Overview

As a global or project admin in Approval Path for Jira, it's important to understand how app works, including admin privileges, managing approval processes, and following best practices.

This guide highlights tips and precautions, covering details that are often overlooked when using approval features.

We have also provided clear answers regarding how we handle security and user privacy. You’ll find useful links and blog posts at the end of this guide for further reading.

Privileges of Global Admins

Global Admins have extensive privileges and control over the configuration and management of approval workflows. Here's a summary table of global admins key capabilities.

Privileges	Authority
Approval Overview	View all approvals from an instance and view each approval.
Quick Action Buttons	Enable/disable action button selection directly from the approvals list for all users with list view access.
Activity Tracking	View all approval-related activities.
Creating Definitions	Create global-level definitions and project-specific definitions.
JSM Connection	Enable/disable JSM customer visibility of approval progress and allow customers to initiate the approval process.
Conditions	Use Jira expressions to create custom conditions that route approvals based on specific criteria.
Delegation	Allows admins to assign alternate approvers. This ensures that when an approval is initiated, the delegatee can act on behalf of the user originally requested to approve.
Abstain Option	Enable/disable the abstain option. Before using this feature, ensure you fully understand the abstain option and its edge cases.
Notification Settings	Offers options to enable action buttons in emails, send manual or automatic approval reminders, and customize notification intervals. Admins can also choose between Jira notifications or direct email for all communications.
Preferences Settings	Option to select how the Approval Path is displayed in the Issue window
Permission Schemes	Enable/disable Jira Permission Scheme and grant or revoke permissions. Before using this feature, ensure you fully understand the Permission Schemes option to avoid potential misconfigurations and unexpected behavior.
API	Generate API keys and leverage Approval Path's functionalities through APIs.
Jira Workflow	Configure Approval Path conditions and post-functions in Jira workflows.

Best Practices & Tips for Global Admins

We would like to show important features in Approval Path for Jira and introduce some benefits, precautions, and important tips for global admins.

Approval Overview

Global admin can view all approvals within an instance and filter them by name, status, project names, or issue searches. Custom filters can also be created, enabling filtering by step status, step type, or issue field. Additionally, each approval can be viewed in detail by opening it and finalized using the quick action button.

Quick Action Buttons

Once enabled, the "Approve," "Reject," and "Abstain" buttons will appear in the approvals list (), allowing users to take action directly without needing to enter each approval's detail view.

Activity Tracking

As a global admin, you can monitor approval activities. Here, you have ability to filter by the projects and sort by the dates of the activities marked. If you need more details on activities information, find article from Global View documentation.

Creating Definitions

Only global admins can create and manage global-level definitions that apply across all projects. Even if certain definitions are project-specific, global admins can still edit and manage them. They also have the ability to convert a global definition to a project-specific one and vice versa, saving time by eliminating the need to create separate definitions for each project. https://docs.warsawdynamics.com/content/51604/approval_path_for_jira_documentation/16646179/16744476/302645250

Working with Jira Service Management (JSM)

As a global admin, you can enable/disable the below options.

JSM customers can view the progress of ongoing approvals for visibility.
JSM customers can initiate approval processes. It can be used when a case requires input from the client.

Conditions

By using Jira expressions to set conditions, global admins can create more dynamic approval paths, allowing a single definition to adapt to specific scenarios and support multiple use cases.

Conditions can be applied at two levels: the definition level and the step level.

Definition Level: Conditions set here prevent the approval from starting if the specified criteria are not met, ensuring the process is only triggered under the right conditions.
Step Level: Conditions at this level allow steps within a definition to be skipped if the specific criteria for including that step are not met.

Example Scenario:
Suppose a definition has two steps and should run on Project X but only for a specific issue type (Task). Additionally, the definition requires a two-step approval if the priority is set to "High" and only a one-step approval if the priority is "Low." You can create two conditions to handle these requirements:

Condition 1: issue.issueType.name == "Task"
- Application: Applied at the definition level
- Result: The approval process will only start if the issue type is "Task."
Condition 2: issue.priority.name == "Low"
- Application: Applied to step number 2
- Result: If the priority is "High," this step will be skipped, as the condition is not met.

