Talk to us
HomeFeaturesWho it's forAppsSecurityPlansTalk to us

Approval chains

Visitors at the gate, visit requests, exit passes, meeting requests, gate passes and work permits each go to the right people. You set the order, without code. Every decision is kept with who made it, when and why.
PLANSEvery plan
Compare plansHow it works

The problem it solves

  • A visitor waits at the gate while reception phones the host, who is in a meeting.
  • A gate pass for a costly machine needs the plant head's signature too, and the tool knows only one approver.
  • Fit-out permits should pass the facility manager and then security, and nobody checks the order.
  • Nobody can find who let a visitor in, or why a permit was rejected.

How it works

  1. Each kind of request has a chain per Entity, ready to use with one level: the usual approvers. That is the host for a visitor, the named approver for a gate pass, the office for a work permit.
  2. Add levels in order under Visitors > Configuration > General > Approval Chains, for example the host, then a security officer for one visitor type. Any one approver of a level decides.
  3. Add a second chain for some requests only with Only For, such as gate passes of one department. Set Approved at Once for a kind that needs no approval.
  4. The buttons stay where people use them: the host portal and Host app, the guard's screen, the SmartMy VMS staff app and the back office. Each answer decides the level the request waits at.
  5. When the last level approves, the product does its part. The visitor is let in, the gate pass gets its QR and code, the crew get their passes.

Everything it does

What goes through approval in SmartMy VMS

  • Visitor at the gate, for a visitor type that needs approval (every plan); Delivery and Government / Inspection start as Approved at Once
  • Visit request from the public pre-registration page (Growth)
  • Meeting request: scheduling a time is the approval, declining the refusal (Growth)
  • Gate pass for goods going out (Growth)
  • Exit pass for a person going out (Scale)
  • Work permit and its requests for more days, and crew changes of a work permit (Scale)

Who approves with no set-up

  • Visitor at the gate: the host and the alternate host; reception can answer for them, and the guard records an answer given on the intercom
  • Visit request: the host and the alternate host; reception when no host is named
  • Meeting request: the person asked; reception can answer for them
  • Gate pass: the approver named on the pass, never the person who raised it; else reception and VMS managers
  • Exit pass, work permit and crew change: the office (reception and VMS managers)

Who approves a level you add

  • Named users, a group, or the usual approvers of the request
  • A host on a portal or app can be named; they decide on the Approvals page of the portal
  • If a level has nobody: the request cannot be submitted (the default for a new level), the level is skipped, or the usual approvers decide
  • Any one approver of a level decides; for two signatures, add two levels

Rules

  • The person a request is about never decides it: nobody approves their own exit pass
  • Requester May Approve: on for every VMS chain as the system makes it, so whoever raised a request may decide a level they approve
  • Only For: a chain for some requests only, tried from the top; keep one chain with an empty Only For
  • Approved at Once: no approval for requests that fit the chain
  • A reason is needed to reject a gate pass or a work permit, and to refuse an extension
  • Host does not answer a waiting visitor in 10 minutes: escalated to reception, or the guard decides after calling, as you set

Record

  • An Approvals tab on each request: level, approver, status, decided by, date and reason
  • The record's history shows who approved, rejected or answered at the gate
  • Changes to the chains themselves are recorded
  • A new Entity copies the chains of its parent

Who uses it

HostApproves visitors at the gate, visit requests, meeting requests and gate passes named to them, on the portal or the Host app.
Reception and VMS managersAnswer for hosts, decide exit passes, work permits and crew changes, and take escalated visitors.
Security officer or plant headApproves at a level you add, for example costly gate passes or one visitor type.
VMS administratorSets the levels, approvers and conditions under Approval Chains, without developer mode.

Where you use it

  • Web: Visitors > Configuration > General > Approval Chains, Approvals > Requests > To Approve, and each product screen. Screens: Visits, Expected / Passes, Exit Passes, Gate Passes, Work Permits > To Approve
  • Host portal: Home, Requests, Gate passes (Waiting for your approval), and the Approvals page for levels you name them on
  • The Host app: At the gate for you, Requests, Meetings, Gate passes (built and in testing, not in the app stores yet)
  • The SmartMy VMS staff app: My approvals in the Menu for reception (built and in testing, not in the app stores yet)
  • The Guard app records the answer given on the intercom; work permits are decided in the back office

What you control

Settings

  • Levels and their approvers, per kind and Entity: one level, the usual approvers, to start with
  • If a level has nobody: cannot submit, skip, or usual approvers
  • Requester May Approve (on), Only For conditions, Approved at Once
  • Host Approval Timeout: 10 minutes; When the Host Does Not Answer: Escalate to Reception (or Guard Decides)

Notifications

  • Visitor Waiting for Approval: to the host and alternate host; app notification and in the app, and the first of WhatsApp, SMS or email
  • Visitor Approval Escalated: to reception when the host did not answer in time; same channels
  • Visit Request (Public Page): to the host, the alternate host, or reception; same channels
  • Meeting Requested: to the person asked; app notification, email and in the app
  • Gate Pass to Approve and Work Permit to Approve: to the approvers of the level; app notification and in the app, and email
  • People you name on a level get a to-do in the back office

Works with

SmartMy HRMSWith employees as hosts, the manager is the alternate host and a host on leave passes visitors to their alternate.

Questions

Can a security officer approve after the host?

Yes. Add a second level to the visitor chain, with Only For a visitor type if it is not for everyone. The host decides first, then the officer.

What if the host does not answer?

After the Host Approval Timeout (10 minutes to start with) the visitor goes to reception, or the guard decides after calling, as you set.

Can someone approve their own gate pass?

Not as the usual approver: the person who raised it is never offered. Nobody approves their own exit pass either.

Do approvers get reminders if a request waits?

Not for VMS chains, apart from the visitor escalation. Approvers are told when a request reaches them and see it in To Approve and in their apps.

Can we turn approval off for deliveries?

Deliveries and inspections start as Approved at Once. You can do the same for any visitor type, or for all gate passes.

Related features

HOST APPROVALHost approval from the phoneA visitor without a pass waits at the gate while the host is asked on the phone. The host approves or rejects from the link, the app or the back office. If nobody answers in time, reception or the guard decides, and an alternate host covers for anyone away.VEHICLES AND GOODSMaterial gate pass with returnable itemsStaff raise a gate pass for anything leaving the site. Once approved it carries a QR code and a six-digit code; the guard checks the items, lets them out or holds them. Returnable items stay open until they come back.CONTRACTORSWork permits with crew passesA host asks for a work permit for a fit-out, repair or move. The building office approves it with conditions, and each crew member gets a pass that works only on the permit's dates, days, hours and gates. The guard sees who works today.GATE, KIOSK AND GUARD TOOLSExit passes with expected returnSomeone who is not a visitor goes out with permission. The office approves an exit pass, and the guard lets the person out, against a one-time code if you want. Late returns are flagged.PASSESPublic link to ask for a visitPut one link on your website or in an email signature. A visitor asks for a visit without a login. The person they want to see approves it, and the QR pass goes out by itself.HOST APPROVALMeeting requests at the front deskSomeone at the desk asks to meet a staff member without an appointment. The staff member meets them now, asks them to wait, or gives a later time with a gate pass. They can also decline with a reason or hand over to a colleague. Every answer reaches the visitor.

See it on your own gate.

Tell us how many gates you have, who comes through them and how visitors are approved today. We will show you SmartMy VMS set up that way.
Talk to usCompare plans