A purchasing policy establishes clear guidelines for purchasing products and services from vendors. Regardless of the number of staff involved in a not-for-profit’s purchasing process, it is important that they be working from a well-defined policy.
A not-for-profit’s purchasing policy may define the following, for example:
Types of purchases within scope
Bidding process and circumstances in which the bidding process can be waived
Responsibilities of the purchasing department or staff, and other departments that make purchases
Purchase order, shipping and