> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.adclear.ai/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Multi-level approval

> Route promotions through multiple reviewers in parallel or sequential flows using reviewer presets.

## Overview

Multi-level approval lets you send a promotion through more than one reviewer instead of a single approver. It works well when a submission needs sign-off from several teams — for example Marketing, Compliance, Admin, or Legal.

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Parallel review" icon="arrows-left-right">
    Reviewers work at the same time. Neither has to wait for the other to finish.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Sequential review" icon="arrow-right">
    Reviewers work one after another in a set order. Each step waits for the previous one.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

<Note>
  This guide is written for marketers submitting promotions and for admins setting up review flows. If anything here differs from earlier internal notes, this guide takes priority.
</Note>

## The four things to understand

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="Reviewer presets" icon="bookmark">
    A reviewer preset is a saved review path you set up once and reuse. Presets are created in **Settings**, in the reviewer preset section. Each preset defines:

    * Which roles take part (Marketing, Compliance, Admin, Legal, and so on)
    * Whether the flow is parallel or sequential
    * The order of steps (for sequential flows)

    Once saved, presets appear when someone submits a promotion. There is also a **default preset**, which is chosen automatically unless the submitter picks a different one.

    <Note>
      Only admins can create reviewer presets.
    </Note>
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Parallel review" icon="arrows-left-right">
    In a parallel flow, reviewers do not block each other. For example, Marketing and Compliance can both review at the same time. Neither has to wait for the other to finish first.

    This is useful when you want answers quickly and the teams do not depend on each other's decision.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Sequential review" icon="arrow-right">
    In a sequential flow, reviews happen in order. Step 2 does not start until Step 1 is done. Step 3 does not start until Step 2 is done, and so on.

    This is useful when one team's review should happen before the next — for example Marketing first, then Compliance, then Legal.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Roles vs specific people" icon="users">
    Presets are built around **roles** (Marketing, Compliance, and so on), not fixed names. When submitting a promotion, the person uploading can choose the actual people within each role who should review.

    That way you are not automatically sending the promotion to everyone in a role — only the people you tick.

    <Note>
      Users can leave role selection open. If no specific people are ticked, anyone with that role and the correct permissions can review.
    </Note>

    <Note>
      The same role can appear more than once in a single preset. This is useful for sequential flows where a role needs to review at multiple steps.
    </Note>
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Jurisdiction autoapply" icon="globe">
    <Card title="Add-on feature, feature flagged">
      Jurisdiction autoapply is not available by default. It is enabled per organisation under controlled rollout. Speak to your Adclear contact about whether it is the right fit for your team.
    </Card>

    Admins can link a jurisdiction (country) to a specific preset so that whenever a promotion targets that jurisdiction, the correct preset is applied automatically. The submitter does not need to pick one manually.

    These links are configured per workspace inside the preset create or edit dialog. If a jurisdiction is already linked to a different preset, the admin sees a conflict indicator and can choose to reassign it.

    When a jurisdiction is linked to a preset:

    * The preset selector is locked at upload and shows a "Required by" label.
    * The submitter cannot change the preset for that jurisdiction.
    * Adclear enforces the preset at submission time, even if no preset was applied at draft.

    See [Jurisdiction autoapply](#jurisdiction-autoapply) below for the full lifecycle.
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

## When to use each type

<Tabs>
  <Tab title="Parallel">
    Use parallel review when:

    * More than one team can review on their own
    * One reviewer does not need to finish before another starts

    **Example:** Marketing and Compliance review at the same time.
  </Tab>

  <Tab title="Sequential">
    Use sequential review when:

    * One review must happen before the next
    * Later reviewers rely on earlier decisions
    * You want a clear, fixed order of sign-off

    **Example:** Marketing → Compliance → Legal.
  </Tab>
</Tabs>

## How admins set up a reviewer preset

<Steps>
  <Step title="Open reviewer presets">
    Go to **Settings** and open the reviewer preset section.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Create a new preset">
    Select **Add new**.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Choose the review type">
    Pick **Sequential** or **Parallel**.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Add the roles">
    Add each role group that should take part — for example Marketing, Compliance, Admin, Legal.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Set the order (sequential only)">
    For sequential flows, put the steps in the right order, for example:

