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How to Set Up an Approval Workflow

This guide will help you set up an approval workflow in Precoro, including steps to add approvers, customize thresholds, and manage direct manager approval.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

How to Build an Approval Workflow Step-by-Step

When setting up an approval workflow, there are several key factors to define:

  • The types of documents that need approval.

  • Rules that impact the approval process, such as departments or projects.

  • The number of steps required to approve these documents.

  • The approval hierarchy to follow.

  • The people responsible for approving each stage.

Now, let’s explore how to build this process in more detail.

Step 1: Decide What Rules Should Impact the Approvals

To effectively set up the Approval Workflow in Precoro, it’s essential to define the key variables that will impact the approval process. Here are the common ones:

  • Departments
  • Projects
  • Locations
  • Threshold

Here is how to set up rules for Departments, Projects, Locations, or other criteria in the approval workflow:

  1. Go to Configurations and select Custom Fields for Documents.
  2. Click Add Field in the top right corner.
  3. Complete the required information and select the document types for which the field will be available.
  4. Check the Available in Approval Workflow checkbox to enable the field for use in the workflow.
  5. Press Update to save the changes.

Creating custom fields-1

Once these steps are complete, the custom field will be available for selection in the approval workflow for the specific documents you have chosen. 

Step 2: Configure Approval Steps

After defining document types and approval rules, determine the number of approval stages for each. Simple purchases may need 1-2 steps, while high-value or sensitive ones could require more, like finance and executive reviews.

To create approval steps:

  1. Go to Configurations → Approval Workflow, and choose the document type you want to create the approval workflow for.
  2. Once on the Approval Steps page, click Create New Step.
  3. Name the approval step and click Create. You can add multiple steps.

Step 3: Assign People Responsible for Each Approval Step

💡 To set users as Approvers, ensure they have the necessary role for the document and access to locations and custom fields. Approval roles, locations, and custom fields can be assigned on the User Management page. For more details on user roles, click here.

To add an approver:

  1. In the approval step, click the add button.
  2. From the drop-down list, select the user to be the approver.
  3. If needed, assign the same approver to multiple steps in the workflow.
  4. Set custom approval thresholds by clicking Customize Threshold. For instance, an approver may manage all purchases within the Administration department, while also approving purchases over $10,000 in the Finance department.

You can customize the approval workflow by assigning specific approvers to individual requesters. More about this feature in the next section.

How to Enable Approvals from My Direct Manager

Direct Manager Approval lets companies assign specific approvers to individual requesters. This functionality is particularly beneficial for ensuring that approvals come directly from the appropriate managers.

To activate the Direct Manager Approval feature:

  1. Go to Configurations → Basic Settings → Approval → Direct Manager Approval and enable the setting.
  2. Go to the Approval Workflow page and add or edit an approver.
  3. Select users from the Document Initiator list. You can filter Document Initiators by Creators Only (users with creation-only roles for documents) and Approvers (users who have permission to approve documents).
  4. Customize Threshold, Locations, and Custom Field settings as needed, and save changes.

You can also activate All Document Requesters to automatically assign new users for approval from this particular manager.

💡Please note:

  • Reapproval is triggered if the document creator changes.
  • The Parallel Workflow works as usual with the Direct Manager Approval feature.
  • Super Users can still approve documents with direct manager approval.

How to Ensure Approval Review for Documents That Skip Approval Workflows

To ensure proper oversight of documents, we’ve introduced the Approval Review feature, which automatically triggers a review when a document bypasses the usual workflow. Documents may skip the standard approval process due to the following factors:

  • The approval workflow does not include the selected options in the Custom Fields for Documents (such as Location, Requester, or Threshold).
  • Approvers don't have access to certain Document Custom Fields.

To set up the approval review feature:

  1. Go to Configuration → Basic Settings → Approval.
  2. Enable "Approval Review If the Usual Workflow Was Not Applied."
  3. Define the document total threshold for triggering the approval review. You can choose from options like Any, Less or equal, From, or From To. For example, to auto-approve documents under $100 and review those $100 and above, choose From $100.
  4. Click save to apply the settings.

