Purchase order and approval workflows: how to cut sign-off delays

Where approvals actually get stuck

Most approval delays are not caused by disagreement. They happen because a request sits in someone's inbox, the approver is travelling, or nobody is sure who is meant to sign off a given amount. The requester then chases, finance then chases, and a simple purchase takes days.

In a business with 20 to 100 staff, approval rules often live in people's heads or in an old email. That works until someone is on leave. A workflow turns those unwritten rules into something that runs the same way every time.

Designing the approval rules first

Before any software is involved, write down how you want decisions to flow. Keep it simple enough to explain in a few minutes.

• Value bands: for example, line managers up to one limit, directors above it.
• Department or cost centre: who owns each budget.
• Category: some spend, such as IT or contractors, may need a specialist review.
• Deputies: who approves when the usual person is away.
• Exceptions: urgent or recurring purchases that follow a lighter route.

What the automated flow looks like

Once rules are agreed, the process can follow the same steps every time:

1. The requester completes a short form with supplier, amount, purpose and budget code.
2. The system checks the rules and sends the request to the correct approver.
3. The approver approves, rejects or asks a question with a single click from email or phone.
4. On approval, a purchase order number is generated and sent to the supplier.
5. The decision, time and approver are stored for finance and audit.

Reminders, escalation and deputies

The real saving comes from handling the stalled request. If an approver has not responded within an agreed time, the system sends a reminder, then escalates to a deputy or the next level up. Nobody has to remember to chase.

You decide how firm this is. Some businesses prefer a gentle nudge and a copy to the requester; others route to a deputy automatically after a set period. Either way, the request keeps moving, and the requester can see where it is rather than asking around.

Budgets, matching and your accounting system

Approvals work best when they are connected to the numbers. Linking the workflow to your accounting software lets you show remaining budget at the point of approval, create the purchase order in the right place and later compare the supplier invoice with what was ordered.

That matching step is where finance often loses time. When the order, the approval and the invoice are connected, exceptions stand out and routine invoices can be processed with far less checking. How deep the connection goes depends on your accounting package, so confirm this early.

Keeping control without adding bureaucracy

Automation should not turn a five-minute purchase into a form-filling exercise. Keep the request form short, pre-fill what you can, and let low-value, low-risk spend through quickly.

A good test is whether the people raising requests prefer the new way. If they do, they will use it, and your visibility improves. If they work around it, the rules need simplifying rather than enforcing harder.

Frequently asked questions