    1. Marketing
    2. Compliance
    3. Legal
  </Step>

  <Step title="Save">
    Save the preset. It will then be available when promotions are submitted. You can also set which preset is the default.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Assign jurisdictions (optional, add-on)">
    If jurisdiction autoapply is enabled, the preset dialog includes a **Jurisdiction Auto-Apply** panel. Select which jurisdictions (per workspace) should use this preset automatically. If a jurisdiction is already linked to another preset, Adclear shows a conflict badge and asks you to confirm the reassignment.
  </Step>
</Steps>

## How to use a preset when submitting a promotion

<Steps>
  <Step title="Start a new promotion">
    Create your promotion as usual.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Open reviewer selection">
    In the submission flow, use the reviewer selection dropdown in the bottom-right area of the screen.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Choose how to assign reviewers">
    You can either:

    * Pick a single individual reviewer (the usual one-reviewer path), or
    * Pick a reviewer preset (multi-level path)
  </Step>

  <Step title="Select a preset">
    Choose the default preset, or switch to another one if needed.

    <Note>
      If your admin has linked the promotion's jurisdiction to a specific preset, that preset is selected automatically and the selector is locked. You will see a "Required by" label indicating which jurisdiction triggered it.
    </Note>
  </Step>

  <Step title="Expand the role groups">
    Open each group inside the preset to see the people available in that role.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Choose specific people">
    Use the tick boxes to select exactly who should review from each group. This lets you narrow things down — for example, if Marketing is in the flow, you might choose one person, two people, or everyone eligible in Marketing, depending on what you need.

    Selecting specific people is **optional**. Leaving the selection open means anyone with that role and the correct permissions can review.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Submit">
    Submit the promotion. The approval flow can start at the upload stage or the submission stage, depending on how your team works.

    <Warning>
      A preset cannot be un-applied once it has been applied to a submission.
    </Warning>
  </Step>
</Steps>

## What happens after submission

After submission, the screen is updated to show the review flow more clearly. You should be able to see:

* The approval steps in the flow
* The current step
* Whose turn it is to review (especially in sequential flows)

Assigned reviewers get a notification when it is their turn to review.

## Approve, Reject, and Request Changes in a multi-level flow

Multi-level approval uses the same three decisions as normal Adclear review. The difference is what they mean when several people are involved.

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="Approve" icon="circle-check">
    **In a sequential flow:** Your approval completes your step. The promotion moves to the next person in the order. It is not fully approved until the last required step is approved.

    **In a parallel flow:** Your approval counts toward your part of the flow. The promotion is only fully approved when every required step in that parallel flow has been approved.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Reject" icon="circle-xmark">
    The promotion did not pass review. The flow stops. The promotion goes back to the marketing team with your comments, as it does today.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Request Changes" icon="pen-to-square">
    Specific changes are needed before the promotion can be approved. Like Reject, it stops the flow and sends the promotion back to marketing with your feedback.
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

<Warning>
  Clicking **Approve** on an early step does not mean the promotion is cleared for use. Only full approval at the end of the flow means it is approved.
</Warning>

## Example workflows

<Tabs>
  <Tab title="Parallel review">
    **Goal:** Get Marketing and Compliance sign-off as quickly as possible.

    **Setup:**

    * Review type: Parallel
    * Reviewers: Marketing and Compliance

    **What happens:**

    * Both teams are notified
    * Both can review straight away
    * Neither has to wait for the other
    * The promotion is fully approved once both have approved
  </Tab>

  <Tab title="Sequential review">
    **Goal:** Reviews happen in a strict order.

    **Setup:**

    1. Marketing
    2. Compliance
    3. Legal

    **What happens:**

    * Marketing reviews first
    * Compliance cannot review until Marketing has finished
    * Legal cannot review until Compliance has finished
    * The promotion is fully approved only after Legal approves

    If anyone Rejects or Requests Changes at any step, the flow stops and the promotion goes back to marketing.
  </Tab>
</Tabs>

## When marketing sends a new version

If a promotion was Rejected or Changes Needed and marketing uploads a fixed version, review starts again — usually from the step where things were blocked.

It is the uploader's choice whether to request re-approval from people who have previously approved. If earlier reviewers already approved and little has changed, the uploader can decide whether those approvals still count, so people are not asked to repeat work unnecessarily.

