Configuring Approval Groups

Objective

After completing this lesson, you will be able to configure a new Approval Group in SAP Fieldglass.

Approval Group

Approval Groups are groups of authorized approvers who are notified when particular work items are submitted.

For example, when a hiring manager creates a Work Order to procure a worker, the Work Order must be approved before it can be sent to Suppliers.

The Approval Group consists of all users or systems in an organization who are required to review and approve the associated work item. They are associated to business units, so any job posting created under a business unit that is associated to an approval group will follow the approval sequence defined by that approval group.

For example, if an organization creates an approval group consisting of a PMO user, an HR user, and a Finance user, and attaches it to the Marketing business unit, any job posting created for marketing will need approvals by the designated PMO, HR, and Finance users.

A work order indicating the first level manager who must approve it.

Navigating the Approval Group Admin Object

The Workflow section of the Admin Menu, the Approval Group selection is highlighted.

1	To view the list of approval groups available in the tenant, select Approval Group from the Workflow section of the admin menu.

Approval Group List page

Approval groups are created per module and by currency. Therefore, you can have multiple approval workflows for a single module and configure them based on requirements. For example, the Expense Sheet approval workflow in the US may be different than the Expense Sheet approval workflow in the UK or CAN.

Separate approval groups are required for job postings, work orders, time sheets, currencies, and any other SAP Fieldglass modules an organization uses that have transactions that require approvals.

Approval Group List page, with the Module column, Business Units column, Currency column, and the link to the Job Posting Approval Group – GBP details page listed in the Name column are highlighted.

2	Module refers to the module associated to the approval workflow in question.
3	Approval groups can be associated to All or specific Business Units. The numbers listed in this column are selectable and will take you directly to the list of business units that are associated to the approval group. To view the business units that an approval group is associated to, you would select the appropriate number link in the Business Units column.
4	This displays the currency that needs to be selected on the Work Order creation page in order to follow the workflow in question
5	To view the details of an approval group, select the link in the Name column.

Approval Group Details page

The details page provides additional insight into why a work item is routed in a specific way.

It is also possible to configure an integration to allow an external system, such as SAP Ariba, to fulfill an approval requirement as well.

Approval Group Details page with the Bypass Duplicate Approvals row, the Include and New Business Units row, and the first listed level section highlighted.

6	The Bypass Duplicate Approvals flag determines whether a user who has already taken action within the workflow should be skipped if the item routes to them again.
7	As the program expands, there may be the need to add additional business units to account for additional departments within WorkingNet. The Include All New Business Units? flag determines if net-new business units should be automatically associated.
8	Level 1 = USD Work Orders tied to the 15 business units will first route to the Hiring Manager for approval. Level 2 = Once the Hiring Manager approves, the work order will then route to the Program Office for approval. Level 3 = Lastly, the Work Order will route to the Finance Team for final approval.

Configure a New Approval Group

WorkingNet Networking, Inc., a global manufacturer of data networking equipment, needs an Approval Group specifically for Job Postings for positions within NetAlysis, the new line of business it recently formed to develop network diagnostic software.

This Work Group will contain approvers from within the NetAlysis team as well as managers within WorkingNet.

Here is how you, as the SAP Fieldglass administrator for WorkingNet, would set up that approval group.

ExerciseStart Exercise

Summary

Approval Groups are groups of authorized approvers who are notified when particular work items are submitted. The users assigned to a group are generally required to act upon and approve the work items.

Key Points:

Approval Group Structure: Approval groups are created per module and currency, allowing different workflows for various modules and currencies.
Viewing Approval Group Details: Click the link in the Name column of the Approval Group List page to view detailed configurations.
Configuration Options: Key configurations include Bypass Duplicate Approvals, Include All New Business Units, and setting approval levels for different stages.

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