Approvers | Workflow

When do transactions route to the alternate approvers?

Travel/Expense and Requisition transactions wait for the primary approver for five days. Then they route to the alternate approver. Once the transaction has routed to the alternate, the primary approver can no longer act on it.

Journal Entries and vendor payment transactions route to both the primary and the alternate at the same time.

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My expense report document is waiting for pooled approval. What does this mean?

It means the either the preparer or payee is also the approver of the document. In that case, it goes to a pooled approver. After 5 days it will then route to the alternate approver.

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Who is the approver for my document?

Go to the Peoplesoft reporting instance. Click on Reporting Tools>Query>Query Viewer.

In the begins with box: type UM_FWF and click on search.
Choose the query called "Approvers by DeptID" by clicking on HTML.

Type in the dept ID# and click on View Results.

Look at the appropriate document module to determine who the approver is.

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How many different types of approvers are there?

There is one primary departmental approver and one alternate departmental (backup) approver per DeptID for each module.
In addition, Procurement (requisitions) and AP (vendor payment) both have a Level 2 primary and alternate approver for transactions of $10,000 or greater.

Each DeptID also has one primary certified approver, and one alternate certified approver, whose approval is required for sponsored transactions. Central approval by either Accounting Services, Purchasing, or Disbursement Services (depending on the module) may be required on amounts exceeding $30,000 to $50,000.

A pool of  emergency approvers exists in case a transaction gets stuck or must be expedited. These approvers are in central units/business process owner areas. Contact the University Financial Helpline if your transaction requires an emergency approval.

In summary, these are the types of approvers: Primary Departmental (Level 1) and alternate, Level 2 and alternate, Certified and alternate, Central, and Emergency.

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Are approvals parallel or serial?

Both options are supported by PeopleSoft. Most transactions utilize the parallel routing when possible.

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Do transactions requiring central approval route automatically to central?

Central approvals, where needed, are programmed in and route automatically.

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How are approvers notified that they have something waiting for approval?

Part of the user profile setup will identify if an approver want notices by e-mail, worklist, or both. It is assumed most people will want both. Some central or cluster staff may choose to deselect the e-mail option, since they will be in their worklist many times a day anyway. One exception is PCard approvals, which does not have e-mail notification or worklists except for on transactions requiring certified approval.

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Does the responsibility for switching out primary and alternate approvers reside at the Cluster/RRC level, with the Cluster Director, for example, making this change in the system?

Making changes to primary and alternate approvers involves changing security and user profiles. College or administrative unit management, the Cluster Director, and the RRC manager are usually involved in the decision making process for who performs the approvals in the system. The actual system setup is performed centrally based on the access request form.

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How has the Certified Approver process changed?

Certified Approvers (CAs) are going to be a separate approver in the system. The process remains similarly to how CAs worked in the legacy system. Updates in assignment of CAs are made based on the information provided on the access request form.

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Why can't CAs prepare in one module and approve in another as department approvers can?

CAs can approve and prepare in the same module but not within the same Dept ID. CAs can also be a preparer in one module, and an approver in another module.

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Is the single Certified Approver assignment for DeptID level for ALL modules for the DeptID, or at the module level within a DeptID?

Only one Certified Approver can be designated for a DeptID and for ALL modules within that DeptID; the Certified Approver is the same person for all modules within a single DeptID.

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