Approvers

Approvers are individuals or automated systems authorized to authorize actions, documents, or requests within a workflow or governance process. An approval grants permission, funds, access, or changes that affect operations, policy compliance, or risk exposure. The designation of an approver typically depends on role, authority, policy, and financial or operational thresholds.

In organizations, approvers appear in many domains, including IT change management, procurement, budgeting, and publishing processes. They can be single individuals, committees, or automated decision rules. Roles are often tiered into primary approvers, who have final authority within a specific scope, and secondary or conditional approvers, who may review or escalate as needed. Automated systems can route requests, enforce policies, and provide an auditable trail.

The approval process generally starts with a request, which is routed to the relevant approvers based on predefined rules such as budget limits, project type, or compliance requirements. Approvers assess criteria such as policy compliance, risk, cost, impact, and feasibility. They may approve, reject, request changes, or defer. Some processes require sequential approvals; others use parallel approvals to speed decisions. Time limits and notifications help ensure timely action.

Auditing and governance rely on approval records that include identifiers, timestamps, rationale, and decision outcomes. Strong controls depend on clear policies, separation of duties, and regular review of approver lists and thresholds. Common challenges include delays, inconsistent decisions, or insufficient documentation, which are often mitigated by automation, explicit escalation paths, and well-defined criteria.