Streamlining Design Approval Processes

On average, it takes 8 days and 3.2 rounds of review to get a project deliverable approved. 7 in 10 project managers say chasing stakeholders for approvals slows down their teams significantly. This explains why projects fall behind schedule, resources are wasted, and deadlines become a constant source of stress. But… Because of these delays, project managers face constant roadblocks like: Endless email chains and follow-ups. Teams waiting idly for approvals that don’t come on time. Budget overruns caused by rework or missed timelines. Chasing approvals isn’t just time-consuming—it derails the entire project. When feedback or sign-offs are delayed, the ripple effect impacts everything: Planned resources go unused. Project milestones are missed. Team morale drops because of constant last-minute changes. Imagine this: You’ve coordinated with multiple stakeholders, only to spend days waiting for someone’s approval. Meanwhile: Your team is idle, wasting valuable hours. You’re scrambling to keep stakeholders aligned. Timelines are collapsing, and you’re stuck fixing the mess. This endless cycle of chasing approvals leaves you overwhelmed and exhausted. So, how do you take back control? The answer lies in streamlined approval workflows. Here are 3 actionable tips to get faster project approvals: 1. Set non-negotiable deadlines: Assign clear due dates for every review stage and automate reminders to keep stakeholders accountable. 2. Be specific in your requests: Specify exactly what needs to be approved whether it's a project charter, timeline, or deliverables so stakeholders know where to focus. 3. Centralize approvals: Use a single tool or platform for feedback and sign-offs to eliminate confusion and back-and-forth emails. The next time you’re stuck waiting for project approvals, ask yourself: • Have I communicated clear deadlines? • Am I specific about the feedback I need? • Is my approval process centralized and easy to follow? Take these steps, and you’ll not only stop chasing approvals but also keep your projects on track, under budget, and stress-free.

I’ve rarely seen managers slow teams down on purpose. But many do become the bottleneck. Not because they want control. Because every decision still routes through them. They become bottlenecks because their team can’t move without them. I’ve seen leaders spend over 20% of their day approving exceptions. Not strategic calls. Not complex judgment. Just routine decisions that kept flowing upward because no one built guardrails. Every approval request feels small. But stacked together, they consume the hours meant for strategic thinking. And the worst part? Most managers don’t notice it happening. They feel busy. They feel needed. They feel productive. But they’re not leading. They’re processing. The fix isn’t working harder or faster. It’s designing processes that don’t require you in the first place. If you’re the bottleneck, the fix isn’t trying to keep up. It’s redesigning what no longer needs your approval. Here’s how to stop being the bottleneck: 1️⃣ Audit your approvals for one week Track every decision that lands on your desk. Ask: “Did this actually require my judgment, or just my signature?” Most leaders are surprised by how few truly needed them. 2️⃣ Define the guardrails, not the answers Instead of approving every exception, define the boundaries. “If it’s under $X, proceed. If it affects Y, escalate.” Clear criteria let teams move without waiting. 3️⃣ Push decision rights down with the context Empowerment without information creates chaos. Share the reasoning behind your decisions so others can apply the same logic. 4️⃣ Make escalation uncomfortable, not automatic If every exception flows up without friction, that’s by design. Require a brief explanation of why this couldn’t be handled at their level. Over time, teams stop escalating what they can solve. 5️⃣ Protect strategic time like it’s a client meeting Block time for thinking, not just doing. If your calendar is full of approvals, you’ve outsourced your leadership to your inbox. 6️⃣ Create a decision log for patterns Track the exceptions that keep repeating. If the same type of request shows up three times, it’s not an exception anymore. It’s a missing policy. Write the rule and eliminate the ask. 7️⃣ Assign a backup decision-maker For every approval you own, name someone who can act in your absence. If no one else can approve it, you’ve created a single point of failure. Redundancy isn’t about trust. It’s about continuity. The goal isn’t to be less available. It’s to build a system that doesn’t need you to function. 💾 Save this if your days feel productive but your strategy feels stalled. ➕ Follow Rene Madden, ACC for leadership systems that reduce noise instead of managing it.

