Overview

People Discoverability Rules (PDR) allow admins to control who can discover and view other employees within the People Directory and related experiences.

• By default, all users can discover all other users.

• PDR enables organizations to restrict visibility using defined audiences or segments.

This ensures employees only see the people they are permitted to discover - based on organizational structure, privacy policies, or compliance requirements.

Note:

• App managers and User managers  would always see users

• PDR applies in ‘View’ experiences like People directory, Org chart, Home dashboard, Sites, etc. 

• PDR does not apply in Manage Mode. It means that app managers or feature managers would still the users while managing the feature like Manage users, Manage people within a site etc.

Where to Configure PDR

Navigate to: Application settings > People discoverability rules

From this page, admins can:

• Enable discoverability for segments (If segments are configured)

• Create and manage rules

• Define which audience can see which audience

• Turn rules on or off

When to Use People Discoverability Rules

PDR is recommended in scenarios such as:

• Multi-subsidiary organizations sharing one tenant but requiring visibility isolation

• Region-based restrictions (e.g., Country A should not discover Country B)

• Confidential business units (e.g., Legal, Finance, M&A)

• Compliance-driven visibility control

• Data privacy requirements

Best Practices Before Enabling PDR

Before configuring PDR, ensure:

1. Clean Audience Definitions

• Audiences are clearly defined.

• User attributes (Department, Business Unit, Location, etc.) are accurate.

• Data is properly synced from your source system (HRIS/Directory).

2. Clearly Defined Exceptions

Determine in advance:

• Should HR have global visibility?

• Should Super Admins bypass rules?

• Should leadership see all users?

• Should managers see cross-segment reports?

3. Avoid Shared Spaces for Fully Restricted Users

If complete (100%) restriction is required between specific users:

• Do not add them to the same Sites, Audiences, messaging groups, or collaboration spaces.

• Users in shared spaces may still see each other’s content, name, and profile picture.

For full isolation, ensure restricted users are not included together in any shared feature.

4. Start Simple

Begin with high-level audiences (e.g., Business Unit or Region).
Avoid overly complex overlapping rules unless required.

5. Test Before Full Rollout

Validate with:

• Sample users from each segment

• Managers and reporting structures

Cross-functional collaborators

How to set up People Discoverability Rules

Navigate to:

Application settings > People discoverability rules

From this page, you can configure PDR in two ways:

1. Enable discoverability for segments (recommended if segments are configured)

2. Create individual rules manually

Option 1: Enable discoverability for segments

If your organization already uses Segments, this is the easiest and most scalable setup.

On the People Discoverability Rules page, click: Enable for segments button

When enabled:

• Each segment becomes isolated by default.

• Users within a segment can only discover other users in the same segment.

• Cross-segment visibility can then be configured if needed.

This option is ideal for:

• Multi-subsidiary organizations

• Region-based isolation

• Structured organizational separation

After enabling for segments, you can still create additional rules to:

• Allow HR to see all segments

• Allow leadership cross-segment visibility

• Enable specific segments to see other segments

Option 2: Create Individual Discoverability Rules

If segments are not used — or if you need more granular control — you can manually create rules. Create Rules.

Step 1: Name the Rule

Enter a clear and descriptive name.

Examples:

• “Finance – Self Visibility”

• “US Employees – Regional Access”

• “HR – Global Visibility”

Step 2: Select the Audience (Who the Rule Applies To)

Choose the group whose discoverability you want to control.

You can:

• Click Browse to select an existing audience

• Click Add users to select specific users manually

This defines the users affected by the rule.

Step 3: Choose the Discoverability Rule

Under Discoverability rule, select one of the following options:

🔹 Can only see themselves

Users in this audience:

• Can discover only users within the same audience

• Cannot see users outside their defined group

Common use case:
Isolated departments, subsidiaries, or locations.

🔹 Manually select who this audience can see

Allows you to:

• Define exactly which audiences or users are visible

• Create controlled cross-visibility

Example:

• BU A can see BU A and HR

• Region US can see US + Global Leadership

After selecting this option, you will choose the audiences/users they can discover.

