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Version: 12.0

How-to: Require Approval for Alerts

Goal: make popup alerts wait for an approver's decision before they are delivered, and have the approver decide from My tasks. About 20 minutes.

Before you start: you are an administrator; SMTP is configured if you want approval emails (Settings → Delivery channels → SMTP server (emails)).

The mechanism has three parts: a role that identifies the approvers, a workflow that describes the approval steps, and a dispatch rule that decides which alerts go through the workflow. Details of every setting are in Process automation.

The example uses the demo organization of this guide: Emma Collins (role Communications Publisher) sends the alerts, James Porter (a web-portal user with the Administrator role) approves them, and Tom Baker receives them on the desktop agent.

1. Give the approver a role​

  1. Open Settings → Users & access → Web-portal users and check the approver's account: its Type must be Web-portal user and its Roles must include the role the workflow will name — here Administrator. An account of the Administrator type holds no role and never receives approval tasks.
  2. If the approver should also send alerts, add a publishing role (for example Communications Publisher) to the same account.

2. Create the workflow​

  1. Open Settings → Process automation → Approval workflow settings and, under Workflow definitions, click New workflow.
  2. Under General, enter the name Standard approval and a description.
  3. Under Emails, keep Send approval request emails, Send decision notification emails, and Include magic approval links on, so that the approver can decide from the email.
  4. Under Approval steps, set Approver role to Administrator, Waits up to (hours) to 24, and If nobody decides to Escalate with Escalate to set to a role of your choice.
  5. Click Create workflow. The workflow appears as a card with its approver role and the Emails and Magic links indicators.

3. Create the dispatch rule​

  1. Under Dispatch rules, click New rule.
  2. Name it Popups need approval and select Standard approval under Workflow definition.
  3. In Conditions (Simplified mode), select Alert type → Popup. Leave the other blocks empty.
  4. Click Create rule and switch the rule on. The panel header now reads 1 rules configured · 1 active.
  5. At the top of the page switch Enable approval workflow on and click Save.

Rules are evaluated top to bottom; the first match wins. Move the rule above broader rules if there are any.

4. Send an alert as a publisher​

  1. Sign in as Emma Collins and create a popup as in Send your first alert.
  2. The Approvals step of the composer shows that approval is required and names the workflow.
  3. Click Send. The toast reads Alert sent successfully!, but the alert gets the status Pending approval in the Alerts list, and the approvers with an email address receive the request with Approve and Reject links.

5. Decide as the approver​

  1. Sign in as James Porter. My tasks in the navigation panel lists the request under Pending.
  2. Open the task and review the alert — preview, recipients, delivery settings, and the workflow progress.
  3. Choose Approve, optionally add a note, and confirm.
  4. The alert's status changes to Distributing with an Approved badge, delivery starts, and Tom Baker receives the popup. The decision is recorded in the task history, and the sender receives the decision email (Alert <title> — Approved).

Had the approver chosen Reject, the alert's status would become Rejected and nothing would be delivered.

Variations​

  • Two-step approval: add a second step to the workflow with another role; the alert passes both steps in order.
  • Only large audiences: in the rule, use Audience count with a threshold instead of the alert type.
  • Only external channels: condition on Delivery channel → Email, SMS.
  • Only one team's alerts: condition on Sender role, for example HR Publisher.