How to create a procurement request workflow with role-based approvals

Streamline purchase requests from submission to approval

In this guide, you’ll create a Procurement Request Workflow that helps your team manage purchase requests, assign them to approvers based on department or budget, and track approvals automatically.
You’ll combine logic, linked forms, and role-based permissions so each stakeholder, requester, manager, and finance, sees exactly what they need.

📘 Learn more: Create your first form, app, or portal in a flash

Step 1: Create your procurement request form

Start from your workspace and click + New → Form, or choose Purchase order approvals template from the gallery.
You can also use Magic Create, try this prompt:

“Procurement request form with department logic, budget limit fields, and manager approval routing.”

Add the following fields:

• Requester name and email (prefilled if possible)
  
  
• Department (Marketing / Operations / IT / HR / Finance)
  
  
• Item description
  
  
• Quantity and unit price
  
  
• Total amount (use a variable to calculate automatically)
  
  
• Purpose or justification
  
  
• Urgency (Low / Medium / High)
  
  
• Status (Pending / Under review / Approved / Rejected)
  
  

💡 Tip: Add a Variable field to calculate total automatically:

@quantity * @unit_price

📘 Learn more: How to use a variable with a formula
📘 Learn more: How to create a form

Step 2: Add department-based logic for routing

Go to Settings → Logic → On submit, and create routing rules that assign each request to the right manager.

Examples:

• If @department = “IT” → send to it.manager@company.com
  
  
• If @department = “Marketing” → send to marketing.lead@company.com
  
  
• If @total_amount ≥ 5000 → CC finance.approver@company.com
  
  

💡 You can also auto-assign roles like “Department Manager” or “Finance Director” dynamically based on the requester’s department.

📘 Learn more: How to add advanced logic to your form

Step 3: Create role-based email notifications

Under Settings → Notifications, add conditional email templates for each approval role.

Examples:

• To Manager: “New procurement request pending your review.”
  
  
• To Finance: “Request approved by Manager, pending budget confirmation.”
  
  
• To Requester: “Your request has been received — you’ll be notified after approval.”
  
  

Include request details and dynamic variables like:

Requester: @name
Department: @department
Total amount: @total_amount

📘 Learn more: How to send and receive conditional email notifications

Step 4: Add approval fields for managers

Add fields(admin-only for:

• Approver name (autofilled based on login)
  
  
• Approval decision (Approve / Reject / Needs review)
  
  
• Comments or conditions
  
  
• Approved budget (optional)
  
  
• Date of decision
  
  

Step 5: Automate multi-level approvals

Use On update logic in the approval form to route decisions to the next role.

Examples:

• If @decision = “Approved” AND @total_amount < 5000 → send approval confirmation to requester.
  
  
• If @decision = “Approved” AND @total_amount ≥ 5000 → notify finance for secondary review.
  
  
• If @decision = “Rejected” → send rejection email to requester.
  
  

📘 Learn more: What is on update logic and how it works

Step 6: Track procurement stages in dashboards

Go to Results → Dashboard to visualize request progress.
Add blocks such as:

• Table view: All requests with status, amount, and approver
  
  
• Kanban board: Requests grouped by stage (Pending / Approved / Rejected)
  
  
• Pie chart: Requests by department
  
  
• Bar chart: Spending by category or month
  
  

📘 Learn more: How to create a Kanban board
📘 Learn more: How to showcase charts based on form responses

Step 7: Create a procurement portal with role-based access

Turn your project into a Procurement Portal App that centralizes requests, approvals, and analytics.
Add pages for:

• Submit new request — main form
  
  
• Manager review — approval form (visible to managers only)
  
  
• My requests — filtered table for logged-in users
  
  
• Finance dashboard — for budget tracking
  
  

Enable Login/Sign-up and assign roles (Requester, Manager, Finance, Admin) to control access and visibility.

📘 Learn more: How to create and assign user roles in your portal
📘 Learn more: How to let users view and edit their own data in your portal

Step 8: Generate purchase order PDFs automatically

Once a request is approved, use PDF templates to generate a Purchase Order (PO) document automatically.
Include dynamic fields like:

• Requester name and department
  
  
• Approval signatures
  
  
• Total cost and budget code
  
  
• PO date and ID
  
  

Attach the generated PDF to the final approval email sent to the requester and finance team.

📘 Learn more: How to create PDF templates to turn responses into documents

Pro tips

• Enable autosave: Let employees save partially filled requests.
  📘 Learn more: How to auto save incomplete responses and let users resume later
  
  
• Sync to Google Sheets or Slack: Send updates to shared channels or budget sheets.
  📘 Learn more: How to add integrations on Formaloo
  
  
• Use AI Smart Content: Summarize purchase justifications automatically for faster reviews.
  📘 Learn more: Create dynamic ending pages with AI Smart Content
  
  

Example scenario

An employee submits a request for new laptops for their team.
Logic routes it to the IT manager for approval.
Since the total exceeds $5,000, the system triggers a secondary approval for Finance.
After both approvals, the requester receives a confirmation email with the PO attached, and the dashboard updates to Approved.

📘 Learn more: Build personalized and time-saving flows with logic, automations, and AI

FAQ

1. Can I add multiple approval levels beyond two?
Yes, chain approvals with conditional logic, e.g., Manager → Finance → Director.

2. Can requesters see only their own submissions?
Absolutely, enable login and filtered views in your portal.

3. Can the workflow include vendor selection or quotes?
Yes, add fields or linked forms to collect vendor proposals before final approval.

Your procurement workflow is ready

You’ve built a transparent, role-based approval system that manages procurement from request to payment confirmation — with automated routing, tracking, and reports.
Next, expand it into a Procurement Portal with supplier management, cost tracking, and invoice uploads.

📘 Learn more: How to customize your portal with your brand identity

Last updated November 2025

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