<Note>
  If jurisdiction autoapply is enabled and your admin changed which preset is linked to the jurisdiction between versions, the new version uses the updated preset instead of carrying over the previous one. If the linked preset was deleted or deactivated, the submitter picks a preset freely.
</Note>

## Jurisdiction autoapply

<Card title="Add-on feature, feature flagged">
  Jurisdiction autoapply is not available by default. It is enabled per organisation under controlled rollout. Speak to your Adclear contact about whether it is the right fit for your team.
</Card>

Jurisdiction autoapply lets admins link a jurisdiction to a preset so the correct review flow is enforced automatically at every stage of a promotion's lifecycle. Once configured, no manual preset selection is needed for linked jurisdictions.

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="How admins configure it" icon="gear">
    Open an existing preset (or create a new one) in **Settings**. The **Jurisdiction Auto-Apply** panel appears at the bottom of the dialog. For each workspace, select the jurisdictions that should use this preset. If a jurisdiction is already linked to a different preset, a conflict badge appears and Adclear asks you to confirm the reassignment.

    When a preset is deactivated or deleted, Adclear removes its jurisdiction links automatically.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="What happens at upload" icon="upload">
    When a submitter selects a jurisdiction that is linked to a preset, the preset is applied to the draft automatically. The preset selector is locked and displays a "Required by" label. This applies to single uploads, batch uploads, and carousels.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="What happens at submission" icon="paper-plane">
    If a promotion reaches submission with no preset applied (for example, because it was created before the preset was configured for that jurisdiction), Adclear applies the correct preset automatically as a fallback. If the submitter explicitly chooses a different preset that conflicts, the submission is rejected.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="What happens on external submissions" icon="arrow-up-from-bracket">
    External and integration submissions follow the same logic. If the jurisdiction is linked to a preset, that preset is applied automatically before the submission reaches review.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="What happens on new versions" icon="code-branch">
    When a new version is created, Adclear checks which preset the jurisdiction is currently linked to. If the link changed since the previous version (for example, the admin reassigned the jurisdiction to a different preset), the new version gets the updated preset. The previous chain is not carried over blindly. If the linked preset was deleted or deactivated, the submitter picks a preset freely.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="What the reviewer sees" icon="eye">
    When a jurisdiction is linked to a preset, the preset selector and reviewer field on the promotion viewer are locked. The reviewer can see which preset is active but cannot change it.
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

## Best practices

<Tip>
  * Use **parallel review** when teams can review on their own and you want faster turnaround.
  * Use **sequential review** when order matters and later reviewers should build on earlier ones.
  * Save common flows as presets so people do not rebuild the same review path every time.
  * Use individual selection within role groups so you only involve the people who need to review — not the whole role.
  * Before making a preset the default, check that it matches how your business actually approves content.
</Tip>

## Admin setup checklist

Before rolling this out to your team, confirm:

* Reviewer presets are created in **Settings**
* The right roles have been assigned to users
* Users understand parallel vs sequential review
* The right people can be selected within each role group
* If jurisdiction autoapply is enabled, jurisdictions are linked to the correct presets per workspace

## Quick summary

|                          | Single reviewer         | Multi-level approval                               |
| ------------------------ | ----------------------- | -------------------------------------------------- |
| Who reviews?             | One person              | Several people, in a set flow                      |
| How is it set up?        | Pick one reviewer       | Pick a preset (or use the default)                 |
| Approve means…           | Promotion is approved   | Your step is done; others may still need to review |
| Reject / Request Changes | Sends back to marketing | Same — stops the whole flow                        |
| Best for…                | Simple sign-off         | Marketing + Compliance + Legal (or similar)        |

In short: Multi-level approval routes a promotion through the right people — in parallel or in order — using the same Approve, Reject, and Request Changes decisions you already know. The promotion is only fully approved when every required step in that flow is complete.

## Related pages

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Self-Approval" icon="user-shield" href="/self-approval">
    The single-approver add-on for permitted users on permitted promotions.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Feature catalog" icon="grid-2" href="/feature-catalog">
    Every Adclear feature in one place, including where multi-level approval sits as an add-on.
  </Card>

  <Card title="How roles work" icon="users" href="/how-roles-work">
    Understand the different roles in Adclear and what each one can do.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Settings" icon="gear" href="/settings">
    Configure reviewer presets and other workspace settings.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

## Still need help?

Contact support at [support@adclear.ai](mailto:support@adclear.ai).
