SAP Concur approvals insight

Not every SAP Concur exception is meant for the approver.

Exceptions are how Concur flags expenses that need a closer look. But when every flag lands in front of every approver, the ones that matter get lost. The fix is a setting most companies never revisit: who can see each exception.

Why it matters

When every flag looks urgent, approvers stop reading them.

Approvers are managers with a full day job. When a report arrives with a list of exception messages, they either slow down to read every one, or they learn to skim past them.

Many of those messages were never meant for them. They're notes for the back-office audit team: checks an auditor will review anyway, after the approver signs off.

The result is slower approvals, frustrated managers, and the exceptions that do need the approver's judgment getting lost in the noise.

How exceptions work in Concur

Three visibility settings, and the flags behind them.

Exceptions come from validation rules that use the Generate Exception action. On each rule, the administrator sets the exception's level and who can see its message.

Visibility setting 1

Employee, approver and processor

Everyone on the report sees the message.

  • Use it for items the employee should fix or explain.
  • The employee knows the item was flagged and can respond before it moves on.

Visibility setting 2

Approver and processor

The employee doesn't see the message, so they don't know the report will be audited.

  • Use it for items that need the approver's judgment.
  • These are the flags worth an approver's 30 seconds.

Visibility setting 3

Processor only

Neither the employee nor the approver sees the message.

  • Use it for back-office audit checks.
  • The audit team still gets every flag, and approvers see a cleaner report.

Exception levels

The company sets the severity

Each exception gets a level. The company decides how many levels to use, up to 99.

  • The company also sets the level at which a report can't be submitted.
  • Where: Expense Configuration Administrator, then Workflows, then Settings.

Hard stops

Fixed before anyone approves

Exceptions at or above the submission limit block the report.

  • The employee has to resolve them before the report can be submitted.
  • Approvers never see them, because the report never reaches them.

Exception icons

What each color means

Each exception message appears with a colored icon.

  • Red: an error that must be resolved before the report can be submitted.
  • Yellow: a warning or informational message. The employee can still submit.
  • Blue: the expense processor has cleared the exception.
  • Only the processor sees each exception's code and level.

Tip: Visibility is set on each validation rule. Check it whenever you add or change a rule, not just once.

A one-time cleanup

Sort your exceptions by who acts on them.

You don't need to rewrite your rules. Most of the work is deciding who each exception is really for.

  1. 01

    List every exception

    Pull each validation rule that generates an exception, with its message, level and current visibility.

    Owner: Concur admin

  2. 02

    Ask who acts on it

    The employee fixes it, the approver decides, or the audit team checks it. Set visibility to match. If it should never be submitted, make it a hard stop.

    With: finance and audit

  3. 03

    Test, then tell

    Make the changes in your test environment, walk a few reports through with an approver, then let approvers know what they'll see from now on.

    Then: review once a year

The goal: every flag an approver sees is one they need to act on. Everything else still gets reviewed, just by the right people.

Want a second set of eyes?

Get your exceptions working for your approvers, not against them.

DJC's two-week Concur Health Check reviews your audit rules and exceptions, along with configuration, reporting and ownership. You get a prioritized fix list you can act on with or without us. Book 20 minutes and we'll talk it through.

Led by Duwana Jones, former SAP Concur solutions leader, who ran SAP Concur for more than 20,000 users before joining Concur.

Book a 20-minute fit call See managed services plans

Prefer email? info@duwanajconsulting.com

Not ready to talk? Follow Duwana on LinkedIn for practical SAP Concur tips.