Client POs

Client POs are the purchase orders your clients issue to you. Each PO records what the client approved, and missionX keeps track of how much has been invoiced against it and how much is left. Projects, invoice headers and individual invoice lines can reference a PO. Client POs are different from the POs you issue to vendors in Vendors and invoicing.

Where to find client POs

PO Numbers tab in Clients + Invoicing: every client PO in your organization.
PO numbers in a client's Client Details: that client's POs only.
A project's budget settings (New PO#) and the invoice screens, where you can pick a PO or add one.

Admins and people with Manage Clients or Manage Financials can create and manage POs. Managers and observers can view them. Project managers can add POs when the Config panel option "Project managers CAN add new clients AND create new PO numbers" is on.

The PO Numbers tab

Filter the list with:

Client... and PO number...
An approved amount range slider.

Add Customer PO creates a PO, and the Excel button exports the POs matching the filters. People with Manage Financials also see how many POs match and a PO settings link.

Column	What it shows
Client	Click to open the client's details.
PO number	Click to open the PO.
Approved amount	What the client approved, before tax, in the PO's currency. "No limit" when no amount was entered.
Invoiced	Invoiced against the PO so far, before tax (see how it is counted).
Left / Used	What is left to bill and the percentage used. Red when the PO is over.
Valid until	The PO's end date, if it has one.
Status	Open, Closed, Expired (past its end date) or Not started (before its start date).

Add a client PO

Click Add Customer PO in the PO Numbers tab and pick the Client, or click Add a PO number in a client's details. Then fill in:

Field	Details
PO number *	Required, as it appears on the client's PO. A client cannot have the same PO number twice.
Description	What the PO covers.
Approved amount, before tax	Leave empty for no limit. The currency defaults to the client's default currency.
Valid from / Valid until	Optional. The end cannot be before the start.
Client reference	Optional contract or requisition number.
Contact on invoices	Shown when the client has contacts. Invoices that use this PO take this contact's bill-to details.
Invoice comments	Printed on invoices raised against this PO.

Click Create PO. From client details the form stays open so you can click Create another, or Done when finished.

Work with a PO

Click a PO to open it. The top shows its currency, client reference and totals: Approved, before tax, Invoiced, Paid, In drafts and Left to bill (or Over).

Start a mission: create a new project for the client, linked to this PO. Not available on closed POs.
Close / Reopen: a closed PO can no longer be picked on invoices.
Delete: only POs that nothing uses can be deleted. Otherwise close it.
Edit the PO number, approved amount, currency, dates, description, client reference, contact and invoice comments. Changing the amount or currency asks for an optional Reason, and the change is listed under Changes with the date and who made it. Changing the currency re-counts the PO's invoices in the new currency.
Files: attach up to 10 files (PDFs, images, Office documents or emails, up to 25MB each), e.g. the signed PO.
Invoices on this PO: click one to open it.

How PO totals are counted

Amounts are before tax and in the PO's currency, converted at the invoice date.
Invoiced counts Sent, Partially paid and Paid invoices. Issued credit notes reduce it. Drafts show under In drafts.
An invoice line with its own PO bills that PO. Every other line bills the PO in the invoice header.
If an invoice's currency has no exchange rate for its date, it is left out of the totals and the PO says so.

POs on invoices

When you create an invoice, picking a project fills in its PO. A PO contact and invoice comments are copied onto the invoice.
In the invoice editor, click PO# to pick another PO. The list shows the client's POs that are not closed or expired, with their description and what is left. Direct cost and scheduled payment lines can each have their own PO (Add a PO...).
A triangle next to the PO in the editor shows, on hover, each PO's amount, what is already invoiced and what this invoice adds. It turns red when the invoice would take a PO over, or a PO is closed or expired.
On the Create invoices screen, hover a PO number for its description, what is left and its state. An open invoice tile turns to a warning colour if the items you are dropping would take its PO over, or use a closed, expired or different PO.
On the PDF, a PO summary shows the PO's approved amount, what was invoiced before, this invoice and what remains (unless Hide PO is ticked).

The PO check on finalize and send

When you finalize an invoice, or change a finalized invoice to Sent, Partially paid or Paid, missionX checks its POs. It flags a PO that is closed, expired before the invoice date, starts after the invoice date, or would go over its amount. What happens next depends on the rule set in Financials > Setup > Client POs:

Warn, then let it through: you see the problems and choose Continue anyway or Go back.
Refuse the invoice: you see the problems and the invoice is not finalized or sent. Change the lines or the PO, or ask the client for a bigger PO. Allowed over, in percent sets how far an invoice can go over before this applies.

Credit notes are never refused for a PO: they only take billing off it.

If the check cannot run (for example you are offline), finalizing goes ahead, and the check runs again when the invoice is sent.