Admin Tutorial · Expense & PO Management

Configure expense approvals & purchase orders in CrmLeaf

Two linked tutorials for admins setting up expense management and purchase order workflows for deal and project teams.

Setting up expense approval workflows

The outcome

What you will achieve

A fully configured expense management system with category policies, multi-level approval rules, project/deal code linking, receipt enforcement, and real-time budget alerts - so every expense is captured accurately at point of spend and processed without month-end chaos.

Before you start

Prerequisites

·Admin access to CrmLeaf (Settings > System Admin)
·Your expense categories defined (travel, accommodation, entertainment, equipment, etc.)
·Expense policy limits agreed with finance (per-category, per-role, per-occurrence limits)
·Approval hierarchy confirmed (who approves what, at which thresholds)
·Active projects and deals in CrmLeaf (expenses will link to these)

Step-by-step

Step 1

Define expense categories and policy limits

Navigate toSettings → Expense Management → Categories & Policies

Click Add Category. Recommended structure for a professional services firm:

Category	Receipt Required	Per-Occurrence Limit	Notes
Travel - Flights	Yes (mandatory)	No limit (policy-governed)	Requires pre-approval via PO for > $500
Travel - Accommodation	Yes (mandatory)	$250/night standard; $350 exec	Hotel receipts must show room rate
Travel - Ground	Yes above $50	$80/day	Includes taxis, rideshare, parking
Client Entertainment	Yes (mandatory)	$150pp standard; $250pp exec	Must include attendee names on submission
Meals - Internal	Yes above $30	$40/person	No alcohol expenseable under $100 total
Software & Subscriptions	Yes (mandatory)	$200/month per tool	Requires IT approval for new tools
Equipment & Hardware	Yes (mandatory)	$500 self-approve; > $500 PO required	PO process applies above threshold
Training & Conferences	Yes (mandatory)	$1,500/year per employee	Requires manager pre-approval
Contractor / Freelancer	Invoice required	Always via PO	No direct expense - use PO module

Travel - Flights

Receipt Required: Yes (mandatory)
Per-Occurrence Limit: No limit (policy-governed)
Notes: Requires pre-approval via PO for > $500

Travel - Accommodation

Receipt Required: Yes (mandatory)
Per-Occurrence Limit: $250/night standard; $350 exec
Notes: Hotel receipts must show room rate

Travel - Ground

Receipt Required: Yes above $50
Per-Occurrence Limit: $80/day
Notes: Includes taxis, rideshare, parking

Client Entertainment

Receipt Required: Yes (mandatory)
Per-Occurrence Limit: $150pp standard; $250pp exec
Notes: Must include attendee names on submission

Meals - Internal

Receipt Required: Yes above $30
Per-Occurrence Limit: $40/person
Notes: No alcohol expenseable under $100 total

Software & Subscriptions

Receipt Required: Yes (mandatory)
Per-Occurrence Limit: $200/month per tool
Notes: Requires IT approval for new tools

Equipment & Hardware

Receipt Required: Yes (mandatory)
Per-Occurrence Limit: $500 self-approve; > $500 PO required
Notes: PO process applies above threshold

Training & Conferences

Receipt Required: Yes (mandatory)
Per-Occurrence Limit: $1,500/year per employee
Notes: Requires manager pre-approval

Contractor / Freelancer

Receipt Required: Invoice required
Per-Occurrence Limit: Always via PO
Notes: No direct expense - use PO module

2
For each category, toggle Receipt Mandatory ON or OFF based on the policy in the table above.
3
Set the Per-Occurrence Limit for each category. Amounts above this limit will require additional approval tier(s) - configured in Step 2.
4
Enable the Mileage Rate Calculator for ground travel if your team uses personal vehicles: Settings → Expense → Mileage Rate → enter your standard rate per mile/km.

Pro Tip

Keep your expense category list to 8–12 categories. More than 12 creates decision fatigue at submission - employees choose randomly when faced with too many options, which defeats the purpose of categorisation. If you need more granularity, use sub-categories rather than top-level categories.

