Using the Workflow for Approval - Examples

The following gives some examples of using the FYI workflow functions. These examples show:

• Creating a document that is sent for approval. There are two users in the example workflow.
• Creating an email that is sent for approval, with two users in the example workflow. This also gives an example of how to review any attachments in the email.
• Setting the Workflow on a Phone Call, File Note or Meeting to lock the details.

Creating a Document that is Sent for Approval

This example has two users in the workflow. It shows a document that is created by one user (for example, a junior) and sent for approval (for example, to a manager or a partner). The Approver checks it, approves it and sends it. The email displays the "Sender" as the user that clicked the Send button, in this case, the Approver. 

User Creates Document

1. The user creates a new Word document.
   
   
   
   
2. The user edits the document as needed, closes the document and clicks I am finished editing.
   
   
3. In the FYI drawer, the user sets the Workflow Status as "Pending Approval" and selects the person to assign as the Approver. The user creating the document is set as the Owner and this can be changed if required by selecting a different user (for example, the manager or partner). 
   
   
   
   The document is now locked and the user who created it cannot make any further changes. It displays with the Locked (the padlock) icon for all users apart from a user with an Approval Level of "Approver"
   
   
   
   Hovering over the Locked icon displays details of why the document is read-only, for example, "Read Only as workflow status is Pending Approval", "Read Only as workflow status is Completed", etc.
   
   

Approver Checks and Approves the Document

1. The Approver sees the document in their Home - My Approvals.
   
   
   
   
2. The document can be checked using the Preview pane.
   
   
   
   
3. If needed, the document can be edited to make any changes.
   
   
4. When ready to approve, from the Home - My Approvals, or from the Preview pane, the Approver clicks the Approved button to approve the document. This changes the Status to "Approved" and the document cannot be changed. The Approver can then send the email, which then shows that user as the sender.
   
   A Comment is created automatically and pre-filled with a message that the document has been approved. The Comment includes the name of the user making the approval and the name of the Owner (that is, the person who created the document). The Approver can click the Comment button to send the notification to the Owner that the document has been approved.
   
   The document is removed from the Approver's My Approvals and the next document in My Approvals is opened, ready to check.

Note: If needed, Comments or Tasks can be added. These can be added, for example, to let a user know that the document can be emailed to the client. A Task or Comment is added using the drawer. When doing this from My Approvals, add these before clicking Approved.

Requesting Changes

If any changes are needed, the Approver can optionally add any Comments or add a Task to the document and then set the Status to "Changes Requested". A Comment is created automatically and pre-filled with a message that changes have been requested and includes the name of the user requesting changes and the name of the Owner to send the Comment to. You can add additional information to the comment text. Click the Comment button to send it. 

Note: When setting the Status to "Changes Requested", the document will no longer be included in your My Approvals.

Creating an Email that is Sent for Approval

Creating and sending an Email for Approval

Creating an email as a draft that is sent for approval would follow the same steps as above.

Note: To use the FYI Workflow, the email must be created in FYI and set to "Draft in FYI". Emails sent to Outlook via Draft in Outlook will be marked as "Sent" in FYI and the Workflow Status will be set to "Completed".

1. The first user creates the email. This needs to be created as Draft in FYI.
   When an email is created in FYI, the workflow Status is initially set as "Not Started".
2. Set the Status as "Pending Approval" and select the name of the Approver to send the email for approval.
3. The Approver checks the email (from their Home - My Approvals). 
4. If needed, the email can be edited.
5. If the email is ready to approve and send, it can be sent directly from the Preview pane by clicking Send
   
   Sending an email that is "Pending Approval" will automatically mark it as "Approved". The email is removed from the Approver's My Approvals list.

Attachments in Emails Sent for Approval

Attachments can be added to the Draft in FYI email that is sent for approval (refer to Adding Attachments to an Email in FYI). When it includes attachments, you see the Attachments icon next to the email in the list.

Before sending or approving, in the drawer, expand the Attachments section.

You can open an attachment by clicking the Open icon. This opens the email or document in a new tab in your browser and displays it in the Preview pane. From the preview, you can make changes to the document. This updates what is sent as an attachment.

To remove one or more attachments from the draft email, select them in the Attachments section and click Remove.

Setting the Workflow on a Phone Call, File Note or Meeting to Lock the Details

You can also use the Workflow for Phone Calls, File Notes or Meetings.

Setting the Workflow Status to "Completed", "Approved", "Pending Client Signature" or "Client Signed" for a Phone Call, File Note or Meeting will lock the details so these cannot be changed.