Simple Intake Management

Intake management software is designed to streamline and automate the process of collecting, organising, and managing incoming requests, enquiries, or applications from clients, customers, or internal teams. 

This type of strategic sourcing software is used in various industries, including finance, legal, healthcare, marketing, and customer service, to handle initial interactions, initiatives, and requests more efficiently.

Key Features of Intake Management Software

1. Automated workflows: SaaS tools to automate the routing, assignment, and follow-up of intake requests to the appropriate teams or individuals based on predefined criteria, like the type of request, urgency, or location.
2. Customised intake: Users can create and customise intake forms to collect relevant customer data. These forms can be tailored with fields specific to the company’s needs, such as name, contact details, service type, and other necessary information.
3. Centralised data storage: The software provides a centralised database where all intake information is stored, organised, and easily accessible. This helps prevent data loss, reduces manual data entry issues, and ensures all team members can access the most up-to-date information with real-time visibility.
4. Analytics and reporting: Reporting tools to analyse data related to intake requests, such as response times, types of requests received, and conversion rates. This information helps businesses identify trends, improve processes, reach strategic goals, and allocate resources more effectively.
5. Communication tools: This includes integrated communication features like email, chat, and messaging to facilitate communication between the company and the client or customer during the intake process.
6. Integrations: Integrate with other tools like Customer Relationship Management (CRM), Electronic Health Records (EHR), or contract management software to ensure seamless data flow across all platforms.
7. Task management: Manage and track tasks associated with each intake request, from initial submission to resolution or conversion. This is crucial for ensuring that no requests are overlooked or delayed.

Procurement intake is the initial process of collecting, reviewing, and approving requests for goods, services, or resources from within an organisation. 

Procure-to-pay is the entry point for end users—such as departments, teams, or individuals—to communicate their purchasing needs to the procurement department or purchasing team.

Businesses need intake-to-procure solutions to streamline the entire process from the initial request for goods or services (intake) to the final procurement and fulfillment. 

These solutions provide a comprehensive approach to managing business needs by integrating all the steps involved in the procurement process, from intake and approval to sourcing, purchasing, vendor onboarding, supply chain, and vendor management.

Key Reasons Why Businesses Need Intake-to-Procure Solutions

• Faster procurement cycle times
  • Automated procurement workflows ensure that procurement requests are reviewed and approved quickly, reducing lifecycle times from source to pay.
  • Software often includes tools for quickly identifying and onboarding suppliers, allowing companies to respond more rapidly to market conditions or changing needs.
• Enhanced visibility and control:
  • These intake solutions provide visibility into every stage of procurement orchestration, from initial request to final delivery. This helps procurement managers track request status, identify bottlenecks, and make informed decisions quickly.
  • All procurement-related data is in one spot, enabling better oversight and control over spending, supplier performance, and compliance with internal policies and external regulations.
• Better risk management and compliance
  • Intake-to-procure solutions enforce rules and guidelines at every stage of the process to ensure that all procurement activities comply with organisational policies, industry standards, and regulatory requirements.
  • Automating approvals and tracking activities reduces the risk of fraud, duplicate payments, and human errors that lead to costly mistakes.
• Improved efficiency and productivity
  • Intake-to-procure solutions automate time-consuming tasks such as data entry, approval routing, and order processing, freeing up teams to focus on more strategic activities.
  • By providing a single platform for the entire procurement process, these solutions eliminate silos and reduce the need for manual handoffs, minimising timelines and errors.

Additional Benefits

• Cost savings and cost control
• Enhanced collaboration and communication
• Scalability and flexibility
• Contract lifecycle management
• Data-driven decision-making
• Instant notification for greater visibility
• Reduced tail spend
• Enhanced data security

To simplify the procurement intake process, businesses can implement several best practises and use technology to automate and optimise the various steps involved. 

A streamlined procurement intake process will reduce manual work, accelerate approvals, enhance compliance, and ultimately lead to cost savings and improved supplier management.

