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Customize Approval Workflows

⏱ 20 minutes intermediate

Why customize workflows

Section titled “Why customize workflows”

The default workflow in CMP moves content from Draft to Review to Published. This works for simple publishing, but most teams have specific review requirements. A financial services company needs legal sign-off. A global brand needs regional approval for localized content. A product marketing team needs engineering review for technical accuracy.

Custom workflows encode these requirements into the system so that content cannot reach publication without passing every required gate.

What you will do

Section titled “What you will do”
  1. Create a new workflow template
  2. Define stages and transition rules
  3. Configure reviewers and routing logic
  4. Add gate conditions and time limits
  5. Assign the workflow to a content type

Create a workflow template

Section titled “Create a workflow template”
  1. Navigate to Settings > Workflows
  2. Click Create Workflow
  3. Enter a name that describes the process (e.g., “Blog Post - Editorial + Legal Review”)
  4. Add a description explaining when this workflow should be used
  5. Click Save to create the template and open the workflow editor

The workflow editor displays stages as a visual pipeline. Every new workflow starts with two stages: Draft and Published. You will add stages between them.

Define stages

Section titled “Define stages”

Add stages to represent each review or approval step in your process.

  1. Click Add Stage between Draft and Published
  2. Name the stage (e.g., “Editorial Review,” “Brand Compliance,” “Legal Approval”)
  3. Set the stage type:
Stage typeBehavior
ReviewAssignee provides feedback; can approve, request changes, or reject
ApprovalAssignee gives a formal sign-off; binary approve/reject
TaskAssignee completes a specific action (e.g., upload translated version)
AutoSystem evaluates conditions and transitions automatically
  1. Repeat for each stage your process requires

Ordering matters. Drag stages to reorder them. Content moves through stages left to right.

Configure reviewers and routing

Section titled “Configure reviewers and routing”

Each review or approval stage needs one or more assignees. You can set reviewers in three ways:

Static assignment — Always assign to a specific person or role:

  1. Open the stage settings
  2. Under Assignee, select a user or team
  3. The same person reviews every content item that enters this stage

Dynamic routing — Assign based on content attributes:

  1. Open the stage settings
  2. Under Routing Rules, click Add Rule
  3. Define conditions (e.g., if content type is “Product Update,” assign to the Product Marketing team; if campaign is “Q3 Launch,” assign to the Campaign Lead)
  4. Set a fallback assignee for items that match no rule

Author’s manager — Route to the content author’s reporting manager:

  1. Open the stage settings
  2. Under Assignee, select Author’s Manager
  3. This requires the org chart to be configured in CMP user settings

Add gate conditions

Section titled “Add gate conditions”

Gate conditions prevent content from advancing unless specific criteria are met. This catches incomplete work before it reaches reviewers.

  1. Open a stage’s settings
  2. Navigate to Gate Conditions
  3. Add conditions:
Condition typeExample
Required fieldsSEO title and meta description must be filled
Minimum word countBody must contain at least 300 words
Asset requirementsFeatured image must be attached
Checklist completionAuthor must check off “Sources verified” and “Links tested”
  1. Set the enforcement level:
    • Block — Content cannot advance until the condition is met
    • Warn — Display a warning but allow advancement

Set time limits and escalation

Section titled “Set time limits and escalation”

Time limits ensure content does not stall in review queues.

  1. Open a stage’s settings
  2. Navigate to Time Limits
  3. Set the maximum duration (e.g., 2 business days for editorial review)
  4. Configure escalation behavior:
    • Notify — Send a reminder to the assignee
    • Escalate — Reassign to a backup reviewer or the assignee’s manager
    • Auto-approve — Advance content automatically (use with caution)

Assign the workflow to a content type

Section titled “Assign the workflow to a content type”

Workflows take effect when assigned to content types.

  1. Navigate to Settings > Content Types
  2. Open the content type you want to configure (e.g., “Blog Post”)
  3. Under Workflow, select your new workflow template
  4. Click Save

All new content items of this type will follow the assigned workflow. Existing items in progress keep their current workflow unless you explicitly migrate them.

Test the workflow

Section titled “Test the workflow”

Before rolling out to your team, verify the workflow with a test content item:

  1. Create a new content item of the type you configured
  2. Move it through each stage, verifying:
    • Correct reviewers are assigned at each stage
    • Gate conditions block advancement when not met
    • Notifications reach the right people
    • Time limits trigger escalation as expected
  3. Complete the workflow through to the Published stage
  4. Review the audit trail to confirm all stages were recorded

Common issues

Section titled “Common issues”
IssueCauseFix
Content stuck in a stageAssignee not set or user account deactivatedCheck routing rules; assign a backup reviewer
Gate conditions not enforcingCondition set to “Warn” instead of “Block”Change enforcement level to Block
Wrong reviewer assignedRouting rule conditions overlap or have wrong priorityReview rule order; more specific rules should come first
Notifications not sendingUser notification preferences turned offCheck user settings under Profile > Notifications