Flexible Workflow for Purchase Order and PO to Invoicing Process in S/4HANA Cloud
# Purpose
In this blog we would see how to build a flexible workflow for purchase order in S/4HANA Cloud. Further we would also see purchase order to supplier invoicing process.
# Flexible workflow for purchase order
Step1: Activate Flexible Workflow for Purchase Orders
Make settings that are relevant for working with purchase orders.
Use
When working with purchase orders you can, for example, use the flexible workflow, enabling you to optimize the approval process. The flexible workflow allows you to use either the automatic, one-step, or even multi-step approval. It is available for purchase orders.
You can also maintain the shipping data for plants. You must assign a customer number to the plant to be able to use the plant in stock transfer processing.
In this process you activate workflow against your purchase order document type. We will activate against document type NB.
Manage your Solution App –> Configure Your Solution –> Purchase order processing
Configure – Activate Flexible Workflow for Purchase Orders
Select your Purchase Order Type and Select against Scenario Based Workflow and after just save it.
Step 2: Manage Workflows for Purchase Orders
In this step, you configure your release conditions for Purchase Order Approval.
Choose – Add
You can add many preconditions as shown below
Step Sequence: Click Add
Role
User: You can assign multiple user ID
You can add further condition if you wish.
Click Add
Click Save
Now Click Activate
Now You have successfully created and activated workflow
# Purchase order to Supplier Invoice Process
Step 1: Create Purchase Order (with Manage Purchase Order App)
You can create PO in any currency system will automatically convert amount into workflow managed currency based on maintained exchange rate.
Click + sign
Item
Click + sign
Put detail and click on Detail (Yellow marked)
Fill other details like cost center etc.
Click – Apply
Click – Order (it will generate purchase order)
Step 2: Approve Purchase Order (Inbox-All Items)
Approve the PO
Submit
Note1: You can also Forward Approval process to someone else (Forward) and you can also Reserve approval process in case there are multiple approvers for the same item (Claim)
Substitute Approver (to manage things in your absence)
Path: My Inbox -All Items App –> Me Area –> Manage My Substitutes –> Add New Substitute (You can do so for Planned or Unplanned)
Step 3: Goods Receipt with Post Goods Receipt for Purchase Order App
Items
Post
Step 4: Display Material Document with Material Document Overview App
You can also take print out of GR Document
Item –> Detail
Accounting Document Overview
Click Manage Journal Entries
Step 5: Invoice Verification with Create Supplier Invoice App
In this process, you create the supplier invoice with PO/GR relation. You have two options to create the supplier invoice:
Choose Option A: Create Supplier Invoice with PO/GR relation.
Choose Option B: Create Supplier Invoice with PO/GR relation (with Invoice Reduction)
Check –> Simulate –> Post
Note: Invoice reduction functionality is like On-Premise, here also system one material document and two accounting documents.
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Lot more to come. Stay tuned.
Thanks Shakeel for the great blog. One small question do we have flexibility of BADI available while triggering the workflow same like when you are determining the recipients? I am asking this question since in our ECC workflow we make use of Check Function module to add programming based checks
Thanks
Nabheet
Yes Nabheet but it's bit restricted as compared to OP.
In this blog, check out the snapshots carefully, In one of the snapshots where you add 'Step Sequence' & then user, there is another option(not chosen) - 'Agent Determination by BAdI'. Then you have to implement BAdI in 'Custom Fields & Logic' app to determine recipients.
Check this link for more details:
https://help.sap.com/viewer/0e602d466b99490187fcbb30d1dc897c/1802%20500/en-US/46c9e5b6ba7a4feeb920ca1cbad68c73.html
Regards
Gaurav
Thanks Gaurav, agent determination BADI is clear, I was thinking more from Preconditions check where right now we can mention if Company code is ABCD or Currency is EUR etc. Can we have the flexibility of the BADI being available, because normally our conditions to trigger the workflow are not straightforward.
Same like Check or Receiver function module in SWETYPV2
Thanks
Nabheet
No Nabheet. You can't have your custom preconditions.
Regards
Gaurav Karkara
Hi Gaurav & Nabheet,
You can add custom conditions, however only for the fields that are available in workflow expression. You can check features and limitations in below blog
https://blogs.sap.com/2018/08/09/features-and-limitations-flexible-workflow-for-pr-and-po-in-s4-hana-on-premise/#
Regards,
Ashish Shah
Hello Gaurav Karkara ,
do you have any idea whether SAP is gonna provide the provision of adding customer preconditions in next releases like 1809?
Can we expect them in 1809?
Hi , do you know if is possible add more than one Purchase Requisition to the same RFQ but in the Fiori app?
Hi,
Thanks Shakeel for the great blog, i have question about flexible workflow
How we cancel this workflow in transaction "purchase Order " advance, so user can edit this PO?
is it standart behavior, if Po in "awaiting Approval , user cannot change/ edit this document?
thanks
Hi Yudha,
in 1709 there is no way to edit PR/PO during flexible workflow approval, however in 1809 this feature is expected to be released.
You can check some more features and limitations in below blog
https://blogs.sap.com/2018/08/09/features-and-limitations-flexible-workflow-for-pr-and-po-in-s4-hana-on-premise/#
Regards,
Ashish Shah
Just few questions of understanding related to Flexible Workflow (S/4 on premises 1809) :
a. What is the purpose of the workflow "Automatic Release of Purchase Order" (Content delivered by SAP)?
b. Should this item be activated?
c. What order position should be reserved for this item in normal operations?
d. Is IMG "Activate Flexible Workflow for Purchase Orders" THE reason why a PO receives the status "In Approval" although non of actual Flexible WF meets the criteria for it to be released? If so, how to "repair/adjust" such PO so it is not lost?
e. How can we change a PO "In Approval"?
f. Is Flexible WF a mutually exclusive alternative to release strategy with classification, therefore none of the settings for the latter are required for the former to work properly?
great blog.
I have a question please , I have tried to access ‘manage your solution ‘ through Sap fiori but I got the below attached Error
Kindly any advice regarding the error , our system is 1709 S/4 Hana (on premise) SP2
Regards
Ghadeer
Hello Ahemed,
Very nice blog..Thanks for sharing...
Hello, amazing new features!
I am trying to implement a PO rel strategy on a 1809 cloud FA instance, but when I open the "Manage Your Solution" app, I get this message and can't figure out any way out of it... can you help? Thanks!
Hi Shakeel,
Thanks so much for the blog, I would like to know , flexible workflow is alternative to traditional release strategy or it can work in parallel.
Is this available in 1709 on premise?
Thanks so much in advance
Hi Shakeel
We have a requirement to setup a Workflow Approval for post “Vendor Creation” in S/4HANA Cloud.
There isn’t any Flexible Workflow available. Would like to check with you if there is any other option to setup this workflow in S/4HANA Cloud (In-App Extensibility)?
The only other option we found so far is through Side by Side extensibility using SAP Cloud Platform.
What are the options we have to create workflows in S/4HANA Cloud when we don't have a Flexible workflow provided by SAP?
You saved me, Thanks for sharing