Steps to Streamline the Procurement Intake Process

1. Standardise and digitise intakes
   • Develop standardised procurement request templates that include all necessary fields, like item descriptions, quantities, specifications, budget details, and approval signatures. This helps ensure consistency across all requests.
   • Replace paper-based forms with digital ones that can be completed and submitted online. Digital forms are more accessible to track, update, and automate, reducing manual errors and delays.
2. Implement automated workflows
   • Use a procurement management solution or workflow automation tool to route requests to the appropriate approvers based on predefined rules. Automating approvals minimises delays caused by manual handoffs and reduces the risk of overlooked requests.
   • Establish clear approval hierarchies and thresholds based on request type, value, or department. This ensures that only relevant stakeholders are involved in the approval process, speeding up decision-making.
3. Leverage integrated procurement software
   • Use a procurement system integrating all functions—intake, approval, sourcing, and purchasing—into one platform. This ensures reduced data silos, real-time visibility, and simplifies tracking and reporting.
   • Choose tools with collaboration features that allow procurement teams and requesters to communicate, share documents, and resolve issues in real time, reducing back-and-forth communications.
4. Define clear policies
   • Define procurement policies, including preferred suppliers, spending limits, approval processes, and compliance requirements. Make sure these policies are easily accessible to all employees.
   • Conduct training sessions to educate teams about the procurement process, policies, and available tools. This reduces errors and ensures smooth adherence to procedures.
5. Utilise supplier portals and catalogues
   • Use self-service supplier portals where approved suppliers can upload their catalogues, update pricing, and manage their profiles. This streamlines the sourcing process and ensures all procurement requests are matched with pre-approved suppliers.
   • Develop internal catalogues for frequently purchased items and services from preferred suppliers. This simplifies procurement for recurring purchases, reduces the need for multiple approvals, and speeds up order placement.
6. Monitor and analyse performance
   • Monitor key performance indicators, such as compliance rates, average processing time, and approval turnaround time, regularly to identify bottlenecks and areas for improvement.
   • Hold periodic reviews of the procurement intake process to identify inefficiencies and implement continuous improvement strategies. Solicit feedback to identify pain points and areas for enhancement.
7. Implement a process for pre-approval
   • Establish a pre-approval process for commonly purchased items or services. Organisations can reduce the need for repeated approvals for similar requests by setting up pre-approved purchasing agreements or blanket purchase orders.
   • Use procurement cards (p-cards) for low-value purchases, which can streamline the process for small, routine expenses, reducing the burden on the procurement team.

Tipalti AI improves the request generation process by leveraging artificial intelligence to automate various aspects of procurement and payment workflows. 

Tipalti is a user-friendly financial technology platform specialising in global payables automation. Its AI capabilities help streamline the intake-to-procure process by enhancing data accuracy, reducing manual effort, and speeding up approvals.

Ways Tipalti AI Improves the Request Generation Process
Tipalti AI enhances the request generation process by automatically generating accurate, detailed submissions from minimal user input. Here’s how the process works:

1. User Submits Free-Form Request: Users can begin by typing their request in plain text, describing the items they wish to purchase, the vendor, price, and any other details. Tipalti AI accepts informal language, typos, and even incomplete information.
2. AI Auto-Generates the Request: Based on the input, Tipalti AI automatically fills in key fields. It suggests titles, justification, and classifies the request type, while also identifying the correct vendor, even if misspelled. Additionally, it pre-populates fields like price, currency, and quantity if mentioned.
3. Effortless Classification and Coding: The AI doesn’t just generate a simple form—it analyses the essence of the request and ensures all relevant fields are accurately completed, including the request type and additional classification fields.
4. Review and Edit Before Submission: Once the AI generates the purchase request, users can review and make any changes before finalising the submission. The system ensures everything is correct and ready for approval.

By auto-generating purchase requests, Tipalti AI eliminates manual entry, reduces errors, and improves efficiency, making the request submission process faster and more intuitive.

Using intuitively guided forms for requesters offers several benefits, including streamlining the procurement process, enhancing user experience, and improving data accuracy. 

In a procurement platform, guided forms are designed to lead requesters through the process step-by-step, ensuring all necessary information is captured correctly while minimising inefficiencies and errors.

Benefits of Using Intuitive Guided Forms for Requesters

• Simplified user experience
  • Intuitive guided forms provide clear instructions and prompts at every step, helping requesters understand the required data and how to input it correctly. This reduces confusion and frustration, making the form-filling procurement strategy straightforward.
  • These forms often include contextual help features, such as tooltips or hover-over guides, that provide additional guidance without overwhelming the user with information all at once.
• Reduced errors 
  • Guided forms can validate data in real time, immediately alerting users to missing fields, incorrect formats, or other errors. This reduces the likelihood of incomplete or inaccurate submissions, saving time on rework and corrections.
  • Intuitive forms can use conditional logic to display only relevant fields based on previous answers. This ensures that users are not overwhelmed by unnecessary questions and reduces the chances of incorrect inputs.
• Increased efficiency and speed
  • Intuitive forms break down the request process into manageable steps, making it easier and faster for users to complete. This accelerates the request generation process and reduces the time required.
  • Guided forms can automatically pre-fill known data (e.g., requester name, department, and contact) from existing records, further speeding up the form completion process and minimising repetitive data entry.
• Enhanced data accuracy 
  • Using standardised fields ensures that all requesters provide information consistently, making data processing and analysis easier. For example, drop-down menus, checkboxes, or date pickers help ensure inputs conform to required formats.
  • Guided forms enforce the completion of mandatory fields before submission, ensuring all critical data is captured accurately. This reduces back-and-forth communication between requesters and approvers.
• Improved compliance and control
  • Intuitive forms can be designed to incorporate compliance checks that ensure requests adhere to all policies and regulatory requirements. For example, they can flag requests that exceed budget thresholds, have maverick spend, or involve non-approved suppliers.
  • Guided forms automatically create an audit trail of all inputs, modifications, and approvals, providing a transparent record of the request process for compliance and auditing purposes.

Additional Benefits

• Better decision-making and transparency
• Greater accessibility and inclusivity
• Reduced training requirements
• Lower administrative overhead
• Higher adoption rates
• Facilitates the entire intake-to-pay process