Technical Implementation of the SAP Business Workflow for Issuing Approvals
The workflow for issuing approvals is a single-step workflow. For technical reasons, it cannot be extended to a multi-step task at present.
Object Type
The interface between SAP functions and the workflow system is based on object technology.
The following information is technical and only relevant if you are interested in the technical aspects of implementation, or if you plan to create your own enhancements.
The SAP standard system contains the following object type:
CATS (Cross-Application Time Sheet)
If you want to modify the workflow, you must implement this object type.
Standard Tasks
There are three standard tasks that you can use to notify persons who approve data that there are times ready for approval. The agent generates the work items in his or her integrated inbox. The program that you specify in the Implementation Guide (IMG), under Cross-Application Components ® Time Sheet ® Settings for All User Interfaces ® Time Recording ® Determine Variant of Approval Report for Workflow is executed. The agent either approves or rejects the time sheet data.
Standard task: Approval
Standard task:
TS40007901Abbreviation: Approval
Name: CATS: Approval
Standard task: Approval2
Standard Task:
TS20000459Abbreviation: Approval2
Name: CATS: Approved by Time Admin. (Administrator)
Standard task: Approval3
Standard Task:
TS20000460Abbreviation: Approval3
Name: CATS: Approved by Superior
Referenced Object Method, Properties
Object type
: CATSMethod: Approve (Approval request)
Properties: none
If you want to modify the workflow, you must use this object method.
Assigning Agents
You can assign agents by:
For more information, see
For more information, see the documentation for the SAP enhancement.
Event
This workflow does not have a triggering event, only a terminating event.
Terminating event:
Object type: CATS
Event: COMPLETED
ELEMENT: _WI_OBJECT_ID
The event occurs once the agent has approved all of the records entered for a personnel number.
Recommended Activities:
You can currently:
Use the parameters in the container for your copy of the standard task (for example, TS_ENAME – employee/applicant name).
In the long text for the work item, you can describe the approval procedure, for example. You can also include the parameters in the container.
There are two ways to copy a standard task: