Approval structure
Records are automatically converted to approval records when an approval is attached to it.
The approval record consists of:
-
Approval fields (1), which contain the metadata specifically related to an approval.
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The approval document (2) located in the document area (3).
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The actual approval flow (4).
In addition, there may be documents, comments, etc. attached to the approval record.
This means all approval-related information is gathered in one place. Hence, it is possible to simultaneously create approval actions and make document changes.
Changes to the approval flow can be made in the “Approval” tab.
The approval metadata
The approval metadata are displayed at the top of the record and elaborated in the following table.
The following metadata fields are displayed:
| Function | Purpose |
|---|---|
“Title” |
Specifies the title of the record and serves as the approval’s headline. |
“Status” |
Shows the status of the approval. Click on |
“Deadline” |
Specifies the date and time for the final approval. |
“Urgent” |
“Urgent” is displayed after the deadline if the responsible user ticked the box when creating the approval. |
“Type” |
Indicates the type of approval. Depending on the installation, different approval types can be defined when managing the value lists. |
Approval document
The approval document is shown below the metadata fields if it has been selected on the right.
The approval document is separate from the record document and is intended to contain a description of the approval. Text formatting in the approval document is similar to that of the record document. The approval document can contain information for the front page of the approval.
If the record on which the approval is placed is sent as an email, it is the record document that is displayed as the email body. The approval document is not enclosed when the record is sent as an email. The approval document should be regarded as an internal document.
| Users can make changes to the approval document if they have write access to the approval record’s documents. |
Replace approval document
An approval document can be replaced with another approval document by clicking on Replace approval document in either the “New approval flow” dialogue or “Edit approval flow”, depending on whether the user is creating a new approval flow or editing an existing one.
Clicking on Replace approval document opens the “Replace approval document” dialogue, as shown below. Click on the drop-down menu in the dialogue to select a new approval template from the drop-down menu.
| The number of available approval documents may vary between organisations. To make approval documents available to the entire organisation, further configuration in cooperation with cBrain is required. |
Select a new approval document and click on OK. Near the top of the dialogue (“New approval flow” or “Edit approval flow”) a bracketed text informs the user that a new approval document has been selected.
Click on Save at the bottom of the dialogue to replace the approval document.
A warning dialogue opens to inform the user that the current approval document will be overwritten and any changes made to it will be lost.
Click on Yes to overwrite the existing approval document. To cancel this action, click on No.
The record document
Open the record document by selecting it in the right side of the record window.
If an approval was created without a record document, it is possible to create the record document later. This is necessary if the approval record must be sent as an email as it is the record document that will be displayed as the email’s content.
During the configuration of F2 the organisation can decide which options are available when creating approvals without approval documents.
Creating a record document
To create a record document on an approval record, set the record in edit mode. Then click on Create record document on the “Advanced” tab in the record window. The record document is created and can be found below the approval document. This record document can be edited just like any other record document.
| The record document cannot be deleted once it has been created. |
