How Approvals Work (Mobile vs Desktop)

What this means 

• Desktop (web portal) is where site teams usually REVIEW and APPROVE pending items in registers.
• Mobile is where site teams do on-site actions (and some approvals), and where workers/foremen submit the items that require approval.
  
  

When you’ll use this

• You need to approve or reject a permit submission
• You need to approve or reject an orientation/induction (if your site has approvals enabled)
• You need to approve/reject company docs (supplier docs) and complete review sheets (if enabled)

Step-by-step

Web Portal

You can approve from:

• Global Approvals Register (shows pending items across sites you have access to)

• Company-level registers (for example: company permits register, company orientations register)

• Site-specific registers (inside a site: site permits register, site orientations register)

• From a “Review now” action on a pending item (where available)

Mobile App

• On-site workflows and day-to-day host actions

• Reviewing items while walking the job site (if your role has approval permissions)

Important limitation to remember:

• Permit closing is not typically done on the web portal. Closing is intended to be completed on mobile (on-site), often because it requires photos/real-world verification.
  
  

What can be approved where

Orientations / Inductions

• Desktop: can review + approve/reject (if “Host Approval” is enabled for that orientation)

• Mobile: wording/buttons may differ from web, and some “host revision/editing the worker’s submission” may not be supported in the same way on web
  
  

Permits

• Desktop: can approve/reject permits that are Pending (Accept/Reject flow in the web portal)

• Mobile: used for on-site handling, and closing the permit is typically done on mobile (not web)

Company Docs (Supplier Docs)

• Desktop: can approve/reject documents (and complete review sheets / set expiry where enabled)

• Mobile: can also support review/approval depending on permissions, but most “bulk review” is easier on web

Common Issues

“I can’t approve on my phone but I can on desktop” (or vice versa)

What to check

• Your role permissions on that site (approval permissions are permission-driven)

What to do

• Confirm you’re a site host for that site and have approval permissions enabled for the relevant workflow
  
  

“I don’t see the item in Approvals”

What to check

• You may be in the wrong site context, or filters are set to a different status/date range

What to do

• Use the global approvals view (if available) or clear filters and re-filter to Pending

“The wording is different on mobile vs desktop”

What to check

• This is expected in some places (for example: web may say Accept/Reject while mobile may say Approve/Reject)

What to do

• Treat them as the same action operationally: you’re either approving/accepting, or rejecting the submission

Why this matters

• Desktop is best for high-volume reviewing (filters, registers, PDFs)
• Mobile is best for on-site actions and completing steps that require being physically on the jobsite

Need help?

If you’re unsure whether you should be approving something on mobile or desktop (or you can’t see the approval button), contact your foreman or GC site team to confirm your site host permissions and which approval workflows are enabled for that site.