Step 2

Configure multi-level approval rules

Navigate toSettings → Expense Management → Approval Rules

Click Create Approval Rule. Configure rules in priority order (evaluated top-to-bottom):

Rule Name	Condition	Approval Chain	Notification
Auto-approve low value	Amount < $50 AND receipt present AND category = Meals/Ground	Auto-approved	Submitter confirmation email
Manager approval	Amount $50–$500 AND all required fields present	Direct manager	Manager email + in-app
Manager + Dept Head	Amount $501–$1,500	Direct manager → Department head	Sequential; next approver notified on prior approval
Finance approval required	Amount > $1,500 OR category = Equipment > $500	Manager → Dept Head → Finance	Sequential chain; Finance final
Executive expenses	Submitter role = Executive	CFO direct	CFO notified immediately
Policy exception	Expense marked as 'exception request'	Manager → Finance → CEO	For legitimate over-policy spend

Auto-approve low value

Condition: Amount < $50 AND receipt present AND category = Meals/Ground
Approval Chain: Auto-approved
Notification: Submitter confirmation email

Manager approval

Condition: Amount $50–$500 AND all required fields present
Approval Chain: Direct manager
Notification: Manager email + in-app

Manager + Dept Head

Condition: Amount $501–$1,500
Approval Chain: Direct manager → Department head
Notification: Sequential; next approver notified on prior approval

Finance approval required

Condition: Amount > $1,500 OR category = Equipment > $500
Approval Chain: Manager → Dept Head → Finance
Notification: Sequential chain; Finance final

Executive expenses

Condition: Submitter role = Executive
Approval Chain: CFO direct
Notification: CFO notified immediately

Policy exception

Condition: Expense marked as 'exception request'
Approval Chain: Manager → Finance → CEO
Notification: For legitimate over-policy spend

2
For each rule, set the Approval Deadline: the number of business hours the approver has to act before an escalation notification is sent. Recommended: 24 hours for standard; 4 hours for expenses flagged urgent.
3
Enable Delegation: approvers can designate a delegate when on leave. The delegate receives all approval requests during the specified period.
4
Under Rejection Rules, configure what happens when an expense is rejected: the submitter is notified with the rejection reason (mandatory field for approvers) and given 5 business days to resubmit with corrections or provide additional information.

Step 3

Link expenses to projects and deals

Navigate toSettings → Expense Management → Project Linking

1
Enable Mandatory Project/Deal Code: toggle ON. This makes the project or deal selection a required field on every expense submission - the form cannot be submitted without it.
2
Under Employee Assignment, confirm that employees are assigned to their active projects and deals in the Project Management module. Only assigned projects/deals appear in an employee's expense submission dropdown.
3
Enable Default Project for Teams: for teams that work predominantly on one project (e.g. a dedicated client delivery team), set a default project code. The field will be pre-populated but still editable.
4
Configure Budget Alert Thresholds per project: navigate to each active project → Budget Settings → set alert at 80% and 95% of budget. The project manager receives an in-app and email notification when these thresholds are crossed.

Common Mistake

Setting up the project linking but not assigning employees to projects first. If employees are not assigned to a project in the Project Management module, that project will not appear in their expense dropdown - and they will complain that 'the right project isn't showing.' Always check project assignments before launching the expense module.

Step 4

Configure receipt management and duplicate detection

Navigate toSettings → Expense Management → Receipt & Compliance

1
Enable OCR Receipt Scanning: when an employee photographs a receipt, CrmLeaf extracts the vendor name, date, and amount automatically and pre-fills the expense form.
2
Enable Duplicate Detection: the system compares each incoming receipt image against previously submitted receipts. If a duplicate is detected (same vendor, amount, and date within 48 hours), the submission is flagged and held for admin review before entering the approval queue.
3
Set Receipt Retention Policy: define how long receipt images are stored (typically 7 years for tax compliance). Enable automatic archiving to your connected cloud storage after the retention period.
4
Under Compliance Flags, enable automatic flagging for: weekend submissions of large amounts, round-number amounts above $200 (often estimates rather than actual receipts), and repeated same-day submissions from the same employee above a threshold.

