ResourcesPlatform guidePart 3
Creating POs, the approval chain, amendments, leave delegation, and exporting data.
A purchase order (PO) is a formal request to purchase services or goods. It captures what you are ordering, from whom, and for how much.
In biosuite, purchase orders serve two purposes. First, they give you a structured way to request and track purchases. Second, they create a controlled approval process – so every commitment above a certain amount is reviewed and approved by the right people before money is spent.
This is especially important in biotech, where significant commitments – CRO engagements, consulting agreements, lab services – often involve large amounts and need visibility across the organisation.
Purchase order functionality is available on the Professional and Advanced plans.
Creating a purchase order in biosuite follows a guided, step-by-step process. The form is divided into four steps:
Step 1: Supplier
Select the supplier you are ordering from. If the supplier has a default currency, it is automatically pre-filled.
Step 2: Details
Enter the key information:
Step 3: Line items
Add one or more line items to describe what you are ordering. Each line item has a description, quantity, and unit price. The total for each line is calculated automatically.
Step 4: Review
Review all the details before proceeding. You can go back to any step to make changes.
From here, you can either save as draft or submit the purchase order.
If you are not ready to submit a purchase order, you can save it as a draft.
Drafts are private by default – only you can see your own drafts. Administrators can view all drafts if they need to assist a team member.
Saving as a draft requires only a supplier and a currency. All other fields can be completed later.
You can return to the drafts tab at any time, open a draft, and continue where you left off. Your progress is preserved, so you do not need to re-enter anything.
When you submit a purchase order, biosuite performs a validation check before sending it for approval.
This check verifies that:
If something is missing or the approval route cannot be completed (for example, a manager is missing from the chain), biosuite will tell you exactly what the issue is, including specific names and where the chain is broken.
Once validated, the purchase order is submitted and automatically sent to the first approver.
In biosuite, approvals are simple and predictable.
Every user has an approval limit. This is the maximum amount the user can approve.
Some users may have a limit of zero, which means they can create purchase orders but not approve them.
When you create a PO, it is sent to someone else for approval. Self-approval is not the default.
The PO first goes to your closest manager.
If that person approves the PO and their approval limit is high enough, the process ends there.
If the amount is higher than their limit, the PO keeps moving up the line. Each manager in the chain reviews and approves the PO, until it reaches someone who can approve the full amount.
This way, POs get the right visibility and the right level of approval – automatically.
A simple example
Let's say:
What happens?
What about different currencies?
If a purchase order is created in a currency that differs from your company's standard currency, biosuite automatically converts the amount using the current exchange rate to determine the correct approval flow. The PO itself remains in its original currency. See Part 5 (Currency handling & exchange rates) for more details.
biosuite keeps everyone informed throughout the approval process.
When a purchase order is submitted, the first approver receives an email notification with a direct link to the PO.
Additional notifications are sent when:
You do not need to check biosuite manually to know when something needs your attention.
If you are an approver and have purchase orders waiting for your review, a Pending my approval tab appears in the purchase orders section.
This tab only appears when there are items requiring your action, and it is shown as the first tab so you can act quickly. An orange badge shows the number of pending items.
The pending list includes both purchase orders and amendments (see below) that are waiting for your approval.
If an approver decides that a purchase order should not proceed, they can reject it.
When a PO is rejected, the creator receives an email notification with the reason for the rejection. The PO is marked as closed and does not continue through the approval chain.
If the underlying need still exists, the creator can create a new purchase order with the necessary adjustments.
Every purchase order maintains a complete approval history, accessible from the PO view page.
The history shows each step in the approval chain:
This gives you a clear, auditable record of how every purchase order was reviewed and approved.
When you open a purchase order, you see a formal document view that includes:
Below the document, there are tabs for additional information:
Draft purchase orders are marked with a DRAFT watermark.
You can print any purchase order or save it as a PDF using your browser's print function.
When you print, biosuite automatically hides all navigation and interface elements, leaving only the formal document. The print date is added at the bottom of the page.
This is useful when you need a signed copy for records, or when a supplier requests a formal PO document.
Draft purchase orders can be freely edited – you can change any field, add or remove line items, and update amounts.
Once a purchase order has been submitted, it can no longer be edited in the same way. This protects the integrity of the approval process – what was approved is what was requested.
If you need to change something after submission, the correct approach depends on the situation:
Sometimes, an approved purchase order needs additional funds – for example, when the scope of work expands or costs increase beyond the original estimate.
Rather than creating a new PO, biosuite lets you request an amendment on the existing one.
An amendment records:
Example: A PO for CRO services was originally approved at €180,000. The CRO identifies additional protocol amendments that require €35,000 more. You request an amendment, bringing the new total to €215,000.
The amendment goes through the same approval process as a new PO. It follows the approval chain based on the new total amount – not just the additional amount. This ensures the right level of oversight.
While the amendment is pending approval, the original PO remains active and usable. Invoices can still be processed against the original approved amount. This ensures that day-to-day operations are not interrupted while the amendment is being reviewed.
Once the amendment is approved, the PO total is automatically updated to reflect the new amount.
Only one amendment can be pending at a time for each purchase order. This prevents confusion about which version of the PO is current.
When an approver is away – on holiday, at a conference, or on leave – purchase orders should not be stuck waiting.
biosuite supports leave delegation. A user can designate a colleague to act on their behalf during a defined period. While the delegation is active, any purchase orders or amendments that would normally go to the absent approver are automatically redirected to their delegate.
The delegate approves using their own approval limit. If the delegate's limit is not sufficient, the PO continues up the chain as usual.
All delegated approvals are recorded in the approval history, so the audit trail is complete and transparent.
Users set up their own delegations from their profile. Administrators can see which team members are currently on leave.
If you need to create a purchase order that is similar to an existing one – for example, a recurring quarterly order for the same CRO service – you can duplicate it.
Duplicating a PO creates a new draft with all the details pre-filled from the original. You can then adjust anything that needs to change (such as amounts or line items) and submit the new PO as usual.
This saves time and reduces the chance of errors when placing repeat orders.
Purchase orders that are no longer active can be archived.
Archived POs are removed from your main lists but remain accessible in the Archived tab for reference. All related data – approval history, invoices, and amendments – is preserved.
The purchase orders section is organised into clear tabs:
You can search for a purchase order by PO number or supplier name. The list shows key information at a glance: PO number, supplier, amount, status, department, and program.
Purchase order data can be exported to CSV or Excel format from the list view. This is useful for reporting, board presentations, or sharing data with finance teams who work outside biosuite.