How to Set Up Dropdown-Based Approval Chain (Submitted → Approved → Implemented)

What This Does

Monday.com doesn't support multi-step approval workflows through dropdown columns.

Zorpa chains dropdown triggers to create approval flows: when Status changes to Submitted, notify approver; when Approved, trigger implementation.

Complexity: intermediate | Feature: Dropdown Trigger

Prerequisites

• A Monday.com account (any plan)
• At least one board with dropdown columns
• Zorpa installed from the Monday Marketplace

Step-by-Step Setup

Step 1: Create approval dropdown with stages

Navigate to the Monday.com Marketplace, search for "Zorpa", and click Install. Add it to the board where you want dropdown automation.

Step 2: Set up Rule 1: Submitted → notify approver

Once installed, open your board and switch to the Zorpa Board View. You'll see the Rules tab where all your automations are configured.

Step 3: Set up Rule 2: Approved → notify implementer + create tasks

Click "Add Rule" and select the dropdown column that should trigger the automation.

Step 4: Set up Rule 3: Rejected → notify requester with reason

Follow the on-screen prompts to complete this configuration step.

Step 5: Enable all rules

Follow the on-screen prompts to complete this configuration step.

Real-World Examples

Government

Dropdown: Procurement Approval (Draft, Submitted, Department Review, Finance Review) Trigger: When value changes to "Submitted" Action: Route to department head for first review Impact: Slow approvals = project delays

Government procurement requires multiple approval levels. A paper-based process takes 2-3 weeks. Zorpa-automated dropdown approval chain reduces it to 2-3 days.

Marketing Agencies

Dropdown: Content Approval (Draft, Internal Review, Client Review, Revisions Needed) Trigger: When value changes to "Internal Review" Action: Notify creative director for review Impact: Approval bottleneck delays campaigns

Content sits in Draft for days because nobody knows it's ready for review. Zorpa triggers notify the next reviewer the instant status changes.

Construction

Dropdown: Change Order Status (Requested, Estimating, Owner Review, Approved) Trigger: When value changes to "Estimating" Action: Assign to estimator + set 48-hour deadline Impact: Slow change orders = schedule impact

A change order request from the field needs pricing within 48 hours. Without automated routing, it sits in someone's inbox.

Troubleshooting

• Rule not firing? Check that the dropdown column is correctly selected and the trigger value matches exactly (case-sensitive).
• Form submissions not triggering? Ensure you're using Zorpa's form-safe trigger mode, not a standard column change trigger.
• Actions not executing? Verify that the target person/column exists and that Zorpa has the necessary board permissions.

Next Steps

Once your first rule is working, consider adding:

• Cascading dropdowns to validate data entry
• Cross-board sync to keep multiple boards aligned
• Additional trigger rules for other dropdown columns

Install Zorpa to get started.