🔹 Can see everyone

Users in this audience:

• Can discover all users in the tenant

Common use case:

• HR

• Executive leadership

• Super Admins

  Can see no one

Users in this audience:

• Cannot discover any users

Step 4: Save and enable the rule

Click Save, then toggle the rule ON from the main PDR page.

Rules apply immediately in View users mode.

How rules work together

• Each rule controls visibility for its defined audience.

• If multiple rules exist, combined discoverability is determined by the rule applied to the user’s audience.

• Changes to user attributes (e.g., department, business unit) may automatically move users into different audiences and impact visibility.

How PDR impacts different areas of the platform

When PDR is enabled, discoverability is dynamically filtered across the following experiences:

1. People Directory

• Only permitted users appear in the directory.

• Search results are filtered excluding the hidden users.

• Facets and filters return only allowed users.

• Total people counts reflect filtered visibility.

If a user is hidden:

• They will not appear in search results.

• Their profile will not be accessible via directory search.

2. Org chart

When People Discoverability Rules are enabled, the Org chart respects visibility restrictions.

If a user is restricted due to PDR, they appear as a “Hidden user” placeholder in the reporting hierarchy.

• A generic avatar with a “?” icon is displayed

• The label shows “Hidden user”

• A message appears: “You don't have permission to view this user.”

• Profile details (name, title, department, etc.) are not visible

The reporting structure remains intact, but restricted users cannot be viewed or accessed.

3. Hidden user profile view

If a restricted user’s name appears in certain features (for example, they published a content that you can see and you see the content author name) and you attempt to open their profile, limited information will be displayed.

In this case:

• The user’s name is visible

• The profile picture is visible

• A message appears:
  “You don't have permission to view all details of this user.”

• All other profile details (job title, department, contact information, additional fields, etc.) are hidden

This ensures that basic identity context is maintained while restricting access to detailed profile information in accordance with People Discoverability Rules.

4. Sites (members & people widgets)

When People Discoverability Rules are enabled, Site member listings respect discoverability restrictions.

If a user is restricted due to PDR, they appear as a “Hidden user” in member lists.

In this case:

• A generic avatar with a “?” icon is displayed

• The label shows “Hidden user”

• A message appears: “You don't have permission to view this user.”

• Profile details (name, title, department, contact icons, etc.) are not visible

This applies across any users list.

The membership count may still reflect the total number of users, but restricted users will not be fully visible.

5. Global search

• People search results respect PDR.

• Restricted profiles are excluded entirely from search results.

6. Mentions & tagging

• Users who are not discoverable will not appear in people search or tagging suggestions.

• Tagging behavior depends on discoverability permissions.

Example configuration

Scenario:
An organization has three business units:

• BU A

• BU B

• BU C

Each business unit should only discover employees within its own unit.

Configuration:

• BU A → Can see → BU A

• BU B → Can see → BU B

• BU C → Can see → BU C

• HR → Can see → All Users

This ensures isolation while allowing HR to retain global visibility.

Frequently asked questions (FAQs)

1. Does PDR delete or deactivate users?

No.PDR only restricts visibility. Users remain active in the system.

2. Does PDR apply on Manage screens?

No. PDR applies only in View Mode/screen.. Administrators/managers working in Manage screens are not restricted by PDR.

3. What happens if a user belongs to multiple audiences?

If a user belongs to multiple audiences, discoverability is determined based on the combined applicable rules. Visibility is governed by the defined audience-to-audience mappings.

4. Can managers see their reports if they are in different segments?

This depends on your rule configuration.
If cross-segment visibility is not defined, managers may not see reports outside their allowed audience. It is recommended to explicitly configure manager visibility if needed.

5. Will changes to user attributes immediately affect discoverability?

Yes. If a user’s attributes change (e.g., Business Unit or Location), and those attributes are used in PDR rules, their discoverability will update accordingly.

6. What happens if no rules are enabled?

If no PDR rules are enabled, all users can discover all other users (default behavior).

7. Can PDR impact collaboration?

Yes. Since discoverability affects search, tagging, directory visibility, and org charts, it may influence cross-team collaboration. Rules should be carefully reviewed before broad rollout.

8. Can I temporarily disable a rule?

Yes. Rules can be toggled on or off from the PDR configuration page.