Starting point
Approvals
Manage approvals without email ping-pong
Every request automatically finds the responsible person, accounts for backup approvers during absence, and sends a reminder in time before the deadline passes. At the end, every decision is traceable by who approved what and when – without a scattered email chain.
Process architecture
From a request to a traceable decision.
The process accepts a request, determines the responsible role based on amount, type and organisational unit, and routes it automatically – including a backup rule for absence and a reminder before the deadline passes. Every decision is logged with a timestamp and reasoning, so a full record exists instead of a scattered email chain.
01Input
Open quotes and their context come together.
The process starts with silence rather than a message: a quote that has had no answer for days. The leading system supplies the quote, its deadline and the contact, together with the correspondence already attached to the case.
2 Steps
02Process
The right message is derived from the state of the case.
The draft comes from the quote itself, not from a template full of placeholders. The rules then check whether a follow-up is allowed at all; anything outside the agreed frame goes to a salesperson.
4 Steps
03Output
The message goes out and the case stays traceable.
The follow-up sits in the same conversation as the quote, sales sees the current state without asking, and every attempt is documented on the case.
3 Steps
Source01Submit the request
A request is submitted through a form, a chat command or an app – via Microsoft Power Apps, Google Forms or a custom request portal, depending on the environment.Details
Submit the request
A request is submitted through a form, a chat command or an app – via Microsoft Power Apps, Google Forms or a custom request portal, depending on the environment.
Interfaces
- Microsoft Graph API
- SharePoint API
Next steps
- Determine amount, type and level
Data02Determine amount, type and level
Amount, cost centre, request type and involved organisational unit are read from the request; fixed rules determine how many approval levels are needed and which role is responsible at each one.Details
Determine amount, type and level
Amount, cost centre, request type and involved organisational unit are read from the request; fixed rules determine how many approval levels are needed and which role is responsible at each one.
Interfaces
- Azure AI Document Intelligence
- Mistral OCR
- Dataverse API
Next steps
- Route to the responsible person
Action03Route to the responsible person
The request goes automatically to the person responsible under the rule, with all relevant documents visible directly instead of as an attachment.Details
Route to the responsible person
The request goes automatically to the person responsible under the rule, with all relevant documents visible directly instead of as an attachment.
Interfaces
- Power Automate
- Azure Functions
- Microsoft Graph API
Next steps
- Activate the backup
Decision04Activate the backup
If the responsible person is absent, the stored backup takes over automatically, without the request having to be redirected manually.Details
Activate the backup
If the responsible person is absent, the stored backup takes over automatically, without the request having to be redirected manually.
Interfaces
- Azure OpenAI GPT
- Anthropic Claude
- AI Builder
Next steps
- Record the decisionstandard case
- Monitor the deadline and remindexception
Approval05Monitor the deadline and remind
If a decision is still pending after a defined time, the responsible person receives a reminder; for multi-level requests, the next level is also notified.Details
Monitor the deadline and remind
If a decision is still pending after a defined time, the responsible person receives a reminder; for multi-level requests, the next level is also notified.
Interfaces
- Teams Adaptive Cards
- Power Apps
Next steps
- Record the decisionafter approval
System06Record the decision
The responsible person approves or declines directly in the application they already use, with a short reason for a decline or a query.Details
Record the decision
The responsible person approves or declines directly in the application they already use, with a short reason for a decline or a query.
Interfaces
- Dynamics 365 API
- Azure Service Bus
Next steps
- Trigger the next level or close
- Inform the requester
Result07Trigger the next level or close
For multi-level requests, the request automatically moves to the next level; after the final level, the request is considered fully decided.Details
Trigger the next level or close
For multi-level requests, the request automatically moves to the next level; after the final level, the request is considered fully decided.
Interfaces
- Power BI API
- Teams Webhook
Next steps
- Log the decision history
Result08Inform the requester
The requester automatically receives the outcome with the reasoning, without having to follow up with the responsible office.Details
Inform the requester
The requester automatically receives the outcome with the reasoning, without having to follow up with the responsible office.
Interfaces
- Power BI API
- Teams Webhook
Result09Log the decision history
Every routing step, reminder and decision is logged with a timestamp and person in the request system and remains fully traceable when needed.Details
Log the decision history
Every routing step, reminder and decision is logged with a timestamp and person in the request system and remains fully traceable when needed.
Interfaces
- Power BI API
- Teams Webhook
System landscape
The same process in three environments.
- Microsoft
Microsoft Graph API
Möglicher Baustein für die Microsoft-Systemvariante.
