Conference Travel Approval Automation

What This Agent Does

This Expense Approval & Notification Agent automates your company's expense review and communication process by intelligently evaluating expense submissions, determining budget approval status, and notifying leadership via professionally composed emails. The workflow captures expense data through a simple form submission, calculates totals, leverages AI to craft compelling business communications, and logs all transactions for audit purposes—all without manual intervention.

Key benefits include:

• Eliminate manual email composition – AI generates professional, context-aware emails in seconds
• Instant budget decisions – Automatically approves or flags expenses based on your thresholds
• Complete audit trail – Every expense is logged to Google Sheets for compliance and reporting
• Reduce approval time – CEO receives formatted, actionable notifications immediately
• Consistent communication – Every email follows your organization's professional standards

Ideal for: Finance teams managing departmental budgets, project managers tracking expenses, organizations requiring CEO oversight on significant expenditures, and teams seeking to streamline the expense approval workflow.

Who Is It For

This agent is designed for finance professionals, accounting teams, and organizational leaders who need to:

• Process expense reports with consistent approval criteria
• Maintain detailed expense records for compliance
• Communicate budget decisions professionally and promptly
• Reduce administrative overhead in expense management
• Ensure CEO visibility on significant financial commitments

Whether you're a growing startup implementing formal expense procedures or an established organization seeking automation, this workflow adapts to your approval thresholds and communication preferences.

Required Integrations

Anthropic (Claude AI)

Why it's needed: Anthropic's Claude API powers the intelligent email composition engine. Rather than using generic templates, Claude understands context and generates personalized, professional business communications that feel authentic and appropriately formal.

Setup steps:

1. Visit Anthropic's console and sign in with your account
2. Navigate to API Keys in the left sidebar
3. Click Create Key and name it descriptively (e.g., "TaskAGI Expense Agent")
4. Copy the generated API key immediately—it won't be displayed again
5. In TaskAGI, go to Integrations → Add Integration → Anthropic
6. Paste your API key in the authentication field
7. Click Test Connection to verify the integration works
8. Save the integration with a memorable name like "Anthropic - Email Composer"

How to obtain API keys: Your Anthropic account automatically provides API access. Ensure your account has active billing configured to avoid service interruptions. Free trial credits are available for new accounts.

Configuration in TaskAGI: Once integrated, the AI Email Composer node will automatically use Claude Sonnet 4 (the specified model). This model balances speed and sophistication, ideal for email generation. No additional configuration is needed beyond the API key authentication.

Gmail

Why it's needed: Gmail integration enables direct email delivery to your CEO and stakeholders. This ensures expense approval notifications reach decision-makers immediately through their primary communication channel.

Setup steps:

1. Open Google Cloud Console
2. Create a new project or select an existing one
3. Enable the Gmail API by searching for it in the API library
4. Click Enable and wait for activation
5. Navigate to Credentials → Create Credentials → OAuth 2.0 Client ID
6. Choose Desktop Application as the application type
7. Download the credentials JSON file
8. In TaskAGI, go to Integrations → Add Integration → Gmail
9. Upload the credentials JSON file or paste the OAuth details
10. Authorize TaskAGI to access your Gmail account when prompted
11. Verify the connection shows "Connected" status

How to obtain API keys: Google provides OAuth 2.0 credentials through their Cloud Console. You'll need a Google Workspace or personal Google account. The process is free; no additional charges apply for API usage within reasonable limits.

Configuration in TaskAGI: After authentication, TaskAGI can send emails from your Gmail account. The integration respects Gmail's sending limits (typically 100 emails per day for free accounts, higher for Workspace). Ensure your Gmail account has SMTP enabled and less restrictive security settings if using app passwords.

Google Sheets

Why it's needed: Google Sheets serves as your permanent expense ledger. Every approved and flagged expense is automatically logged, creating an auditable record for financial reporting, compliance, and historical analysis.

