Purchasing - System Features

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The PowerSchool ERP Purchasing System incorporates numerous features to allow flexibility in adapting the system to your specific purchasing needs. The software is also designed to ensure ease of use, so that users can learn the system quickly and perform their tasks efficiently.

General Features

• Offers an extensive range of options for configuring the system to your organization's specific requirements.

• Provides a single, integrated database to ensure the integrity of records and facilitate the interface between Purchasing and other PowerSchool ERP systems.

• Enables easy access to options, using menus, Search bar, favorites, and keyboard shortcuts, depending on your preference.

• Utilizes table-verified codes for entering data that are common to many records. Besides ensuring accuracy and efficiency, verification tables provide considerable flexibility. If certain information changes, you can simply modify a table, rather than change each of the records affected.

• Protects the confidentiality of records through an extensive security system. This system enables you to assign privileges to allow personnel to access specific menu options and look-up pages.

• Utilizes fieldsensitive help functions to assist you in entering information when adding and changing records. The help functions include either drop-down lists of valid entries or query pages for looking up selections.

• Provides an advanced help feature that gives you the ability to use multiple search fields and logical query statements for selecting records.

• Allows you to enter notes and attach spreadsheets, reports, email, and other documents to requisitions and purchase orders.

Requisition and Purchase Order Processing

• Provides self-contained detail pages for creating, viewing, and updating requisitions and purchase orders. In addition to being able to enter vendor, delivery, and line item data in these pages, you can also attach documents, add notes, and access approval and change order information.

• Allows you to set up and maintain comprehensive table records on vendors, commodities, and locations for use in requisitions and purchase orders.

• Gives you the ability to create purchase orders from requisition line items that have been approved and encumbered. You can convert requisition items into separate purchase orders or consolidate items that have the same vendor and approval group.

• Enables you to create requisitions and purchase orders by copying existing requisitions and purchase orders.

• Allows setting up requisitions and purchase orders for the next fiscal year.

• Enables you to create change orders for purchase orders.

• Includes the capability to distribute freight and shipping-handling charges among the items in requisitions and purchase orders.

• Provides an option for purging requisitions and purchase orders that are closed and no longer needed.

• Offers an extensive range of report options for reviewing and analyzing requisition and purchase order transactions.

• Provides an option for receiving ordered materials, if you are not using the Warehouse Inventory System.

Approval Processing

• Allows requisitions, purchase orders, and change orders to be approved or denied by either approval group or key organization.

• Enables you to set up approval groups and designate employees as either primary approvers or alternates. With approval groups, you can include up to five approval levels.

• Provides selection and detail pages for processing approvals. After selecting records, you can approve or deny them either individually or all at the same time. You can also issue approvals and denials by line item.

Multi-System Interface

• Interacts with other PowerSchool ERP systems, including Fund Accounting, Warehouse Inventory, Vendor Bidding, Fixed Assets, and System Administration.

• Enables you to distribute line item costs to multiple accounts in Fund Accounting. When distributions are entered, the system checks budget balances to determine whether funds are available for the purchases (optional).

• Enables you to encumber line item costs in Fund Accounting ledgers, when purchase orders are either created, approved, or posted, depending on your requirements.

• Enables you to convert requisitions to bids in Vendor Bidding. The bids can then be converted into purchase orders in the Purchasing System.

• Enables the system to update the Inventory Catalog in Warehouse Inventory.

• Enables you to designate selected purchases as assets, which can then be tracked through Fixed Assets.

• Enables you to assign security privileges to users through System Administration.