Approval rules
Open in the demoDecide which documents need sign-off, when, and who approves them, in up to five levels.
Open Productivity Rules and select Approval rules. Changing rules needs an Owner or Admin. Items waiting for sign-off are in Productivity Inbox.
Rules and Inbox are two apps. Rules holds how the business behaves: the approval rules, and the advance rule. Inbox is the list of what is waiting for someone. Inbox needs Rules; with Inbox uninstalled, requests can still be approved on each document's own page.
What can need approval
| Type | Default rule |
|---|---|
| Quotes | 1,000,000 or more, or any discount |
| Sales orders | 2,000,000 or more |
| Sales invoices | 2,000,000 or more |
| Invoice voids | Always |
| Credit notes, debit notes | 500,000 or more, including VAT |
| Recurring invoice templates | Always |
| Purchase orders | 500,000 or more, excluding VAT |
| Bills | Always an Owner or Admin; then an Owner as well at 5,000,000 or more |
| Bill payments & batches | 3,000,000 or more |
| Bank transfers | 3,000,000 or more |
| Manual journals | 500,000 or more, by an Owner, Admin or Manager |
| Expense claims, pay runs, leave requests | Always |
| VAT return filing, period unlock, supplier bank details | Always |
Amounts are in your base currency. Unless noted, the approvers are Owners and Admins. Restore defaults puts every rule back as shown.
How a rule works
A rule is a list of levels. Each level says when it applies and who can approve it.
- An item needs approval when at least one level applies. A level with no conditions always applies.
- The levels that apply are signed in order, each by a different person.
- Nothing is posted to the ledger until the last level signs.
- Items that don't meet any level go straight through and show as "Auto-approved".
The rule's page
- The Rule card at the top reads the whole rule back in words and holds the On / Off switch. While a rule is off its levels are kept, and a note at the top of the page says so.
- Under it, the levels are a table in their order: number, When and Approved by. The arrows at the end of a row move a level up or down.
- Select a level to open it and change its conditions and approvers, then Save. Add level is at the top right (up to five), and Remove is inside the level.
- Each change is saved as you make it; the page has no Save of its own.
Conditions
| Condition | Options |
|---|---|
| Amount | is greater than, is greater than or equal to, is less than, is less than or equal to, is equal to, is between |
| Discount given | The item has any discount. |
| Entity | is / is not one of the chosen companies |
| Customer or supplier | is / is not one of the chosen contacts |
| Account | is / is not one of the chosen accounts |
With several conditions, choose whether the level applies when All of these or Any of these are true.
Approvers
Under Approved by, pick roles, named people, or both. Any one of them can sign that level.
Approving your own items
Allow people to approve items they submitted is off by default. Leave it off to keep the person who prepares an item separate from the person who approves it.
Watch for gaps. If a rule has more levels than there are different people who could sign them, items can get stuck. Entirova shows a warning at the top of the rule when that happens.
Approving items
Open Productivity Inbox. The views are All pending, Awaiting me, Submitted by me and History.
- Approve level N signs the next level.
- Reject sends it back. A comment is required.
- Recall lets the person who submitted it take it back.
If you can't approve an item, Entirova tells you why, for example that you submitted it, or already signed an earlier level.