Input / Guidance Steps

Groups

A group is a container on the canvas that bundles related elements into one section. On mobile, the elements inside a group show up together as a single collapsible block so staff can fold them away once they're done.

What a group is

A group holds one or more elements as children. You can also nest groups inside other groups. Use groups when a few elements belong together as one logical step — for example, three checks that all relate to "opening the kitchen", or two photos and a signature that all confirm "delivery accepted".

Poppi nodes (briefings, decisions, actions) are not children of a group. They attach to individual elements as left or right satellites, so they cannot sit inside a group.

Add a group to the canvas

Open the workflow template you want to edit.
On the left toolbar, find the Group button. It's the top icon, shown as a dashed square.
Tap it. An empty group appears on the canvas.

You can also add a group from the plus menu below any existing node. Tap Open or Gated, then pick the Group icon from the picker that opens.

Fill an empty group

When a group has no children yet, it shows an Add first step button in the middle.

Tap Add first step.
The element picker pops up. It shows every element type, grouped by category (inputs, choices, media, guidance).
Pick the element you want. It drops in as the group's first child.

If an element shows a small lock icon, your plan doesn't include it. Hover the icon to see which plan you'd need.

Add more steps to a group

Once a group has at least one step, an Add another step button sits across the bottom of the group, just inside the dashed border. It stays there however many steps the group holds, so you never have to drag elements in from the left toolbar.

Tap Add another step at the bottom of the group.
Pick the element you want from the picker that pops up. It shows the same element types as the empty-group picker, grouped by category, with a lock icon on anything your plan doesn't include.
The element drops in at the bottom of the group, and the group grows to fit it.

What you can put inside

Any input element — text, number, photo, file, date and time, location, signature, voice note, sketch pad, annotated photo, stepper.
Any choice element — checklist, single choice, multi choice, rating scale, cascading select.
Any guidance element — written, photo, video.
Other groups — groups can be nested.

You cannot put Poppi briefings, decisions, or actions inside a group. Those live as satellites on the right or left side of a specific element.

The group header

Every group has a faint header strip across the top:

"Group" label on the left — also acts as the drag handle, so you can move the whole group by grabbing this strip.
Preview button (play icon) — opens the test preview for just this group, so you can see how it'll look to staff on mobile without running the whole workflow. Hidden when you're previewing a public template.
Delete button (red trash icon) — removes the group from the canvas.

How groups render on mobile

On the mobile preview (and on staff phones), a group becomes a collapsible section. Staff see the group's children stacked underneath one another. Once they've worked through them, they can fold the section away and move on.

Delete a group

Tap the red trash icon in the group header. The group is removed straight away.

Heads up: deleting a group also deletes every step inside it. If you want to keep those steps, drag them out of the group onto the main canvas first, then delete the empty group.

Tips

Use groups for sections of a workflow that belong together logically — for example, opening checks, mid-shift checks, closing checks. Staff find a long flat list of 20 elements much harder to scan than three groups of 6-7 elements.
Nesting groups inside groups works, but try not to go more than one level deep. Staff get lost in deeply nested sections on a small screen.
The Preview this group button is the fastest way to sense-check a group's flow without running the full workflow.
Deleting a group takes its steps with it. If you only meant to move a step elsewhere, drag it out of the group first, then delete the group.

Input elements

Input elements are the steps where staff provide a value — they type, tap, draw, photograph, or record something, and Pilla saves the answer to the workflow run. There are eleven of them, ranging from a basic text box to a freehand sketch pad.

What input elements are

An input element captures something from the person doing the workflow. The value goes into the workflow run and shows up in the run history, exports, and any reports.

Every input element has a Name (what you'll see in reports) and an Instruction (the help text staff see above the input on mobile). The rest of the configuration depends on the element type — for example, a stepper has min, max, and start values; a rating scale has start and end numbers; a cascading select has parent and child options.

All input elements at a glance

Element name	What it does	Plan required	Notes
Text input	Captures a free-text response from staff.	Basic	Good for descriptions, notes, anything open-ended.
Number input	Captures a numeric value.	Basic	Mobile keyboard switches to numeric.
Stepper	Tap +/- buttons to enter a count.	Basic	Better than a number input for small counts where a keyboard is overkill. Configure start value, step size, min and max.
Date & Time input	Captures a date and time.	Basic	Mobile shows a date and time picker.
Location input	Captures the user's GPS location.	Basic	Useful for site visits or proof-of-presence.
Photo input	Requires staff to take a photo.	Standard	Opens the camera on mobile.
File input	Requires staff to upload a file.	Standard	Any file type.
Signature input	Captures a finger-drawn signature on a blank pad.	Standard	Use for sign-offs, deliveries, compliance attestations.
Voice note input	Records a short audio clip.	Standard	Good for observations staff can't easily type.
Sketch pad input	Lets staff draw freehand on a blank canvas.	Standard	Useful for hazard maps, room layouts, rough diagrams.
Annotated photo input	Staff take a photo, then draw arrows, circles, or labels on it.	Standard	Good for damage reports or highlighting issues.