Step 5

Set up the employee expense portal

Navigate toSettings → Portal → Expense Submission

1
Enable the Employee Expense Portal. This gives every employee a personal expense dashboard where they can submit new expenses, track approval status, view their expense history, and see their remaining budget allocation for the current period.
2
Configure Submission Guidance: add a short policy summary visible on the submission form - key limits, receipt requirements, and the categories that require pre-approval.
3
Enable Mobile App Access: ensure all employees have the CrmLeaf mobile app installed. The mobile receipt capture feature - photo → automatic OCR → pre-filled form → submit - is the highest-adoption path for point-of-spend capture.
4
Send the Launch Communication: before going live, send a brief email to all employees explaining the new process, the mobile app download link, and the key policy points.

Step 6

Validate before go-live

Validation Check	How to Test
Receipt OCR fills form correctly	Submit a test receipt via mobile app; verify fields pre-filled
Mandatory project code enforced	Attempt submission without project code; verify blocked
Approval routing fires correctly	Submit test expenses at each threshold; verify correct approver notified
Duplicate detection working	Submit same receipt twice; verify flag on second submission
Budget alert fires at 80%	Post test expenses to a project at 79% budget; push to 81% and verify alert
Policy limit blocks over-threshold	Submit an expense over the category limit; verify escalation required
Employee portal accessible	Log in as a test employee; verify dashboard and submission form visible

Receipt OCR fills form correctly

How to Test: Submit a test receipt via mobile app; verify fields pre-filled

Mandatory project code enforced

How to Test: Attempt submission without project code; verify blocked

Approval routing fires correctly

How to Test: Submit test expenses at each threshold; verify correct approver notified

Duplicate detection working

How to Test: Submit same receipt twice; verify flag on second submission

Budget alert fires at 80%

How to Test: Post test expenses to a project at 79% budget; push to 81% and verify alert

Policy limit blocks over-threshold

How to Test: Submit an expense over the category limit; verify escalation required

Employee portal accessible

How to Test: Log in as a test employee; verify dashboard and submission form visible

Purchase orders & vendor management

The outcome

What you will achieve

A complete purchase order workflow with vendor database, PO creation and approval, three-way invoice matching, and vendor performance tracking - so every external spend commitment is visible, approved, and reconciled before payment.

Step-by-step

Step 1

Build your vendor database

Navigate toSettings → Purchase Orders → Vendor Management → Vendors

Click Import Vendors or Add Vendor Manually. For each vendor, capture:

Field	Description	Why It Matters
Vendor Name	Legal trading name	Used on POs and invoice matching
Vendor Type	Supplier / Contractor / Freelancer / Consultant	Determines PO template and payment terms
Primary Contact	Name and email of account manager	Auto-included on PO communications
Payment Terms	Net 30 / Net 14 / On receipt / etc.	Auto-applied to invoices from this vendor
Rate Card	Hourly/daily rate or unit pricing	Referenced when creating POs
Tax ID / VAT Number	Regulatory requirement	Required for compliant invoicing
Bank Details	Payment destination	Securely stored for payment processing
Preferred Currency	For international vendors	Auto-applies to POs and invoice matching

Vendor Name

Description: Legal trading name
Why It Matters: Used on POs and invoice matching

Vendor Type

Description: Supplier / Contractor / Freelancer / Consultant
Why It Matters: Determines PO template and payment terms

Primary Contact

Description: Name and email of account manager
Why It Matters: Auto-included on PO communications

Payment Terms

Description: Net 30 / Net 14 / On receipt / etc.
Why It Matters: Auto-applied to invoices from this vendor

Rate Card

Description: Hourly/daily rate or unit pricing
Why It Matters: Referenced when creating POs

Tax ID / VAT Number

Description: Regulatory requirement
Why It Matters: Required for compliant invoicing

Bank Details

Description: Payment destination
Why It Matters: Securely stored for payment processing

Preferred Currency

Description: For international vendors
Why It Matters: Auto-applies to POs and invoice matching

2
Set Vendor Risk Rating for each vendor: Low (established suppliers), Medium (new or single-source vendors), High (vendors with past disputes or single-point-of-failure supply). High-risk vendors trigger additional review steps in the PO approval process.
3
Enable Vendor Portal Access for key vendors: this gives them a login to submit invoices directly into CrmLeaf against their open POs, eliminating the email-invoice-to-accounts-payable cycle entirely.

