How to manage leave approvals

Set a clear approval chain

Keep the chain short. The reporting manager approves first, because they know the team's workload and cover. HR approves second, checking the policy and balance, or reviews only exceptions if volumes are high. Adding more levels, such as a department head for every casual leave, slows decisions without improving them. Agree who decides when the manager is away, so requests do not wait for a week. In a small company the founder or office manager may be the only approver, which works as long as the rules are written down.

What an approver should check

An approval is a decision, not a click. Before approving, the manager should look at the five things below. A good system puts them on one screen; a paper or chat process leaves them to memory, which is where inconsistent decisions come from.

• Balance: enough leave of that type, or the request becomes leave without pay.
• Rules: notice, back-dating, maximum days, documents and sandwich days follow the policy.
• Cover: the team can run on those days, and a handover is planned.
• Clashes: how many people in the team are already off on the same days.
• Pattern: repeated leave next to weekends or paydays, for a conversation rather than a refusal.

Handling clashes fairly

When several people want the same days, such as Diwali week or the school holidays in May, decide the rule before the requests arrive. Options include first come first served with a cut-off date, turns based on who had the same period last year, or a maximum number off at once with the rest decided by the manager and explained. A 12-person accounts team in Indore that can spare 3 people during Diwali week collects requests by 15 September, gives first preference to the 3 who worked last Diwali, and allocates the rest in the order received. Everyone sees the result on the team leave calendar.

Response times and records

Set a response time, such as two working days for planned leave and the same day for urgent requests. A request that is neither approved nor rejected is the worst outcome, because the employee cannot plan and the team cannot rely on them. Reject with a reason and, where possible, an alternative date. Record every decision in the system rather than agreeing it on the phone, because payroll pays from the approved record. Before month close, clear every pending request so nothing reaches payroll half-decided.

Step by step

1. Define the approval chain. Name the approvers for each leave type, usually the reporting manager and then HR, and who decides when the manager is away. ZeniaHR uses a fixed chain for leave: reporting manager, then HR.
2. Check rules before submission. Let the system check balance, notice and documents before a request reaches the manager. ZeniaHR runs a live rule check before submitting, showing days charged, balance after, blockers and warnings.
3. Show approvers the team calendar. Approvers should see who else is off on the same days. ZeniaHR's team leave calendar in My Team shows the team's leave by day.
4. Set response times. Agree how quickly managers decide, such as two working days for planned leave and the same day for urgent leave, and follow up on delays.
5. Agree a rule for peak clashes. Before festival or school holiday season, set how many people can be off at once and how clashes are decided, and announce it.
6. Reject with reasons and alternatives. Every refusal carries a reason and, where possible, another date that would work for the team.
7. Clear pending requests before month close. Chase all open leave requests before attendance is closed, so payroll reads only final decisions.

Frequently asked questions