This approach enables a single definition to adjust automatically to various approval needs, eliminating the need to create separate definitions for different priority levels. It also ensures the definition cannot be mistakenly applied to an unintended issue type. Conditions in Approval Path

Here are some key reasons to prioritize using the Conditions feature:

Allows for tailoring the approval process to meet specific project requirements.
Minimizes the number of definitions needed, keeping the system organized.
Reduces the risk of errors, such as unnecessary approvals or missed steps.

Tip: Always test conditions before applying them to the production environment.

A condition is met when the expression results in "true"; otherwise, an "Evaluation failed" message will be displayed.

Delegation

Delegation allows a delegatee to act on behalf of the primary approver (the delegator).

Global admins can set up delegations across projects, selecting who will approve in place of the primary approver.

This feature is crucial for maintaining continuity in the approval process, especially when primary approvers are unavailable for issues with tight deadlines. With a designated delegate responsible for approvals, workflow delays are prevented, and transparency is maintained, as both the delegator and delegatee are visible in the system.

If you want to learn about Delegation, please check our documentation: Delegating Approval Steps

Delegation doesn’t restrict the primary approver; they can still approve the issue.

External approvers (Email Step) cannot be assigned as delegates or serve as delegatees.

In what situations would it be helpful to use Delegation?

When the approver is not available.
When an approver is responsible for multiple projects and when distribution of workload is needed.
When there is an urgent issue that requires immediate approval but approver is not reachable.

Find our blogpost about introducing Delegation feature: Delegate your approval steps in Approval Path

Abstain Option

The global admin has the authority to enable or disable the "Abstain" option in global settings.
This option allows an approver to express neutrality or provide silent approval.

For more details, you can check the process and tips at our Abstain Option documentation.

Notification Settings

Enable Action Buttons in Notification Emails
This setting allows users to take action (Approve/Reject/Abstain) by directing them to the approval page from the notification email. Once enabled, the email includes a link to the approval, making it easier for users to respond with login.
Allow Sending Email Approval Reminders
When this option is enabled, an action button will appear next to each active approval, allowing reminder emails to be sent to users in the current step who have not yet responded.
Enable Automatic Reminders
This feature sends automatic reminders at a specified interval to users who haven’t responded yet. Reminders can be customized at the definition or approval level, with a maximum of three reminder notifications allowed. The default interval is set to 7 days but can be adjusted based on project needs.
Choose Notification Mechanism
Global admins can select the preferred notification mechanism:
1. Jira Notifications – Sends emails through Jira's notification system.
2. Direct Email – Sends emails directly from the Approval Path system.

Both options deliver notifications via email; the difference is in the email source. Selecting Jira notifications will route emails through Jira, while Direct Email will send them directly from the Approval Path system.

Preferences Settings

From Settings → Preferences, It is possible to select how the Approval Path display in the Issue window.

Permission Schemes

Global admin can access on Permission schemes.

Global admin can control which users can view, edit, create, start, parametrize, delete and archive approvals on the project and issue levels. If you need a step-by-step guide, you can refer to our documentation: Permission schemes.

When enabling the permission schemes, note that the Approval Path sections will initially become hidden or read-only until you configure Jira project permissions. Be mindful of assigning permissions carefully to avoid giving unauthorized access or restricting necessary actions.

When do you need to use permission schemes?

When your team operates in a complicated environment or when you have approval hierarchies, probably this feature is useful for you.

When working with private projects, you might need to limit or allow access for users.
In a large project with a huge number of issues, maybe you want to give a specific user permission to delete approvals or allow the user to change parameters when starting a new approval so tasks will move smoothly.
Depends on your working organization, you may need strict control. In this case, permission schemes help you meet compliance standards.

However, if you are unsure about customization, Approval Path’s default permission scheme is still reliable. It provides a safe and balanced set of permissions that work well for most users.

API

Global admins have ability to create API keys in global settings. Once API key is generated by global admin, any users with access to the API key can perform API operations. These actions include listing approval definitions, deleting approvals, and customizing performer origins for all types of actions.

