Sign-off and evidence

A payable approval changes the charge, but finance also needs to know who made the decision and whether the action ran. Sign-off decisions record the subject, reviewer, decision, date, conditions and notes. Operation receipts record the operation type, actor, time, result, reference and output location. Evidence records link supporting files to a named parent record. Together these records let a controller or auditor reconstruct the path from charge to decision to settlement.

For a payable approval, the native action guards the status change and writes a sign-off decision and receipt. For receivable issue and settlement release, the native actions write operation receipts as part of their guarded transitions. The sign-off trail can also hold decisions about other subject types when the team records them. Keep the distinction between a human approval and an operation result clear: a succeeded receipt shows the action ran, while the decision records what the reviewer approved or returned.

• Decision. Controller reviews a pending payable and leaves an identifiable approval decision.
• Operation. The action receipt records what ran, who triggered it and whether it succeeded, failed, was partial or was skipped.
• Support. Finance attaches remittance advice, bank statements, contracts or approval emails to the relevant record.

Choose which kinds of documents are required for each charge and settlement. Decide how a file is named, where its stable URL is kept and who may upload it. Agree retention and access rules for tax documents and bank statements. The evidence record identifies its parent by table name and record ID, so the operating team must check that each attachment points to the intended subject.

Agree who can sign off a payable and how the finance team’s role and sign-off limit affect routing. A returned or rejected decision needs a clear owner for correction. Define what a failed or partial operation receipt means to the team and who investigates it before a second attempt. Keep the receipt and its reference document together so a reviewer can compare the system outcome with the underlying business event.

Use a payable with an invoice and a remittance instruction. Payables Accountant attaches the source document and submits the charge. Controller checks the lines and approves it through the native action. Review the new decision, reviewer and date, then open the matching operation receipt to confirm its result. Settlement Analyst later schedules and releases the linked movement, preserving a second receipt. When the bank reference arrives, attach the supporting advice and compare it with the settlement.

Repeat the rehearsal with a returned payable and a failed operation. The team should not treat a previous approval or a succeeded receipt for another reference as proof for this charge. External Auditor should be able to read the linked history without gaining a finance action permission.

• Treasury Payment Register — Released movements and bank references for evidence follow-up.
• Intercompany Payables Pending Sign-Off — Pending charges awaiting the human decision.

See charge to approval and settlement release.