In the Setup Workbench you can associate multiple workflow templates with a given change type. You associate multiple workflow templates with a workflow status at the header level of a idea, issue, change request, change notification, or change order. You can also add ad-hoc step assignees to the workflow based on role, group, and person filters. This enables a user to abort the workflow within a status, and to choose a different template for that status.

Once these associations are made, when creating an individual change object within that type, you can select various workflow options. This enables you to select a specialized workflow to reach those people who need to approve specific changes different from those who would approve changes.

You can set up workflow templates to use when requesting approval or review of an issue, change request, or change order. This enables reviewers and approvers to select the template with the steps that best meets their needs and specific people, based on role, group, and person filters. You can have multiple templates at any status.

An issue, change request, or change order can only be approved through the successful completion of an approval routing. When you create an issue, change request, or change order, an approval routing is created automatically based on a template, or manually by any user granted an edit privilege on the issue, change request, or change order.

An approval routing consists of one or more approval steps. Each approval step specifies a workflow process and to whom it is assigned. For example, you can create steps to request approval, request comment, or send an FYI notification. You can create custom activities using Oracle Workflow Builder.

The approval status of an issue, change request, or change order reports the progress of the approval. For example, when you submit a change object for approval, the approval status changes to Submitted for Approval, and then Approved or Rejected, depending on the outcome of the approval routing workflow. Every time a new revision is created for an issue, change request, or change order, the approval status is reset to Not Submitted for Approval. You cannot edit an issue, change request, or change order's attributes, lines, or attachments after it has been approved. However, you can perform actions (such as reassign, change status, change priority, and request comment) to manage the workflow of the issue, change request, or change order.

Notifications are sent to each of the assignees of a step when the step is started. Each assignee is requested to respond by the Date Required. If an assignee does not respond by the Date Required, then they will receive a reminder notification every N days, where N is the value specified for Response Required in N Days. The Date Required for a step is calculated to be the date/time the step is submitted, plus the Response Required in N Days. You can respond either through the email notification or directly from the workflow notification. When the issue, change request, or change order is approved or rejected, a notification is sent to the Creator, Requestor, and Assignee. If the approval routing workflow is aborted, then a notification is sent to all people in the approval routing that were previously notified regarding an assigned workflow process in a step.

A workflow consists of one or more steps. Each step specifies a workflow process and to whom it is assigned. For example, you can create steps to request approval, request comment, or send an FYI notification. Notifications are sent to each of the assignees of a step when the step is started.

   To edit a step in an approval routing:

1. On an issue, change request, or change order's detail page, click the Workflow tab, then click Approval.

2. On the Approval page, click the Update icon for the approval process you wish to edit.

3. On the Update Step page, make updates to any of the following fields:

   Response Required From

   Selecting all means all assignees must respond. Selecting One means only one of the assignees must respond.

   Response Required in N Days

   A response is required D days from the date the workflow is submitted.

   Instructions

   Provide any instructions you have for assignees.

   Add Assignee

   Select and add assignees to include in the approval workflow. You can add assignees through a group, role, or person. When using a group or role, you can add individual assignees.

4. Click Apply.

   Note: You can edit steps that have not yet begun in an approval routing, even after the workflow is started. For steps derived from the approval routing template, you cannot change the Workflow Process or Response Required From, nor can you delete the derived Assignees.

   To insert a step in an approval routing:

1. On an issue, change request, or change order's detail page, click the Workflow tab, then click Approval.

2. On the Approval page, click Add Step.

3. On the Add Step page, provide the following information:

   Step Number

   The step number determines the order in which steps are executed in the approval routing.

   Workflow Process

   Select a workflow process (such as Request Approval, Request Comment, or FYI).

   Response Required From

   If the workflow process is Request Approval or Request Comment, then choose whether responses are required from all or one of the assignees.

   Response required in N Days

   Enter the number of days, from the time the step is submitted, that all responses are required.

   Instructions

   Enter any instructions to be included in the notifications sent to assignees.

   Add Assignee

   Click Add to add an assignee. You can add assignees through group, role, or person. When using a group or role, you can add individual assignees.

4. Click Apply.

   Note: Steps must be inserted after the last completed step or step that is currently in process.

   To delete a step in an approval routing:

1. On an issue, change request, or change order's detail page, click the Workflow tab, then click Approval.

2. On the Approval page, click the Update icon for the step you wish to delete.

3. On the Update Step page select all assignees you wish to delete and click Delete, then click Apply.

4. On the Approval page, click the Delete icon for the step you wish to delete.

   Note: You must delete all assignees for a step before you can delete the step.

   To start or stop an approval:

1. On an issue, change request, or change order's Overview page, click the Workflow tab, then select the Approval status.

2. In the Status: Approval region of the Statuses page, click Start Approval to start the approval workflow.

3. If the approval workflow is running, click Abort Approval to stop the workflow.

   Note: If the status of an issue, change request, or change order is Draft, then you cannot start the approval process. Also, it is recommended that you click Refresh Assignees before starting the approval process (in case there have been any changes in item or change role assignments).

   To view the progress of an approval:

1. On an issue, change request, or change order's detail page, click the Workflow tab, then click Approval.

2. On the Approval page, you can view all the steps in the approval routing, the date required to respond, and the response outcome for each workflow process assigned in the step.

   Click the Show link to view the date the step was submitted on, the date of the response, instructions, and response comments.

   Note: The Date Required of a step is based on the date the step is started plus the number of days a response is required.

   To switch a template:

You can set up workflow templates to use when requesting approval or review of an issue, change request, or change order. This enables reviewers and approvers to select the template with the steps that best meets their needs. You can also assign steps in the workflow to certain people, based on role, group, and person filters.