"We rolled out a new process three months ago. Nobody's using it..." He looked exhausted. "What was the process?" I asked. "A new approval workflow.  Seven steps. Three sign-offs. Documented everything." "Why did you create it?" "We had compliance gaps and needed accountability." "And now?" "People are skipping steps. Managers are looking the other way. We're back to square one." "Why do you think they're not following it?" He shrugged. "They don't care about compliance." "Or maybe they just care about getting work done." He looked annoyed. "Let me ask you something," I said. "When you designed this process, did you ask the people who'd use it every day?" "We had a committee." "Of executives?" Silence. "Here's what I've learned about change that sticks," I said. "Make it simple.  Make them do it." He frowned. "That's it?" "That's it. If the process is painful, people won't do it. And the managers enforcing it? They'll feel guilty asking for too much. So they stop asking." "And 'make them do it'?" "Becomes easy when the process actually makes sense. Accountability isn't a bad word when you're not asking for something unreasonable." "So what do I do now?" "Go back to your seven steps. Ask which ones actually prevent problems. Cut the rest." He didn't look convinced. "Just try it," I said. "What's the worst that happens?  You go back to the process nobody's using anyway?" He called me two months later. "We're down to three steps." "And?" "94% compliance. First time ever." "What changed?" "I stopped designing processes for compliance. Started designing them to help people do their jobs." Complex processes don't fail because people are lazy. They fail because the people who designed them never had to use them. Make it simple. Make them do it. That's not a shortcut. That's the only way change survives the first month. _____ Like my content? Follow Bryan Howard and click the 🔔 on my profile. Find this useful? ♻️ Repost for your network.

When Schoolblazer, market leaders in the design and production of premium school uniforms approached us, their design process was holding them back. 𝗕𝗲𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗰𝗲𝗻𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝘄𝗮𝘀... 🚨 𝗖𝗹𝗶𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗠𝗶𝘀𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝘂𝗻𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 School administrators (uniform decision makers) aren’t fashion designers.  Traditional flat CAD drawings made it difficult for them to visualise and approve designs, leading to delays and unnecessary revisions. 🚨 𝗟𝗲𝗻𝗴𝘁𝗵𝘆 𝗗𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹𝗼𝗽𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗖𝘆𝗰𝗹𝗲𝘀 Some designs took up to 6 months to finalise, requiring multiple rounds of physical samples before approval. 🚨𝗛𝗶𝗴𝗵 𝗦𝗮𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗖𝗼𝘀𝘁𝘀 With 5 or 6 rounds of physical samples per design, production costs were stacking up. 🚨 𝗟𝗶𝗺𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗗𝗶𝗴𝗶𝘁𝗮𝗹 𝗧𝗼𝗼𝗹𝘀 Their existing software lacked the realism and accuracy needed to create effective customer-facing visuals. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀: 🔹𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗲𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝗘𝗻𝗴𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 – We worked closely with Schoolblazer’s team to identify bottlenecks and define clear goals. 🔹𝟯𝗗 𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗴𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗗𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀– We created 3D visuals that became a core part of their customer interactions, allowing for more confident decision-making. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗥𝗲𝘀𝘂𝗹𝘁𝘀: 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗱? ✅ 50% faster product development – Culottes, once a 6-month project, now completed in just 6 weeks. ✅ Fewer sample rounds – From five or six iterations down to two or three. ✅ Clearer client approvals – 3D visualisation removed confusion and delays. What’s Next? With 3D fully embedded in their workflow, Schoolblazer has set a new industry standard—one where digital design leads to faster approvals, lower costs, and better customer experiences. 💡 To listen to my full discussion with Michelle Caulkett, Former Head of Technical at SchoolBlazer use the link below 👇🏾 https://bit.ly/3XhNkb7 #3DDesign #FashionInnovation #DigitalTransformation #SchoolUniforms #INHOUSE

