Approvals

Overview

The Approvals module (approval process, document circulation, confirmation) provides a digital approval workflow for company documents. It enables submitting documents for approval to specific employees, tracking the approval progress, and automatically notifying the parties involved. The system supports single-round and two-round approvals with a configurable number of required signatures.

Key Features

Creating approval requests with attachments and custom fields
Single-round or two-round approval process
Configurable number of required signatures for each round
Automatic rejection after the deadline expires
Email notifications to approvers with buttons for direct approval from email
Recording comments and notes for each request
Separate document types with different approval chains and access rights
Data export to Excel and printing

Access and Settings

How to Access the Approvals Module

Navigation path: Main Menu → Approvals

After opening the Approvals module, a panel with document types you have access to is displayed. Clicking on a specific type shows the list of requests for that approval process.

Approvals Module Settings

Configuration of the Approvals module is available via Settings → Approvals. Access to settings requires module administrator permissions. In settings, you manage document types, approval chains, approvers, and user access rights.

Permissions and Access Rights of the Approvals Module

Access rights are set at the level of each document type separately. The administrator assigns rights to individual users or the entire company for each document type.

Permission Level	What the User Can Do
Read	Viewing requests of the given type without the ability to create or approve
Write	Creating new requests; approving and rejecting documents (only for designated approvers)
Delete	Deleting requests and accessing the overview of deleted records
Module Administration	Managing document types, approval chains, and assigning rights to users

Document Types for Approval

What Are Document Types for Approval

Document types in the Approvals module allow you to separate approval processes by content or purpose. Each type has its own group of approvers, number of required signatures, access rights, and optional custom fields. Examples of types: Contracts, Invoices Above Limit, Customer Offers, Investment Requests.

Procedure: Creating a New Document Type for Approval

Creating a new document type in the Approvals module requires module administrator permissions.

Go to Settings → Approvals
Click the Add Type button
Fill in the form:
- Name: Type name (required)
- Description: Detailed description of the type's purpose
- Number of signatures for approval/rejection - Round 1: How many approvers must sign (required)
- Number of signatures for approval/rejection - Round 2: For two-round approval; enter 0 for single-round
- Default values: Preset checkbox values when creating requests of this type
Click Save

Tip: The number of signatures determines how many approvals or rejections are sufficient to close the round. Whichever count is reached first takes effect.

Setting Up Approvers for a Document Type

After creating a document type in the Approvals module, it is necessary to assign approvers for each round. Approvers are users who can approve or reject documents of the given type.

Go to Settings → Approvals
In the types table, click the icon in the Level 1 - Can Approve column
Check the users who have the right to approve in Round 1
Click Save
For two-round approval, repeat the procedure for Level 2 - Can Approve

Setting Up User Access Rights for a Document Type

In the Approvals module settings, access rights can be assigned separately for each document type. Rights can be set either for all users at once (the "All" option) or for specific individuals.

Go to Settings → Approvals
In the table, click the icon in the Rights - Read, Write, or Delete/Restore column
Check the All option for company-wide access, or select specific users
Click Save

Note: The "All" option automatically includes users added to the system in the future.

Setting Up Custom Fields for a Document Type

Each document type in the Approvals module can have up to 5 custom fields (optional fields) for recording specific data, such as contract number, amount, or department. Custom fields are displayed in the form when creating a request and in the overview table.

Go to Settings → Approvals
In the table, click the icon in the Optional Fields column for the given type
For each field, enter:
- Name: Field label
- Type: Select Text/Number (up to 250 characters), Text (unlimited), or Date
Click Save

Fixed fields (always present for each request): Name, Description, Created By, Date and Time of Creation, Approve By, Approved By, Rejected By.

Approvals Module User Interface

Main Screen of the Approvals Module

The main screen of the Approvals module is divided into three parts. At the top, there is a document types panel - horizontal tabs with all types you have access to. Clicking on a type displays an information card with an approval overview (number of rounds, approvers, number of signatures). Below it is the requests table with status filters and action buttons.

Request Status Filters in the Approvals Module

Above the requests table, there are buttons for filtering by status. The number of records in each status is displayed next to the filter name.

Filter	Displayed Records	Availability
All	All requests of the given type regardless of status	Always
Awaiting Approval in Round 1	Requests awaiting a decision in the first round	Always
Awaiting Approval in Round 2	Requests approved in Round 1, awaiting Round 2	Two-round types only
Approved	Finally approved requests	Two-round types only
Rejected	Rejected requests (in Round 1 or Round 2)	Two-round types only

Request Statuses and Their Meaning

In the Approvals module, each request is in one of several statuses depending on how far it is in the approval process.

