Setting up the Training Request Form workflow

The Training Request Form subplugin provides an approval workflow form designed to support training processes requiring multiple approvals from different departments, e.g. the management team and the accounting department.

This subplugin provides a few key benefits, allowing you to:

• Customise the workflow by overriding field labels with language strings

• Provide additional help information to assist users through the workflow

• Use the Select assignment field, enabling the requester to choose specific approvers

The Training Request Form subplugin utilises Totara's audience functionality. The subplugin allows multiple audiences to participate in the approval workflow, meaning you can have multiple layers of approval/rejection. This workflow requires employees to have managers assigned, and audiences to be configured for each stage of approval.

Setting up a training request form

In this section we have outlined an example of how to set up an approval workflow using the Training Request Form plugin:

1. Create a number of normal users and add them to the audience (e.g. 'Users') that needs to be able to request training.

2. Create additional audiences for the different parties that need to provide their approval, e.g. Budget holder A, Budget holder B, Budget holder C.

3. Create a new approval type via Quick-access menu > Manage approval workflow types:

   1. Click Add workflow type.

   2. Enter a unique Type name and optionally add a Type description.

   3. Click Add.

4. Create a new approval form via Quick-access menu > Manage approval forms:

   1. Click Add, set a Form title value, and ensure the Approval form plugin is set to Training Request Form.

   2. Click Save changes.

5. Create a workflow using the new type and form via Quick-access menu > Manage approval workflows:

   1. Click New workflow.

   2. Give the workflow a Workflow name and Description.

   3. Set the Type to the type created in step 3.

   4. Click Next.

   5. Select the form created in step 4 and click Next.

   6. Change the Assignment type to Audience.

   7. Select the audience created in step 1 (in this case, the Users audience).

   8. Click Create.

Editing the Training Request Form labels and help icons

The form displays the field names, and in brackets the lang string that is used to provide the label text. You can update the text by editing the relevant strings in the language pack. For example, in the screenshot below, you can update the applicants_name lang string (which can be found under the form plugin’s component, i.e. approvalform_trainingrequest) to change the 'Applicant’s name' label to a different phrase.

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Next to the label you can also see the 'i' help icon. While editing the form, you can see the relevant lang string for that field's help text by clicking on the icon. For example, in the screenshot below, you could replace the help_applicant_name lang string to update the help message for this field. If there is no value provided, the form will not display the help icon for users (it will only be visible when editing the form). You can check how the help text will display by clicking the Preview form button.

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Adding additional approver overrides

The Training Request Form includes a new Select assignment field. This new field allows the requester to select from a list of Approval overrides that are set on the form.

You can add new options to the Select assignment field by following these steps:

1. While creating a new approval workflow, click the plus icon to add a stage.

2. Select Approver and give the stage a Stage name, e.g. 'Approval'.

3. If you want to add a manager as an approver, set Add Level 1 approver(s) to Relationship. This will auto-populate the manager.

4. To add more options that will appear in the Select assignment dropdown menu on the form, follow these steps:

   1. Click Add approval level.

   2. Enter the Level name, e.g. 'Budget holders'. Leave this set to Individual.

   3. Click Configure approval overrides.

   4. Click Add override.

   5. Change the Assignment type to Audience, then select an audience and click Add.

   6. Ensure that only the new Budget holders (or the name you gave the level earlier) level is checked for Override, and select the individual who will be responsible at that level. Click Save.

   7. Complete this process again to add further options to the Select assignment field.

5. Publish the workflow, then log in as a user and create an approval request. You should now see the selected audiences as options in the Select assignment field.