With so many steps and moving parts that need to synchronise, in order for each procedure to be executed as efficiently as possible, it comes as no surprise to know, that the complexity and coordination required leaves room for many issues to surface.
From maverick spending to incorrect purchase order fulfillment, the door is wide open for any number of issues to come through, and they regularly do. Having worked with many companies, over the past 20 years, we know many of the pain points that our clients face and with i2B-connect we aim to address these
A person in a department will request to procure goods or services by raising a requisition request. This will then generate a requisition which will need to be approved by their line manager or multiple managers. Severe delays are caused by working out the approval process, chasing a response from the approver or approvers, and manually approving the requisition to a purchase order or RFQ within an ERP system.
A requirement to source a product or service may require an RFQ (request for quotation). The Procurement department will initiate an RFQ which can be for a specific vendor or a multitude, who will respond with their quote, pricing, lead times, terms and associated details.
A purchase order will be issued by the procurement department to the selected vendor for fulfillment. You’ll be in the dark as to if the vendor has actually perused the PO. Any changes made at either end also cause delays as the waiting time to acknowledge, approve or decline drags on.
The vendor will send the requested goods and issue an advanced shipping note. Well at least they are supposed to, but you will often receive goods with no identification as well as missing documents like quality assurance certificates. If goods haven’t arrived then trying to track where it is causes unnecessary stress and confusion.
The finance department verifies the invoice alongside the purchase order and receiving document, before processing the invoice and releasing payment. Unfortunately discrepancies often show up when comparing the invoice, the purchase order and the delivered goods. Invoices also create issues on their own, when they are sent ahead of the goods being received, or when they fail to reference the original purchase order.