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Learning Objectives:
1. Summarize how to create approval rules at the portfolio and workspace level.
2. Explain how to add an approval stage to an approval rule.
3. Recall how to customize workspace approvers for an approval stage.
Video Script
Welcome to the Accounts Payable: Creating Approval Rules & Stages overview. In this video we will demonstrate how to create approval rules and stages at both the portfolio and workspace level.
To get started, select Setup from the welcome menu. Then, select Accounts Payable from the main menu followed by the Approval Rules tab. This will open the invoice approval rules for your portfolio.
Under the Approval Rules tab, you can create approval rules and approval stages for vendor invoices. These rules will apply to all the workspaces in your portfolio. If your workspace is part of a portfolio, approval rules and stages can only be created at the portfolio level. If your workspace is not part of a portfolio, you can create approvals rules and stages at the workspace level.
To create an approval rule, select New Approval Rule. Then, enter a lower limit and upper limit amount for the rule. Any invoices that fall within this price range will be subject to this rule. Then, determine if the rule requires approval.
If the rule does require approval, select the approval type, either Single Approver, meaning one person must approve the invoice at each stage or Multiple Approvers, meaning multiple people must approve the invoice at each stage. Once completed, click Save. The rule has now been created.
Next, add an approval stage to the rule by selecting Add New Approval Stage. Then, enter a name for the approval stage and select the user group responsible for the approval. Only user groups with accounts payable permissions will be listed in this section. Once completed, click Save. You will now see the new approval stage. Continue this process until all the approval stages have been created.
To change the order of the approval stages, click the arrow beside the stage name. To revise a stage, select Edit and to remove a stage, select Delete.
You can then customize the workspace approvers for an approval stage by returning to the approval rules page and selecting the edit icon beside the workspace name. Next, select the edit icon beside the applicable rule followed by the edit icon beside the applicable stage. You can then select specific users from the designated user group for the approval stage. Click Save to finalize your changes.
Return to the workspace approval rules page to continue this process. From this page you can also create a workspace specific approval rule by selecting New Approval Rule. Ensure your workspace approval rules do not overlap with the values set out in your portfolio level rules.
To view the approval rules at the workspace level, select Exit Setup and login to the applicable workspace. Then, select Setup from the welcome menu followed by Accounts Payable from the main menu. Here you will see a list of the approval rules created at the portfolio level. Click the view icon to review the rule details. Then, select the edit icon beside an approval stage to see the approval group and approval users.
If your workspace is not connected to a portfolio, you will have the option to add approval rules from the accounts payable setup page. To do so, select Add New Approval Rule. Like before, enter the lower limit and upper limit for the rule and determine if the rule requires approval. If so, select the appropriate approval type from the drop-down menu and click Save.
Then, if applicable, add approval stages to the approval rule. Select Add New Approval Stage and enter a name for the approval stage. Next, select the approval group and customize the list of approval users. Once completed, click Save. Continue this process until all the approval stages have been created.
To review an approval rule, return to the approval rules page and select View. To revise an approval rule, select Edit. And to remove an approval rule, select Delete.
This concludes the Accounts Payable: Creating Approval Rules & Stages overview. For more information on the Accounts Payable feature, please refer to our user guides.