---
title: "E-Approval Flow/Groups- Document Generation"
slug: "e-approval-flow-groups-document-generation"
updated: 2026-10-29T17:01:15Z
published: 2026-10-29T17:01:15Z
canonical: "wiki.cobblestonesoftware.com/e-approval-flow-groups-document-generation"
---

> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://wiki.cobblestonesoftware.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# E-Approval Flow/Groups- Document Generation

**COBBLESTONE SOFTWARE**

Contract Insight — User Guide

**E-Approval Flow/Groups- Document Generation**

*Document Templates: Generation/Merging › E-Approvals - Document Generation › E-Approval Flow/Groups- Document Generation*

**Note:** Each procedure in this guide begins at the Contract Insight homepage, so any section can be followed on its own. Custom fields are configurable, so the exact field list on a contract category record may vary between environments.

# 1. Overview

An e-approval flow controls who must approve a document generated from a template, and in what order. The flow is configured per template under **Administration → Document Templates**, on step **3. Approvals & signing** → **E-Approvals** tab. When **Use E-Approvals** is enabled, generating a document from the template copies the approval flow onto it, dormant until someone starts it.

The flow is made of **approval groups**. Approvers are invited group by group: participants within a group act in parallel, and groups run sequentially. The Document Templates list shows each template's **Approvals** and **Signatures** configuration side by side (for example, “On · 2 steps” or “Off”), so you can see which templates route for approval before any document is created.

# 2. Key Elements

- **Document Templates list**: the **Approvals** and **Signatures** columns show each template's configuration. A template can have approvals On with signatures Off, signatures On with approvals Off, or both.
- **Use E-Approvals**: when Enabled, generated documents carry the template's approval flow. Click **Save approval settings** to apply.
- **Approval process**: links the template to a shared process from **Approval & Signing Processes**, if one is configured for the record type and template type.
- **Who approves, and in what order**: lists the template's approval groups in sequence, with **Add group** to create a new group.
- **Group actions**: **Edit**, **Participant**, **Rules**, **Copy**, and **Delete**.
- **Participant row actions**: **When this approval is required** (filter icon), **Content controls this approver may edit** (shield icon), and **Remove this approver** (trash icon). Each participant shows its Title (approval placeholder), Source, Approver, and whether it is required or optional.

# 3. Navigating to a Template's E-Approvals Settings

1. From the Contract Insight homepage, click the **Administration** icon at the bottom of the left navigation bar.
2. Type **Document Templates** in the **Search administration** box and click the **Document Templates** card.

![Administration search with the Document Templates card highlighted](https://cdn.document360.io/e3626857-1fb5-4e27-b278-2d3fc5508be4/Images/Documentation/eapproval-01-admin-document-templates.png)

1. Review the **Approvals** and **Signatures** columns to see which templates route for approval. Use the **Search** box to find a template, then click **Open** on its row.

![Document Templates list with the Approvals and Signatures columns highlighted](https://cdn.document360.io/e3626857-1fb5-4e27-b278-2d3fc5508be4/Images/Documentation/eapproval-02-templates-approvals-column.png)

1. In the template editor, click step **3. Approvals & signing**. The **E-Approvals** tab opens by default.

# 4. Enabling E-Approvals for a Template

1. Navigate to the template's E-Approvals tab (see Section 3).
2. Check **Use E-Approvals** (Enabled).
3. If a shared approval process exists for the record type and template type, select it under **Approval process**.
4. Click **Save approval settings**.

![E-Approvals tab with Use E-Approvals, Approval process, and Save approval settings highlighted](https://cdn.document360.io/e3626857-1fb5-4e27-b278-2d3fc5508be4/Images/Documentation/eapproval-03-approvals-signing-step.png)

**Note:** If E-Approvals is on with no process selected, the page shows “E-Approvals are on with no process selected - generated documents will carry no approval flow” unless the template has its own approval groups (see Section 5).

# 5. Configuring Approval Groups

The **Who approves, and in what order** section lists the template's approval groups. Each group is numbered in the order it runs and shows its participants, their source, approver, and whether each is required or optional.

