Email is where most approval workflows start. It's easy, everyone already uses it, and it works... until it doesn't. Here are five signs your team has outgrown email-based approvals.

Sign 1: "Just Checking In" Emails

You know you've outgrown email when half your messages are:

"Just following up on that approval request..."
"Any update on the headcount request I sent?"
"Did you see my email about the engineering role?"

When people need to send emails to track the status of other emails, your system is broken.

What it means: You need visibility. Everyone should be able to see the status of their requests without asking.

Sign 2: Approvals Get Lost in Inboxes

We've all been there. You send an approval request, and it vanishes into someone's inbox along with:

47 unread newsletters
23 calendar invites
Dozens of Slack notification emails

The approver isn't ignoring you - they literally can't find your email.

What it means: Approvals need their own system, separate from the chaos of email.

Sign 3: No Clear Approval Trail

Three months later, someone asks: "Who approved this hire?"

Now you're searching through:

Email threads
Slack messages
That one Google Doc someone shared
Text messages from your CEO

Good luck reconstructing what actually happened and why.

What it means: You need an audit trail. Every approval decision should be documented and searchable.

Sign 4: Multi-Step Approvals Become Impossible

When a single approval is needed, email works fine. But when you need:

Department head approval
Finance review
CEO sign-off

Email turns into a nightmare of forwarding, CC'ing, and confusion about whose turn it is.

What it means: You need workflow automation. The system should know who's next and notify them automatically.

Sign 5: New Hires Ask "How Do I Request Approval?"

When onboarding a new manager, someone has to explain:

"Email Sarah for headcount approval, but CC Jason and BCC finance. Use this subject line format. Attach the budget template - it's in the Google Drive folder called 'Templates (old)'. If it's urgent, Slack Sarah directly. If she doesn't respond in 48 hours, email her boss..."

If your approval process requires verbal instructions, you've outgrown email.

What it means: You need a self-service system. New users should be able to figure it out without a tutorial.

What's Next?

If any of these signs sound familiar, it's time to level up. Modern approval workflows should:

Provide real-time visibility into request status
Route requests automatically to the right approvers
Maintain a complete audit trail
Send smart notifications (not email spam)
Be intuitive enough that new users don't need training

Email was never designed to be an approval system. It's time to use tools that were.

5 Signs Your Team Has Outgrown Email Approvals