How to use the approve function in Google Docs – Tiny Tech Tip
January 12, 2023Collaboration is key
If you’re working in a collaborative environment, often you’ll need approval on documents by senior members of staff or colleagues in the same team. Google Workspace is all about collaboration and productivity, so this week we’ll teach you how to use the approve function.
Waiting for approval can slow down a workflow if you’re just emailing someone with a copy of the document as it can get lost and there’s no record other than the email. The approval function in Google Docs can be really useful in these scenarios! Anything that increases productivity via a workflow process like this can be vital in day-to-day business operation.
Key takeaways from this video:
- Where to find the approval function
- Sending it to the right person or group with a message and due date
- Allow the contributors the right level of access
- Viewing the approval process as it happens
- Receiving a copy of the approved version
Where to find the approval function
If your document requires approval from other members of the team or senior staff members, then you can find this on the top left under File -> Approvals which will then pop out the approvals menu.
Sending it to the right people with different options
From here select “Make a Request”, another window will appear where you can add members that can approve/edit the document including add a due date, their access level and options to lock the document so that the version you’re sending is the one to be approved.
Here you can add a message with more information about the document, usually this will be used as a “Hi can you approve/edit this…” type of message as this will get emailed to the users/groups.
Allow the contributors the right level of access
If the document is locked, editors will be able to unlock the document and make any necessary changes.
This is useful if it’s literally just a case of ensuring that the document is ready to go and the person/people involved in the creation of the document are the people who will edit the document.
Viewing the approval process as it happens
A blue bar appears at the top of the document that will say “pending approval” , clicking this will bring up the details on the right hand side with the date it’s to be approved by, a link to version history and any relevant comments during the approval process.
Receiving a copy of the approved version
Once approved you will receive an email to confirm completed approval as a record of the approval, with the time and the date and a link directly to the document. This is also further highlighted with another blue bar at the top of the document.
And that’s all - something that Google Docs allows you to do that’ll improve the collaboration process within your business (if you’re already using Google Workspace) and a nifty tiny tech tip that could increase productivity.
Final Thoughts
We hope you enjoyed this (tiny) Tech Tip Thursday update looking at the approval function in Google Docs. Let us know how you fare!
As always, we want to hear from you. Is collaboration within a Cloud Environment something you or your business would be interested in learning more about? Let us know in the comments on our YouTube channel or contact us for more information here. As a longstanding member of the Google Cloud Partner Program, Damson Cloud specialises in bringing people and ideas together through new ways of working. We champion the very best practices in remote working and change management, helping companies and their teams collaborate productively from anywhere in the world. To find out more about our services, check out our library of tutorial videos or our blog.
