Purpose

The purpose of this document is to outline the offer approval workflow within the Talent Acquisition platform. It details how users track offer statuses, manage the approval chain, utilize communication features like reminders, and how designated approvers action requests via email or directly within the system.

Important note:

• Req creation and approval data is accessible from May.
• Publish time stamps are available from April.
• Offer related activities are available starting June '24.

Introduction

The Talent Tracking platform includes a robust system for managing job offer approvals. When an offer requires sign-off, it enters a predefined approval workflow. The Approval Center serves as a centralized hub for monitoring and managing these requests. The system facilitates communication through integrated reminders and commenting features. Approvers can conveniently review offer details and submit their decisions (Approve/Reject) through actionable email notifications or by logging into the platform interface.

Offer Approval Workflow Process

The following steps describe the standard process for managing offer approvals within the system:

Accessing Offer Approvals

• Users navigate to the Approval Center and select the Offers tab to view offers requiring action.
  
• A list of offers pending approval is displayed. Selecting an offer reveals its details.

Opening the candidate profile from here: Selecting an offer's Open profile link (next to the candidate's name in the details pane) opens the full candidate profile — the same Profile, Applications, Feedback, Messages, and Hiring Activities view used everywhere else in the product — in a panel on the right side of the screen, rather than a stripped-down view. This gives a reviewer full candidate context without leaving the Approval Center.

Clicking "Open profile" opens the full candidate profile in a right-side panel. From there, Hiring Activities → Offers → View details opens the offer review page inline.

Reviewing Offer Status and Approvers

• The details pane for a selected offer includes Details, Approvers & Watchers, and Comments tabs.
  
  • The Approvers & Watchers tab presents a visual representation of the approval chain:
    
  • The Creator/Initiating User's step shows as completed.
    
  • The current Pending Approver is clearly indicated, along with the time elapsed since the request and the last reminder sent date.
    
  • Subsequent approvers in the sequence remain inactive until the preceding step is completed.
    
  • A Watchers list shows users who receive notifications but whose approval is not required.
    
  • The Comments section provides a space for offer-related discussions.

Viewing an offer no longer requires being an active participant in this approval chain. Anyone with offer permissions on the position, or anyone named anywhere in this Approvers & Watchers list (approver, signer, or watcher), can open the offer — see "Consistent offer access across touchpoints" below. Approving/rejecting still requires being the current pending approver, unchanged.

Sending Approval Reminders

• Users with appropriate permissions (like the initiating user) can prompt pending approvers by clicking the Send Reminder button next to the relevant approver's name in the workflow.
  
  • The system confirms the action with a temporary Reminder email sent notification.

Approver Email Notification and Actions

• Designated approvers receive an email notification when their action is required.
  
  • The email subject line clearly indicates an offer approval request for a specific candidate.
    
  • The email contains:
    
  • Information on who initiated the request, the candidate, and the position.
    
  • Essential candidate details.
    
  • Comprehensive offer details, including compensation.
    
  • Direct action buttons: Approve and Reject.
    
  • A link/button (View Offer) to access the full offer details within the platform.

Accessing Offer Details from Email

• Clicking the View Offer link in the email notification directs the approver to the candidate's profile page within the Talent Acquisition platform. This view displays the offer's Pending Approval status and the relevant approval workflow information.

Reaching the offer review page from the candidate profile directly: From a candidate's profile, under Hiring Activities → Offers, the offer card shows a status badge (for example, Extended) and who rolled out the offer. Clicking View offer (action bar) or View details (on the offer card) opens the offer review page for that candidate — organized into Candidate Overview, Résumé, Offer Details, Offer Documents, Interview Feedback, and Offer Activities tabs, with Approvers, Signers, and Watchers listed in a side panel. This gives anyone opening an offer from the profile the offer's current terms, status, approvals, and documents in one place.

Approving an Offer

• Approvers can act directly from the email by clicking the Approve button.
  
  • Alternatively, when logged into the platform and viewing the candidate profile or Approval Center, approvers can click the Approve offer button.
    
  • Upon clicking approve (either via email or platform), the system displays a Processing Request message, followed by confirmation that the Offer has been approved.
    
  • The offer's status updates to Approved on the candidate profile.
    
  • The approval workflow visually updates, marking the current step as complete (e.g., with a green checkmark). If there are subsequent approvers, the next step in the sequence becomes active.

Sequential Approval Notifications

• Once an approver completes their step, the system automatically triggers an email notification to the next designated approver in the sequence, repeating step 4 for that user.

Rejecting an Offer

• Approvers can reject an offer by clicking the Reject button in the email notification or the Reject offer button within the platform.
  
  • This action prompts a Reject request modal window.
    
  • Within the modal, the approver must:
    
  • Select a mandatory Rejection Reason from a predefined list (e.g., Position canceled).
    
  • Optionally add Additional Comments.
    
  • Clicking Reject on the modal confirms the decision.

Rejection Confirmation and System Updates

• The system confirms the action with a Request rejected successfully notification.
  
  • The offer's overall status updates to Rejected.
    
  • The approval workflow visually indicates the rejection (e.g., with a red 'X') and displays the selected rejection reason.
    
  • An entry is automatically added to the Comments section, documenting the rejection and the specified reason.