Status	Description	When It Occurs
Awaiting Approval	The request has not yet been closed	Immediately after creating the request
Approved in Round 1	The required number of approvals in Round 1 has been reached	After approval by a sufficient number of Round 1 approvers
Rejected in Round 1	The required number of rejections in Round 1 has been reached	After rejection or automatic closure
Awaiting Approval in Round 2	Round 1 passed, awaiting the decision of Round 2 approvers	Automatically after Round 1 approval (two-round type)
Approved in Round 2	Finally approved by both rounds	After approval in Round 2
Rejected in Round 2	Rejected in the second round	After rejection in Round 2 or automatic closure

Basic Operations

Procedure: Creating a New Approval Request

Creating an approval request in the Approvals module requires write permission for the given document type.

In the Approvals module, click on the desired document type in the top panel
Click the Add Document button
Fill in the form:
- Name: A brief, descriptive request name (required)
- Description: Detailed information about the request and context
- Approve By: Deadline for approval (default value is +14 days from today)
- Automatically Terminate: Check for automatic rejection after the deadline expires
- Agree/Disagree Even After Approval/Rejection: Allows approvers to express their opinion even after the request is closed (until the "Approve By" date)
- Attachments: Drag and drop files into the Dropzone area or click to select (max. 60 files)
- Custom Fields: Fill in fields specific to the given type, if defined
- Email Information to Approvers: Check to automatically send an email to all approvers after the final decision
Click Save

After saving, the system automatically sends email notifications to all Round 1 approvers with buttons for direct approval or rejection from the email.

Note: The system prevents duplicate submissions - if you have already submitted a request with the same name and description on the same day, a warning will be displayed.

Procedure: Viewing Approval Request Details

The request detail in the Approvals module displays complete information about the request, decision history, and allows approval or rejection.

In the Approvals module, select the document type in the top panel
In the requests table, click on the request name or the eye icon in the Actions column

The request detail contains these sections:

Basic Information: Name, status, created by, creation date, approval deadline, document type, automatic termination
Description: Detailed description of the request
Custom Fields: Values of specific fields for the given type
Attachments: Attached files for download
Notes: Comment history with author and date
Round 1 Approval: "Approved By" and "Rejected By" tables with decision buttons
Round 2 Approval: Displayed only after Round 1 approval for two-round types

Procedure: Approving a Request in the Approvals Module

Approval of a request in the Approvals module can only be performed by users included in the list of approvers for the respective round of the given document type.

Open the request detail (click on the name or the eye icon in the table)
Review the information, description, and attachments of the request
In the Round 1 Approval (or Round 2 Approval) section, click the Approve button
In the dialog window, optionally fill in a Note for your decision
Confirm by clicking the green Approve button

After approval, the system records your name, date, and time of the decision. If the required number of approvals has been reached, the request advances to the next round or is finally closed, and a notification email is sent to the submitter.

Procedure: Rejecting a Request in the Approvals Module

Rejection of a request in the Approvals module can only be performed by users included in the list of approvers for the respective round.

Open the request detail
In the respective approval round section, click the red Reject button
In the dialog window, fill in a Note with the reason for rejection (recommended)
Confirm by clicking Reject

After the required number of rejections is reached, the request is automatically closed as rejected. The submitter receives a notification email.

Procedure: Adding a Note to an Approval Request

Notes in the Approvals module serve as a communication channel between the submitter and approvers. Notes can be added by any user with write permission for the given document type.

Open the request detail in the Approvals module
Go to the Notes section
Click the Add Note button
Write the note text in the Description field
Click Save

The note is immediately displayed in the notes table with your name and the current date and time.

Procedure: Deleting an Approval Request

Deleting a request in the Approvals module requires delete permission for the given document type.

In the requests table, click the Delete icon (red cross) in the Actions column
Confirm the deletion in the confirmation dialog

The deleted request is moved to the deleted archive. Clicking the Deleted button in the upper right corner of the table displays deleted records and allows you to restore them.

Advanced Features

Two-Round Approval in the Approvals Module

Two-round approval in the Approvals module enables a multi-stage approval process where the second round is activated only after successful approval in the first round. This setting is configured at the document type level by entering the number of signatures for Round 2 (a value greater than 0).

Two-round approval process:

The request is created - Round 1 approvers receive an email notification with decision buttons
Round 1 approvers make their decisions (approve or reject)
After the required number of approvals in Round 1 is reached, the system automatically sends a notification to Round 2 approvers
Round 2 approvers make their decisions
After Round 2 is closed, the submitter receives an email with the result

Note: Rejection in Round 1 terminates the entire process - Round 2 does not open. Round 2 approval in the request detail is accessible only when the request has the status "Approved in Round 1".

Automatic Termination of a Request After Deadline Expiry

The automatic termination feature in the Approvals module allows setting undecided requests to be automatically rejected after the "Approve By" deadline expires. You activate this option by checking the Automatically Terminate field when creating a request.

