1. Using General Ledger
  2. Workflow Rule Templates for Journal Approval

Workflow Rule Templates for Journal Approval

The Simplified Workflow Rules Configuration feature enables you to create rules for the General Ledger Approval workflow using a spreadsheet.

You can select from among the available sample templates in the Download column on the Manage Workflow Rules in Spreadsheet page:

  • Journal Approval Basic Template

  • Journal Approval Sample Template 1

  • Journal Approval Sample Template 2

Each template contains two worksheets: Instructions and Journal Approval Rules. The Journal Approval Rules worksheet contains sample rules. You can modify them or define your own rules.

You use the templates to create approval rules in accordance with your approval policy. Each sample template contains use cases that you can refer to. You can define your specific rules using any of the templates.

Journal Approval Basic Template: Supervisory Hierarchy-Based Approval

The rule in this template demonstrates the following approval policy requirement:

  • All journal batches require approval from the direct supervisor of the user submitting the batch for approval.

You don't have to make any changes to this rule to use it.

Note: The General Ledger Journal workflow implementation comes with a predefined rule. That rule is represented in the Journal Approval Basic Template.

Tip: You can upload this sample rule to reset the journal approval rule back to its predefined state.

Journal Approval Sample Template 1: Group-Based Approval

The rules in this template demonstrate the following approval policy requirement:

  • All journal batches from a specific ledger and from the specific journal sources require approval from one user of the nominated approval groups. The approval group is different when the journal batch has been created by some nominated users and has some specific description.

  • Journal batches from sources other than these sources are automatically rejected.

The business rule from the approval policy is represented in one block in this template with four listed rules.

To use these rules, ensure:

  • The approval groups that you enter in the spreadsheet are defined in the approval management application.

  • The specified users are valid.

  • The specified ledger ID is valid.

Note: When a journal batch satisfies more than one rule within a block, the notification flow and approval process completion can vary depending on the approval routings specified for those rules within that block. For this template, if a journal batch satisfies more than one rule, all of the users of the nominated groups are notified, and only one user must take an action to complete the approval process.

Journal Approval Sample Template 2: Supervisory Hierarchy and Group-Based Approval

The rules in this template demonstrate the following approval policy requirement. The business rules are represented in multiple blocks depending on the business requirement and the approval routing.

  • First block: All journal batches for journal sources Manual, AutoCopy, and Spreadsheet, and with a total batch amount greater than 250000, require supervisory approval. Any batch from those same sources with a total batch amount up to 250000 is automatically approved. Journal batches from sources other than these sources don't require this type of approval.

  • Second block: All journal batches with a total batch amount up to 250000 for journal sources Allocations, Revaluation, and Balance Transfer, require approval from any one member of the designated approval group. All journal batches with a total batch amount up to 250000 for journal sources other than these sources don't require this type of approval. All journal batches with a total batch amount greater than 250000 don't require this type of approval.

  • Third block: All journal batches with a total batch amount greater than 250000 for the journal sources Allocations, Revaluation, and Balance Transfer, require approval from all members of the designated approval group. All journal batches with a total batch amount greater than 250000 for journal sources other than these sources don't require this type of approval. All journal batches with a total batch amount up to 250000 don't require this type of approval.

To create rules for these business rules, you must first analyze and separate the requirements into distinct rules. All the rules that are included in a block must be collectively exhaustive. It's important that all approval scenarios are defined. If not, errors might occur.

The following table displays the details of the rules that are created to enforce the business requirement presented in the first block in this sample template.

Rule Name

Approval Routing

Approval Condition Attribute

Approval Condition Operator

Source_amount up to 250000

Auto Approve

Journal Batch Total Accounted Credit

<=250000

None

None

Journal Source Name

in (Manual, AutoCopy, Spreadsheet)

Source_amount up to 250000_other source

Skip Approval

Journal Batch Total Accounted Credit

<=250000

None

None

Journal Source Name

not in (Manual, AutoCopy, Spreadsheet)

Source_amount greater than 250000

Supervisory

Journal Batch Total Accounted Credit

>250000

None

None

Journal Source Name

in (Manual, AutoCopy, Spreadsheet)

Source_amount greater than 250000_other source

Skip Approval

Journal Batch Total Accounted Credit

>250000

None

None

Journal Source Name

not in (Manual, AutoCopy, Spreadsheet)

The same logical process is followed to define rules for the remaining approval policy requirements.

To use this rule, ensure the approval groups that you enter in the spreadsheet are defined in the approval management application.

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