On the canvas left toolbar these eleven are split across two flyouts. Inputs holds text input, number input, stepper, date & time input, and location input. Media holds photo input, file input, signature input, voice note input, sketch pad input, and annotated photo input. Both flyouts show a divider between the free and paid elements, so if you're looking for Photo or Signature, open Media rather than Inputs.

Common configuration

Every input element shows the same two fields at the top of its config card:

Input name (text, required) -- the label that appears in run history, exports, and reports.
Instructions (textarea, required) -- the help text staff see above the input on their phone. Use this to tell them what "good" looks like, what to include, or any rules.

There's also a Mandatory toggle at the top right of the name field. Turn it on and staff can't complete the workflow without filling in this step.

Per-element configuration

Stepper -- four extra fields:

Start at (number, optional) -- the initial value shown to staff. Defaults to 0.
Step (number, optional) -- how much each tap changes the value. Defaults to 1.
Min (number, optional) -- lower bound. Blank means no minimum.
Max (number, optional) -- upper bound. Blank means no maximum.

If you set a min above the current start value, Pilla bumps the start up to match. Same for max — if you set it below the start, the start drops.

Photo input, file input, voice note, sketch pad, annotated photo -- no extra fields. The input itself opens on mobile when staff get to the step.

Signature input -- no extra fields. A blank signature pad appears on mobile.

Date & Time input -- no extra fields. Mobile shows a combined date and time picker.

Location input -- no extra fields. Mobile asks for location permission and captures GPS coordinates.

Text input, number input -- no extra fields beyond name, instructions, and mandatory.

How plan locks show up

When you open the element picker (either from the left toolbar, the empty-group prompt, or the plus menu below a node), elements you can't add show a small lock icon in the bottom-right corner. Hover the icon and the tooltip tells you which plan you'd need to upgrade to.

Tips

Use the Instruction field to remove ambiguity. "Take a photo of the area" is much weaker than "Take a wide-angle photo showing the whole prep bench, with the floor visible at the bottom of the frame".
Reach for a stepper when staff need to count something small (1-20 trays, 0-10 customers). It's faster than typing and fewer mis-taps.
A sketch pad beats a text description when staff need to show where something is — a hazard, a damaged area, a layout.
An annotated photo is the strongest evidence you can capture. Use it for damage reports, before-and-after checks, and incidents.
Date and time, location, and signature inputs all create solid audit trails. Use them anywhere you need proof of when, where, or who.

Choice elements

Choice elements are the steps where staff pick from a set of options you've defined. There are five of them — a checklist of items to tick off, a single-choice picker, a multi-choice picker, a rating scale, and a cascading select.

What choice elements are

A choice element shows staff a list (or scale) of pre-defined options. Staff pick one, several, or work through them. The picked option (or options) go into the workflow run.

You set up the options when you build the workflow template. Staff can't add new ones at the moment they fill it in — they pick from what you've defined.

All choice elements at a glance

Element name	What it does	Plan required	Notes
Checklist	Staff tick off a list of items one by one.	Basic	Each item has its own check state. Good for "did you do all of these" sequences.
Single choice input	Staff pick one option from a list.	Basic	Radio-style picker.
Multi choice input	Staff pick one or more options from a list.	Basic	Multiple selections allowed.
Rating scale	Staff pick a value from a numeric scale.	Basic	Configure start and end (any range between 1 and 10). Auto-generates the buttons.
Cascading select	Two linked dropdowns — the child options depend on the parent choice.	Basic	Good for hierarchical lists like region then site, or category then sub-category.

Common configuration

Every choice element shows the same two fields at the top of its config card:

Input name (text, required) -- the label that appears in run history, exports, and reports.
Instructions (textarea, required) -- the help text staff see above the picker on their phone.

There's also a Mandatory toggle. Turn it on and staff can't complete the workflow without picking something.

Per-element configuration

Checklist -- you add items one at a time:

Add an item in the Add item box and press Enter (or tap the plus icon).
Each item shows up in the list with its own check state. Staff tick each one off on mobile.
Remove an item with the red X.

