Admin
How to Set Up WhatsApp Agent Roles in Inaiy
Set WhatsApp agent roles in Inaiy: compare Owner, Admin, Manager, Agent, and Viewer, create custom roles with exact permissions, and invite teammates safely.
Updated · 5 min read
On this page
WhatsApp agent roles decide what each teammate can see and do in Inaiy. For example, an agent can reply to assigned chats but cannot export contacts or change billing. Go to Settings → Roles & Permissions to review the five built-in roles or click Create Role for your own. Then invite people from Settings → Users and pick a role for each.
The right roles keep customer data safe and stop costly mistakes, such as a new hire sending a campaign to everyone.
Who this is for and what you need first
This guide is for Owners and Admins who add teammates to a shared WhatsApp inbox.
You need:
- Permission to manage users and roles. Owners have every permission.
- Each teammate's name and work email address.
- A rough idea of who does what: who replies to customers, who runs campaigns, and who only reads reports.
Steps to set up WhatsApp agent roles
1. Review the built-in roles
Go to Settings → Roles & Permissions. Inaiy comes with five System roles:
| Role | What it can do |
|---|---|
| Owner | Full access to all features. |
| Admin | Administrative access, except billing, ownership operations, organization deletion, and ownership transfer. |
| Manager | Manage users, contacts, templates, chats, and campaigns. |
| Agent (callout 2) | View contacts and handle assigned conversations. |
| Viewer | Read-only access across viewable modules. |
Most support staff should be Agent. Give Manager to team leads, and keep Admin and Owner to as few people as possible. To make your own role, click Create Role (callout 1).
2. Check what a role allows
Click ... on a role, then Permissions. Permissions are grouped by area, such as Dashboard, Users, Teams, Contacts, Templates, Chats, Conversations, Campaigns, Automation, Analytics, Commerce, Billing, and Developer Platform. Each area has actions, such as View, Create, Update, Delete, Export, or Send. Use the search box to find one quickly.
For system roles, the dialog says System role permissions are read-only (callout 1). For example, the Agent role can View contacts (callout 2) but cannot create, delete, import, or export them.
3. Create a custom role if you need one
If no built-in role fits, click Create Role. Enter a Role name, such as "Support Lead", and a Description of what it is for, then click Create Role. Then open its Permissions and tick exactly what it should allow.
Start from the closest built-in role and add only what is missing. A support lead might be an Agent plus Templates → Send and Analytics → View.
4. Invite a teammate with a role
Go to Settings → Users and click Invite User. Fill in First name, Email, and optionally Last name, Mobile, Department, and Designation.
Under Roles (callout 1), pick one: Admin, Agent, Manager, Owner, Viewer, or a custom role. A role is required. Adding the person to Teams is optional and can be done later from the Teams page.
Click Send Invitation (callout 2). The person gets an email to join.
5. Group people into teams
Go to Settings → Teams and click Create Team to group people by function, such as Sales or Support. Teams drive routing, queues, and reporting. Roles control what a person can do. Teams control which chats they get. See WhatsApp conversation routing.
How to confirm it worked
- The teammate appears under Settings → Users with status ACTIVE once they accept the invitation.
- Ask them to sign in. They should see only what their role allows. An Agent, for example, should not see Billing settings.
- Assign them a test conversation and check that they can reply to it.
Common mistakes
- Making everyone an Admin. It is quicker, but anyone can then change channels, users, or integrations. Give people the lowest role that lets them do their job.
- Forgetting to remove leavers. Suspend a user from the ... menu on the Users page as soon as they leave, so they lose access to customer chats.
- Granting Export by accident. Contacts → Export lets someone download your whole customer list. Keep it to the few people who need it.
Related guides
- See what agents work in with the WhatsApp shared inbox.
- Send each chat to the right team with WhatsApp conversation routing.
- Control who can create API keys with Inaiy API and webhooks.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between a role and a team?
A role controls what a person can do, such as replying, sending campaigns, or exporting contacts. A team groups people by function, such as Sales or Support, so chats can be routed to them and reports split by group. Every user has one role, and can belong to several teams or none.
Can I change the permissions of the Agent role?
No. The five system roles, Owner, Admin, Manager, Agent, and Viewer, are read-only. To change what agents can do, create a custom role with Create Role, tick the permissions you want, and assign it to those users instead. Custom roles are listed next to the system roles.
Can agents see every WhatsApp conversation?
The Agent role is built to view contacts and handle assigned conversations, so agents work on the chats routed or assigned to them. Managers and Admins see more. If agents need wider access, create a custom role with the conversation permissions you want, rather than making them Managers.
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