# Contributors

A contributor is a specific type of [collaborator](/accounts-and-permissions/accounts-and-permissions/collaborators.md) who was directly involved in performing the work described in a record. Marking a collaborator as a contributor helps your organization track who participated in delivering programs and activities.

## Mark a Collaborator as a Contributor

{% stepper %}
{% step %}

#### Add or Edit a Collaborator

On the Collaborators page of a record, click **Add Collaborator** to add a new collaborator, or click **Edit** next to an existing collaborator's name.
{% endstep %}

{% step %}

#### Check the Contributor Checkbox

In the collaborator dialog, check the **Contributor** checkbox to indicate that this person was directly involved in performing the work.
{% endstep %}

{% step %}

#### Enter Number of Sessions (if applicable)

For modules that track sessions (such as Program Activities), you may enter the **Number of Sessions** the contributor participated in.
{% endstep %}

{% step %}

#### Save

Click **Save** to apply the contributor designation. The collaborator now appears with a contributor indicator in the Collaborators list.
{% endstep %}
{% endstepper %}

## Contributor Impacts

### All Organizations (SNAP-Ed and Extension)

When a user is marked as a contributor on a record:

* The Collaborators list displays a contributor designation next to their name.
* The record appears in the contributor's **Homepage Overview** panel.
* The record appears in the contributor's **Unfinished Items** list (if the record is not yet marked as complete).

### Extension Programs Only

In Extension organizations, contributors receive additional functionality:

* **Action Plans** — The Plan field in Action Plan Outcomes includes plans where the user is tagged as a contributor, in addition to plans they created.
* **Performance Reviews** — Contributor records appear in the **Supporting Data** dropdown lists within Performance Reviews, allowing supervisors to reference the user's contributed work.

{% hint style="info" %}
Your organization may establish guidance on when to mark someone as a contributor versus a standard collaborator. As a general rule, mark someone as a contributor if they were directly involved in delivering or performing the work, not just reviewing or viewing the record.
{% endhint %}


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