Within Setup Workbench, you can associate multiple workflow templates to a given change type. Once these associations are made, when creating an individual change object within that type, the system picks up the default template automatically. Optionally, the system provides a drop-down list where you can select from various workflow options.

1. On an issue, change request, or change order's detail page, click the Workflow tab, then click Approval.

2. On the Approval page, click Switch Template.

3. On the Switch Template page, select the approval routing template to associate with the change type. The currently applied template does not appear in the list of templates.

4. Click Apply.

   Note: When you switch templates, all current steps/assignees--whether derived from the previous template or added after creation (ad-hoc)--are deleted.

   To switch templates before moving to the Approval status:

1. Navigate to Change Simple Search.

2. Search for a Change Request.

3. Select the Number link for a particular change request.

4. In the Change Request Summary page, click the Change Request Number link.

5. Select the Workflow tab.

6. Select the Approval status. This change request is not yet at this status. Previously, we set up some default workflow templates for change requests at this status.

7. In the Status: Approval region, click Switch Template.

8. In the Workflow field, select a different template using the drop-down list. The workflow steps for the selected template are shown below.

9. Click Apply.

   To switch templates when the Approval status is in process:

You should have adequate permissions to abort the workflow within a status to choose a different template. After applying the new template, it can be used for the approval staus for the particular change object.

1. From the Workflow tab, Statuses page, click Abort Workflow.

2. Click Switch Template.

3. In the Workflow field, select a different template using the drop-down list. The workflow steps for the selected template are shown below.

4. Click Apply.

5. Click Start Workflow.

   To view the approval history:

You can submit an issue, change request, or change order for approval multiple times. The approval history lists a summary of all past and present approval workflows. The approval history displays for each approval workflow the issue, change request, or change order revision at the time the approval was submitted, who submitted the approval, the date submitted and completed, and the final result of the approval workflow. The result of a workflow may be Approved, Rejected, or Aborted.

1. On an issue, change request, or change order detail page click the Workflow tab, then click Approval History.

2. On the Approval page, click the Details icon to view the complete approval routing for a specific approval workflow.

   To transfer workflow notifications:

If you are one of the step assignees, then you can transfer these notifications to another user (transferee) who you feel is more qualified to take the decision. The transferee receives a notification requesting approval or comment. Thus, the onus for approving a change or commenting on it, is shifted to the transferee.

1. To transfer a notification, you must access the Notifications list from the Home page and launch the notification detail page of the relevant notification.

2. Choose the Transfer button to transfer this notification to another user.

   Note: The transfer button is available only for To Do notifications, such as Request Comment or Request Approval notifications.

3. On the Transfer Notification page, select a person to transfer the notification to. You can optionally enter comments and then choose the Submit button to transfer the notification.

   The person, to whom the notification is transferred to, automatically gets an appropriate role on the change object. If the original notification is an approval notification, the original assignee no longer has the privilege to approve the change object after the notification is transferred.

   Note: You cannot transfer notifications to a group or to a role. You can notifications only to other individuals.

   On transfer, the transferee gets an approval or request comment notification. A new workflow step assignee record with the same step number is inserted in the workflow table on the notification details page in order to capture the response from the transferee.

   After transfer, the 'to do' notifications related to the change object in the original assignees worklist, no longer remain in the open status.

   When the notification is transferred, the action is recorded in the Action Log.

   To set vacation rules:

You can set vacation rules to redirect or auto-respond to workflow notifications. You set vacation rules using the Worklist page.

1. On the Worklist page, select the Vacation Rules link.

2. Create a vacation rule on the Vacation Rules page.

3. By selecting an Item Type, you can specify the type of notification that will activate this rule.

4. Select a notification format to activate this rule.

5. Specify a message, set the validity period of the rule, and specify who the appropriate notifications should be transferred to.

   Note: The functional rules governing the transfer of notifications are listed in the Transfer Workflow Notifications section.

   How to Set the Digital Signing Option:

Digital Certificates provide a means of proving your identity in electronic transactions. With a Digital Certificate, you can assure other stakeholders that the electronic information they receive from you is authentic.

The most widely accepted format for Digital Certificates is defined by the CCITT X.509 international standard; thus certificates can be read or written by any application complying with X.509.

The system enables users to set up digital signature options for a change type. Thus, a response to any approval or request comment notifications for a change object belonging to this change type, would require a certificate-based signature from the stakeholder.

1. To set this option, you have to navigate to the Status Property page of a status associated with a change type.

   Note: Navigation: Setup Workbench -> 'Change Management' tab -> 'Categories' sub-tab -> Select a change category -> click on 'Types' -> Click on any change type link -> click on 'Workflow' link in the bin -> click on 'Update Properties' icon for any Status).

2. Select one of the three options from the Enable Digital Signature drop-down list.

   • Empty - Digital Signature is not enabled if 'Enable Digital Signature' field is empty.

   • Password Based Signature - The user needs to respond to a notification with his passowrd.

   • Certificate Based Signature - The user needs to respond to a notification with a certificate-based signature.

   Note: The default value is Empty.

   If you enable the digital signature for a change type, then all the request comment and approval notifications for changes belonging to this change type will need to be commented on or approved with a certificate based digital signature.

How to Use Digital Certificates for Signing

3. Navigate to the Worklist page, and select any Request Comment or Request Approval notification.

4. On the notification detail page, choose the Approve/Reject/Reply/Transfer button (whichever is appropriate).

   The notification signing page appears

5. Choose the Sign button.

6. Select the appropriate certificate in the Certificates window, and then choose the OK button.

   After the signing process, the system automatically returns to the Worklist page.