Manufacturing Case Study: 90% Faster Purchase Approvals Through Design Thinking

The Challenge

Purchase Requisition (PR) approval had become a major bottleneck for this manufacturing client. Their legacy system took 3-9 days to process each PR—time that directly impacted operations and supplier relationships. They needed a solution that could cut approval times to less than one day.

Our Design Thinking Approach

As a member of the SAP AppHaus Network, Mindset applied our human-centered Design Thinking methodology to reimagine the entire approval workflow:

• Discovery: Collaborated with procurement process owners and subject matter experts to map the current state
• User Research: Created detailed user personas and journey maps to uncover pain points and opportunities
• Rapid Prototyping: Developed a low-fidelity prototype and gathered real feedback from end-users
• Iterative Refinement: Incorporated feedback and deployed the optimized solution to production

The Results

The new intelligent approval process delivered dramatic improvements—reducing average approval times by over 67% while significantly decreasing the need for manual intervention. What once took up to 9 days now happens in less than one.

This same Design Thinking approach can transform procurement, approvals, and other repetitive workflows across any manufacturing organization.

Ready to Transform Your Processes?

Mindset is the first U.S.-based SAP AppHaus Network Partner, specializing in human-centered SAP solutions that deliver measurable results. Whether you’re looking to streamline approvals, optimize procurement, or modernize your SAP landscape, our Design Thinking methodology can help.

Contact us today to discuss how we can accelerate your operations—or follow Mindset on LinkedIn for the latest SAP insights and innovation stories.