Learn how to streamline your approval workflows, leveraging the power of your existing productivity environment and tools we all know and love — Gmail, Google Sheets, Google Forms and Docs.
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What Are Approval Workflows
In today’s fast-paced business environment, time is of the essence, and it is critical to complete tasks accurately and quickly. One area where businesses can benefit from increased efficiency is in their approval workflow. Approval workflows are the processes that organizations use to approve requests, such as purchase orders, time off requests, or expense reports. The are in general a part of every company’s document and workflow management system.
Manual approval workflows can be time-consuming and error-prone, leading to delays and mistakes that can harm productivity and profitability. To address these challenges, approval workflows automation is essential for businesses.
Benefits Of Automating Approval Workflows
Here are a few reasons why automating approval workflows is so crucial:
Speed up approval processes
Manual approval workflows can be slow, with requests getting stuck in limbo as they wait for someone to review and approve them. Automation speeds up the approval process, allowing requests to be reviewed and approved more quickly, improving efficiency and productivity.
Reduce errors
Automating approval workflows can significantly reduce the risk of human error. Automated workflows ensure that all requests are processed according to the same rules, minimizing the risk of mistakes, oversights, or discrepancies.
Increase transparency
Automation can provide greater transparency into approval workflows, making it easier for team members to track the status of requests and identify any bottlenecks or issues that need to be addressed. This can lead to better communication, collaboration, and problem-solving, which are essential for effective teamwork.
Save time and resources
Manual approval workflows can be time-consuming, requiring employees to spend significant amounts of time reviewing and processing requests. Automating these workflows can free up employees’ time, allowing them to focus on more high-value tasks that require their expertise.
Enhance compliance
Automated approval workflows can help organizations comply with regulatory requirements and internal policies. They can be designed to ensure that all requests are processed according to established rules and standards, reducing the risk of non-compliance and associated penalties.
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Automated Approval Workflow Example
Imagine you are working for a large multinational corporation, and your team is responsible for approving significant capital expenditures. Your company has strict approval processes in place to ensure that all requests are thoroughly reviewed before they are approved.
In this scenario, a multi-level approval workflow is essential to ensure that all requests go through the proper channels and are reviewed by the appropriate stakeholders. Let’s say a department head submits a request for a new software system, which would cost over $50,000. The approval workflow for this request might look something like this:
- The request is automatically routed to the department manager, who reviews the request and either approves or denies it.
- If the department manager approves the request, it is then sent to the finance department for review.
- The finance department conducts a cost-benefit analysis to ensure that the requested software system is a sound investment for the company.
- If the finance department approves the request, it is then sent to the IT department for technical review.
- The IT department evaluates the software system to ensure that it is compatible with existing systems and can be properly integrated.
- If the IT department approves the request, it is then sent to the procurement department for vendor selection and contract negotiation.
- Finally, the procurement department approves the request and begins the process of purchasing and implementing the software system.
As you can see, this multi-level approval workflow involves several different departments and stakeholders, each with its unique responsibilities and areas of expertise. By automating this process, companies can ensure that each step of the workflow is completed efficiently and accurately, reducing the risk of errors, delays, and miscommunications. In this way, approval workflows can be a powerful tool for streamlining business operations and ensuring that all requests are thoroughly reviewed and approved before being implemented.
Approval Workflow Automation Strategy
Step 1: Define your approval process
The first step in building your own approval workflow is to define the process. It is essential to define the approval process clearly to ensure that everyone involved understands their role and responsibilities.
For example, suppose you want to create an approval workflow for employee leave requests. In that case, you will need to define who will approve the requests, what information the employee must provide, and the conditions that must be met for approval to be granted. You can create such a scheme for your process just by writing all the steps the same way shown in the previous capital expenditures approval process or just by even drawing a flowchart.
Step 2: Use Google Forms to gather information
The next step is to use Google Forms to gather the necessary information. In the employee leave request example, you can create a form that collects the employee’s name, the dates of the leave, the reason for the leave, and any other relevant information.
Here is the form we use for the leave requests at Zenphi:
Step 3: Use Google Sheets to track the approval process
After the form is submitted, the next step is to use Google Sheets to track the approval process. You can create a Google Sheet that lists all the leave requests submitted, the status of each request, and the names of the individuals who need to approve the request. You can also use conditional formatting to highlight requests that require immediate attention or are overdue.
Step 4: Use zenphi to power up the workflow
The final step is to use Zenpi, the leading workflow automation for Google solution, to automate the approval workflows. With Zenphi, the whole process takes 5-7 minutes to build.
Create a Trigger
Start with creating a trigger that will kickstart your flow — a From submission.
Asign a Task
Now, we need to add an approval task step. The best way to create approval workflows is with the “Assign task” action.
Add "If Condition"
The next step of our Flow could be the “If condition” action. This action is very useful when you’re creating conditional branches based on a value. This time, our value would be task response. Let’s say the assignee approves the request. Then, we add the Google Sheet Row accordingly and send the email to the requester. Otherwise, we’ll add another row to Google Sheets, and send the rejection email to the requester.
Customize your approval workflow with ease
Of course, your approval process may differ, and zenphi is able to provide you with the tools for creating workflows at all difficulty levels.
For example, with logical actions like “State machine”, “Switch by value”, and more, you can create multiple branches with advanced conditions
Moreover, you can extend the Leave Request process and add Google Calendar or Auto-reply email for the employee on leave, and much more! Watch this video tutorial on how to automate one of the approval workflows end-to-end: from submitting a leave request to setting an automated auto-reply emails for the employee on leave.
Video Tutorial: How To Automate Leave Request Approvals From Submitting A Request To Setting An Auto-reply
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