Defining document workflows and approvals

✅ Defining Document Workflows and Approvals in BlueDocs

BlueDocs includes a flexible Document Workflow & Approval System that ensures documents follow the right review process before being published. This is especially important for SOPs, policies, training materials, and knowledge base articles where accuracy, compliance, and oversight are critical.

This guide explains how document approvals work, how to configure them, and how roles impact document publishing.

⚙️ Where to Configure Approval Workflows

You can define document workflows and approval rules in two main areas:

1. Settings → Permissions Tab

• Role Permissions: Define what each role (Admin, Manager, Editor, Viewer) can do for each document type.
• Approval Workflows: Set which role must approve documents before publishing.

2. Settings → Document Approvals Tab

• Manage pending approval requests
• Approve or reject documents
• Track approval history

🔐 How the Permission System Works

BlueDocs supports role-based access control for every document type (SOPs, Knowledge, Training, Policies).

Each role can have the ability to:

• Create
• View
• Edit
• Delete
• Publish
• Approve
• Assign

Key Distinctions:

• Publish = Directly publish content
• Approve = Review and authorize content to be published by others

🧱 Setting Up Approval Workflows

Go to: Settings → Permissions → Approval Workflows

You can assign a required approver role for each document type:

Use the dropdown menus to change these at any time. Only users with the selected role (and “Approve” permission) will be notified when approval is requested.

📝 Document Creation & Approval Flow

🔹 For Users Without Publish Permission

• Can create and edit documents
• Cannot directly set status to “Published”
• Can only save documents as Draft
• See a “Request Approval” button
• Document stays in draft until it’s approved by the designated role

🔹 For Users With Publish Permission

• Can immediately publish documents without needing approval
• No approval flow is triggered

🚦 Approval Request Lifecycle

When a user requests approval:

1. The system checks which role is required (e.g., Manager for SOPs)
2. All users with that role get notified
3. Approvers see the request in:

• Settings → Document Approvals
• Real-time in-app notifications
• Optional email notifications

4. Approvers can:

• Approve → The document status changes to “Published”
• Reject → The requester is notified; the document remains in Draft

🔔 Real-Time Notifications

Approvers are notified in real time using BlueDocs’ integrated notification system:

• Browser notifications: Auto-updated in the interface
• Email alerts: Triggered based on user preferences
• Push notifications: Sent if browser allows

The system listens for changes via secure Supabase channels for immediate response handling.

🛠 How to Approve Documents

1. Go to Settings → Document Approvals
2. View pending requests
3. Click on the document to review
4. Add optional comments
5. Click Approve or Reject

If approved, the document is auto-published. If rejected, the requester gets feedback and must revise before resubmitting.

🔄 Backend Logic (Advanced Overview)

This system is powered by secure backend functions:

• manage-document-approvals → handles request lifecycles
• manage-permissions → governs who can approve/publish
• send-email-notification → delivers email alerts
• manage-organization-documents → enforces permission checks

Every action (draft, request, approval, publish) is logged and enforced by role.

✅ Summary

💡 Best Practices

• Use Managers or Admins as approvers for high-impact docs (e.g., Policies)
• Encourage Editors to use Request Approval to maintain version control
• Review approval requests weekly to avoid content bottlenecks
• Combine with Role Permissions to ensure only trusted users can publish

Need help designing your approval process? Reach out to support or request a permissions audit for your workspace.

Updated on: 27/05/2025