Authority and delegation

Not just who clicked Approve. Who had the authority to.

Routing a task to a person and authorizing a business decision are different checks. Railbase uses company context, organizational responsibility and effective authority to connect them.

Organization → position → authority → decision

The organization identifies the responsible position. Its effective assignment identifies the person. The authority policy determines whether that person may make this particular decision.

An installation operator does not receive company decision authority merely by administering a server.

What the decision depends on

• The legal company and the business object.
• The responsible position and its current holder.
• The type and amount of the decision.
• The applicable financial or risk limit.
• Effective delegation, its dates and permitted scope.
• Separation of duties and any required additional review.

An illustrative financial limit

A purchase of $184,500 falls within a CFO authority limit of $250,000. A purchase of $400,000 requires the next authority specified by that company's policy.

These amounts are examples, not default Railbase limits. The company's supported, published policy determines the actual route.

Delegation and substitution

A valid delegation has a defined scope and effective period. It must not silently enlarge the original authority or bypass a required independent decision. Requests that cannot resolve an eligible person need an explicit escalation or administrator correction.

A person leaving a position should not leave their name permanently embedded in the approval route. Keep assignments and authority current through the company's controlled change process.

At the point of decision

The approver reviews the current request, evidence and permitted actions. A notification or visible button is not sufficient authority. Server-side checks remain responsible for the decision.

Approval policies · Decision evidence