Managers can approve payment requests while a separate team member initiates the payments. This Multi-step Payment Approvals feature is ideal for workflows in which one or more managers need to only approve a payment (e.g. to confirm that a requested amount is correct), while another user, such as a Finance team member, separately schedules payments for the approved requests.
This feature also allows multiple people to review and approve the same payment request before sending a payment.
To review and approve a payment request:
Under the Payments menu, go to the Requests tab. All people who have reviewed and approved a request will be shown in the Approved by section.
Select "Review" next to the payment request that you’d like to review.
Click the "Approve" button to approve the request. To reject the request, click "Reject this request" and add a note about the reason for the rejection.
Administrators can give managers the ability to both approve and send payments, or just to approve payments without sending them.
To choose whether or not a new manager will have access to send payments to their direct reports:
Under the People menu, go to the Access tab.
Select "+ Add new manager."
In the Add new manager window, enter the manager’s name and email address. Then select the checkbox next to "Invite this person to create an account on Plane."
To give the manager access to send payments, select the option "Can send payments to direct reports." If you select "No access," then the manager will only be able to approve payments for their direct reports without sending them.
Click the "Add new manager" button.
To change whether an existing manager can send payments to their direct reports:
Under the People menu, go to the Access tab.
Scroll down to the Managers list, click on the three purple dots to the right of the manager's name, then click Edit.
A pop-up will appear. Under "Access to payments," choose between "No access" and "Can send payments to direct reports."
Once done, click "Save manager information."
To send the payment after the request has been approved:
Under the Payments menu, go to the Pay contractors tab.
On the right side of each contractor, click on their payment request.
Click on "Pay [amount]" on the left-hand side to schedule the payment. Click on "Reject this request" on the right-hand side to reject the request.
Scroll down and click the "Continue with payment to 1 contractor" button.
Questions? We’re here to help! You can find more of our guides here, reach out to us at support@plane.com, or use Plane's in-app chat.