Procurement & Purchasing · Approval Workflow
Procurement Budget Approval
Use this template to approve category budgets and keep committed spend visible against them all year without building anything from scratch. Everything…
Explore templateMake or Buy Decision Template
A ready-to-run workflow that helps procurement teams compare internal production against external sourcing with a consistent cost and risk model. 6 stages, 8 pre-built fields and 4 automations, live in about 15 minutes.
- Stages
- 6
- Fields
- 8
- Automations
- 4
- Setup
- 15 minutes
Make or Buy Decision Decision Template · Procurement & Purchasing
- 1Data pulled
- 2Cleansing and classification
- 3Analysis
- 4Stakeholder review
- 5Actions agreed
- 6Tracked to outcome
Quick answer
The Make or Buy Decision template is a pre-built procurement workflow used to compare internal production against external sourcing with a consistent cost and risk model. It runs across 6 stages, from data pulled to tracked to outcome, captures 8 standard fields including component or service and capacity impact, and applies 4 automations so routing, checks and record-keeping happen without manual chasing.
What the Make or Buy Decision template does
The template gives the make or buy analysis process a defined shape. Submission captures 8 fields up front, which removes the back-and-forth that normally follows an incomplete request. From there the record moves through 6 stages, each with its own owner and exit condition, and 4 built-in automations apply checks and routing consistently rather than depending on who is available. It suits procurement teams in manufacturing that need control and an audit trail without adding administrative work, and it syncs with SAP and Excel imports.
The problem it solves. Make-or-buy calls are argued on gut feel because the internal cost picture and the supplier quote are never on the same page. The template replaces that with one record, one owner and one visible status.
The Make or Buy Decision workflow, stage by stage
Every make or buy analysis follows the same 6 stages, so anyone can see where a record is without asking. Stages, owners and exit conditions are configurable if your policy differs.
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Data pulled
Spend, supplier and transaction data is pulled from the ERP and Zapro into one working set.
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Cleansing and classification
Records are deduplicated and classified to category and supplier parent so the numbers can be trusted.
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Analysis
The make or buy analysis surfaces concentration, leakage, price variance and off-contract activity by category and entity.
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Stakeholder review
Findings are reviewed with the budget owners who can actually change the behavior behind the numbers.
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Actions agreed
Each opportunity becomes an owned action with a target value and a date.
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Tracked to outcome
Realized savings and compliance improvements are tracked against the baseline until the action closes.
The data this template collects up front
These 8 fields are pre-configured on the intake form. Mandatory rules, picklists and validation are already applied, so a make or buy analysis cannot progress with gaps in it.
- Component or service
- Internal cost build-up
- External quoted cost
- Volume assumption
- Capacity impact
- Quality risk
- IP sensitivity
- Recommendation
The manual steps this template removes
Standard cost model applied to every analysis
Zapro applies this to every make or buy analysis as it enters the workflow, so nobody has to remember to do it.
Side-by-side internal versus external comparison
Configured once during setup, then enforced consistently on every record without further effort.
Sensitivity on volume assumptions
It triggers the moment the condition is met, so nothing waits on someone noticing it first.
Decision log with rationale
This runs as a built-in rule, which removes the follow-up chasing that usually surrounds it.
What teams get out of this template
- Every purchase request has a single owner and a visible status
- Approvals stop living in inboxes and chat threads
- Budget is checked before commitment, not after invoicing
- Audit evidence is produced as a by-product of the workflow
- The team can compare internal production against external sourcing with a consistent cost and risk model from a single record
Manual process versus the Make or Buy Decision template
| Aspect | Manual process | With the Zapro template |
|---|---|---|
| Make or buy analysis handling | Make-or-buy calls are argued on gut feel because the internal cost picture and the supplier quote are never on the same page | One workflow that helps you compare internal production against external sourcing with a consistent cost and risk model |
| Audit readiness | Evidence reassembled from mailboxes at audit time | Complete trail generated as the work happens |
| Cycle time | Depends on who is chasing this week | Predictable, with reminders and escalation built in |
| Status visibility | Chase people on email or Slack to find out where it is | Live status on every record, visible to requester and approver |
| Approvals | Forwarded emails with no record of who approved what | Rules-based routing with a time-stamped approval trail |
Systems this template connects to
Zapro connects to your existing systems so this template becomes part of the process rather than another place to check.
- SAP
- Excel imports
- NetSuite
- Slack
- Microsoft Teams
- Zapro Supplier Portal
Guides that go with this template
- End-to-End Procurement
The Zapro product page behind this template and everything it connects to.
- What is Procurement?
The full end-to-end guide to procurement, its stages and its owners.
- Procurement Process
How a modern procurement process runs from requisition to closure.
Make or Buy Decision template FAQs
What is the Make or Buy Decision template?
It is a pre-built procurement workflow in Zapro that lets procurement teams compare internal production against external sourcing with a consistent cost and risk model. Each make or buy analysis is captured on an 8-field form, moves through 6 stages with a named owner at each step, and is supported by 4 automations covering routing, validation and record updates.
How long does the Make or Buy Decision template take to set up?
Most teams have it running in about 15 minutes. The stages, fields and automations are already configured, so setup is mainly adjusting approval thresholds, field labels and owner assignments to match your own policy.
Who uses the Make or Buy Decision template?
Primarily category managers, working with procurement managers and category buyers. It is most commonly used by procurement teams in manufacturing, though the workflow itself is not sector-specific.
Can we enforce different approval limits by entity or cost center?
Yes. Approval thresholds in Zapro are configured per legal entity, cost center, category and value band, so a request raised in one business unit follows that unit's policy without a separate workflow being built.
Does this template work alongside our ERP?
Yes. Zapro syncs vendor master data, cost centers and approved documents with ERP and accounting systems, so the template runs the process and the ERP stays the financial system of record.
Run your Make or Buy Decision process in Zapro
Zapro ships with this template plus the rest of the procurement and vendor management suite. Start with the make or buy analysis process and expand into sourcing, contracts, invoices and spend when you are ready.