How To Get Management Approval Of Your Procurement Requests

Have you ever submitted a procurement request that was rejected?

Trust me, moments like that can be so disappointing making you feel like you don't even know what you are doing.

You completed your sourcing process, evaluated several suppliers, and made a recommendation for your management’s approval.

What can go wrong? Quite a lot actually…

After many years serving on several tenders boards (approval authority for tenders & contracts), I can tell you the two main reasons for rejected procurement requests:

1. Insufficient information: so you followed through with the sourcing process and had to make some decisions along the way. If the reasoning behind these decisions is not clearly communicated in your request, it will likely be rejected or sent back for the provision of further information. For example, if you decide to progress with a bidder that was not the lowest priced, you will need to provide details on why you took that decision.

2. Key questions have not been answered: tender board members or management are always on the look-out for what is best for the organization so you need to ‘think’ like them and be sure to answer their key questions when presenting your request: Is this the right product/service? Are we recommending the supplier that is best placed to supply this product/service to the organization? Are we paying the right price? Is there a more efficient/cost-effective solution?

When it comes to procurement approval processes, every organization has its unique style, but here are some basic steps that will help you get your request approved.

📍 Tell a Story: So, the first thing you want to do is to convey that the purchasing need in question is genuine and necessary at this time. Next, you want to explain the process you went through in arriving at your recommendation; making sure to answer the key questions we identified earlier. Be sure to piece together the details logically, just like you would tell a story; so that you don’t lose your audience halfway through. Other factors to highlight are the scope of the need, when the purchase is due, the available budget, suitable suppliers, and other considerations from the user department.

📍 Fortify Documentation: Ensure that you include all relevant support documents alongside your request. For easy approval, it's essential to list all details relevant to the purchase and reference support documents in appendices. Details such as product specification, requester information, department, and proposed budget should be included. Support documentation will include evaluation results including reports on site/facility visits where conducted, comprehensive bid/quotation analysis, acknowledgment forms/letters, and/or decline notices from suppliers who did not bid, alternative bids if provided and supplier’s details should also be included.

📍 Observe Due Process: It's important to note that the approval process depends on your organization's policies and procedures so you must stay up-to-date with prescribed guidelines. Know the purchase limits and process workflows. For example, higher purchase values may require more detailed documentation and a more stringent approval process.

So, that's it. Now go ahead and apply these steps in your next procurement approval request. Do feel free to leave a comment too, let’s know if this helped in any way.

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