Case Study

Introducing PO Management to QByte

Introducing PO Management to QByte

Introducing PO Management to QByte

Designing a seamless, in-app Purchase Order workflow for a CMMS tool to replace error-prone, manual procurement processes.

Designing a seamless, in-app Purchase Order workflow for a CMMS tool to replace error-prone, manual procurement processes.

Purchase Order Management System

Role
Role
Role

Role: Product Designer

Role: Product Designer

Team: Product Managers, 4 Engineers, 2 Designers (including me)

Team: Product Managers, 4 Engineers, 2 Designers (including me)

Duration: 2 months

Duration: 2 months

Background
Background
Background

When I joined the QByte team, the platform was already a mature CMMS (Computerized Maintenance Management System), helping organizations manage maintenance and operations.


However, one critical capability was missing — a way to create, track, and manage Purchase Orders. Without it, users had to rely on fragmented, manual workflows outside the system.


I was tasked with leading the design for this new module, owning the journey from initial research to final implementation.

With no prior experience in procurement workflows, I immersed myself in the domain — studying PO systems, joining late-night calls with engineers and product managers, questioning assumptions, and mapping out user and system needs.


This case study shares how I helped introduce Purchase Order Management into QByte, transforming a major gap into a seamless, integrated workflow.

When I joined the QByte team, the platform was already a mature CMMS (Computerized Maintenance Management System), helping organizations manage maintenance and operations.


However, one critical capability was missing — a way to create, track, and manage Purchase Orders. Without it, users had to rely on fragmented, manual workflows outside the system.


I was tasked with leading the design for this new module, owning the journey from initial research to final implementation.

With no prior experience in procurement workflows, I immersed myself in the domain — studying PO systems, joining late-night calls with engineers and product managers, questioning assumptions, and mapping out user and system needs.


This case study shares how I helped introduce Purchase Order Management into QByte, transforming a major gap into a seamless, integrated workflow.

Challenge
Challenge
Challenge

When I joined the project, QByte didn’t have any Purchase Order (PO) system in place. Procurement was handled manually — through spreadsheets, emails, and informal approvals — resulting in errors, delays, and poor visibility.


On top of that, I had to quickly build domain expertise around procurement workflows.
I took a hands-on approach: studying real-world PO processes, collaborating closely with Product Managers and Engineers, and mapping out operational pain points.


This wasn’t just about designing a feature — I was responsible for introducing a critical new workflow that needed to feel seamless, reliable, and scalable inside an existing product ecosystem.

When I joined the project, QByte didn’t have any Purchase Order (PO) system in place. Procurement was handled manually — through spreadsheets, emails, and informal approvals — resulting in errors, delays, and poor visibility.


On top of that, I had to quickly build domain expertise around procurement workflows.
I took a hands-on approach: studying real-world PO processes, collaborating closely with Product Managers and Engineers, and mapping out operational pain points.


This wasn’t just about designing a feature — I was responsible for introducing a critical new workflow that needed to feel seamless, reliable, and scalable inside an existing product ecosystem.

What is Purchase Order Management?
What is Purchase Order Management?
What is Purchase Order Management?

Purchase Order (PO) Management is the process of creating, tracking, approving, and managing orders for goods and services within an organization.


It ensures that procurement is organized, authorized, and auditable — preventing unauthorized spending and improving operational efficiency.

Purchase Order (PO) Management is the process of creating, tracking, approving, and managing orders for goods and services within an organization.


It ensures that procurement is organized, authorized, and auditable — preventing unauthorized spending and improving operational efficiency.

Visual breakdown of the PO Management process

Goals
Goals
Goals

To successfully introduce Purchase Order Management inside QByte, my goals were:


  • Understand real procurement workflows
    → Research how companies actually handle POs, approvals, and payments.

  • Design a simple and scalable PO system
    → For v1, focus only on one level of approval to keep it lightweight and manageable.

  • Improve team efficiency and transparency
    → Move away from manual tracking to a clear, structured system inside QByte.

  • Make the experience intuitive
    → Ensure teams could raise, approve, and track POs with minimal learning curve.

  • Align closely with engineering constraints
    → Scope features that were feasible to ship within 2 months, without technical debt.

To successfully introduce Purchase Order Management inside QByte, my goals were:


  • Understand real procurement workflows
    → Research how companies actually handle POs, approvals, and payments.

  • Design a simple and scalable PO system
    → For v1, focus only on one level of approval to keep it lightweight and manageable.

  • Improve team efficiency and transparency
    → Move away from manual tracking to a clear, structured system inside QByte.

  • Make the experience intuitive
    → Ensure teams could raise, approve, and track POs with minimal learning curve.

  • Align closely with engineering constraints
    → Scope features that were feasible to ship within 2 months, without technical debt.

Process
Process
Process

Before proposing solutions, I needed to deeply understand the landscape of purchase order systems, the gaps in QByte, and the needs of our future users.

Before proposing solutions, I needed to deeply understand the landscape of purchase order systems, the gaps in QByte, and the needs of our future users.

  1. Discovery

  1. Discovery

Secondary Research
I explored platforms like MaintainX, Limble, and other CMMS tools to see how they structured procurement workflows. I also studied industry best practices to understand standard flows for creating, approving, and managing POs.


  • Internal Discussions
    I engaged with our Product Manager, engineers, and senior stakeholders to gather early expectations around:

    • What problems were we trying to solve for our users?

    • How would a PO system fit into QByte’s existing operations and modules?

    • What constraints we might have from a tech and business standpoint?

Secondary Research
I explored platforms like MaintainX, Limble, and other CMMS tools to see how they structured procurement workflows. I also studied industry best practices to understand standard flows for creating, approving, and managing POs.


