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Automate your purchasing process: From order request to payment

Automate your purchasing process: From order request to payment
Imagine this: an employee needs a new laptop, the purchasing department has to acquire it, the supplier delivers the laptop, and ultimately the finance department pays the invoice. That sounds simple, but in reality, many steps, setup, checks, and approvals are required. The Purchase to Pay process automates this entire journey, ensuring that everything runs faster and without errors.

The steps of the Purchase to Pay process

Easy-peasy

You need an order within your organisation – a laptop, office supplies, or perhaps a larger bulk of medical equipment. How do you ensure that this runs smoothly, without accounting errors being made, invoices getting lost, receipts being registered incompletely or suppliers unnecessarily waiting for their payment? 

The answer lies in a well-structured Purchase to Pay process; from the request to the payment. No more scattered emails, manual Excel sheets, or unnecessary corrections, but a clear, digital process that your organisation can rely on. The result? Fewer mistakes, less delay, and efficient collaboration between departments. 

Below, we take you through the seven steps of this process and show how smart structuring and digitalisation can make a difference. 

Step 1: Order requester

Feet on the table

It often begins with an employee who needs something: a new laptop, stock printer paper, or, for example, a new supply of care materials for nursing homes. In an automated Purchase to Pay solution, this employee can submit a request via a simple digital platform. Think of an application that is just as user-friendly as online shopping: select a product, choose quantities, and send. No more separate emails where things get lost, but everything is centralised and clear. 

In practice: In the article catalog of the HR department, office supplies can be ordered. Office supplies are linked to the correct supplier and the corresponding booking dimensions + VAT configuration. Based on the department, the correct dimensions are linked. As a result, all orders are immediately in line with company policies.

Anchr - purchase to pay process

Step 2: Purchasing department

The purchasing department receives the request and can easily check whether the request meets internal guidelines. They evaluate aspects such as price, supplier, contract terms, and dimensions. This all happens within the system, which immediately makes relevant information such as prices and supplier agreements visible. The purchase request is also automatically assessed against the available budget.

In practice: The purchasing manager notices that the requested laptops are cheaper in bulk from another supplier. With a few clicks, he assigns the cheaper option, which saves costs immediately. Because of the cheaper option, it may be that the purchase order is submitted for approval to the linked budget holder. 

Step 3: Warehouse 

When the purchase request is submitted, it is immediately checked whether the items are already in stock or if a new order needs to be placed with a supplier to replenish the stock. Next, the items that are in stock are collected and delivered to the ordering department on the agreed day. With every stock movement (e.g. delivery, replenishing, correction, return, relocation, revaluation), accounting transactions occur towards the accounting department.

In practice: Anna has ordered 10 boxes of tea from the inventory for her department. The warehouse delivers orders to Anna's department three times a week. The warehouse staff collect the orders and notice that there are not 10 boxes of tea in stock, but only 8. The warehouse therefore places an order with the supplier to replenish the stock of tea. During the next delivery to the department, 8 boxes arrive, but the remaining 2 boxes are on backorder. As soon as the supplier replenishes the stock, the last 2 boxes of tea are delivered.

3-Way matching process

The 3-way matching process is an integrated control mechanism within steps 4, 5, and 6 of the purchasing process, intended to ensure that only correct and legitimate payments are made.

Step 4: Placement of order form

The purchase order is the backbone of the process. This document can be generated automatically and shared with the supplier. The sending of the purchase order can occur automatically based on the setup regarding timing, frequency, and taking into account the minimum order amount and any order costs.

In practice: Purchase orders for a specific supplier are automatically sent every working day at 15:55 via Cxml. The purchase requests are automatically grouped by delivery address, ensuring everything remains clear and efficient.

Contract Management

You can also configure it so that ‘calls’ are automatically generated, for example, every month or another fixed period. This way, the same purchase order is continually sent to and received from the supplier, either manually or fully automatically. This makes the entire process more efficient, as it provides immediate input for the three-way matching. Meanwhile, the financial utilisation of the contract is updated in real time, ensuring you are always up to date. 