Approval Review-1

How it will work with the feature activated:

  • Documents that bypass standard approval will receive the "Approval Review" status and move to the review step. Administrators can examine why the approval was bypassed, adjust the workflow, return it to the initiator, or submit it for approval.
  • Email notifications will automatically be sent to the relevant users, notifying them of the documents that need review. You can deactivate “Notification about Approval Review” in Email Preferences.
  • Documents in Approval Review will appear in the Approval Review infocard (available for Configurators), making it easy to filter and process them.

How to Activate Auto-Approval for Recurring Documents

Effortlessly handle recurring documents with the feature that automatically approves future POs and invoices when the original document is approved.

To set it up:

  1. Go to Configurations → Approval and enable the Auto-Approve Subsequent Recurring Documents feature.
  2. Set a condition for automatic approval based on the document’s total amount. Options include Any, Less or Equal, From, or From To. 
  3. Save your settings.

Auto-approve-2

With this setup, any recurring POs or invoices will be automatically approved if the original document was approved. The approval steps from the original document will be visible, with a note saying, “Document was automatically approved as it is Recurring.”

💡 Please note that adding new approval steps or making significant changes (e.g., to Total or Budget) will require re-approval of that document. Subsequent documents created from this will not require additional approval and will be automatically approved. Additionally, if the document is altered by a Super User, it won't require a re-approval.

How to Set Up the Overbudget Approval Step

Address the challenge of unregulated budget spending and budget overruns with an additional approval step for expenses that exceed the budget.

How to activate the overbudget approval feature:

  1. Navigate to the Basic Settings → Approval tab.
  2. Check the Overbudget Approval option. Note that this setting is visible only if you company has activated the Budget module.
  3. Once activated, head over to the document approval workflow page. Here, either create a new approval step or update an existing one by checking the Overbudget Approval box. The step will become active only for transactions that exceed the budget.

💡 Please note that the Overbudget Approval setting can only be activated for PRs and expenses if budgets are enabled for those specific documents under Configuration → Basic Settings → Document Setup → Budgets.

 

How to Enable Auto-Approval of POs and Invoices with Related Documents

Ensure your financial operations proceed without unnecessary delays by removing approval requirements for invoices generated from POs and POs generated from PRs when related documents have already been approved.

To enable these features, navigate to the Basic Settings → Approval tab and mark either the Auto-Approve POs from Requisitions, or Auto-Approve PO-Backed Invoices checkbox, or both if needed.

auto-approve documents-1

Here is how it works:

  • Auto-Approve POs from Requisitions: Activating this setting allows POs that are directly generated from approved PRs to automatically bypass additional approvals. However, re-approval will be triggered if there are discrepancies in total cost or item count, new items are added, or if there are differences in Location or Custom Fields. Changes to the PO’s budget or item custom fields affecting the budget line will also necessitate re-approval, unless at least one PR’s budget line is correctly selected.
  • Auto-Approve PO-Backed Invoices: This setting allows invoices generated from POs to bypass the usual approval process, automatically marking them as approved once confirmed. However, if the invoice amount doesn’t match the one of the PO, then the matching will be triggered. Please see the cases in which you can trigger the invoice to PO matching here. 

Frequently Asked Questions

How can I set up auto-approval for documents that I created and am responsible for approving?

Auto-approval lets documents automatically pass through all previous approval stages if you are both the creator and an approver of the document. To set it up:

  1. Navigate to Configuration.
  2. Go to Basic Settings, then select Approval.
  3. Check the box for Allow Documents Auto-Approval.
  4. Click Save to apply the changes.

With this setting activated, if an approver triggers re-approval, it will start from the current step, with previous ones completed automatically.

Please note that enabling this feature will activate auto-approval for all documents and approvers across your organization.

How do I update the existing approval workflow?

You can easily make changes to your current Approval Workflow. For detailed instructions, check out this article.

How do I remove a user from the approval workflow?

To remove a user from the Approval Workflow, select the workflow and click the cross in the upper right corner if there are no pending documents. You can also deactivate the user from the User Management page. For more details, see this article.

How can I check revision history in the approval workflow?

You can view and compare changes in the Approval Workflow by using the Revision History button, available for all approval documents. To use this feature:

  1. Click the Revision History button at any approval step.
  2. Mark two revisions you want to compare.
  3. Press the Compare Revisions button at the bottom.
You can also check the last update date in the top right corner of the Approver card.
How do I create a parallel approval workflow?

For detailed instructions on building a parallel approval workflow, please refer to this article.