The power(lessness) of approvals

“The Middle of the Pack” is back! I took some time off with the family, and because of that, I figure I’ll tie parenting in with the most requested topic since we started: Approvals!

A common misconception among Coupa Software subscribers is the belief that approval workflow can be the primary tool for “managing spend”. Simply put, approvals cannot manage spend! As shown in the image, whether or not Mom says ‘yes’, this was not an effective requisitioning process.

The requester (child) hasn’t clearly articulated what they want (what kind of candy?)
The approver (mom) wasn’t anticipating the request
The request itself is an urgent, unplanned decision
The communication approach is neither collaborative nor effective

And most importantly... We don’t know if there’s a better price elsewhere, or if we already have some of the same candy in the car (i.e. inventory)!

Using approvals as the primary means to ‘manage spend’ is always a mistake. Stay tuned for more on this topic.