Approvals

Approvals

1. What are approval workflows in Zoho Contracts?
An approval workflow defines the approvers of a contract and the approval process it has to go through. An administrator can create multiple approval workflows and choose a workflow for each contract type. For more information, see Approval Overview.

2. Is it mandatory to have an approval workflow for every contract type?
No, it is not mandatory to have an approval workflow for every contract type. Contract owners can send the contracts directly for negotiation after the draft is completed if no approval workflow is associated. 

3. Is it possible for a contract type to be associated with more than one approval workflow?
No, in Zoho Contracts, a contract type can only be associated with one approval workflow, streamlining the approval process for that particular contract type. However, you can change the approval workflow at any time

4. How many types of approval workflows are available in Zoho Contracts?
There are two types of approval workflows available in Zoho Contracts. One is Sequential workflow, and the other is Parallel workflow. 

5. What is Sequential Workflow in Zoho Contracts?
In a sequential workflow, the approval order is defined. The contract moves to the next level only when an approver from the current level approves it. When the final level approver approves, the contract is marked as Approved. For more information, see Sequential Workflow.

6. What is Parallel Workflow in Zoho Contracts?
In a parallel workflow, approval happens all at once with no specific order. All designated approvers receive the approval request simultaneously. The contract is marked as Approved only when all approvers have approved it. For more information, see Parallel Workflow.

7. In a parallel workflow, can the contract owner start making the changes to the document when any of the approvers have rejected the contract and the approval review is still pending from the rest of the approvers?
No, the contract owner cannot make changes to the contract document if any of the approvers reject the contract. They must wait until the rest of the approvers either approve or reject it.

8. Is it possible to make changes to a contract document when it is in the Approval Pending state?
No, the contract owner cannot make changes to the contract document when a contract is in the Approval Pending state. This applies to both parallel and sequential workflows.

9. How can a Contract Owner track the status of approval in the approval process?
A contract owner can track the status by clicking the Activity tab in the contract details panel on the left side of the document editor.

10. What are the different statuses available in the approval stage?
The approval stage has statuses such as Approval Pending, Approved, Approval Rejected, and Approval Recalled.

11. Is it possible to send reminders for pending approvals?
Yes, the contract owner can send an approval reminder by clicking the Send Reminder under the Approval tab in the contract details panel on the left side of the document editor.

12. Will approvers have access to the contract documents they approved or rejected after the approval process?
After approving or rejecting a contract, the approvers will be able to see the contract document. However, the approvers can comment on the contract document only if the contract owner sends the contract for approval again.

13. Is it possible to recall a contract approval?
Yes, the contract owner can recall the contract while it is in Approval Pending stage. For more information, see Recall an Approval.

14. What does rejection mean in Zoho Contracts?
Rejection indicates that the contract does not meet the required criteria or standards. However, it does not necessarily mean the contract should not be considered. It can be revised and resubmitted for approval.

15. Is it possible to delegate the approval for a contract?
Yes, it is possible to delegate the approval for a contract to another user. The delegated person can approve or reject only once. If the document gets rejected and is submitted again for approval, the approver needs to re-delegate in case you need to delegate at that time too.

16. What modules and data of a contract do approvers have access to?
Approvers can view the Summary, Approval, and Activity tabs in the contract details panel of the approver's view, as well as add comments to the contract document.

17. Can the delegatee can delegate to another user?
Yes, the delegated approver can delegate the contract to another user. 

18. Can delegation be revoked?
No, once the contract approval is delegated to another user, it cannot be revoked. However, the contract owner can recall the approval of the contract.