Keep payment approvals working when a director or finance lead is away

Review the payment calendar before appointing cover. Include payroll-related funding, taxes, supplier batches, debt payments and unusual transactions already expected. Record the relevant accounts, currencies and amounts. A backup who can approve ordinary supplier payments may lack authority for a large wire or a payment from another entity.

Check which approvals are internal and which the bank enforces. Some arrangements require a named signer or a specific combination of approvers. Obtain the bank's process for adding temporary or permanent cover and allow time for any documentation. An internal email saying that someone is deputizing does not establish that the bank will accept their instruction.

Confirm that the substitute can sign in using their own credentials, complete authentication and view the payment information needed for a decision. Verify their authority against the account and transaction limits. Run a controlled access check before the absence, using an existing record or other safe method agreed with the bank.

FFIEC authentication guidance describes the value of layered controls and stronger authentication for high-risk activity. Preserve those controls during cover. Forwarding another person's verification code or sharing their login obscures who acted and can leave the company dependent on an unavailable device.

Check recovery arrangements as well. If the substitute's access fails, they should know the verified support contact and the company's authorized escalation path. Store instructions where the finance team can reach them without accessing the absent person's private account.

Write down which payments the substitute can approve, the period of cover and any transactions reserved for another director. Keep unusual beneficiary changes, exceptions and higher-value items subject to the appropriate review. If two independent approvals are required, name two available people rather than assigning both roles to the same individual.

Give the substitute the actual review pack: invoices, approvals, funding position and any relevant exceptions. A total alone does not let them assess a batch. Agree how unanswered questions are returned to the preparer and how urgent issues are escalated before the bank cutoff. Specify what happens if the preparer changes a beneficiary or amount after review. The substitute should approve the final instruction that reaches the bank, with a fresh review when a material detail changes. Preserve the version or batch reference associated with that approval.

Account for time zones and availability. Federal Reserve service hours describe the underlying channel, while the bank may impose earlier customer cutoffs. Put the bank's applicable deadline in the handover so a remote substitute can plan the review without relying on the absent approver's usual routine.

Retain the approvals and bank acknowledgments from the absence. Reconcile released payments and identify any rejected, postponed or duplicated instructions. Report exceptions to the returning lead with their current status and responsible owner. The return from leave should not be the first time anyone checks whether urgent payments settled.

Remove temporary permissions through the bank's actual process and confirm the result. Keep permanent backup arrangements only where management has approved them. Update the authority register and the next absence plan using the practical problems encountered, such as a limit that was too low or a document that only one person could retrieve.