- Microsoft
SharePoint API
Möglicher Baustein für die Microsoft-Systemvariante.
- Microsoft
Azure AI Document Intelligence
Möglicher Baustein für die Microsoft-Systemvariante.
- Microsoft
Mistral OCR
Möglicher Baustein für die Microsoft-Systemvariante.
- Microsoft
Dataverse API
Möglicher Baustein für die Microsoft-Systemvariante.
- Microsoft
Power Automate
Möglicher Baustein für die Microsoft-Systemvariante.
- Microsoft
Azure Functions
Möglicher Baustein für die Microsoft-Systemvariante.
- Microsoft
Azure OpenAI GPT
Möglicher Baustein für die Microsoft-Systemvariante.
- Microsoft
Anthropic Claude
Möglicher Baustein für die Microsoft-Systemvariante.
- Microsoft
AI Builder
Möglicher Baustein für die Microsoft-Systemvariante.
- Microsoft
Teams Adaptive Cards
Möglicher Baustein für die Microsoft-Systemvariante.
- Microsoft
Power Apps
Möglicher Baustein für die Microsoft-Systemvariante.
- Microsoft
Dynamics 365 API
Möglicher Baustein für die Microsoft-Systemvariante.
- Microsoft
Azure Service Bus
Möglicher Baustein für die Microsoft-Systemvariante.
- Microsoft
Power BI API
Möglicher Baustein für die Microsoft-Systemvariante.
- Microsoft
Teams Webhook
Möglicher Baustein für die Microsoft-Systemvariante.
- Interfaces in use
Google Workspace APIs
Google environment: reads requests from Google Forms and sends reminders through Google Chat.
- Interfaces in use
REST API
Individual environment: connects the custom request portal with the ERP or HR system for master data and cost centres.
- Interfaces in use
Webhook
Forwards a decision immediately to the triggering system so the next level starts without delay.
- Interfaces in use
Microsoft Power Automate
Microsoft environment: orchestrates routing, backup and deadline monitoring as a workflow.
- Interfaces in use
Google Apps Script
Google environment: orchestrates routing, backup and deadline monitoring inside Google Workspace.
- Possible apps & platforms
Microsoft Power Apps und Microsoft Teams
Request submission and approval in the Microsoft environment.
- Possible apps & platforms
Google Forms und Google Chat
Request submission and approval in the Google environment.
- Possible apps & platforms
Eigenes Antragsportal
Request submission in the self-hosted environment, connected to the existing ERP or HR system.
- Possible apps & platforms
n8n
Orchestrates routing, backup and deadline monitoring in the individual environment.
Implementation in context
What the process does and what it deliberately leaves to people.
The process does not replace a decision – it only makes sure it reaches the right person at the right time. Approval or decline is always made by a person, never automatically by the system itself.
The environment determines the tools, not the process. In a Microsoft 365 environment approval runs through Power Automate and Teams, in a Google Workspace environment through Apps Script and Google Forms, in a self-hosted environment through a custom workflow engine connected to ERP or HR. Which variant fits depends on where the company already runs its workplaces and master data.
The responsibility rule is unambiguous and set once before rollout: amount, request type and organisational unit determine who decides and whether a second level is needed. Ambiguous cases – such as a new request type without a stored rule – go to a named fallback role instead of passing through automatically.
Backups are not left to chance: who covers for whom during absence is stored in advance and activates automatically as soon as the responsible person is marked absent. That way no request sits idle just because the responsible person is on leave.
Target picture
Every request automatically finds the right responsible person under a fixed rule, is routed automatically to the backup during absence, and sends a reminder in time before a deadline passes. At the end of every request stands a complete, chronologically ordered decision history instead of a scattered email chain.
Expected benefits
- Requests automatically find the right responsible person instead of being routed manually.
- Backups during absence activate automatically, without anyone having to redirect the request by hand.
- Deadlines are monitored and reminded in time, instead of only surfacing once someone asks.
- Every decision is documented traceably with a timestamp, person and reasoning.
- Requesters automatically receive the outcome, without having to follow up with the responsible office.
- The process adapts to the existing environment instead of making an additional approval tool a precondition.
Prerequisites to start
- 01A written rule on which role is responsible from which amount or request type.
- 02Stored backups for every responsible role, plus a rule for activation during absence.
- 03A source of master data such as cost centres and organisational units from which responsibility is derived.
- 04A defined deadline after which a pending decision triggers a reminder.
- 05A decision on the environment: Microsoft 365, Google Workspace or self-hosted – and the matching access rights.
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