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Document Approval Software | Route & Approve

Jonathan D. Rhyne
Illustration: Document Approval Software | Route & Approve

Definition

Document Approval Software System : A formalized, automated approval process for submitting, routing, reviewing, approving, approval tracking, and collaborating on various document types to make approval decisions. Document approval software ensures organizational standards are met and provides a complete audit trail of document workflow actions taken, including time, date, and individual.

Understanding Document Approvals

Document approvals are a real sore point in most organizations. The approval software systems employed for managing the approval process can range from shared file folders to email to printouts. Not surprisingly no one is excited about these systems as they tend to be wasteful, slow, and opaque.

Most document approval workflows involve the following activities:

  • Submitting

  • Routing

  • Reviewing/Approving

  • Collaborating

  • Tracking/Reporting

  • Storage

With a document approval system like Nutrient Workflow, you can quickly build your custom approval workflows that automate all the typically painful steps of routing and auditing documents. Plus, once the process is complete, the final documents can be pushed into your document management system. By streamlining your entire approval process, you can start projects earlier and meet deadlines more consistently.

Document Approval Workflow

Documents can be submitted for approval and required information via a custom Web form. Routing is based on preset rules you configure. Team members can collaborate and share information as well as upload documents. Once approved, the document can be pushed into any document management system, including SharePoint.

document approval process

Launch Document Approvals Via Email

email document approval

While forms are the most common way to submit documents and to accompany information, document reviews can be initiated by other methods like email. For instance, when a document is emailed to a single or group email account with attachments, those attachments can be pulled into an automatically-launched workflow process. In addition, metadata can be pulled into the process, including:

  • Subject Line

  • Sender Name/address

  • Date/Time

  • Body text

  • CC’d addresses

Benefits of Document Approval Workflow

  • Complete visibility into the status of any document submitted for approval.

  • Custom routing and workflow based on your department or organization’s needs.

  • Set automated alerts and reminders for any part of the process.

  • Sequential or parallel routing.

  • Single or group approvals.

  • Automatically maintain a complete audit trail of all activity and communication.

Document Approval Example: Contracts

Interested in Automating Your Document Review and Approval Workflow?

We have a variety of resources to help you on your journey to automate approvals

Author
Jonathan D. Rhyne Co-Founder and CEO

Jonathan joined PSPDFKit in 2014. As CEO, Jonathan defines the company’s vision and strategic goals, bolsters the team culture, and steers product direction. When he’s not working, he enjoys being a dad, photography, and soccer.

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