Keeping track of spend in today’s landscape can feel like an insurmountable task, but optimizing your intake management can streamline the purchase process from the get-go. Having a set — and digestible — process to request purchases and onboard new applications can help drive down shadow IT, simplify SaaS management, and increase visibility into overall spend. 

Intake management for purchasing can help you level up your spend management strategy and result in: 

1. Better visibility. Proper intake management centralizes all purchase requests in one place and provides insight into every subscription, license, and renewal. It reduces the need for manual spreadsheets and cuts back on rogue departmental purchases. This transparency helps procurement leaders to identify redundant subscriptions, negotiate better deals, and eliminate risk to further drive cost savings.
   
   
2. Informed decisions. Intake management equips you with valuable data around usage and user needs during the purchase and renewal processes. This data-driven approach allows business to prioritize purchases based on actual value, allocate resources efficiently, and make informed decisions surrounding renewals and upgrades. It can help you take actionable steps to reduce costs surrounding unused subscriptions or features so that you can reallocate budget towards tools delivering a tangible return. 
   
   
3. Streamlined automation. Intuitive workflows that integrate with your intake forms can reduce the need for manual data entry and tedious paperwork. Effective intake management automates many of the purchasing steps, from routing requests for approval to generating purchase orders. This helps free up time so that employees can focus on more strategic initiatives while ensuring compliance with company policies and vendor contracts. Plus, automated workflows minimize errors and inconsistencies, further streamlining your spend management process. 

Implementing intake management is just one step in optimizing your purchase strategy. There are a few key tips that every Procurement professional should consider when building out their intake form. Discover the best practices and key factors to include on your intake form in this comprehensive checklist.