5 Creative Ways to Leverage Auto Skips and Auto Submits

For more information on the feature, check out this Knowledge Base Article

1. Tacit Approval
   When managers have so much on their plates that they forget to shoot off quick “approvals,” processes can bottleneck and strain. Auto skip can be used to automatically move forward with a tacit approval after a customizable and configurable amount of time.  
   Use Case: Outside Counsel Request Workflow can leverage auto submits to ensure that the review team tacitly approves if the request has been held up by them over a certain number of days.
    
2. Time Based Escalations
   Maybe tacitly approving is more than you are comfortable with, and you want to ensure that every process is managed by certain employees who have specific levels of security within your organization. Allow auto submits to ensure the workflow triggers an escalation to a manager or another workflow authority, after a certain amount of time.
   Use case: Compliance certifications where every company employee needs to sign off in a given amount of time, but time delays pop up as people don't act quickly. 

3. Eternal Requests and Yearly Reviews
   Sometimes, a request must be “refreshed” or consented to again after a  given amount of time. Instead of tracking each request individually and manually, often by spreadsheet - sending out follow ups and automate a yearly, bi-annual, or monthly review. 
   Use Case: Technology requests can have expected dates of use – not all employees will need the software they request for more than a year – so make it easy for them by creating a one-year wait-step between the request and the “is this still necessary” reminder. 
   Use Case: Under the CCPA, a Data Subject Access Request includes a process that allows consumers to opt-out of allowing companies to sell their data. But the request to “Do Not Sell” only lasts 12 months – so with auto submits, you can proactively ask the consumer if they would like to continue to opt-out at the 12 month mark.
    
4. Gathering Parallel Workflows
   “Parallel Workflow” is a feature of TAP that allows a request to split in multiple directions simultaneously. They can be used to facilitate a quick review by multiple parties. When you want to gather all of the information back into one place, auto skips save the day. Auto skip allows us to “skip” over a stage where all the information from multiple reviewers is collected, before triggering the next step.
   Use Case: Auto skips are often used in Conflict of Interest workflows, where it is crucial that multiple people review, and once all reviews are gathered, the workflow must automatically flow to the correct step, whether it be a collaboration stage for additional discussion, an approval, or rejection.
    
5. Built-In SLAs
   SLAs can be handled automatically and built into a workflow without requiring your employees to spend time tracking them. With an auto skip or auto submit, workflows can escalate, remind, or tacitly approve according to predetermined guidelines.
   Use Case: The CCPA allows consumers to request that their data is disclosed to them, and companies must respond within 45 days unless they have filed for an extension. With time-based escalations, TAP can simultaneously escalate requests at 30 days while also triggering a new request for an extension, should that be needed.