Single choice input -- you add the options staff can pick from:

Add an option in the Add option box and press Enter.
Staff see them as radio buttons on mobile and tap one.

Multi choice input -- same option setup as single choice, but staff can pick more than one.

Rating scale -- two fields:

Start (number, required) -- the lowest value on the scale.
End (number, required) -- the highest value on the scale.

Start and end must both be between 1 and 10, and end must be greater than start. Pilla auto-generates a row of tap buttons for every whole number in the range — so a 1 to 5 scale gives you 1, 2, 3, 4, 5.

Cascading select -- you build a two-level tree:

Add a parent option in the Add parent option box.
For each parent, add child options underneath using the Add child box.
On mobile, staff pick a parent first. The child dropdown then only shows the children of that parent.

Use cascading selects when one choice naturally drives the next — region then site, department then station, category then sub-category.

How plan locks show up

All five choice elements are available on every plan. You won't see a lock icon on any of them in the element picker.

Tips

A checklist is the right shape when staff need to confirm they did several things in sequence. A multi choice is the right shape when they pick a subset from a known list.
For a rating scale, 1 to 5 is fastest on mobile (less scrolling). 1 to 10 gives you finer-grained data but takes longer to fill in.
A rating scale only shows numbers, with no wording under the buttons. If staff need to know what each number means, spell it out in the Instructions field — for example, "1 = unusable, 5 = perfect" — so everyone grades the same way.
Cascading selects keep long lists manageable. If you have 50 sites across 5 regions, splitting them into region then site means staff only see 5 options first, then 10 or so.
Keep choice element option lists short on mobile. More than about 8 options and staff start scrolling — consider splitting into a cascading select or using a different element type.

Guidance elements

Guidance elements give staff context inside a workflow — written notes, a reference photo, or a short video walkthrough. They don't capture a response. Staff read or watch them, then move on to the next step.

What guidance elements are

A guidance element is a read-only step. Staff see it, learn from it, scroll past it. Nothing is saved to the workflow run because there's no input to save.

Use them to set context before a tricky step, show staff what "good" looks like, or embed training material directly inside the workflow they're filling in.

All guidance elements at a glance

Element name	What it does	Plan required	Notes
Written guidance	Shows staff a rich-text note (formatting, links).	Basic	Use for safety instructions, context, reminders.
Photo guidance	Shows staff a reference image.	Standard	Use to show what "good" looks like — a clean prep bench, a correctly stocked shelf.
Video guidance	Shows staff a short video walkthrough.	Standard	Use for training clips or process demos.

Common configuration

Guidance elements don't have a Name or Instructions field — they're not capturing data, so there's nothing to label in reports. The content of the guidance is the whole point.

Each type has its own single content field:

Written guidance -- a rich-text editor where you write the body. Supports basic formatting and links.
Photo guidance -- an upload button. Tap Upload photo and pick an image file. You can replace or remove it with the red X.
Video guidance -- an upload button. Tap Upload video and pick a video file. You can replace or remove it the same way.

Both photo and video guidance lock unless you're on Standard or higher. The element shows a small lock icon in the picker when your plan doesn't include them.

How guidance renders on mobile

Guidance elements appear in line with the rest of the workflow, full-width on the screen. Staff scroll through them like any other step — the difference is there's nothing to tap, type, or record. They just read or watch and move on.

If you put guidance just before an input or choice element, staff see the guidance first, then the input below it. That's the most common pattern: explain, then ask.

Use cases

Pre-task safety instructions -- a written guidance block at the start of a workflow that lists the PPE staff need, or the hazards to watch for.
Reference photo -- a photo guidance element showing what a finished prep bench should look like, just before the "take a photo of your bench" step.
Training video -- a short video guidance element before a process step staff don't do often, like a deep clean or an equipment changeover.
Context for the next question -- a written guidance block that explains why the next rating-scale or choice element matters.

Tips

Keep written guidance short. Staff on a phone won't scroll through paragraphs. Aim for a couple of sentences, or a short bulleted list.
Use photo guidance to anchor expectations. "Clean to this standard" with a photo is far stronger than "clean thoroughly".
Keep video guidance under 60 seconds wherever you can. Long videos kill momentum during a shift.
Pair guidance with the input that comes next. A photo guidance showing "what good looks like", followed by a photo input asking staff to capture their version, is one of the strongest patterns in Pilla.
Guidance elements don't show up in exports or reports — they only live on the canvas and the mobile flow. If you need staff to confirm they read something, use a checklist or single-choice element after the guidance.