First, identify which stage of approval the Purchase Request is at by locating it in FocalPoint, viewing the history and noting which stage was last used.
Open FocalPoint Administrator.
Browse to System Options, Purchasing, Purchase Requests Setup.
Select the Purchase Request type you are looking into and click Edit.
Click the Approval tab.
Select the stage of approval the transaction is currently at and click Edit.
Review the configuration to find out which stage it would go to next, as that is the stage where no approvers can be determined - you will need to check the post stage rules and then the On Approval action.
Go back, select the problem approval stage and click Edit.
Identify the way that approvers are determined at this stage:
If the approver is a specific user, ensure this is a valid, active user.
If the approver comes from a view or stored procedure, contact support as reviewing these requires specialist knowledge.
If the approver comes from a department or project, ensure it is set up correctly.- If the approver lacks the necessary rights due to Out-of-Office cover settings or is no longer valid (e.g., has left the organization), update the approver rights and ensure the Out-of-Office settings are configured correctly.
If the order number is missing from the PR header, add the missing order number to ensure the system can resolve the approver ID.
Once the problem is found and corrected, the approvers should pull through as expected.
Preventative Measures and Best Practices
Regularly audit approver configurations to ensure all users have the correct rights and authorization limits.
Establish a process for updating Out-of-Office cover settings to prevent routing errors.
Validate PR data before submission to ensure all required fields, such as order numbers, are complete.