Power Automate: automate approvals with structured workflows

Approval processes are one of the most impactful use cases of Power Automate. They replace manual emails with structured flows with traceability, automatic reminders and native integration with Teams and SharePoint.

Basic approval flow

Trigger: SharePoint → "When an item is created"
  (List: Approval_Requests)

Action 1: Start and wait for an approval
  Type: Approve/Reject - First to respond
  Title: "Approval: @{triggerOutputs()?['body/Title']}"
  Assigned to: [approver email]
  Details: @{triggerOutputs()?['body/Description']}

Condition: Outcome is equal to "Approve"
  If yes:
    Action 2: Update SharePoint item → Status = "Approved"
    Action 3: Send email → requester notified
  If no:
    Action 4: Update SharePoint item → Status = "Rejected"
    Action 5: Send email → rejection reason

Sequential multi-level approval

// Level 1 — Approval by the direct manager
Start and wait for approval (Manager)
→ If approved:
  // Level 2 — Approval by the director (only if amount > 5000€)
  Condition: @{triggerOutputs()?['body/Amount']} > 5000
    If yes: Start and wait for approval (Director)
    If no:  Proceed directly to approved

Adaptive notification in Teams

// Post adaptive card in a chat or channel
{
  "type": "AdaptiveCard",
  "body": [
    {"type": "TextBlock", "text": "Approval request", "weight": "Bolder"},
    {"type": "FactSet", "facts": [
      {"title": "Requester", "value": "@{triggerOutputs()?['body/Requester']}"},
      {"title": "Amount",    "value": "@{triggerOutputs()?['body/Amount']}€"}
    ]}
  ],
  "actions": [
    {"type": "Action.OpenUrl", "title": "View request", "url": "@{triggerOutputs()?['body/Link']}" }
  ]
}

Timeout and automatic escalation

// Set a deadline on the approval:
Request expires: 72 hours

// After timeout → escalation action:
Send email to: management@company.com
Subject: "PENDING: Approval with no response for 72h"

Conclusion

Power Automate approval flows turn manual processes into auditable, traceable workflows. With native integration in Teams and SharePoint, adoption is high and implementation requires no additional infrastructure.