Guided buying is a requester experience that helps a user choose an appropriate purchasing path based on the need and configured policy. It may present catalogs, preferred suppliers, forms, contract options, sourcing routes, or approval requirements. Guidance should make the policy understandable while preserving exceptions and authorized review for needs that do not fit a standard path.
In plain English
It helps employees start a purchase through the right channel without needing to know every procurement rule.
Illustrative example
At Northstar Industrial Systems, a requester describing laptop accessories is directed to an approved catalog, while a specialized engineering service opens a scoped request form.
- Related terms
- Catalog; Intake management; Preferred supplier; Policy-based routing
- Lifecycle stages
- Request
- Stakeholders
- Requester; Procurement