Can approval workflow have a time stamp?

Pamela Wagner

I've created a workflow to approve an invoice and love that once it's kicked off that columns appear to the right of the sheet showing who the approval was sent and what stage it's in (submitted/approved). Is there anyway to have a time stamp on that workflow so we can see when it started and if it doesn't go to approve in X amount of time that a reminder is generated? The main question is the time stamp on the workflow as I can create the reminder.

Andrée Starå

Hi Pamela,

I've developed a solution that lets you store the date or value.

You'd use the copy-row automation and a VLOOKUP or combination of INDEX/MATCH to make it work.

We'd trigger the copy-row to another sheet and get the created date/other value and then use the VLOOKUP/INDEX/MATCH to get it back to the main sheet in another so-called helper column. As long as you have a unique id/value that we can use, it will work.

Also, this opens up more options with auto-numbering and similar.

Depending on other workflows, you could reuse one sheet for multiple workflows.

I hope that helps!

Let me know if you have any questions!

Stay safe and have a fantastic weekend!

Best,

Andrée Starå

Workflow Consultant / CEO @ WORK BOLD

L_123

You can't really add a timestamp that directly checks when the item was sent, but you can add a modified column to your sheet that will tell you the last time the row was changed, which should give you some idea of how long it has been sitting.

Andrée Starå

Hi Pamela,

I've developed a solution that lets you store the date or value.

You'd use the copy-row automation and a VLOOKUP or combination of INDEX/MATCH to make it work.

We'd trigger the copy-row to another sheet and get the created date/other value and then use the VLOOKUP/INDEX/MATCH to get it back to the main sheet in another so-called helper column. As long as you have a unique id/value that we can use, it will work.

Also, this opens up more options with auto-numbering and similar.

Depending on other workflows, you could reuse one sheet for multiple workflows.

I hope that helps!

Let me know if you have any questions!

Stay safe and have a fantastic weekend!

Best,

Andrée Starå

Workflow Consultant / CEO @ WORK BOLD

L_123

You can't really add a timestamp that directly checks when the item was sent, but you can add a modified column to your sheet that will tell you the last time the row was changed, which should give you some idea of how long it has been sitting.

Pamela Wagner

@Andrée Starå, thanks for this! I'm going to try @L@123's idea first as on the surface may work. The only thing I need to determine is how to get the Modified Date columns in the sheet first but I don't know if I can do that. What I would like is when the column pops in once the workflow has been kicked off that the modified date column appears as well *each time* a new approval column appears. In my case I have a supervisor and a director approving the invoice so I need two modified date columns.

Andrée Starå

@Pamela Wagner

Happy to help!

Yes, try that first because if it works, it's the most straightforward method.

With my method, you could get the date for different Approval statuses of similar.

Let me know how it goes!

Sammy Eastwood

@Andrée Starå Do you have any suggestions for a scenario where an item goes through the approval workflow but is denied and so it has to go through the workflow again? Won't the row be copied into the other sheet multiple times? How do you ensure that the correct timestamp is chosen in the vlookup?

SteveReed@WK

@Sammy Eastwood, I am creating a solution right now for exactly that scenario--a workflow tracking two levels of audit artifact reviews--and my client has requested that we capture Approval dates. After review, the reviewers can either Approve or Decline an artifact, and I use Andree's row copying method above to capture the date. I use the disposition choice (Approve or Decline) as a condition in that automation to send it to either a Approve or Decline Tracker sheet. If there are multiple rows on the Tracker sheet for a given artifact, I identify the most recent by using an INDEX/COLLECT formula. That has worked pretty well for us so far.

One issue that I just uncovered last night that is causing me a problem applies only if you are looking to create new instances of your solution, as I am. In my case, I have a full blown solution with multiple reports and dashboards. The client needs to be able to duplicate this audit tracking system for many more audits down the road. We accomplish this by creating an entire new solution workspace for each audit by using 'Save as New.' I have just discovered that the destination Tracker sheet from the template workspace does not automatically map over to the newly created Tracker sheet. It continues pointing to the Tracker sheet in the original workspace. So you have to manually repoint the Copy Row automation to your new destination sheet. I don't know whether you have this need or not, but thought I would pass it on anyway.

I have one other--much simpler--option to address this time stamping solution. Smarter Business Processes is a Smartsheet Aligned Partner that has developed a set of Smarter Controls for Smartsheet that offers automated solutions to address some of these types of functionality gaps. That includes a time stamping solution that does not require all of these additional configuration gyrations. Check out their website for more information.

Good luck. Let me know if you have any questions.

Steve

Andrée Starå

@Sammy Eastwood

I saw that Steve answered already!

Here's the link to the method I developed.

More info: 

https://community.smartsheet.com/discussion/68589/lock-or-store-date-value-solution-without-using-zapier

Let me know if I can help with anything else!

Best,

Andrée

Mike Wilday

You can now set a timestamp date based on another cell change using an automation workflow!

https://help.smartsheet.com/articles/2481986-set-the-current-date-with-record-a-date-action?_ga=2.79950226.443393604.1609776795-1074882870.1602114816

Pamela Wagner

Thanks Mike!

Andrée Starå

@Mike Wilday @Pamela Wagner

One thing to note is that it's only a date stamp, so that you won't get the time.

I hope that helps!

Be safe and have a fantastic weekend!

Best,

Andrée Starå | Workflow Consultant / CEO @ WORK BOLD

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