Pro Tip

When first building the vendor database, import from your accounts payable system or bank statement. Every payee from the last 12 months should become a vendor record. This catches the 'shadow vendors' - freelancers and suppliers being paid without being properly onboarded - that are common sources of compliance risk.

Step 2

Configure PO templates by vendor type

Navigate toSettings → Purchase Orders → PO Templates

Create a PO template for each vendor type:

Vendor Type	Required PO Fields	Approval Threshold
Contractor / Freelancer	Name, SOW description, daily rate, max days, project code	All contractor POs require manager + finance approval
Software / SaaS Vendor	Tool name, subscription tier, per-seat cost, annual total, IT approval	IT approval required for all new tools
Equipment Supplier	Item description, quantity, unit cost, delivery date, asset tag	POs > $500 require dept head approval
Professional Services	Firm name, scope, deliverables, fixed fee or T&M, project code	All PS POs require dept head + finance
Travel Vendor	Preferred supplier only, booking reference, traveller name, project	Manager approval; finance for > $1,500

Contractor / Freelancer

Required PO Fields: Name, SOW description, daily rate, max days, project code
Approval Threshold: All contractor POs require manager + finance approval

Software / SaaS Vendor

Required PO Fields: Tool name, subscription tier, per-seat cost, annual total, IT approval
Approval Threshold: IT approval required for all new tools

Equipment Supplier

Required PO Fields: Item description, quantity, unit cost, delivery date, asset tag
Approval Threshold: POs > $500 require dept head approval

Professional Services

Required PO Fields: Firm name, scope, deliverables, fixed fee or T&M, project code
Approval Threshold: All PS POs require dept head + finance

Travel Vendor

Required PO Fields: Preferred supplier only, booking reference, traveller name, project
Approval Threshold: Manager approval; finance for > $1,500

2
For each template, set the Committed Budget Impact: when a PO is approved, this amount is automatically committed against the linked project budget. The project manager's budget dashboard updates immediately - before any invoice is received.

Step 3

Configure the PO approval workflow

Navigate toSettings → Purchase Orders → Approval Workflow

Create PO approval rules following similar logic to expense approval, with additional steps for larger commitments:

PO Value Range	Approval Chain	SLA for Approval
< $500	Manager only	24 business hours
$500 – $2,000	Manager → Department Head	48 business hours
$2,001 – $10,000	Manager → Dept Head → Finance	72 business hours
> $10,000	Manager → Dept Head → Finance → CEO	5 business days
Any - new vendor first PO	Manager → Finance → Procurement review	72 hours (new vendor check)

< $500

Approval Chain: Manager only
SLA for Approval: 24 business hours

$500 – $2,000

Approval Chain: Manager → Department Head
SLA for Approval: 48 business hours

$2,001 – $10,000

Approval Chain: Manager → Dept Head → Finance
SLA for Approval: 72 business hours

> $10,000

Approval Chain: Manager → Dept Head → Finance → CEO
SLA for Approval: 5 business days

Any - new vendor first PO

Approval Chain: Manager → Finance → Procurement review
SLA for Approval: 72 hours (new vendor check)

2
Enable PO Number Auto-Generation: every approved PO receives a unique sequential number (e.g. PO-2026-0147). This number must appear on the corresponding vendor invoice for matching.
3
Configure the PO Communication Template: when a PO is approved, CrmLeaf automatically emails the vendor with the PO document attached, the PO number, the agreed scope and amount, and instructions for invoice submission.

