Purchase Order

When organizing an event or reserving services at Stanford, you may need to work with Stanford-affiliated vendors. One of the main payment methods for these internal vendors is a Purchase Order (PO).

What is a Purchase Order?
A Purchase Order (PO) is an official document that authorizes payment to a Stanford-affiliated vendor. It is most commonly used for services such as event setup, catering, or furniture rentals provided by internal Stanford departments.

Typically, the internal vendor will provide you with an estimate, and you will create a PO to reserve their services. At the time of creation, the PO serves as both proof of financial backing and a promise to pay. Once the service is complete, the vendor will issue an official invoice, and payment will be processed from your PTA account.

This process differs from a University Transfer, which occurs when a vendor issues an invoice upfront and you pay them directly without creating a purchase order in advance.

Example: Renting Out Dinkelspiel Auditorium

Imagine you’re planning an event and have reserved Dinkelspiel Auditorium. Since Dinkelspiel is a Stanford-affiliated vendor, you would use a purchase order to pay them for the reserved auditorium.

1. Contact the Vendor First
   Before initiating the purchase order, reach out to the vendor (e.g., Event Services) and request a cost estimate or invoice for the services you need.

2. Receive Documentation
   The vendor will provide a formal cost estimate or invoice. This document will serve as your required documentation for the PO submission.

3. Submit the Purchase Order
   With the estimate in hand, you can now submit a purchase order through the appropriate Stanford financial system. This step ensures payment will be processed internally.

• Only Stanford-affiliated vendors can be reserved through a purchase order.

• The vendor must provide documentation confirming that a purchase order is an acceptable method of payment.

• You must initiate the purchase order before the service is rendered; the vendor’s cost estimate or invoice is essential for this process.