Using BrightWork ‘Project Request Management’ with Nintex LazyApproval

February 17, 2020 by

Projects are expensive things to do so you need to be 100% sure that you are making good use of your resources when you decide to approve a project.

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Projects are also prone to failure; in fact, a Gartner survey (2010) that showed only 39% of projects are successful, with 61% either ‘failed’ or ‘challenged’.

This makes a strong approach to project request management even more important. Using the BrightWork ‘Project Request Management’ template will increase overall project success and outcomes. When combined with Nintex, approving projects is even faster.

Using BrightWork ‘Project Request Manager’ with Nintex Workflows

1. BrightWork Project Request Manager Template

BrightWork introduced the Project Request Manager (PRM) Template in order to automate the process behind requesting, qualifying and approving a new Project. The template has been very popular with PMOs as they struggle to make the right decision on a new Project.

The process is also very configurable as you can simplify the stages in the approval process and re-name the steps according to your own business taxonomy.

Using the built-in notifications within the template, stakeholders can get the right information to review, recommend, and approve a new project request.

The most powerful feature of PRM is the ability to launch a new project from the approved request, which automatically fills in the Project Statement with any valid information that was captured during the request stages.

Figure 1 below summarizes BrightWork’s Project Request process:

2. Nintex LazyApproval

Nintex enables Business Automation in SharePoint. The ‘LazyApproval’ feature allows stakeholders to respond to Project Requests in “real language”, even when on the go and without requiring access to connect to their BrightWork Project Office.

If you have Nintex, you can enable LazyApproval (they should really call this EmailApproval!) on the BrightWork Project Request Manager Template and enable a Project Sponsor to review a Project Request and Approve (or Reject) by replying to an email.

The Project Request Reviewer or Approver simply needs to reply to the email with the words “Approve” or “Reject” in the body of the email and the Workflow will then trigger to move the request to the next stage of the process. Figure 2 below shows an example of a Nintex LazyApproval email.

3. Enabling LazyApproval for Project Request Manager (PRM)

There are a few things to look out for if you would like to use LazyApproval with PRM so I have summarized them in the following steps:

1. Ensure the Nintex Feature is enabled at the Site Collection level and in the Project Request Manager Template itself.
2. Carefully read the Whitepaper on LazyApproval, available here.
3. Turn off the “Transition Stages” in PRM Configuration Setting; they will interfere with the Workflow. You will still be able to create a Project from an approved Request:

4. Add a Configure Action in Nintex to set the Status Column = 8. This is necessary in order for the Project Request to appear as the old “Approved” Status so that it can be launched into a new Project Site using PRM’s “Create Project” action.

5. You can use the standard Nintex “Assign Flexi Task” in order to alter the Reviewer or Approver that need to Accept or Reject the request. Don’t forget to check the “Allow LazyApproval” box: