1. Problem Statement

Public officers predominantly rely on email to seek approvals from their management, a practice that often leads to inefficiency as emails can easily get buried in inboxes, missed, or forgotten. This inefficiency is further amplified when officers are managing multiple requests via email, each with varying timelines. As a result, it becomes difficult and time-consuming for officers to track the current status of each request or locate past approvals.

Public officers responsible for managing and submitting internal approval requests to supervisors or management.

• Officers face difficulty tracking multiple approvals with varying timelines.
• There is no centralized overview of all request statuses (pending, approved, rejected).

• Frustration and productivity loss from tracking approvals by scanning through emails.

2. Description of the Web App – ApproverTracker

A lightweight, role-based web application that streamlines the submission, tracking, and management of internal approval requests for public officers.

To replace informal email workflows with a webapp that improves visibility and auditability in approval processes.

3. Key Features & Design Decisions

• Submit approval requests with structured metadata: title, category, file upload, target date, remarks, and intended approver.
• View all submitted requests in a table.

• View requests assigned to them.
• Take action to approve or reject with a single click.

• Real-Time Status Tracking: Display of request statuses—Pending, Approved, Rejected, or Cancelled.
• Audit Trail: Timestamp logs for submission of request.
• Role-Based Access: Separate login paths and interfaces for users and approvers to prevent confusion.
• Minimal Steps to Action: Both submission and approval processes designed to be completed in just a few clicks.

• Target Date Field: Helps approvers understand urgency and prioritize tasks.
• Approver Selection Dropdown: Reduces misrouting and ensures clarity.
• Filtering & Sorting: Quick access to relevant submissions based on criteria such as status or category.

4. Workflow

• Log in and access the User Portal.
• Submit a new approval request.
• View all submissions in the tracking table.
• Cancel any pending request if no longer required.

• Log in to the Approver Portal.
• Review assigned requests.
• Decision (Approve or reject) on the request
• Submit the decision with a single click.