Sharing Records and Record Visibility

Record visibility determines which users can view, edit, or share records in Salesforce. A clear sharing model protects sensitive data while enabling collaboration across teams. The building blocks are organization-wide defaults, role hierarchy, sharing rules, manual sharing and teams, and object/field permissions. The sections below explain how records are shared and give practical guidance for admins and users who work with Guided Selling.

The building blocks of record visibility

Record access is layered. Each layer adds access, and the most permissive access wins:

1. Organization-wide defaults (OWD) define the baseline access for each object (Private, Public Read Only, Public Read/Write, or Controlled by Parent).
2. Role hierarchy can open access upward, allowing users higher in the hierarchy to see records owned by users below them.
3. Sharing rules extend access automatically based on ownership, criteria, or territory.
4. Manual sharing and teams allow record owners and admins to grant access to specific users or groups.
5. Permission sets and profiles control object- and field-level access, which still applies even if record sharing grants access.

How records are shared

Organization-wide defaults (OWD)

OWD are the starting point. If an object is Private, records are visible only to the owner and users above them in the role hierarchy (if the hierarchy is enabled for that object). Public Read Only or Public Read/Write makes records visible to all users by default.

Role hierarchy

The role hierarchy opens access upward. Managers can see records owned by users below them. The hierarchy does not grant access sideways to peers unless a sharing rule or team is in place.

Sharing rules

Sharing rules extend access beyond the baseline:

• Owner-based rules share records owned by specific users or roles with other users, roles, or public groups.
• Criteria-based rules share records that meet criteria with specific users, roles, or public groups.
• Territory-based rules (if Enterprise Territory Management is enabled) share records based on territories.

Teams and manual sharing

• Account/Opportunity/Case teams allow owners or admins to grant access to specific users for collaboration.
• Manual sharing lets the record owner or admin share an individual record with specific users or groups.

5) Object and field access still apply

Record sharing doesn’t override object permissions or field-level security. Users must have access to the object and fields to view or edit data, even if a record is shared with them.

Common scenarios

“Why can’t I see this record?”

Check access in this order:

1. Object permissions (profile/permission set)
2. Field-level security
3. OWD
4. Role hierarchy (if enabled)
5. Sharing rules, teams, or manual sharing

“Why can’t I edit this record?”

Users may have read access from sharing rules but not edit access. Ensure the sharing rule or team grants the correct access level and that the user has edit permissions on the object and fields.

Best practices

• Start with the most restrictive OWD that still supports your business processes.
• Use role hierarchy for management visibility, not for team collaboration.
• Prefer criteria-based sharing rules for predictable, scalable access.
• Periodically review manual shares and teams to reduce over-sharing.
• Document your sharing model so users know how to request access.
• For Guided Selling rollouts, validate access with a pilot group and confirm that all required records for sequences and templates are visible before enabling features for the broader team.

FAQ

Q: Do sharing rules apply to all objects? A: Only objects that support sharing rules can use them. Some standard objects and most custom objects allow sharing rules, but certain system objects do not.

Q: Does “View All” or “Modify All” ignore sharing? A: Yes. These permissions bypass sharing rules and allow broad access to records within the object.

Q: Can I restrict access for someone higher in the role hierarchy? A: Not with standard sharing. If an object grants access via hierarchy, users higher in the hierarchy can see records owned by users below.