In practice: A hospital orders medical supplies from the same supplier every month. Thanks to the automated contract management, this now happens automatically based on the established contract. 

Step 5: Delivery note registration

Receiving the ordered items can be done manually, automatically, via web service or through a mobile app. The receipt is linked to the order note, and the system automatically checks whether the delivery matches what was ordered and if additional registration is required for HACCP or traceability. This is a crucial step to prevent errors. 

In practice: Some ordered items have a GS1 barcode. As soon as these items arrive, the barcode is scanned. This not only registers the receipt but also provides additional information about traceability, such as serial numbers or expiration dates, which are embedded in the GS1 barcode. 




Step 6: Invoice registration

The supplier sends a digital invoice via PEPPOL. The software ensures that this invoice is automatically read, validated, and checked. The invoice is immediately compared to the purchase order and the recorded receipt of the items. This process – the so-called 3-way matching – checks whether everything is correct and falls within the allowed variations. 

Because this happens fully automatically, manual checks are almost no longer necessary. This saves the finance department a lot of time and hassle, and ensures that invoices are ready for payment much faster. No searching, fewer errors, and a more efficient administration! 

In practice: An invoice for 50 boxes of printer paper is not automatically matched because 45 boxes have been delivered. In such a case, the invoice is manually matched and forwarded for review to the budget holder and/or the purchasing department. They can then decide whether the invoice will be (partially) approved, or whether action needs to be taken, for example by contacting the supplier. This keeps the process transparent and prevents overpayment. 


Without proper organisation, there is no smooth automatic matching.

Erik van de Wel

Product owner at Anchr

3-way matching: Why is this important?

“An error in invoicing may seem small, but it can have enormous financial consequences,” says Erik, Product Owner of Purchase to Pay. “The system automatically compares the purchase order, delivery note, and invoice, which prevents mistakes such as over-invoicing or duplicate payments. I remember a hospital that received an invoice for a double quantity of supplies. Thanks to 3-way matching, this was noticed and corrected immediately. Without this step, they would have paid far too much.” 

“With PEPPOL, suppliers send their invoices digitally in a standardized format. This means that the invoices arrive in our system directly and without errors. The combination of PEPPOL and 3-way matching ensures that organisations work not only faster but also more securely. Everything is automatically checked, and if something is wrong, the system immediately gives a warning.” 

He emphasises: “This not only prevents financial errors but also strengthens the collaboration between purchasing, finance, and suppliers. Suppliers appreciate the streamlined processing via PEPPOL, and purchasing and finance can rely on only paying correct invoices. It provides peace of mind and creates a professional appearance towards your suppliers.”

If you want to know everything about PEPPOL, Bruno, product manager at Anchr, will update you in a short video. 

Step 7: Making the invoice affordable

YEAH!

If everything is correct, we will prepare the invoice for payment. Thanks to our integrated accounting solution module, Financials, we ensure that the payment is automatically scheduled according to the agreed terms. This way, you keep your cash flow nicely under control. 

Don't use Financials? No problem! In that case, we will simply forward the prepared invoice to an external accounting solution, so you can also pay smoothly and on time there. 


Process animation blog: making invoices affordable

Okay nice, and what now?

Once the process is completed, all data remains accessible for reporting and analysis. This provides you with valuable insights, such as which suppliers are performing best or which costs can be further optimized. With this information, you can make strategic decisions and negotiate better agreements.

Digitally transform purposefully

Identify the biggest bottlenecks and use technology to solve them. Don't be tempted to tackle everything all at once.

Flexibility wins over complexity

Choose solutions that easily integrate with your existing systems. There is no need to set up heavy and expensive ERP systems at all.

Suppliers as partners

Collaborate with suppliers to streamline processes and reduce costs. They also benefit from your streamlined and automated process.

Want to know more?

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Would you like to know how your organisation can automate and optimise the purchasing process? Contact our experts for more information or just to brainstorm.

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