Can I include external approvers in a custom workflow?

Background

Procore users with the Company level Workflows tool can build custom workflows and optionally designate an external approver for a step.

Examples
  • Accountability: Requiring subcontractors to approve progress claims allows for early, direct communication about billing errors. This speeds up solutions and reduces later disagreements.
  • Accuracy of Costs: Subcontractor review and approval of progress claims increases the General Contractor's confidence in the billed costs matching the contract or agreed rates, helping to avoid later discrepancies and disputes.
  • Contractual Requirements: The contract between an Owner and the General Contractor sometimes clearly states that the General Contractor must approve progress claims before payment.
  • Ensuring Regulatory Compliance: Some industries require external stakeholders, like regulatory agencies, to approve change events for compliance with specific standards.
  • Verification of Cost Implications: If a change event has financial implications for an external collaborator, their approval confirms their agreement with the added costs, helping to prevent later billing disputes.
  • Verification of Work Completion: Subcontractor approval of progress claim details—completed tasks, materials, and agreed terms—confirms the bill's accuracy and serves as verification.
  • Reviewing the Scope of Work: External approval of the contract by a client or subcontractor ensures alignment with their understanding of the project's requirements and confirms what the agreement entails.

Answer

Yes, you can assign external collaborators to a step in a custom workflow. Procore enables collaboration with external partners, like subcontractors. Depending on the feature, the external collaborator will typically need.

Item Description
A Procore User Account Provide a username and email address for the collaborator to access your company's Procore account or a specific project
Access Permissions Grant the collaborator access permissions to the necessary Company or Project level tool within your company's Procore account. 
Role Assignment Certain workflows require assigning users to specific roles for some actions. For instance, viewing and approving a subcontractor progress claim in a custom workflow requires the user to be the 'Invoice Contact' on the relevant project commitment.
Tool-Specific Granular Permissions When including outside collaborators in custom workflow steps, collaborators may need to be granted specific granular permissions.
 
Workflows Tool Granular Permissions The Workflows tool is designed so subcontractors only see the steps directly assigned to them, along with the associated side panel and assignments. 

Important! Granting external collaborators either the ‘View Previous Step History’ or ‘View Complete History’ granular permission provides them with visibility to usernames assigned to the workflow. If you decide to grant these permissions to your collaborators, be aware that this increased transparency may lead to direct contact from subcontractors. 

See Also