Refer to our API documentation for more detailed API settings and endpoints explained with several functions. If you are interested in use cases, click our blog post about API Capabilities for Approval Path.

Jira Workflow

Approval Path integrates with Jira Workflow. It allows global admins to manage approval processes by configuring Approval Conditions and Post-Functions in workflows. Through this feature, approvals can be efficiently handled and align with organizational processes.

Approval Condition

In Jira Workflow, it is notable that Approval Condition prevents issues from transitioning to the next workflow status unless they have been approved. It means that whenever it’s needed, issues will go through the approval process before the next step.

As a global admin, carefully apply approval conditions to key transitions (e.g., from "In Progress" to "Done"). Make sure that the correct approval path definition is selected to avoid confusion in the approval process.

Before applying these conditions, it’s nice to test in a non-production environment to see if they work as we expected. Find out more about Approval Conditions here.

Approval Post-Function

Approval Post-Function automates routine tasks like starting, deleting, and archiving approvals after a transition without manual effort.

You can select the "Start Approval" post-function to automatically trigger the approval process after key transitions. For instance, placing post-function after the “To Do” to “In Progress” transition, approval process should be started. This means approvals are always initiated on time. Find out more about Approval Post-Function here.

What would be the reason to use Jira Workflow rather than Automation Step?

You might want to use Automation Step to reduce manual effort and assign different procedures to each definition.

However, from an administrator's perspective, it is good to use Jira Workflow to manage the approval process of a project and control 'transitions' using conditions. Workflow provides a clear, visual image of issue progression, which helps you to understand the whole picture of it.

Privileges of Project Admins

While global admins can control a wide range of settings, project admins have a more limited scope, focusing on specific projects.

As a Project Admin in Approval Path for Jira, you will have below privileges.

Privileges	Authority
Approval Overview	View all approvals from a project and open each approval.
Activity tracking	View all approval-related activities within the project.
Creating Definitions	Create project-level definitions.
Conditions	Create conditions and request definitions with conditions.
Delegation	Control delegation on the project-level.
Jira Workflow	Edit a workflow that belongs to their project.

Best Practices & Tips for Project Admins

As a project Admin, the role focuses on managing approvals within the specific project scope. Below are best practices and tips to help you use the Approval Path for Jira.

Approval Overview

Project admin can view all approvals from a project with the ability to filter them by name, status, project names, issues search. Project admin can also create exclusive filters and it allows to filter by , step status, step type, and issue field.

Additionally, admins can proceed approval process by opening each approval or using the quick action button.

Activity Tracking

As a project admin, you can view and monitor all list of activities of the approvals within the projects. You have ability to sort by the dates of the activities marked. If you need more information, please check Project View documentation.

Creating Definitions

Project admins can create project-level of definitions. By clicking the checkbox, viewing global definitions is also possible for them. You can manage the definitions in your projects. In this Create Project Approval Definitions documentation, you will find a step-by-step guide how to create definitions.

Conditions

Project admins can create and manage conditions at the project-level and request definitions with conditions. If you want to see a step-by-step guide, check Conditions in Approval Path.

By default, active conditions from both the current project and global-level conditions (view-only mode) are shown.

Delegation

Project admins have the ability to configure delegation at the project-level. While the scope is limited to your project, delegation works similarly to the global delegation.

Jira Workflow

Project admins have the privilege to manage workflows within their projects. Project admins can access Jira Workflow features for their project only, including configuring approval conditions and post-functions specific to project workflows.

Since it’s only available in the project admin’s project, the workflow isn’t shared with any other projects.

If you want to know more about how to manage workflows as a project admin, here is Managing your workflows documentation.

Definitions can be run by using Start Approval post-function, if a global or project-specific definition matches with the workflow project.

If not, an alert mechanism notifies users that there’s a project mismatch.

Privacy & Security

Warsaw Dynamics adheres to strict privacy standards to protect user data. We are saving approval definitions and configuration information which includes user and group IDs, and external email addresses for notification purposes. All other data remains within Jira, ensuring minimal data retention and secure processing. The company maintains transparency and strict compliance with relevant privacy laws, providing clear policies on data retention, international data transfers, and user rights.