Why Approval Processes Break Without the Right Tools
Let’s be real: most approval workflows are a mess. Someone creates a task in Kitchen.co. Then they Slack Bob. Bob forwards it to Carol. Carol’s on vacation. The task dies in a spreadsheet. Two weeks later, someone asks why the project’s stalled. Sound familiar?
This is why companies between 50-5,000 employees are connecting ApproveThis and Kitchen.co via Zapier. It’s not about adding more software – it’s about fixing the approval black holes killing your team’s momentum.
Kitchen.co Meets ApproveThis: The Approval-Project Management Handshake
Kitchen.co organizes projects. ApproveThis organizes decisions. Together, they make sure work doesn’t just get tracked – it gets unblocked.
What Changes When You Connect Them
For project managers: No more guessing if Bob approved the budget. Approved tasks auto-create Kitchen.co cards. Denied requests trigger immediate alerts.
For finance teams: That $50K procurement request? It routes through ApproveThis’ thresholds, then drops the approved PO into Kitchen.co’s tracking – no manual entry.
For department heads: See approval bottlenecks in real dashboards. Know exactly which projects are stuck waiting on legal vs. waiting on you.
Three Ways Teams Actually Use This Integration
1. The “No More Approval Ghosting” Setup
How it works: Every new card in a Kitchen.co “Client Projects” board automatically creates an ApproveThis request. Assign approvers based on project type (e.g., design leads approve creative briefs, CTO approves dev timelines).
Who loves this: Marketing agencies. Client asks for a new campaign card? The approval workflow includes the client’s sign-off step via email (no Kitchen.co license needed for them).
2. The “Approval to Action” Auto-Pilot
How it works: When an ApproveThis request gets approved, Zapier creates a detailed Kitchen.co card with all specs, due dates, and files attached. Denied? It moves the card to a “Parking Lot” board with denial reasons logged.
Who loves this: Manufacturing teams. Approved product change request? The card auto-populates with BOM updates and assigns to the floor manager. Denied? Engineers get instant feedback without status meetings.
3. The “Board-Level Accountability” Play
How it works: Create a new Kitchen.co board for Q3 initiatives? ApproveThis immediately pings execs to confirm priorities. No more “I didn’t know we committed to that” six weeks in.
Who loves this: SaaS companies. New feature boards require C-suite sign-off before teams can add tasks. Prevents scope creep before it starts.
Why This Isn’t Just Another Integration
Most project management tools have approval features. But they’re either too basic (“approve this task”) or require every approver to have a paid seat. Here’s where ApproveThis changes the game:
Features Your Approvers Will Actually Use
Email approvals: Clients, contractors, or execs can approve from their inbox. No logins. No “how do I use this?” support tickets.
Delegation that doesn’t break: Carol’s OOO? ApproveThis auto-reassigns her approvals to Bob – no manual updates needed.
Calculated fields: Automatically flag requests that exceed $10K or don’t meet ROI thresholds. Kitchen.co cards get tagged with “High Risk” automatically.
Setting This Up Without IT Involvement
If you can use Kitchen.co, you can set this up in 15 minutes:
- Open Zapier, connect your Kitchen.co and ApproveThis accounts
- Pick a trigger (e.g., “New Card in Kitchen.co”)
- Choose what happens next (e.g., “Create Approval Request with Budget Reviewers”)
Pro tip: Use ApproveThis’ approval thresholds to auto-approve small expenses. Only escalate the big stuff – saves everyone time.
Who Gets the Most Mileage Out of This?
Operations Teams
New vendor request in Kitchen.co? Route it through ApproveThis for compliance checks. Approved vendors get auto-added to your procurement list. Denied? The requester gets a why-not email with policy links.
HR & People Ops
Employee offboarding checklist in Kitchen.co? Each step (equipment return, final pay) requires approvals that sync back to the card. No more “Did payroll OK the final check?”
Client Services
Scope change requests from clients go into Kitchen.co. ApproveThis routes them to PMs, legal, and the client – all via email. Approved changes auto-update the project’s scope doc.
The Quiet Cost of Not Doing This
Companies stick with manual approvals because “it works.” But here’s what they miss:
- Time: 23 minutes daily per employee chasing approvals (source: our internal data)
- Visibility: 62% of managers can’t see approval statuses across departments
- Compliance: Manual processes cause 3x more audit flags
This isn’t about features. It’s about fixing the approval debt that’s making your projects slower than they should be.
How to Start (Without Breaking Anything)
Pick one process – expense approvals, client sign-offs, content reviews. Connect it through Zapier. Let the team test it for a week. You’ll know it’s working when:
- The CFO stops asking “Did this get approved?”
- Project kickoffs take 2 days instead of 2 weeks
- New hires actually follow the process (without 3 trainings)
Ready to stop being the approval bottleneck? Get started with ApproveThis, or schedule a 15-minute demo to see how it works with your Kitchen.co setup.
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