The Route Map identifies qualified employees who must approve revisions to a procedural document. The Route Map specifies the order in which each person must approve the document and who should be notified at each stage. Additionally, the map can include questions that determine who is included in the approval process.

The Route Map is organized by stages, which are the steps in the approval process. Each stage in turn has one or more stations. In the following example, the boxes labeled "A" represent approval stations, while an "N" designates a notification station.

Each station in the same stage must complete its tasks before the document can advance to the next stage. In the above diagram, both approval stations in Stage 1 must approve the document before it can be sent to Stage 2. A rejection anywhere along the line will terminate the process. At that point, the document would have to be revised and resubmitted at the beginning of the Route Map.

Stations in Route Maps

Stations in a Route Map are based on job descriptions, without specifying individuals' names.  When the Route Map is attached to a Folder, Active Learner searches the database for employees whose job descriptions match those of each station. Qualified candidates are randomly assigned to each station.

In the first example below, Active Learner will assign a Lab Supervisor who works in the Polymers Laboratory in Pasadena. In the second example, everyone working in the Laboratory will receive the document. The asterisk (*) in the Job Title field represents all values. That means everyone matching the Site, Area and Department criteria will be included regardless of Job Title.

Route Maps and Folders

The same Route Map can be attached to multiple Folders. For each Folder, the actual names assigned to a station in the map may vary based on random selection.

Although Route Maps are assigned to Folders, they remain separate entities. This approach saves time by allowing you to create one Route Map and assign it to many Folders. For example, suppose changes to laboratory procedures always follow the same approval path. You could create a Route Map for laboratory procedures and reuse it every time a document of that type is changed.

When the Route Map is added to a Folder, Active Learner automatically assigns qualified individuals to each station. You can change these assignments, if needed. For example, if Active Learner selects someone who is on vacation, you can designate another individual to fill that position.