Setup steps:

1. Open Google Cloud Console
2. In the same project where you enabled Gmail API, search for Google Sheets API
3. Click Enable to activate it
4. The same OAuth credentials from Gmail setup will work here
5. In TaskAGI, go to Integrations → Add Integration → Google Sheets
6. Use the same credentials file or OAuth token from your Gmail setup
7. Test the connection to confirm access
8. Create a new Google Sheet or identify an existing one for expense tracking
9. Copy the sheet's URL (you'll need this during node configuration)
10. Ensure the sheet has column headers: Date, Submitter, Amount, Category, Status, Notes

How to obtain API keys: Google Sheets API uses the same OAuth credentials as Gmail. No separate keys are needed if you've already set up Gmail integration.

Configuration in TaskAGI: You'll reference your Google Sheets URL in the "Log to Expense Tracker" node. The sheet must be accessible to the Google account you authenticated with. Consider creating a dedicated sheet for this workflow to keep expense data organized and separate from other documents.

Configuration Steps

Step 1: Define Agent Name and Category (Information Nodes)

These documentation nodes help you and your team understand the workflow's purpose.

• Agent Name Options: Enter a descriptive name like "Expense Approval & CEO Notification"
• Category & Setup: Add context such as "Finance Automation" and note any specific approval thresholds (e.g., "Approves expenses under $5,000 automatically")

These nodes don't process data but serve as reference points in your workflow documentation.

Step 2: Configure Manual Trigger (Form Input)

The trigger captures expense submission data from users.

Configuration:

• Form Title: "Expense Submission Form"
• Form Fields to add:
  • submitter_name (Text) – Employee or department name
  • expense_amount (Number) – Dollar amount of expense
  • expense_category (Dropdown) – Options: Travel, Equipment, Software, Other
  • expense_description (Text Area) – Detailed explanation of the expense
  • budget_code (Text) – Project or cost center code

Example submission:

Submitter: Sarah Chen
Amount: $3,500
Category: Software
Description: Annual license renewal for project management tool
Budget Code: PROJ-2024-001

Step 3: Calculate Total Expenses (Function Node)

This node processes the submitted amount and prepares it for decision logic.

Configuration:

• Input: Use [[nodes.3.expense_amount]] to reference the form's amount field
• Function Logic: Create a simple calculation that formats the amount to two decimal places
• Output Variable Name: total_expense

Example function:

return {
  total: parseFloat(nodes[3].expense_amount).toFixed(2),
  formatted: "$" + parseFloat(nodes[3].expense_amount).toFixed(2)
}

Step 4: AI Email Composer (Anthropic Node)

This is where Claude generates your professional email.

Configuration:

• Model: Claude Sonnet 4 (pre-selected)
• Prompt: The system prompt is pre-configured as an expert business email composer
• Input Variables: Create a message that includes:
  • Expense amount: [[nodes.4.total]]
  • Submitter: [[nodes.3.submitter_name]]
  • Category: [[nodes.3.expense_category]]
  • Description: [[nodes.3.expense_description]]

Example prompt construction:

Compose a professional business email notifying the CEO of an expense 
submission. Include the amount ($[amount]), submitter ([name]), category 
([category]), and brief description ([description]). The email should be 
formal but approachable, suitable for executive review.

Step 5: Check Budget Approval (Conditional Logic)

This node determines whether the expense meets approval criteria.

Configuration:

• Condition: [[nodes.4.total]] < 5000
• True Path (Approved): Routes to "Format Approved Status" node
• False Path (Flagged): Routes to "Format Budget Warning" node

Adjust the threshold (5000) based on your organization's approval limits. Common thresholds:

• Startups: $1,000–$2,500
• Mid-size companies: $5,000–$10,000
• Enterprises: $25,000+

Step 6 & 7: Format Status Nodes (Data Formatting)

These nodes prepare different messages based on approval status.