Workflow Automation in PLM is more than convenience, it’s the foundation of faster, traceable, and scalable product development. When engineering teams rely on manual approvals and outdated processes, delays, missteps, and compliance risks pile up. That’s where workflow automation comes in - automating routing, reviews, and approvals based on predefined logic. What It Does Workflow automation in PLM auto-triggers reviews, status updates, and stakeholder notifications—without human intervention. It streamlines change requests, document approvals, BOM reviews, and lifecycle state changes. Why It Matters Automation eliminates bottlenecks, enforces compliance, improves transparency, and enables cross-functional coordination—turning chaos into consistency. What Can Be Automated From ECO/ECR routing to supplier onboarding and document approvals—key tasks that usually require manual handoffs are now seamless and rule-driven. Who’s Involved Engineers initiate requests, reviewers evaluate them, PLM admins manage templates, and leads finalize approvals. Quality teams ensure everything stays compliant. Tools That Power It Platforms like Teamcenter, Windchill, ENOVIA, Aras, and Autodesk Fusion support rule-based automation, lifecycle triggers, and visual workflow builders tailored for PLM. Best Practices Keep workflows simple, logic-based, time-bound, and fully auditable. Add alerts and notifications to keep everyone in the loop and aligned. Final Result? You get reduced cycle times, fewer errors, better decisions, and crystal-clear traceability, no matter how complex the change process gets. [Explore More In The Post] For a deep dive into PLM, MES, or CAD and to elevate your understanding of PLM, connect with us at PLMCOACH and Follow Anup Karumanchi for more such information. #plmcoach #plm #teamcenter #siemens #3dexperience #3ds #dassaultsystemes #training #windchill #ptc #training #plmtraining #architecture #mis #delmia #apriso #mes

📅 Day 5 of #30DaysOfServiceNow 🔹 Topic: 𝐅𝐥𝐨𝐰 𝐃𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐠𝐧𝐞𝐫 & 𝐀𝐮𝐭𝐨𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐀𝐩𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐯𝐚𝐥 𝐑𝐨𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐧 ServiceNow 📚 𝐋𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐎𝐛𝐣𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐬: 💡 Understand what Flow Designer is and how it works 💡 Learn how Flow Designer differs from a Business Rule 💡 Understand triggers, conditions, and actions inside a flow 💡 See a real automated approval flow built inside a ServiceNow project 🧩 𝐌𝐲 𝐀𝐩𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐚𝐜𝐡: 1️⃣ Learned that Flow Designer is a low code automation tool used to build workflows visually using triggers, conditions, and actions. 2️⃣ Understood the key difference from a Business Rule: Business Rules handle logic on record changes, while Flow Designer manages full multi step processes like approvals, notifications, and routing. 3️⃣ Studied how triggers start the flow, conditions determine the path, and actions define what happens next. 4️⃣ Applied it by reviewing the UAT Sign Off Flow I built in my Virtual Agent QA Testing Hub project. 💡 𝐐𝐮𝐢𝐜𝐤 𝐁𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐤𝐝𝐨𝐰𝐧: • Business Rule = script based logic for calculations and data enforcement • Flow Designer = process automation for approvals, notifications, and multi step workflows They are not competing tools. They work together. 🛠️ 𝐇𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐈𝐬 𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐈 𝐔𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐈𝐭: Inside my Virtual Agent QA Testing Hub project, I built a flow called “UAT Sign Off Flow.” 𝐻𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝑖𝑠 ℎ𝑜𝑤 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑎��𝑡𝑜𝑚𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑐ℎ𝑎𝑖𝑛 𝑤𝑜𝑟𝑘𝑠: • A Business Rule calculates the Overall Score and flags failed records • A Client Script highlights low scores visually on the form • A UI Policy requires Reviewer Notes when a record is flagged • Then Flow Designer takes over and routes the approval automatically The flow triggers whenever a QA Response Log record is marked Failed and flagged for review. If approved, the record updates down the approved path. If rejected, it updates down the rejected path instead. No manual routing or follow up required. The platform handles the process automatically. 💡 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐈 𝐋𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐞𝐝: This was the first time I really saw how multiple ServiceNow components work together as one connected system. Each piece handles a different responsibility, then passes the process to the next step. Building it myself helped me understand not just how these tools work individually, but why platform architecture and automation design matter. #30DaysOfServiceNow #ServiceNow #ServiceNowDeveloper #ServiceNowBusinessAnalyst #FlowDesigner #NowPlatform #ServiceNowJourney #LearningInPublic #ITSM #CSA #Automation #ApprovalFlow #PDI #CareerGrowth #WomenInTech #PlatformEngineering