Three paths for a request
Every request is first approved by the budget owner. What happens next depends on what is being bought and for how much.
- Catalog and framework agreements. Goods and services that have already been through a competitive tender are selected by the requester directly from the catalog. The price is set by the contract. After approval a purchase order is generated and sent to the supplier. The buyer does not enter the process.
- Purchases within the set limit. A request with a quotation up to the set value is checked and processed by the buyer. A purchase order is then raised and sent to the supplier.
- Purchases above the limit. Above that value the buyer runs a competitive tender. The outcome is a purchase order, or a framework agreement whose items are then published to the catalog.
The buyer therefore handles only requests that need their judgment or a competitive tender.
Approval and budget
The approver is the budget owner and reviews the request before it reaches the buyer. A requester cannot approve their own request. The budget is checked when the request is raised.
For requests above the set limit, and for a single-source purchase, controlling also approves, and does so before the buyer. Single source is a purchase from one pre-selected supplier, without a competitive tender, and with a justification.
Finance continuously sees open commitments, cost-center consumption and the variance from plan. For every step the system records who carried it out and when, and the full history can be traced on the request itself.
Competitive tenders
The buyer runs an RFI, RFP, RFQ or a reverse e-auction with suppliers registered in the system. A requester can also ask the buyer to run a market inquiry (RFI). Each round has a fixed opening and closing time.
- On an RFP or RFQ the price and technical offers are opened together, and only after the round closes.
- Answers to supplier questions and addenda to the brief go to every invited supplier.
- Bids are ranked using a scoring matrix. The price criterion is calculated automatically; the other criteria are scored by the buyer or by a committee. Committee members score independently, and the results appear only after all of them have submitted.
- A round can also be run in which the supplier competes against their own opening price.
Contracts, catalog and suppliers
Contracts are recorded and managed by the buyer. Their owners on the requester side, and controlling, also have access, so each function sees the terms of the contracts it buys against.
A framework agreement contains a price list. Its items are published to the catalog and are purchased by call-off, without a further competitive tender.
The supplier registers in the portal and accepts the NDA on registration. The directory shows who gave consent and when. Registered suppliers take part in competitive tenders, accept purchase orders and have access to the price lists of their framework agreements. The supplier profile contains their contracts and a rating according to how important they are to the company and how difficult they would be to replace.
Purchase order, goods receipt and invoice
A purchase order can carry the number from the ERP. It is sent to the supplier as a PDF, or passed on as a CSV batch or a webhook. The supplier accepts the order in the portal and confirms dispatch. The requester confirms the goods receipt.
The invoice goes through a three-way match against the purchase order and the goods receipt. It is approved by the requester and then by the approver. Discrepancies are handled as a claim. Payment can be recorded only after the goods receipt and an approved invoice. Payment is made in the ERP, and Procura retains the documents and the full approval record.
External capacity
Contractors are selected in advance in a competitive tender and listed in the catalog by name, either through a staffing agency or as sole traders. The requester orders them by call-off from a framework agreement, as man-days on a project, and the approver approves the order. The contractor records hours worked. The timesheet is approved by the requester and the approver and is compared with the ordered man-days and the agreed rates.
Roles in the application
Each role works in its own portal. Responsibility is divided. The data is shared.
| Role | Responsibility |
|---|---|
| Requester | Raises requests, buys from the catalog, orders external capacity and confirms delivery |
| Approver | As budget owner, approves requests, invoices and timesheets |
| Controlling | Approves purchases above the limit and monitors budgets and commitments |
| Buyer | Processes requests, runs competitive tenders and manages contracts and the catalog |
| Supplier | Takes part in competitive tenders and accepts purchase orders |
| Contractor | Records time worked |
Who it is for
For the purchasing department, finance and controlling of small and mid-sized companies and groups of companies. The application can buy for several legal entities: each request names the company that is buying, and that company has its own billing details and delivery address. It is suited to services, IT, office supplies, marketing, facility management and external capacity.
- Finance: control of commitments before they arise, a match of the invoice to the order and to delivery, and a complete audit trail.
- Purchasing: work only on requests that need judgment or a competitive tender, transparent competitive tenders, and all contracts in one place.
Contact
If you would like to discuss deploying Procura in your organization, write to us.
Tomáš Vedej
vedej.tomas@gmail.com