How to create a purchase order workflow for finance teams

Simplify procurement and approval in one flow

In this guide, you’ll build a purchase order workflow that helps your finance or procurement team collect purchase details, route them for approval, and track payments or vendor status automatically. You’ll use logic, notifications, and linked forms to eliminate manual follow-ups and ensure transparency across departments.
📘 Learn more: Create your first form, app, or portal in a flash

Step 1 — Create your purchase order request form

Start from your workspace and click + New → Form. You can start from scratch or select the Purchase order or Expense Approval template from the Template gallery.

Or use Magic Create, type:

“A purchase order form for employees that routes requests to managers for approval and sends POs to finance automatically.”

Why this matters: your purchase order request form is the foundation of your entire procurement workflow.
📘 Learn more: How to create a form

Step 2 — Add key purchase and vendor fields

Include essential details your finance team will need for verification and processing:

• Requester name and department
  
  
• Vendor name and contact info
  
  
• Item name, description, and quantity
  
  
• Unit price and currency
  
  
• Calculated total (variable field)
  
  
• Cost center or budget category
  
  
• Attachment: quotation or invoice
  
  
• Approval status (Admin-only: Pending → Approved → Rejected → Paid)
  
  📘 Learn more: Form editor and field types

Step 3 — Auto-calculate totals and taxes

Use variable fields to calculate totals automatically.

Example formulas:

• @total = @quantity * @unit_price
  
  
• @tax = @total * 0.09
  
  
• @grand_total = @total + @tax
  
  

Display the total in a content block for transparency:

“Your total (including tax) is $@grand_total.”
📘 Learn more: How to use a variable with a formula

Step 4 — Add approval logic for managers and finance

Open Settings → Advanced logic and define automated approval routes.

Examples:

• If Department = Marketing → Assign to Manager A for approval
  
  
• If @grand_total ≤ 500 → Auto-approve
  
  
• If @grand_total > 500 → Notify Finance Manager for review
  
  
• If Approved → Notify Procurement for order processing
  
  

💡 Pro tip: Combine on-submit and on-update logic to create multi-level approvals.
📘 Learn more: How to create an approval form

Step 5 — Send automatic email notifications

Go to Settings → Advanced logic or Notify tab and set up conditional emails:

• Notify approvers when a new PO request is submitted.
  
  
• Send confirmation emails to requesters with PO number and total.
  
  
• Alert finance once approval is complete.
  
  
• Send vendor confirmation emails after purchase is processed.
  
  

Personalize each email with field IDs like @requester_name, @grand_total, and @po_id.
📘 Learn more: How to send and receive conditional email notifications

Step 6 — Generate automatic PO documents

Once a PO is approved, auto-generate a branded PDF copy.
Include:

• PO number and date
  
  
• Vendor info
  
  
• Approved items and totals
  
  
• Authorized signatures
  
  

Attach the generated PDF to approval emails or store it in your records.
📘 Learn more: How to generate custom PDFs using templates

Step 7 — Build your PO management dashboard

Open your Results → Responses page and create visual management tools:

• Table view to list all POs with filters (status, department, vendor).
  
  
• Kanban view grouped by Approval status (Pending → Approved → Paid).
  
  
• Charts to monitor spend by department, vendor, or month.
  
  

📘 Learn more: How to showcase charts based on form responses

Step 8 — Create a finance portal for full visibility

From your workspace, create a Finance Portal:

• Page 1: Purchase Requests (Pending)
  
  
• Page 2: Approved POs
  
  
• Page 3: Paid / Closed Orders
  
  
• Page 4: Budget Overview or Reports
  
  

Set permissions so each department can see their own requests while finance sees all.
📘 Learn more: How to create a portal and manage users’ access

Step 9 — Link related forms for end-to-end procurement

Connect your PO form to other related workflows like:

• Vendor Database (via linked rows)
  
  
• Expense Reimbursement or Invoice Tracking Form
  
  
• Payment Confirmation Form
  
  

This creates a single data source for all procurement activities.
📘 Learn more: How to connect forms with automatic data transfer

Step 10 — Analyze spending and performance with AI

Enable AI Analyze to uncover spending trends and identify bottlenecks.
Examples of insights:

• “Top 3 vendors by total spend this quarter”
  
  
• “Average approval time per department”
  
  
• “Percentage of POs over budget limit”
  
  

📘 Learn more: Uncover insights and trends in your data with AI Analyze

Pro tips

• Use reservation limits to restrict number of requests.
  
  
• Duplicate this setup for each subsidiary or department.
  
  
• Auto-send PDFs to vendors directly for faster processing.
  📘 Learn more: How to limit availability with Formaloo’s reservation option
  
  

Example scenario

An employee submits a request for new laptops. The form calculates the total cost, assigns it to the IT Manager for approval, and notifies finance. Once approved, Formaloo generates a branded PO PDF and updates the dashboard under Approved Orders. The finance team tracks payments and vendor delivery, all from one portal.
📘 Learn more: How to share your form or app with your team or audience

FAQ

1. Can multiple managers approve the same PO?
   Yes, use multi-step approval with on-update logic to involve several approvers.
2. Can vendors submit invoices through the same portal?
   Yes, link a separate Vendor Submission Form and connect it to each PO via linked rows.
   📘 Learn more: What are linked rows and how to use them

Your purchase order workflow is live, start managing finance efficiently

You’ve built a full PO management system that automates approvals, generates documents, and centralizes your finance data. Keep refining your logic, dashboards, and AI insights to streamline procurement from request to payment.
📘 Learn more: Build personalized and time-saving flows with logic, automations, and AI

Last updated October 2025

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