Skip a blocked Coupa invoice approver from Slack
Keep an invoice moving when the current approver cannot act and the escalation is documented.
Trigger
Channel Message Received
Triggered when a message is posted in a Slack channel (public, private, or multi-party IM). Does NOT match direct messages.
Action
Bypass Current Invoice Approval
Tool to skip the current approver and activate the next approver in the approval chain. Use when you need to bypass the current pending approver and move to the next approver. Note that the invoice must be in an approvable status (e.g., 'pending_approval'), not 'draft' status.
Why this helps
A single unavailable approver can hold up the whole payment process.
- Reduces approval bottlenecks
- Preserves escalation context
- Moves work to the next owner
Setup
Build it in a few focused steps.
- 1Connect Slackbot and Coupa once in Notis.
- 2Create an automation named Invoice approver escalation.
- 3Tell Notis to bypass the current approver for the stated Coupa invoice only when the channel message records an authorized escalation.
- 4Pick Channel Message Received as the trigger.
- 5Choose a finance report destination and test with one real escalation.
Questions about this workflow
How is the invoice identified?
Include its Coupa invoice ID or another unambiguous reference in the Slack message.
What happens if the invoice is a draft?
Coupa will not allow the bypass, and Notis can report the current status.
When this happens · Trigger
Do this · Action
Supported Triggers and Actions
Notis builds workflows that link Slackbot to Coupa. A trigger fires from one place; an action lands in another.
Slackbot triggers
Coupa actions
Recurring trigger
Notis starts this workflow on a schedule, such as daily, weekly, or during business hours.
Abandon Invoice
Tool to abandon an invoice. Use when an invoice is invalid and needs to be abandoned. Invoice once abandoned cannot be reversed.
Webhook trigger
Notis starts this workflow when an external tool or custom backend sends an HTTP request.
Create Account
Tool to create a Coupa account. Use when you need to provision a new general ledger account with a specific chart-of-accounts type and code segments.
New Channel Created Trigger
Triggered when a new channel is created in Slack.
List Accounts
Tool to list accounts from Coupa. Use when you need to retrieve account IDs and codes with optional filters and pagination.
Channel Message Received
Triggered when a message is posted in a Slack channel (public, private, or multi-party IM). Does NOT match direct messages.
Get Recent Accounts
Tool to retrieve recently accessed accounts from Coupa. Use when you need to view accounts that the user has recently interacted with.
Direct Message Received
Triggered when a new direct message (DM) is sent to a user in Slack. Catches all DMs across all DM channels.
Get Account
Tool to retrieve a specific account by ID. Use when you need detailed account information including segments, type, and status.
Message Reaction Added
Triggered when a reaction is added to a message in Slack. Supports optional filtering by channel and emoji name.
Update Account
Tool to update an existing Coupa account. Use when you need to modify account information including account type, activation status, code segments, and display name.
Message Reaction Removed
Triggered when a reaction is removed from a message in Slack. Supports optional filtering by channel and emoji name.
List Account Types
Tool to list account types in Coupa. Use when you need account type IDs and names for account creation.
Reaction Added Trigger
DEPRECATED: use `SLACK_MESSAGE_REACTION_ADDED` instead. Triggered when a reaction is added to a message in Slack.
Get Account Type
Tool to retrieve a specific account type by ID. Use when you need detailed information about a chart of accounts.
Connect any two apps with Notis in the middle.
Slackbot and Coupa, or any other combination from 1,000+ integrations.
When this happens · Trigger
Do this · Action
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