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Approval Workflows

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APPROVAL WORKFLOWS

The Approval form field allows a form to be passed to a specific user for approval. One or more users can be specified in a number of steps. This functionality is very helpful when using InForm in conjunction with business processes.

The approval form field allows for additional users to be added as part of a workflow approval process.

A particular user can be set to always have to sign off on every form (for example if the form is a plant pre-start the same plant manager may need to approve every form). Or it can be set so the original person creating the form can select a different approver each time. A signature box is automatically included.

Configuring Approval Workflows

To set an approver workflow, from the Edit Form page:

  1. Select the approval form field to add to the form

     

  2. Edit the field accordingly

    1. In this example, the sign off is:

      1. mandatory (required)

      2. any user can approve (the form creator will need to select the approver / their manager)

      3. no conditional display is applied

         

    2. In this example:

      1. when completing the form, the original creator will need to select their manager from the drop down list

      2. once save, the selected manager will become the respondent of the form and receive a notification

      3. the original creator's name will be visible at the top of the form

      4. the original creator of the form will no longer be able to view the form if they only have the Form Records - Create and Edit (if Respondent) privilege as part of their Lucidity Access permissions (this means they can only see the form records they are listed as the current respondent)

  3. If an additional approver is required, add an additional approval form field and edit accordingly

    1. In this example, the sign off is:

      1. mandatory (required)

      2. only Dan Brown (the HR Manager) can approve the form

      3. conditional display is applied - this approval form field will only display when the previous has been signed

         

    2. in this example:

      1. when completing the form, the approving manager will need to sign the signature box in order for the HR Approver field to display

      2. the approving manager will not be able to select the next approver, it is preset to Dan Brown

      3. once save, Dan Brown will become the respondent of the form and receive a notification

      4. the original creator's name will be visible at the top of the form

      5. the approving managers name will be listed as part of the first approver form field

      6. the original creator and the approving manager of the form will no longer be able to view the form if they only have the Form Records - Create and Edit (if Respondent) privilege as part of their Lucidity Access permissions (this means they can only see the form records they are listed as the current respondent)

      7. in order for the original creator and the approving manager to view the form, they will need the Form Records - Create and Edit or the Form Records - Create and Edit (if Respondent or Creator).

  4. Refer to the Access user guide for more details on InForm permissions and privileges.

Workflow Order

  1. If there are several approver form fields selected, the workflow and associated changes to respondents and notifications will be based on order they appear in the for (top to bottom), once they have become visible.

    For example, if there are 3 approver form fields that appear in the form in the following order:

  2. Respondent selects

    1. Always Dan Brown

    2. Always Luke Skywalker

  3. The original creator of the form will select the 1st approver, that person will become the respondent and receive the notification. Once they have signed off, Dan Brown will become the respondent and receive the notification. Once they have signed off, Luke Skywalker will become the respondent and receive the notification and so on.

Conditional Display

It is recommended the Approval form field only appears with conditional formatting. This helps to streamline the form as well as ensuring the respondent name on the form is not changed to the approver until the original form creator is ready to pass it on. Conditional functionality is also a very powerful way to trigger different Approvers based on the selections within the form.