Approval & Review Workflows
Design robust approval systems that balance automation with human oversight for compliant AI decisions
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0 / 5 completedEssential Approval Workflow Patterns
Production approval workflows need to handle edge cases: unavailable approvers, slow responses, escalation needs, and audit requirements. These four patterns solve the most common problems.
Interactive: Timeout Simulator
Watch what happens when an approver doesn't respond within the deadline. Adjust the slider to see the timeout mechanism in action:
Approvals get stuck when reviewers are unavailable, blocking agent actions indefinitely.
Set approval deadlines. If no response within X hours/days, either auto-approve (low-risk) or escalate (high-risk).
After 48 hours, refund request auto-approves. After 72 hours, account deletion escalates to senior manager.
Timeouts and delegation prevent approvals from getting stuck. Low-risk actions auto-approve, high-risk actions escalate. Never block the agent indefinitely.
Every approval decision must be permanently recorded with full context. This protects both the organization and the approvers in compliance scenarios.
Set different timeout policies based on risk: 24-48h for low-risk (auto-approve on timeout), 72h+ for high-risk (escalate on timeout, never auto-approve). Document the rationale for each policy.