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eSign approval workflow

You can set an approval workflow for eSign documents inside the eSign editor.

The approval workflow is initiated when you send the document for eSign. When the document is approved by all approvers, the eSign workflow is initiated and the document moves from eSigner to eSigner until all added eSigners have signed. All of this happens automatically and does not need your intervention.

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Approval workflows can only be set for eSign documents that have not been sent for eSign yet.

If you create your eSign document from a template that already had the approval workflow defined, the same workflow will be added to your document. You can edit it before sending the document for eSignatures.

Create an approval workflow for eSigns​

To set an approval workflow for an eSign document:

  • Click on the document in the eSign dashboard. This will open the document in the eSign editor.
  • In the eSign editor, click on the arrow in the top right corner, below Save to open the control panel.
  • Click on Get approvals esignature
  • In the Approvals panel, click on Get approvals esignature
  • The Get approvals popup modal will open up. Click on the Select one or more approvers field.
  • Choose one or more approvers from the list of approvers. esignature
  • If you add more than one approver at Step 1, choose whether the workflow should proceed once approval is received from one of the selected approvers or it can proceed only after all approvals at the step are received. esignature
  • If the admin has given you approver permissions, you can add yourself as an approver by clicking on Add myself as approver. esignature
  • To add the next step in the approval workflow, click on Add another approver. esignature
  • Once you have added all approvers, in the order you want, click on Save.

Example approval workflow:

documents In the above example, once the document is sent for eSign, this approval workflow will be initiated and proceed thus:

  • The document will first go to HL Legal for approval.
  • Once approved, it will be sent to both CEO Alphabet Inc. and Legal Team.
  • Only when approval from both these accounts is received, it will be sent to CEO DocuX for the final approval.
  • Once approved by CEO DocuX, the document will be sent for eSignatures.
  • If at any point an approver does not approve of the content and declines, the document will return back to the owner with the approver’s comments.

Edit eSign approval workflow​

To edit the approval workflow of an eSign document:

  • Click on the document in the eSign dashboard. This will open the document in the eSign editor.
  • In the eSign editor, click on the arrow in the top right corner, below Save to open the control panel.
  • Click on Get approvals esignature
  • If the document has been sent for eSign already, you will see two options: Edit approvals and Cancel approvals. Click on Edit approvals. esignature
  • If the document has not been sent for eSign yet, you will see only one option: Edit approvals. Click on it.
  • The Get approvals popup modal will open up. You can add or remove approvers, remove steps in the work flow by clicking on the delete icon, or reorder the workflow. esignature
  • Once done editing, click on Save.

Reorder eSign approval workflow​

The eSign document is sent to the approvers in the order you define in the approval workflow.

For example, according to the approval workflow below, the document will be sent for approval to CEO Alphabet Inc and Legal Team only after it has been approved by HL Legal. If HL Legal declines to approve, the entire approval workflow will be paused and the document will return back to the owner. documents

To change the order in which the document is sent for approval:

  • Click on the document in the eSign dashboard. This will open the document in the eSign editor.
  • In the eSign editor, click on the arrow in the top right corner, below Save to open the control panel.
  • Click on Get approvals. esignature
  • In the Approvals panel, click on Edit approvals esignature
  • In the Get approvals popup modal, click on the icon alongside each step number and drag that step to the position you want. esignature
  • You can choose to reorder one or more approvers.
  • Once the approval workflow is in the order you want, click on Save.

Cancel eSign approval workflow​

The eSign document owner can cancel the approval workflow at any point after sending it for eSign.

If you cancel the eSign approval workflow:

  • The set approval workflow will be deleted. You will need to add approvers again.
  • Any approvals already received will be lost.
  • The document will return back to a draft state and you will need to send it for eSign again once you create a new approval workflow or without an approval workflow altogether.

To cancel an eSign approval workflow:

  • Click on the document in the eSign dashboard. This will open the document in the eSign editor.
  • In the eSign editor, click on the arrow in the top right corner, below Save to open the control panel.
  • Click on Get approvals. esignature
  • In the Approvals panel, click on Cancel approvals. esignature
  • A confirmation dialog will appear. Click on Cancel approvals to confirm the cancellation. esignature
  • All approvals will be cancelled and the document will return back to your drafts.

Approve an eSign document​

If you have been assigned as an approver for an eSign document, you will see the document in your For my action tab in your Workspace and in your eSign dashboard.

If everything looks correct and valid in the document, you can approve the document. If not, you can decline to approve with your comments around why the document was not approved, so the document owner can make the required changes.

To approve an eSign document:

  • Click on the document from the For my action tab in your Workspace or in the eSign dasboard
  • The document will open up in the eSign editor
  • Review the document and, if everything looks correct, click on the Approve button in the top right corner of the editor. esignature
  • A small popup modal will open up for your comments, if any. The approval status and your comments will be sent to the document owner. esignature
  • Click on Approve.
  • The eSign document will now move out of your For my action tab and on to the next stage of the workflow set by the owner.

Decline approval of an eSign document​

If you have been assigned as an approver for an eSign document, you will see the document in your For my action tab in your Workspace and in your eSign dashboard.

If everything looks correct and valid in the document, you can approve the document. If not, you can decline to approve with your comments around why the document was not approved, so the document owner can make the required changes.

To decline an eSign document:

  • Click on the document from the For my action tab in your Workspace or in the eSign dashboard
  • The document will open up in the eSign editor
  • Review the document and, if something looks incorrect or in need of further revision, click on the Decline option in the top right corner of the editor. esignature
  • A small popup modal will open up for your comment. The decline status and your comment will be sent to the document owner. esignature
  • Click on Decline.
  • The eSign document will now move out of your For my action tab and will be sent back to the owner.

Questions​

What happens when you edit the approval workflow after the workflow has been initiated?

You can make changes to an approval workflow even after it has already started. Any changes you make will update the workflow.

Any new approvers you add will be notified via email. Any approvers removed will lose access to the document.

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