  • Internal Discussions
    I engaged with our Product Manager, engineers, and senior stakeholders to gather early expectations around:

    • What problems were we trying to solve for our users?

    • How would a PO system fit into QByte’s existing operations and modules?

    • What constraints we might have from a tech and business standpoint?

Comparing PO Management features in MaintainX and Limble.

  1. Define — Scoping the Opportunity

  1. Define — Scoping the Opportunity

User Journey Mapping:
I mapped the entire Purchase Order journey inside QByte — from creation to approval, validation, and completion.


Problem Framing:
We needed to:

  • Make it extremely easy to create a PO

  • Introduce a single-level approval for quick MVP launch

  • Ensure seamless handoffs between requester, manager, and vendors


Success Metrics:

  • Time to raise and approve a PO

  • User error rates during creation/approval

  • Ease of tracking order status

User Journey Mapping:
I mapped the entire Purchase Order journey inside QByte — from creation to approval, validation, and completion.


Problem Framing:
We needed to:

  • Make it extremely easy to create a PO

  • Introduce a single-level approval for quick MVP launch

  • Ensure seamless handoffs between requester, manager, and vendors


Success Metrics:

  • Time to raise and approve a PO

  • User error rates during creation/approval

  • Ease of tracking order status

User journey through Purchase Order creation to completion.

  1. Develop — Designing and Iterating

  1. Develop — Designing and Iterating

To move fast and align quickly with stakeholders, I skipped traditional wireframing and designed mid-to-high fidelity screens directly.


✅ What worked:

  • It accelerated internal discussions by making user flows tangible early.

  • It helped Product and Engineering teams visualize key stages (Creation → Approval → Validation → Completion).


However, in our early reviews, we uncovered areas that needed improvement, especially around user clarity and edge case handling.

To move fast and align quickly with stakeholders, I skipped traditional wireframing and designed mid-to-high fidelity screens directly.


✅ What worked:

  • It accelerated internal discussions by making user flows tangible early.

  • It helped Product and Engineering teams visualize key stages (Creation → Approval → Validation → Completion).


However, in our early reviews, we uncovered areas that needed improvement, especially around user clarity and edge case handling.

Create Purchase Order: Priority and Payment Terms are critical for managers and finance teams to evaluate, prioritize, and process Purchase Orders effectively.

Create Purchase Order: Priority and Payment Terms are critical for managers and finance teams to evaluate, prioritize, and process Purchase Orders effectively.

Create Purchase Order: Introduced Priority selection and Payment Terms to streamline order evaluation, approval prioritization, and financial processing workflows.

Create Purchase Order: Introduced Priority selection and Payment Terms to streamline order evaluation, approval prioritization, and financial processing workflows.

Validate Purchase Order: Enables part quantity validation, but lacks invoice documentation and validation history features.

Validate Purchase Order: Enables part quantity validation, but lacks invoice documentation and validation history features.

Validate Purchase Order: Enhanced the Purchase Order validation flow by introducing Validation History and Invoice Attachment, improving auditability and financial documentation.

Validate Purchase Order: Enhanced the Purchase Order validation flow by introducing Validation History and Invoice Attachment, improving auditability and financial documentation.

Through rapid iteration, internal feedback, and continuous refinement, I evolved the Purchase Order Management feature into a more complete and user-aligned experience.

Through rapid iteration, internal feedback, and continuous refinement, I evolved the Purchase Order Management feature into a more complete and user-aligned experience.

  1. Deliver — Testing and Handoff

  1. Deliver — Testing and Handoff

Testing and Handoff

Before finalizing, I worked closely with Product Managers and Engineers to validate usability and prepare for handoff.


✅ Focus Areas:

  • Creating and submitting POs with clarity

  • Smooth validation flows for goods received

  • Visibility of new features like Priority, Payment Terms, Validation History, and Attach Invoices


Minor usability refinements were made based on feedback (field order, button labels).


To ensure efficient development, I provided:

  • Annotated Figma files for all flows

  • Edge case handling documentation

  • A live design walkthrough session with the Engineering team

Testing and Handoff

Before finalizing, I worked closely with Product Managers and Engineers to validate usability and prepare for handoff.


✅ Focus Areas:

  • Creating and submitting POs with clarity

  • Smooth validation flows for goods received

  • Visibility of new features like Priority, Payment Terms, Validation History, and Attach Invoices


Minor usability refinements were made based on feedback (field order, button labels).


To ensure efficient development, I provided:

  • Annotated Figma files for all flows

  • Edge case handling documentation

  • A live design walkthrough session with the Engineering team

Purchase Order Management & Approval Demo

Learnings & Reflections
Learnings & Reflections
Learnings & Reflections

Gaining Domain Knowledge Quickly:
Designing for procurement workflows pushed me to self-learn industry practices rapidly and design with real operational needs in mind.

  • Iterative Feedback Loops:
    Early internal feedback and weekly check-ins helped refine micro-interactions, catch UX gaps, and make developer handoff smoother.

  • System-Level Thinking:
    Beyond designing screens, I focused on creating a scalable workflow system that would remain intuitive and reliable as the product grows.

  • Balancing Speed with Completeness:
    I realized the importance of balancing fast shipping goals with thoughtful design decisions that support both users and engineering constraints.

Gaining Domain Knowledge Quickly:
Designing for procurement workflows pushed me to self-learn industry practices rapidly and design with real operational needs in mind.

  • Iterative Feedback Loops:
    Early internal feedback and weekly check-ins helped refine micro-interactions, catch UX gaps, and make developer handoff smoother.

  • System-Level Thinking:
    Beyond designing screens, I focused on creating a scalable workflow system that would remain intuitive and reliable as the product grows.

  • Balancing Speed with Completeness:
    I realized the importance of balancing fast shipping goals with thoughtful design decisions that support both users and engineering constraints.