Multi-level approval loops

Multi-level approval loops reopen earlier steps automatically when someone rejects. Rejections bounce work back for corrections - no manual tracking needed.

When to use this

Any workflow needing sequential sign-offs:

• Financial approvals - Purchase requests through manager, finance, then executive
• Content publishing - Draft, editor review, legal review, final sign-off
• Contract management - Department head, legal, CFO, CEO
• Quality control - Inspection, supervisor check, quality manager sign-off

Rejection at any level bounces work back to whoever needs to fix it.

Creating the workflow

Here’s how the approval chain flows:

Key points:

• Every rejection re-opens the creation task
• Later approvals only appear after earlier ones pass - visibility rules¹ control this
• COO rejection can re-open multiple steps at once

1. Set up your approval chain steps

   In your template, create steps using the Approve/Reject step type:

   • Step 1: “Create wire transfer request” (regular task)
   • Step 2: “Manager review” (Approve/Reject)
   • Step 3: “Finance department approval” (Approve/Reject)
   • Step 4: “COO final approval” (Approve/Reject)

2. Create re-open rules for each approval level

   For each approval step, create a status action2 rule that fires on rejection:

   Rule 1: Manager rejection reopens creation

   IF (Manager review) is Rejected
   THEN Re-open task "Create wire transfer request"

   Rule 2: Finance rejection reopens creation

   IF (Finance department approval) is Rejected
   THEN Re-open task "Create wire transfer request"

   Rule 3: COO rejection can reopen multiple steps

   IF (COO final approval) is Rejected
   THEN Re-open task "Create wire transfer request"
   AND Re-open task "Manager review"

3. Add visibility rules to control flow

   Hide later approvals until earlier ones pass:

   IF (Manager review) is Approved
   THEN Show "Finance department approval"

   IF (Finance department approval) is Approved
   THEN Show "COO final approval"

Advanced approval patterns

Conditional approval routing

Route approvals based on field values like amount thresholds:

IF (Purchase Amount) is greater than $50,000
AND (Manager review) is Approved
THEN Show "Board approval required"

Parallel approvals

When multiple teams need to review at the same time, use parallel approvals:

Key points:

• All three approvals trigger at once after initial review
• The final step waits until ALL parallel approvals complete
• Any single rejection sends everything back to start

Set this up with visibility rules:

IF (Initial review) is Completed
THEN Show "Legal approval"
AND Show "Compliance approval"
AND Show "Finance approval"

Then gate the final step on all three approvals:

IF (Legal approval) is Approved
AND (Compliance approval) is Approved
AND (Finance approval) is Approved
THEN Show "Final implementation"

Escalation paths

If approvals get stuck:

1. Set a deadline on the approval step
2. Create an escalation step assigned to senior management
3. Use a deadline automation to trigger escalation when time runs out

Best practices

• Rejection reasons - Add comment fields so reviewers explain what needs fixing
• Notifications - Turn on email notifications so people know when tasks bounce back
• Loop limits - After 3 rejections, escalate to a meeting instead
• Step instructions - Tell reviewers the exact criteria you’re looking for
• Audit trail - Tallyfy tracks every approval and rejection automatically

Re-open behavior

When Tallyfy re-opens a task:

• Status changes from “Completed” back to “In progress”
• Original assignees get notified
• All previously entered data stays intact
• The task reappears in each assignee’s task list

Example: Property listing approval

Here’s how a real estate agency handles listing approvals:

How it works:

• Marketing rejection gives the agent specific feedback on photos
• Compliance issues notify both agent and manager
• Agents know exactly what to fix. No vague “please see me” sticky notes

Related articles

How To > Complex approval workflows

Tallyfy converts complex multi-level approval processes into visible and trackable workflows by using kick-off forms with validation and conditional logic to route tasks to the right approvers while providing real-time status tracking and automated reminders that eliminate bottlenecks and keep everything moving.

Power Automate > Building approval workflows with Power Automate

Power Automate’s formal approval actions can wrap around Tallyfy processes to handle conditional sign-offs like budget thresholds and route decisions through managers or external stakeholders before updating results back into the originating Tallyfy task automatically.

Actions > Automate changing the status of tasks

Status actions in Tallyfy automatically re-open completed tasks when conditions are met - ideal for approval rejections and feedback loops.

Actions > Automate hiding or showing tasks

Tallyfy’s visibility actions let you dynamically show or hide specific process steps based on conditions like form field values or task completion status so users only see relevant steps and you can enforce sequential task order by hiding steps by default and revealing them through IF-THEN automation rules.

Footnotes

1. Tallyfy feature that controls when steps appear based on conditions like prior task completion ↩

2. Automation that triggers actions when a task changes status, like reopening steps on rejection ↩

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