Format Approved Status (True Path):

• Status Field: "APPROVED"
• Message: "This expense has been automatically approved and is ready for processing."
• Action: "Process immediately"

Format Budget Warning (False Path):

• Status Field: "REQUIRES_REVIEW"
• Message: "This expense exceeds standard approval limits and requires executive review."
• Action: "Escalate to CEO"

Step 8: Merge Results (Consolidation Node)

This node combines both approval paths into a single data structure.

Configuration:

• Merge Type: Combine all fields from both the approved and flagged status nodes
• Output Structure: Create a unified object containing:
  • status (from either format node)
  • message (from either format node)
  • expense_data (original submission details)
  • approval_decision (boolean: true/false)

Step 9: Prepare Email Content (Function Node)

This node structures the final email body using all previous data.

Configuration:

• Input: Merge results from node 8
• Function: Construct email body with:

  Subject: Expense Approval Notification - [Category]
  To: ceo@company.com
  Body: [AI-generated email] + [Status message] + [Expense details]
  

Output Variables:

• to – CEO email address
• subject – Descriptive subject line
• body – Complete email content

Step 10: Send Email to CEO (Gmail Node)

This node delivers the notification.

Configuration:

• To: [[nodes.9.to]] (CEO email address)
• Subject: [[nodes.9.subject]]
• Body: [[nodes.9.body]]
• From: Your authenticated Gmail account (auto-populated)

Optional settings:

• Enable CC if you want to include finance team members
• Add Reply-To address for questions

Step 11: Log to Expense Tracker (Google Sheets Node)

This node creates a permanent record.

Configuration:

• Sheet URL: Paste your Google Sheets URL (currently marked as null—this must be configured)
• Append Row with:
  • Date: [[now]] (current timestamp)
  • Submitter: [[nodes.3.submitter_name]]
  • Amount: [[nodes.4.total]]
  • Category: [[nodes.3.expense_category]]
  • Status: [[nodes.8.status]]
  • Notes: [[nodes.3.expense_description]]

Important: Replace the null sheet_url with your actual Google Sheets URL before activating the workflow.

Testing Your Agent

Test Execution Steps

1. Run a test submission:

• Click Test on the Manual Trigger node
• Fill in sample data:
  • Submitter: "John Smith"
  • Amount: "$2,500"
  • Category: "Equipment"
  • Description: "New laptop for development team"
  • Budget Code: "IT-2024-Q1"

2. Monitor the execution flow:

• Watch the workflow progress through each node in real-time
• Check that the calculation node correctly formats the amount
• Verify the AI Email Composer generates a professional email
• Confirm the conditional logic routes to the correct approval path

3. Verify email generation:

• Review the AI-generated email in the Anthropic node output
• Ensure it includes all relevant expense details
• Check that the tone is professional and appropriate

4. Confirm email delivery:

• Check your CEO's inbox for the notification email
• Verify the subject line is descriptive
• Ensure the body contains formatted expense information and approval status

5. Validate Google Sheets logging:

• Open your expense tracking Google Sheet
• Confirm a new row was added with all expense details
• Verify the status column shows "APPROVED" or "REQUIRES_REVIEW"

Expected Results and Success Indicators

✅ Successful workflow execution shows:

• Email arrives in CEO inbox within 30 seconds
• Google Sheets row is created with complete expense data
• Approval status correctly reflects your threshold logic
• AI-generated email reads naturally and professionally
• No errors in the execution log

✅ Test with a high-value expense (above your threshold):

• Workflow routes to "REQUIRES_REVIEW" path
• Email emphasizes escalation and executive review
• Status in Google Sheets shows "REQUIRES_REVIEW"

✅ Test with a low-value expense (below your threshold):

• Workflow routes to "APPROVED" path
• Email confirms automatic approval
• Status in Google Sheets shows "APPROVED"

Congratulations! Your Expense Approval & Notification Agent is now ready to streamline your organization's financial workflows. Monitor the first few executions to ensure all integrations work smoothly, then let automation handle the routine work while your team focuses on strategic decisions.