, KPIs, exports, or scheduled reports may change. |
| Workflow Impact | Whether statuses, approvals, ownership, or evidence expectations changed. |
Example Entry
| Field | Example |
|---|---|
| What Changed | Assessment compliance reporting now explains how non-assessed controls affect KPI interpretation. |
| Who Is Affected | Compliance managers, assessment owners, control owners, executives. |
| Admin Action Required | Review active assessments and confirm control statuses are complete before reporting. |
| Reporting Impact | Assessment compliance KPI may differ from overall compliance score when many controls are not assessed. |
| Workflow Impact | Control owners should complete responses before assessment closure. |
Customer Communication Checklist
- Explain the change in business language.
- Mention only actions users need to take.
- Avoid technical implementation details.
- Identify affected roles.
- Include screenshots when the page layout changed.
- Update playbooks and troubleshooting pages when behavior changes.