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How to use Rules in the Approval System

Learn all about the Rules section of the Approval System, along with creating rules

Marie Claire Saliba avatar
Written by Marie Claire Saliba
Updated this week

Table of Contents

About Rules

The first step to using the Approval System is setting up rules to govern 👨‍⚖️ different type of requests.
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E.g. Automatically approve or reject all the overtime or expense requests coming from a specific cost centre.


Main Screen

You can get to the Rules screen by navigating to Approval System > Overtime or Expense > Rules. Here you can find a toolbar and a grid listing all the rules for either Overtime or Expenses, according to your previous selection. You can switch view using the View Type dropdown menu.

The Rules toolbar contains the standard Refresh, Filter, Search, Column Selector (to choose the columns to display), and Close actions, along with three more:

  • View Type: this dropdown lets you choose which Rules to view in the grid (e.g. Overtime or Expense).

  • Priority: set the priority order for your listed rules using this button.

    • Priority is used in order for Indigo Approval System to know how to handle a particular request when it matches with more then one rule.
      Here you may configure the priority of approval rules by clicking and dragging on the handle icon on the left of the approval rule entry.
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  • ➕ Add Rule: click this button to add a new rule.
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👀 You can activate or deactivate a rule directly from the grid via the toggle switch under the Active column.

Creating Rules

Go to Approval System > Overtime or Expense > Rules and click on ➕ Add Rule.

You'll be redirected to the Add Overtime Rule page (or Add Expense Rule). This screen is divided into three sections: Rule Settings, Settings Criteria and Approvers.
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Rule Settings

This section is common to both Overtime and Expense and has the same role.

  • Rule Type: the system name for the type of rule being created.

  • Name: enter a name for your new rule.

  • Submission Type: choose whether the rule applies to self submitted requests (Self) or those submitted on behalf of others (On Behalf Of).

  • Active: you can toggle this switch to activate or deactivate a rule. By default, a new rule is set to Active.

  • Remark: enter any information, such as a description of the rule if needed.

Settings Criteria

In the Settings Criteria you can set a rule to be triggered in certain circumstances via the Type dropdown. Depending on what you select on the Type dropdown, the selectable values in the Field, Operator and Value ones will change accordingly. What you select in the Field dropdown influences what's in the Operator dropdown as well.

Overtime Example

For overtime rules, in the Type dropdown, you can choose between Overtime, User, or Employee related scenarios. The values in the Field and Operator dropdowns will adjust accordingly.

  • Type: Overtime

    • Field: choose from Type, Hours, Date, Time From, Time To, Day, Month, Cost Centre, Reason, and Was Reason Given.

    • Operator: varies depending on what is chosen in Field.

      • Field: Type, Day or Month

        • Choose from Is Any Of, Is None Of.

      • Field: Hours, Date or Day

        • Choose from Equal To, Not Equal To, Greater Than, Greater Than or Equal To, Less Than, Less Than or Equal To.

    • Value: shows list, calendar, or time to be entered, depending on what is chosen in Field.

  • Type: User

    • Field: choose from User Role, Permission Set, Permission.

    • Operator: choose from Is Any Of, Is None Of, Contains, Does Not Contain, Equal To, Not Equal To.

    • Value: allows you to choose from a list, according to what is chosen in Field.

  • Type: Employee

    • Field: Specific Employee Code, Work Schedule Profile Code, Work Schedule Profile Description, Occupation Code, Occupation Description, etc.

    • Operator: choose from Is Any Of, Is None Of, Contains, Does Not Contain, Equal To, Not Equal To.

    • Value: allows you to choose from a list, according to what is chosen in Field.

Expense Example

For expense rules, in the Type dropdown, you can choose between Expense, User, or Employee related scenarios. The values in the Field and Operator dropdowns will adjust accordingly.

  • Type: Expense

    • Field: choose from Pay Item, Amount.

    • Operator: varies depending on what is chosen in Field.

      • Field: Pay Item

        • Choose from Is Any Of, Is None Of.

