In HRnest, you can assign a Replacement in two different ways – depending on whether the Substitute should only act as a contact person during the absence, or whether they should also be able to approve requests on behalf of the absent Supervisor.
In this article, we’ll walk you through the difference between an informational replacement, selected directly in an absence request, and a functional replacement, who is granted additional permissions. We’ll also show you how to set each one up.
⭐ Types of Replacement
Functional replacement
Functional replacement is set up in the profile of the absent Supervisor. It allows the Replacement to approve requests that would normally go to that Supervisor during the selected period.
Informational replacement
Informational replacement is selected directly within an absence request. It simply indicates who will be covering for the Supervisor during their absence and does not grant any approval permissions.
ℹ️ You can choose another Supervisor or an Employee as a Replacement.
This applies to both informational and functional replacement.
🧑🏫 Assigning Functional Replacement
When a Supervisor is planning time off or expects to be unavailable for a while, they can set up a Replacement themselves directly in their profile to handle request approvals during their absence.
If they don’t manage to set this up in time, are unable to do so, or can’t assign a Replacement for any reason, HR can take care of it on their behalf.
Below, you’ll find both options – simply choose the one that fits your situation.
🟪 When logged in as HR
Step 1
Go to the Organization tab and open the profile of the absent Supervisor by clicking their name.
Step 2
In the Supervisor’s profile, hover over the Permissions tab, then select For absences from the drop-down list.
Step 3
In the Replacement for absences section, click the plus icon and fill in the following details:
Replacement — choose the person who will act as the Replacement from the list,
Date from and Date to — choose the time period when the replacement will be in effect.
Done! During the selected absence period, the Replacement will take over approving requests sent to that Supervisor 🎉
⚠️ The functional Replacement will see additional requests only on the Dashboard.
Requests they can approve on behalf of the absent Supervisor will appear in the For approval section on the Dashboard.
🟧 When logged in as a Supervisor
Step 1
Open the Replacement tab from the menu on the left side of the screen.
💡 Don’t see the Replacement tab?
This option is available only for Supervisor accounts. If you manage a team but see an Employee account after logging in, ask HR to review your profile settings.
Step 2
In the Replacement for absences section, click the plus icon and fill in the following details:
Replacement — choose the person who will act as the Replacement from the list,
Date from and Date to — choose the time period when the replacement will be in effect.
All set! During the selected absence period, the Replacement will handle approving requests sent to you 🎉
⚠️ The functional Replacement will see additional requests only on the Dashboard.
Requests they can approve on behalf of the absent Supervisor will appear in the For approval section on the Dashboard.
🧑🏫 Assigning Informational Replacement
You can select an informational Replacement directly when creating an absence request. Depending on your system configuration, this field may be optional or required.
Keep in mind that informational substitution does not grant any additional permissions. A Replacement chosen this way won’t be able to approve requests on behalf of the absent Supervisor – they are simply listed as a point of contact during the absence.
If the Replacement should take over request approvals, set up a functional replacement instead.
To select an informational Replacement, choose the person from the list while creating the request.
💡 The Informational Replacement will also appear in the Next 7 days section.
If this section is enabled on your company’s Dashboard, authorized users will see who is covering for you there. This makes it easier for them to reach the right person while you’re away.
⚙️ Additional Settings
HR can customize how Replacements are selected in Configuration → Leave configuration → Leave requests.
The settings below affect whether choosing a Replacement is required, who can be selected, and whether substitution information appears on the request list.
💡 Looking for notification settings? Check this guide ➡️
🔸 Turn on the option of indicating a cover when submitting the request
When this option is enabled, Employees can select an informational Replacement themselves while submitting a request.
If it’s disabled, the Supervisor can choose the Replacement during the approval process.
🔸 Enforce the indication of a covering employee when submitting the request
When this option is enabled, the Employee has to pick an informational Replacement when submitting an absence request – otherwise, they won’t be able to send it for approval.
🔸 Select covering employees only from members of the department
This option limits the list of available informational Replacements to people from the same department as the Employee submitting the request.
❗ This option does not apply to functional replacement.
🔸 Show the covering employee on the list of requests
When this option is enabled, the selected informational Replacement will be shown on the list of all requests. This makes it easy for HR and those managing absences to quickly see who has been assigned as the Replacement for a given absence.
❓ FAQ
Below you’ll find answers to the most common questions about assigning a Replacement and access to requests during functional substitution.
Will the Replacement be able to see requests created before they were assigned?
Will the Replacement be able to see requests created before they were assigned?
Yes. Just make sure you select the right date range when setting up the functional replacement.
Example: if the requests were created on July 4 and you assign the Replacement on July 10, enter July 4 in the Date from field. This way, the Replacement will also see earlier requests that have been sent for approval within the replacement period.
⚠️ The functional Replacement will see additional requests only on the Dashboard.
Requests they can approve on behalf of the absent Supervisor will appear in the For approval section on the Dashboard.
Why doesn’t the Replacement see these requests on the List of requests?
Why doesn’t the Replacement see these requests on the List of requests?
Functional replacement on its own doesn’t give the Replacement access to these requests on the List of requests. If you’d like them to see the requests there as well, HR will need to grant additional permissions.
To do this, open the Replacement’s profile and go to Permissions → For absences. In the Add additional access for absences section, click the plus icon, then select the people or departments whose requests the Replacement should be able to see on the Request list. Finally, choose Preview in the Leave requests column.
You can also use this section to grant other permissions, such as access to the absence calendar. The available options may vary – Supervisor accounts typically have more options than Employee accounts.
What should I do if the Replacement can't approve requests?
What should I do if the Replacement can't approve requests?
Check whether the Replacement has been added as a functional Replacement in the absent Supervisor’s profile. You can find this in Permissions → For absences.
If the Replacement isn’t on the list, simply add them using the plus icon and choose the date range during which they should be able to approve requests on the Supervisor’s behalf.
⚠️ Selecting a Replacement directly in the absence request is not enough.
A Replacement selected only in the request is just there for reference and won’t be able to approve requests on behalf of the absent Supervisor.