A purchase request is one of the first steps in the procurement process that provides the mechanism for a company to start the purchasing process. It enables organizations to place and track orders for supplies which may include office furniture or stationery.
A department uses a purchase requisition form to notify the purchasing department that materials needed for production or merchandise are needed.
Once a company manager notices that materials are running low, he or she fills out a purchase requisition form. This form must include a date, the manager’s name, the number of materials needed, details about the order and the vendor. The requisition form is then sent to the purchasing department to notify the department that supplies are needed.
The purchasing department and CEO can decide to either approve, alter, or deny the request. If the order is approved, the purchasing department will then go on to make a request for quotation.
A request for quotation document that outlines the general terms and conditions, invitation and description, pricing template, and the selection criteria is sent to the biding participants. After the bidding process, the purchasing department then selects which vendor they wish to purchase from.
Next, the purchasing department sends the purchase order to the vendor, notifying them of the amount and billing information of the goods that the buyer wishes to purchase. The goods are then delivered with an invoice if the vendor accepts the order. Once the goods arrive, the receiving department is saddled with the responsibility of unloading the goods and delivering all the financial reports that came with the goods to the accountant.
If there is consistency between the invoice and purchase order, an invoice and approval notice is issued by the accounting department to cashier, requesting that payment should be made to the vendor.
The purchase request process is very long and tedious, but an automated purchase request system significantly quickens the entire process.
An automated purchase requisition system allows both the requester and the approvers to have instant access to any purchase request in the system, thus speeding up the requisition process. A good automation system can also generate instant reports, allowing the team members to track, monitor, and analyze the success of the requisition process on the go.
With no stress tracking down budget holders for a signature on a paper, purchase request automation makes it possible for approvals to be made with just a click of the mouse. An internet connection is all you need to achieve this.
Purchase request automation significantly reduces overall operating costs by eliminating the cost of paperwork and also eliminating downtime waiting for approvals. This will ultimately lead to a faster processing time, making it possible for you to track costs and create improvements.
Once the first task in your requisition process is completed, the next task begins immediately without any delay. This way, goods and services that your company needs to succeed are procured promptly every time.
Since your employees have access to purchase requests in real time, they won’t have to waste valuable time calling other team members to determine the status of each request. This way, your employees can manage their time and also boost productivity.
Onboarding of new employees, starting marketing campaigns , processing purchase orders, processing quote request, requesting vacations, advertising real estate properties, onbording new clients, approving expenses and many more.
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