Systems and methods for automating and increasing the efficiency of business processes using inheritance of access/approval rules within an organization based upon the relationship of positions within the organization and the roles associated with the positions. In one embodiment, a role structure is used in conjunction with a hierarchical organization structure to allow access/approval rules to be inherited by some of the positions from other positions based upon the relationship of positions within the organization and the roles associated with the positions. Access/approval rules can be applied across equivalent or similar positions, yet differentiated between distinct portions of the organization and the distinct roles associated with the positions. Consequently, particular access/approval rules are not necessarily inherited by all of the positions subordinate to a particular position with which the rule originates, and are not necessarily inherited by all of the positions that are associated with a particular role.