Step 4

Set up three-way invoice matching

Navigate toSettings → Purchase Orders → Invoice Matching

1
Enable Automated Three-Way Matching. When a vendor invoice is received, the system matches it against:
- The Purchase Order (amount, vendor, description)
- The Goods Receipt or Service Confirmation (has the deliverable been confirmed?)
- The Invoice itself (amount, date, PO number reference)
2
Configure Matching Tolerances: small discrepancies (e.g. rounding differences of < $5, or currency fluctuation within 1%) can be set to auto-match rather than requiring manual review.
3
Set Mismatch Handling Rules:
- Invoice amount > PO amount by > tolerance: flag for finance review; do not process payment
- Invoice with no matching PO number: route to AP queue as unmatched; notify finance
- Duplicate invoice (same vendor, amount, date): hold and notify AP manager
4
Enable the Goods Receipt Confirmation step for physical goods purchases: the receiving team member must confirm receipt in CrmLeaf before the invoice is released for payment. This prevents payment for goods not yet delivered.

Step 5

Vendor performance tracking

Navigate toReports → Vendor Management → Performance Dashboard

Enable the Vendor Performance Report. This automatically tracks across all POs and invoices:

Metric	What It Measures	Alert Threshold
On-time delivery rate	% of POs where deliverable confirmed by agreed date	Alert if < 85% over trailing 6 months
Invoice accuracy rate	% of invoices matching PO without discrepancy	Alert if < 95% over trailing 6 months
Average payment-to-delivery time	Days from PO approval to deliverable confirmation	Flag if > 30% above contracted SLA
Dispute rate	% of POs with a formal dispute raised	Alert if > 2 disputes in 12 months
Spend concentration	% of total vendor spend with single supplier	Alert if > 40% with any single vendor

On-time delivery rate

What It Measures: % of POs where deliverable confirmed by agreed date
Alert Threshold: Alert if < 85% over trailing 6 months

Invoice accuracy rate

What It Measures: % of invoices matching PO without discrepancy
Alert Threshold: Alert if < 95% over trailing 6 months

Average payment-to-delivery time

What It Measures: Days from PO approval to deliverable confirmation
Alert Threshold: Flag if > 30% above contracted SLA

Dispute rate

What It Measures: % of POs with a formal dispute raised
Alert Threshold: Alert if > 2 disputes in 12 months

Spend concentration

What It Measures: % of total vendor spend with single supplier
Alert Threshold: Alert if > 40% with any single vendor

2
Schedule a Quarterly Vendor Review: the performance dashboard generates a PDF report per vendor. Use this in annual contract renewals - vendors with consistently poor performance metrics have their contracts reviewed or rates renegotiated.

Pre-flight check

Validation checklist

01.Vendor database complete
Spot-check 5 vendors against accounts payable records; verify fields
02.PO auto-number generating
Create and approve a test PO; verify PO number assigned
03.PO approval chain firing
Submit test POs at each threshold; verify correct approvers notified
04.Vendor email notification sent
Approve a test PO; verify vendor receives PO document by email
05.Committed budget visible
Approve a test PO linked to a project; check project budget dashboard
06.Three-way matching working
Submit a matching and a mismatched test invoice; verify correct handling
07.Duplicate invoice detected
Submit the same invoice twice; verify hold and notification

✓ Ready to launch when all items are checked

FAQ

Expense & PO setup - frequently asked questions

Yes, with a configurable time limit. Most organisations set a retrospective submission window of 30–90 days. Submissions outside this window require manager approval with a reason. The system flags retrospective submissions in the approval queue so approvers can see they are not current-period expenses.

Company card transactions can be automatically imported via bank feed integration. Imported transactions appear in the expense queue for the cardholder to categorise and assign to a project - removing the submission step entirely. The approval workflow still applies, but the expense is pre-populated from the bank data.

The invoice is flagged as a mismatch and held - it does not proceed to payment. Finance is notified with the discrepancy amount. They can: approve a partial payment up to the PO value, raise a PO amendment for the additional amount, or reject the overage and notify the vendor.

Yes. Expense policies can be configured at the team or department level. The sales team might have a higher client entertainment limit than the operations team. Each department’s policy is configured separately, and the correct policy is applied automatically based on the submitter’s team assignment.

Run a parallel period of 2–4 weeks where both processes are active but employees are encouraged to use CrmLeaf for all new expenses. At the end of the parallel period, close the email inbox for expense submissions and complete the cutover. Do not try to migrate historical expenses - start fresh with CrmLeaf for current-period spend.

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