      • Field: Amount

        • Choose from Equal To, Not Equal To, Greater Than, Greater Than or Equal To, Less Than, Less Than or Equal To.

    • Value: shows a selection field or a value has to be manually entered depending on what is chosen in Field.

  • Type: User

    • Field: choose from User Role, Permission Set, Permission.

    • Operator: choose from Is Any Of, Is None Of, Contains, Does Not Contain, Equal To, Not Equal To.

    • Value: allows you to choose from a list, according to what is chosen in Field.

  • Type: Employee

    • Field: choose from Specific Employee Code, Work Schedule Profile Code, Work Schedule Profile Description, Occupation Code, Occupation Description, etc.

    • Operator: choose from Is Any Of, Is None Of, Contains, Does Not Contain, Equal To, Not Equal To.

    • Value: allows you to choose from a list, according to what is chosen in Field.

You can make any rule more complex by adding a line in the Setting Criteria. To do so, select the circled plus at the far right of the first line. The added lines will be related to the previous ones through an AND condition.
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Approvers


​This section works in exactly the same way for both overtime and expense rules.

The first setting in Approvers is set to the far right of the title, and is a choice from Auto Approve, Auto Reject, and Configure. This will help you define the final result, when the previously explained criteria and conditions are met.

  1. Auto Approve: as the name implies, requests that satisfy rules with this setting will be automatically approved by the system.

  2. Auto Reject: this works the same way as Auto Approve, but this time the system would automatically reject requests satisfying a rule with this setting.

  3. Configure: this setting lets you assign approvers to a rule and set conditions tied to approval processing. If you choose Configure, you must then select from:

    1. All must approve: all of the approvers listed must approve the request. If even one approver declines, the request is declined.

    2. Anyone can approve: only approval from any single approver from the list is needed.

    3. Approved in sequence: the request is approved by each approver in the order set out in the rule.

      1. If the first approver does not approve the request, the request will not be available to the second approver for processing, and so on.

      2. The request won't be fully approved until the final approver in the sequence has given their approval.

      3. If any approver in the sequence declines the request, the entire request will be rejected.

    4. Approved by Priority : the topmost approver's approval is always required, and once they have approved the request, it is fully processed and no other approval is needed. If a lower level is the first to approve (partial approval), the following levels are skipped, requiring only the highest level final approval.
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ℹ️ More details:
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Approved in sequence

  1. When you select Approved in sequence you can configure the sequence (for at least 2 approver entries) followed by the approval process.

  2. Make sure to add all the needed lines using the circled plus button at the far right.

  3. Select Set Sequence button to open a drawer.

  4. Click and drag on the handle icon on the right of the approver entry to drag and drop the lines adjusting the order as you need.

  5. Click on Set sequence to confirm your choice.
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Approved by Priority

  1. When you select Approved by priority you can arrange approvers by priority (you need at least 2 approver entries). The approval process will follow the priority order you set here.

  2. Make sure to add all the needed lines using the circled plus button at the far right.

  3. Select Set Priority button to open a drawer.

  4. Click and drag on the handle icon on the right of the approver entry to drag and drop the lines adjusting the order as you need.

  5. Click on Set Priority to confirm your choice.
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Configure the approvers' settings, by specifying the Type (E.g. Manager) and Level (e.g. 1st Level Manager), and adding a row for each approver. Add as many Approver entries as required.
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  • Type:

    • Manager:

      • in Level, choose 1st Level Manager for the requesting employee's direct superior.

      • Choose 2nd Level Manager for any manager further up the Organisation Chart hierarchy than the employee's direct superior.

    • Employee With Occupation: allows you to choose a specific occupation from a list, such as manager. This means any employee with the specified position can approve the request.

    • Set Employee: choose an individual employee in your company to approve the request.

Once you have configured the rule to your satisfaction, click Save at the bottom right corner of the page. The Rules screen will update automatically to show your newly created Overtime or Expense rule.

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