The Custom Fields, Tags, Note Types, and Rule Engine tabs of the Admin Panel control how your team structures and automates research notes. Configure them once, and everyone in the organization writes notes the same way.
These tabs are available to users with an Admin role; contact your workspace admin or [email protected] if you need access.
How it works
Custom Fields
Custom fields let you capture specific data points - for example, a meeting date, conviction level, or analyst name - as structured entries so they are recorded the same way by everyone on the team and stay comparable across notes. Fields you define here become available in note templates.
Every field has a name and a type.
Field name. What the field is called when it appears in a note, for example "Analyst Name" or "Conviction Level".
Field type. What kind of value the field accepts:
Text: free text field.
Number: specify decimal, percentage, or currency format.
Date: MM/DD/YYYY format.
Single Select: define a pick list of values.
To create or edit a field:
In the "Custom Fields" tab, click a field to edit it, or select "+Add a Field".
Enter a "Field Name" and select a "Field Type":
Click "Save".
Tags
Tags are the flexible layer of your notes taxonomy. A note can have as many tags as it needs, which is what makes them useful for themes that cut across the library. Categories then keep the tag list itself organized as it grows.
Every tag has a name and a category.
Tag name. The label that appears on the note.
Category. The group the tag belongs to, so related tags stay together in the picker rather than becoming one long list.
Arcana ships with a default tag set, and "Settings" controls whether those appear for your team and whether people can create new tags outside the defined list.
To create or edit a tag:
In the "Tags" tab, click a tag to edit it, or select "+Add Tag" and give it a name and category.
Click "Manage Categories" to add or reorder tag categories, then click "Save".
Click "Settings" to hide Arcana's default tags from the list, or to disable freeform tags.
Note Types
Note type is a note's primary classification, and each note has exactly one. Type describes what kind of note it is - for example, a company update, an expert interview, a meeting note. Defining the list here means everyone is choosing from the same set rather than inventing their own labels.
Your own note types. Add the types your team actually uses, rename them as your process changes, or delete ones that have fallen out of use.
Arcana's defaults. Arcana provides a default set, and "Settings" controls whether those appear alongside yours.
To create or edit a note type:
In the "Note Types" tab, click a note type to edit it, or select "+Note Type".
Select an existing note type to edit its name, or click the trash icon to delete it.
Click "Settings" to show or hide Arcana's default note types.
Rule Engine
Rule Engine lets you automate routine notes tasks, like creating a note from an incoming email, tagging notes by sender, or sending a weekly digest, by defining an if/then rule instead of doing each step by hand. Once a rule is active it runs in the background with no manual steps required.
Every rule has three parts: a trigger, one or more conditions, and one or more actions.
Trigger: When should the rule run? Choose either an event trigger or a schedule.
Event triggers include:
Email received (requires Outlook integration)
Note created
Note updated
Note tags updated
Schedule triggers include:
Daily (at a time you choose)
Weekly (on a day and time you choose)
Monthly (first or last day of the month, at a time you choose)
Hourly (every x hours)
Conditions: What must be true for the rule to activate? Narrow down which events actually trigger the action by combining multiple conditions with AND, where all must match, or OR, where any can match. For example:
Email is from a specific sender
Note type equals "Transcript"
Note was created or updated in the last 7 days
Note was created by a certain user
Actions: What happens when the trigger fires and conditions are met? You can chain multiple actions in one rule.
Create note: create a new note, with its type, team, owner, and sharing set by the rule.
Send email: send the note, or a digest of notes, to a list of recipients.
Update note: change the type, team, owner, or sharing on an existing note.
Add tags: automatically tag notes.
Add tickers: link tickers on notes.
Use Cases
Auto-create a note from an incoming email
A research service sends publications to a shared inbox. Instead of manually forwarding each one, a rule automatically creates a note for every email received from that sender.
Trigger: Email received
Condition: Email is from
[email protected]Action: Create note. Type: Publications, Team: Research, Share with: Firm
To implement this rule, enable Outlook integration so RMS can receive incoming emails.
Weekly digest of management notes
Every Friday, the team receives a digest of all Management Notes created or updated that week, without anyone having to compile or send it manually.
Trigger: Scheduled, weekly, Friday at 6pm
Conditions: Note type = Management Note AND Note team = Team A AND the note has been created or updated in the last 7 days
Action: Send email digest to Team A members