![Approval groups with Add group, group actions, and participant row actions highlighted](https://cdn.document360.io/e3626857-1fb5-4e27-b278-2d3fc5508be4/Images/Documentation/eapproval-04-approval-groups.png)

## 5a. Adding an Approval Group

1. Click **Add group**.
2. In the **Add group** form, enter a **Group name** (required) and an optional **Description**.
3. Confirm the **Sequence** (the group's position in the flow).
4. Select **For version**: Initial Version Only, Additional/Modified Versions, or All Versions.
5. Choose whether to **Accept tracked changes on complete**, and optionally **Set record status on complete**.
6. Click **Save approval group**, or **Cancel** to discard.

![Add group form with its fields and buttons highlighted](https://cdn.document360.io/e3626857-1fb5-4e27-b278-2d3fc5508be4/Images/Documentation/eapproval-05-add-group.png)

## 5b. Adding a Participant to a Group

1. Click **Participant** on the group's header.
2. Under **Participant is from**, choose **Employees**, **Roles & Groups**, or **Vendor/Customer Contacts**.
3. Select the approver (for example, **Select employee**).
4. Enter a **Title**, which must be unique per template and is used as the approval placeholder, and an optional **Reason**.
5. Set **Required** and **Locked** as needed.
6. Click **Save participant**.

![Add participant form with its fields and buttons highlighted](https://cdn.document360.io/e3626857-1fb5-4e27-b278-2d3fc5508be4/Images/Documentation/eapproval-06-add-participant.png)

## 5c. Managing Groups and Participants

- Use **Edit**, **Rules**, **Copy**, or **Delete** on a group's header to change, condition, duplicate, or remove the group.
- Use the participant row icons to set **when this approval is required**, the **content controls this approver may edit**, or to **remove this approver**.

# 6. Shared Approval & Signing Processes

Instead of each template carrying its own groups, an approval flow can be shared by many templates.

1. From **Administration**, search for and open **Approval & Signing Processes**.
2. Click **Approval** under **Show** to list approval processes, or click **New process** to create one.

![Approval and Signing Processes page with New process and the Approval filter highlighted](https://cdn.document360.io/e3626857-1fb5-4e27-b278-2d3fc5508be4/Images/Documentation/eapproval-07-shared-processes.png)

Once an active approval process exists for a record type and template type, it can be selected in the template's **Approval process** field (see Section 4).

# 7. Viewing Approvals on a Generated Document

1. Open the record and click the **Attachments & Templates** tab.
2. In **Merged Document Templates → Saved documents**, click the **Approvals** (checklist) icon on the package's row.
3. The **Approvals** panel opens beneath the package and shows the flow copied from the template. If the template has no approval groups, the panel reads “This document's template has no approval groups set up, so there's nothing to route.”

![Approvals icon and Approvals panel on a generated package](https://cdn.document360.io/e3626857-1fb5-4e27-b278-2d3fc5508be4/Images/Documentation/eapproval-08-package-approvals.png)

See Generate New Document Package for how packages are created.

# 8. Quick Reference Summary

| Task | How to Complete It |
| --- | --- |
| Open Document Templates | Administration → search **Document Templates** → Document Templates card. |
| See which templates use approvals | Document Templates list → **Approvals** and **Signatures** columns. |
| Open a template's approval settings | **Open** on the template's row → **3. Approvals & signing** → **E-Approvals**. |
| Turn e-approvals on or off | **Use E-Approvals** → **Save approval settings**. |
| Add an approval group | **Add group** → enter details → **Save approval group**. |
| Add an approver to a group | Group header → **Participant** → enter details → **Save participant**. |
| Edit, copy, or delete a group | Group header → **Edit**, **Copy**, or **Delete**. |
| Create a shared approval process | Administration → **Approval & Signing Processes** → **New process**. |
| View approvals on a generated package | Record → Attachments & Templates → Saved documents → **Approvals** icon. |