Even in organizations with a high level of SAP maturity, the purchase requisition approval workflow in SAP remains one of the slowest, most rigid, and most problematic stages of the procurement process.
Although many companies have invested significant effort in defining release strategies and approval hierarchies, day-to-day execution exposes clear limitations when relying solely on standard ERP capabilities.
Limitations of the Standard Purchase Requisition Approval Workflow in SAP
In practice, the purchase requisition approval workflow in SAP often becomes an operational bottleneck. Requests accumulate pending approval, response times increase, and procurement teams lose visibility into when the process can move forward.
This situation is not caused by poor process design, but by the system’s limited adaptation to current operational realities. Let’s examine these limitations in detail—and, more importantly, how to address them.
- One of the main issues of the purchase requisition approval workflow in SAP is its direct dependency on system access. In many environments, a requisition cannot progress until the approver logs into SAP and manually executes the release. If the approver is out of the office, tied up in meetings, or simply does not access the ERP that day, the requisition remains blocked.
- This is compounded by the lack of true mobility. While SAP has evolved in other areas, requisition approvals are still designed for a desktop-centric environment. There is no seamless experience that allows approvers to manage requests easily from any device. As a result, urgent requisitions may remain unattended for hours or even days, despite having an immediate operational impact.
- Another critical factor is decision-making based on incomplete information. In the standard purchase requisition approval workflow in SAP, approvers typically see only the basic document data. To understand the real purchasing context, they must navigate multiple additional transactions: price history, budget deviations, recent changes to the requisition, or relevant supplier information. This extra effort leads either to decisions made without full analysis or to unnecessary rejections simply due to lack of context.
- Limited traceability is another weakness. When a requisition is modified after approval—due to changes in amount, quantities, or account assignment—the system may require re-approval, but it does not clearly show what was changed or why. The purchase requisition approval workflow in SAP becomes opaque, complicating both daily management and subsequent audits.
- Finally, the difficulty of auditing release strategies and the lack of clear reporting on pending approvals or workflow deviations overload the procurement team. Buyers spend time chasing approvals instead of focusing on higher-value activities, turning the purchase requisition approval workflow in SAP into an operational constraint.
The Need to Modernize Purchase Requisition Approvals in SAP
Faced with this scenario, many organizations consider external tools or custom developments. However, these alternatives often introduce new risks: data duplication, loss of control, compliance issues, or long-term technical dependency. The solution is not to replace the workflow, but to enhance it.
This is where SILI Intelligent Releases comes in. Developed by Innova, SILI transforms the purchase requisition approval workflow in SAP while preserving the system’s standard logic. SILI does not replace existing release strategies; instead, it executes them in a more agile, informed, and traceable way.
How SILI Transforms the Purchase Requisition Approval Workflow in SAP
SILI operates directly on SAP, using already configured release strategies and respecting all system validations and controls. The difference lies in how the workflow is executed and in the information made available to approvers.
Approvals Without Dependency on ERP Access
One of the most significant changes introduced by SILI is the removal of direct dependency on SAP access. With SILI, approvers receive automatic email notifications when requisitions are pending.
From the same email, they can approve or reject the requisition without logging into the ERP. This functionality dramatically reduces idle time and prevents the purchase requisition approval workflow in SAP from being blocked by temporary unavailability of key decision-makers.
Consolidated Information for Informed Decisions
SILI provides approvers with a single, contextualized view of the requisition. Instead of displaying only basic data, the tool consolidates key decision-making information, including:
- Historical prices for the material or service.
- Current budget status.
- Supplier-related risk alerts.
- Changes made to the requisition since its creation.
- Decision history within the workflow.
This consolidation transforms the purchase requisition approval workflow in SAP into a true decision process, aligned with purchasing policies and financial objectives.
Integrated and Documented Communication
Fragmented communication is a major enemy of control. Isolated emails and phone calls generate decisions that are difficult to audit. With SILI, all communication related to a requisition is embedded directly within the document.
Approvers can request clarifications, and buyers or requesters can respond directly within the workflow. All messages are logged with user and timestamp, strengthening traceability across the purchase requisition approval workflow in SAP.
Full Traceability and Re-Approval Control
SILI records every action in the workflow: approvals, rejections, returns, corrections, and re-approvals. When a requisition is modified, the approver can clearly identify what has changed before making a new decision.
This full traceability eliminates ambiguity and simplifies both internal controls and external audits—one of the weakest points of the standard purchase requisition approval workflow in SAP.
Reversal of Decisions Without Manual Processes
In real operations, approvals may need to be reversed due to last-minute changes or errors detected afterward. SILI allows approvals or rejections to be reversed directly from the application, without recreating documents or executing additional manual processes.
This flexibility strengthens the purchase requisition approval workflow in SAP, adapting it to real-world scenarios without losing control.
Reporting and Audit of Release Strategies
SILI provides clear reports that allow organizations to visualize configured release strategies, identify documents outside the workflow, and analyze real approval behavior.
This capability simplifies audits, internal reviews, and continuous optimization of the approval model without relying on technical profiles.
Native Execution on SAP
A key strength of SILI is its native execution on SAP. The solution does not replicate data or create parallel workflows. All approvals are executed respecting standard validations, authorization objects, and segregation of duties.
Implementation is fast, requires no additional developments, and ensures that the purchase requisition approval workflow in SAP remains technically and functionally consistent.
Procurement Process Visibility with SiTRACK as a Complement
Streamlining the purchase requisition approval workflow in SAP is essential—but not sufficient if the rest of the procurement process lacks visibility. This is where SiTRACK acts as a natural complement to SILI, providing operational tracking without breaking SAP’s standard logic.
SiTRACK is an SAP-certified Innova solution that centralizes, in a single view, all stages following requisition approval—from purchase order creation to goods receipt and invoice posting. This visibility enables immediate detection of situations such as:
- Approved requisitions that do not progress to purchase orders.
- Purchase orders with delayed deliveries.
- Documents blocked at intermediate stages.
- Invoices pending after goods receipt.
In addition, SiTRACK reduces manual follow-up through automatic notifications and contextual communication and allows organizations to measure real lead times at each stage to identify bottlenecks before they impact operations.
Together, SILI and SiTRACK cover two complementary dimensions of the SAP procurement process: while SILI optimizes the purchase requisition approval workflow in SAP, ensuring agile and traceable decisions, SiTRACK provides the visibility required to control the entire procurement cycle end to end—maintaining consistency, control, and governance within SAP itself.
