I am submitting this on behalf of Westinghouse (275k)
Summary
Enable users to open and edit Microsoft Word attachments directly from a Discussion using Edit in Word Online, similar to the existing functionality available for documents in the Documents tab.
Current Behavior
Users can upload Word documents as attachments to a Discussion, but the available actions are limited to previewing or downloading the file. To edit the document in Word Online, users must first move or upload it to the Documents area, where the Edit in Word option is available.
Requested Enhancement
When a Microsoft Word document is attached to a Discussion, provide an Edit in Word Online option alongside the existing attachment actions. This would allow users to open, edit, and save changes directly from the Discussion without requiring the document to exist in the Documents tab.
Business Use Case
The team uses Discussions to manage document review workflows. Review scorecards and other reviewer-specific documents are often attached directly to Discussion threads.
Today, reviewers must:
- Download the attachment.
- Edit it locally.
- Save the file.
- Upload the revised version back into Responsive.
This creates unnecessary manual steps and increases the risk of version confusion.
If Discussion attachments supported Edit in Word Online, reviewers could remain within Responsive while editing documents, providing a much smoother review experience.
Benefits
- Reduces manual download/upload steps.
- Keeps reviewers working within Responsive instead of switching between applications.
- Simplifies document review workflows.
- Improves version control by reducing duplicate local copies.
- Provides a more consistent experience between Documents and Discussions.
- Encourages adoption of Discussion-based review workflows.
Example Workflow
A proposal manager starts a Discussion for a reviewer and attaches a Word scorecard.
Current experience:
- Reviewer downloads the file.
- Makes edits locally.
- Saves a new version.
- Uploads the updated file or emails it back.
Desired experience:
- Reviewer selects Edit in Word Online from the attachment.
- Makes edits in Word Online.
- Changes are automatically saved to the attachment in the Discussion.
- No downloading or re-uploading is required.
Additional Context
During testing, we confirmed that Edit in Word works successfully for Word documents stored in the Documents area. The limitation only exists for files attached within Discussions, making the experience inconsistent across the platform. Enabling the same capability for Discussion attachments would streamline review cycles and reduce friction for end users.
