Google Approvals
Now available in beta version, “Google Approvals” is a new workflow feature that allows you to request approvals on all Google and non-Google files stored in Google Drive. With Google Approvals, you can invite reviewers to approve, reject or leave feedback on documents directly within TMU Google Workspace applications such as Docs and Drive.
This feature is available to faculty, full and part-time and sessional contract lecturers, and full-time career and term employees.
Requesting an approval
You can request an approval from the Google Drive file list, in preview mode (where PDFs and other non-Google file open) or directly within Google Docs, Sheets and Slides.
Approvals need to be started on your computer, you will first need to go to Google Drive (opens in new window) .
FAQ
Google Approvals will be available to faculty, full and part-time and sessional contract lecturers, and full-time career and term employees. This feature will appear only if you have edit permissions on a file and if that file is owned by a person that has access to the feature as well. Those who cannot initiate but can participate in approval processes include students, research, graduate and teaching assistants, post-doctoral fellows and non-union casual employees.
The menus in Google Drive are contextual, the Google Approvals options will only show up if it is available for a file. For example, the Approvals sidebar will not show if you are viewing and have selected a folder, it will appear when you select a file in the Google Drive list.
You can find approval requests made by you and awaiting your approval using the advanced search options in Google Drive.
- On your computer, go to Google Drive (external link) .
- At the top, in the search box, click the advanced search options icon at the end of the search box.
- Next to Approvals, select awaiting my approval or requested by me.
- Click Search.
Ordered or sequential approvals can not be set up in Google Approvals. When a requester adds multiple reviewers on a file, all the reviewers will get the request at the same time. All the reviewers need to approve the file for the approval to be complete and if any of the reviewers reject, the entire approval is rejected.
To leave feedback on Google Approvals, make sure you use the Feedback button in the Approvals sidebar.
No, while the person external to TMU will be notified that they have been added as a reviewer, they will not have the option to approve, reject or leave a comment on the file.