Tell us what you think

We want to create the best possible experience for our learners. Your feedback helps us to improve the experience for everyone.

Understanding Approval Rule Basics

Objectives

After completing this lesson, you will be able to:

Compose a new approval rule and add a chain rule
Construct a CSV rule using an approver lookup table to define a custom set of approvers
Utilize both custom and predefined condition to define approvers
Revise existing approval rules to meet changing criteria
Execute a test to evaluate the accuracy of an approval process

Basic Rules

Every new rule begins with a basic rule. The basic rule is a simple rule that evaluates a condition and adds an approval request node to the approval diagram if that condition is met. You should be able to phrase most base rules as if/then sentences.

Each basic rule can add no approval nodes or one approval node to the approval flow.

Examples:

If the requester and the preparer are not the same person, the requester must approve.
If the requisition is over $100,000, then it must be approved by Finance.
If the requisition has Ad Hoc items, then the purchasing agent must approve.
If the requisition has any line items with a commodity code of CAPEX, then the facilities manager must approve.

Select the icons to discover more about Rule Editor screen.

Approval Rules - Conditions

Conditions can be defined for base approval rules, chain rules, and edit rules
Conditions can consist of one or more condition components and subconditions
Condition components include: – Field Match conditions – Predefined conditions – Subconditions
Condition blocks must start with an All/Any/None subcondition
Condition blocks must end with a predefined condition or field match condition
Sub conditions can be added/modified by clicking on the (blue arrow/expand) button
A condition must evaluate to true for an approval rule action to fire

In the following section, you will discover more about how to add a condition based on a field match.

Add Condition

To add a condition, begin with All Are True, Any Are True, or None Are True and then select Field Match or Predefined Condition.

Field

Select Field allows you to choose a system field for your condition.

Field Select

After finding the field, click Select and then Done.

Field Paths

SAP Ariba often displays data using the format Object.SubObject.Field to represent data within its hierarchical structure. For example, the commodity code ID of a requisition line item might be represented hierarchically as:

Requisition–
- LineItems
  - CommonCommodityCode
    - UniqueName

We would represent in field path format as: LineItems.CommonCommodityCode.UniqueName.

Approval Rules - Condition – Predefined Conditions

In addition to defining conditions, you have the option of using system predefined conditions.

Predefined Conditions are out of the box condition components based on common business needs
- Approvable Has Ad-Hoc Line Items
- Requisition Has Supplier
Some predefined conditions allow for parameters i.e. Requester In Group

Approval Rule Editor

This is an example of what your Approval Rule Editor will look like once you begin entering rules.

Note

When making any changes to approval processes, it is recommended to create a backup version, and to test all changes first in a test realm before implementing them in production.

Add a Basic Approval Rule

CSV Rules - Approver Lookup Table

Another option for adding approvers is using CSV rules which allows you to add no approvers or many approvers depending on the matching data in a table. You can build a CSV table to compare available fields from your SAP Ariba document, for example:

Commodity Code
Total Cost
Region

The system will determine whether or not to add approvers based on the results of your field comparison.

Using the fields in your SAP Ariba Document, the system will check the table for matching data and enter the approver group from the matched line in the CSV file.

CSV Approval Lookup Files:

Provide the ability to define multiple criteria.
Can be managed manually or on an automated schedule.
Are evaluated independently. It is possible an approver lookup file could add a different approver for each line of a document.

Steps to Add a CSV Rule

Create a new rule, and provide a Rule Title and Rule Description.
Leave the Condition blank. In the Action section, select Use Approver Lookup Table.
Click Add Columns, then find and select the fields you would like to add to your lookup table and select Done.
Choose the Operation you would like to use for each field. This is how the system will evaluate the values in your file to determine when the Condition is met.(The type of field you choose will determine what operators are available. For example, numeric fields allow for comparisons such as greater-than and less-than.)
Select the Approver Type Fields you want to use in your file. This will allow you to choose what type of approvers to add if the condition is met.
Select Export Column Headers to export the CSV template file. Enter row values under each column header to identify the condition and the approver to add if the condition is met.
Save the file, then in the Rule Editor Action area, select Upload File to import the headers. To test your rules, use the Testing tab while your Approval Process is in draft status. Once published, the CSV rules will take effect.

Note

CSV file row order is very important; only the first matching entry will apply.

Helper Files for Approval Rules

Helper files are data associated with approval rules that map a set of inputs, for example, commodity, cost center, total cost, to an approver or group of approvers. Approval rule logic in SAP Ariba is a one-time build, but rule behavior is dynamic and can leverage integration.

Unlike most approval rules, CSV rules can be updated without accessing the Approval Processes interface. Navigate to Manage ﹥ Core Administration ﹥ Customization Manager ﹥ Approval Rule Files. Here you can download and upload the CSV helper files. These files can be uploaded in batch through Data Import task: Import CSV Lookup Tables Used by Approval Rules. The files must be stored in zip file called RuleCSVHelperFiles.zip. The Approval Rules Files tool allows you to download the associated CSV file to make updates. While you can add additional entries (rows) using this tool, to add additional fields for matching (columns) you must update the rule directly.

Add a CSV Rule

Chaining Basic Rules

The last option to highlight with basic approvals is the ability to "Chain" a rule. While there are other reasons to use this option, chain rules are typically used to add managers up a chain, such as the chain of command, to the approval flow.

Conditions you specify for base rules also apply to the corresponding chain rules, but chain rules can have their own conditions, too
When a rule is chained, tabs are added to differentiate between the base and chain rule
Additional predefined conditions exist which are unique to chain rules
Chain rules have a limited number of actions for adding approvers

Chain rules are associated with a specific base rule and are activated using the Chain Rule toggle button.

Note

When the SAP Ariba system processes a chain rule, if an approver has a supervisor, but that supervisor is inactive, the system looks for and adds the next active supervisor in the chain. If a chain rule adds duplicate approvers, the duplicates are removed automatically.

Next lesson