What happens during automatic termination:

The system checks daily for requests with expired deadlines and an active automatic termination option
The request is automatically moved to the "Rejected" status
A note is recorded: "Automatically rejected - deadline expired"
The submitter and (when information sending is enabled) approvers receive a notification email

Tip: If you do not check the "Automatically Terminate" option, the request remains open even after the deadline and approvers can still make their decisions.

Option to Express Opinion After Request Closure

The Agree/Disagree Even After Approval/Rejection option in the Approvals module allows approvers to add their opinions even after the request has been finally closed. This feature serves to map the opinions of all participants without affecting the outcome of the approval process.

Opinions can only be added until the date specified in the Approve By field
Additional opinions do not change the final status of the request
You activate the option when creating the request by checking the respective checkbox

Email Notifications and Approval Directly from Email

The Approvals module automatically sends email notifications at all key moments of the approval process.

Event	Email Recipient	Email Content
Request Creation	Round 1 Approvers	Type, name, description, deadline, attachments + Approve / Reject buttons
Round 1 Approval (two-round type)	Round 2 Approvers	Type, name, description, attachments + Approve / Reject buttons
Final Approval	Submitter + optionally all approvers	Type, name, description, attachments + link to detail
Rejection	Submitter + optionally all approvers	Type, name, description, attachments + link to detail
Automatic Rejection	Submitter + optionally all approvers	Type, name, description + deadline expiry information

Approvers can click directly on the buttons in the email (Approve / Reject) without needing to log into the system. The link is secured with a unique request hash.

Data Export from the Approvals Module

Data from the requests table in the Approvals module can be exported using the buttons above the table:

Excel: Export currently displayed records to XLSX format
Print: Print the table or save to PDF via the browser function
ColVis: Select columns to display in the table and export
SearchBuilder: Advanced data filtering for creating reports

Integration with Other Modules

Approvals Integration with Contracts

The Approvals module is linked with the Contracts (Orders) module. A contract or order can be directly submitted to the approval process without the need to manually re-enter data. The integration ensures traceability of the entire process from document creation through its approval.

Approvals Integration with Incoming Paper Mail

Physical documents received through the Incoming Paper Mail module can be directly submitted to the approval process in the Approvals module.

Register the document in the Incoming Paper Mail module
In the record detail, click Submit to Approval Module
Select the approval process type and fill in the required information
Save - the system creates a request and links it to the original mail record

In the notes of both records (in the mail and in approvals), cross-reference notes are automatically created.

Attachment Management in the Approvals Module via the Files Module

All attachments added to requests in the Approvals module are managed through the Files module. Files are stored in encrypted form outside the web root directory. Access to files is available only to users with the appropriate permissions. Files can be downloaded directly from the request detail by clicking on the file name.

Troubleshooting

The Approve or Reject Button Is Inactive

In the Approvals module, the approval or rejection button may be inactive for the following reasons:

You are not included in the list of approvers for the given round - contact the administrator
You have already approved or rejected the request previously (each approver can decide only once)
The request has already been finally closed (approved or rejected) and the post-closure opinion option is not active
The "Approve By" deadline has expired and the approver is not allowed to express an opinion after the deadline

How to Find Out How Many Signatures Are Still Needed for Approval

In the request detail in the Approvals module, the approval round section displays the information: "X signature(s) are required for approval/rejection. Approval must be completed by [date]." Below this text are the "Approved By" and "Rejected By" tables with the current number of votes. The number of missing votes = required number of signatures - current count.

Approvers Did Not Receive an Email After Request Creation

If approvers did not receive an email notification from the Approvals module, check:

Whether approvers are assigned for Round 1 in the document type settings
Whether the approvers have a valid email address filled in the Employees module
Whether the email ended up in the SPAM folder
Contact the system administrator to check the email server configuration

The Request Cannot Be Edited After Creation

In the Approvals module, a request cannot be directly edited after its creation. This is intentional behavior to preserve the integrity of the approval process. Possible alternatives:

Add a Note with clarification or correction - approvers will see it in the detail
If the request has not yet been closed, delete it (requires delete permission) and create a new, revised version

Tips for Efficient Work with the Approvals Module

Tip: Use descriptive request names - approvers will immediately understand what it is about from the email
Tip: Attach all relevant files directly when creating the request, not later via notes
Tip: Set the approval deadline with sufficient reserve (holidays, approver absences)
Tip: Always fill in a note with the reason when rejecting - the submitter will create a better new request
Tip: Create separate types for different processes - each type can have different approvers and rights
Tip: Use custom fields for key identifiers (contract number, amount, department) - this improves the overview table clarity
Tip: Using the SearchBuilder button in the table, you can create advanced filters for reports on approval processes
Tip: The number of requests awaiting your approval is displayed in the main menu next to the module name

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