Supplier Health Standing

Every supplier in PayInvoice Next is assigned a Health Standing based on their Scorecard performance. The standing determines how freely your organization can transact with that supplier — from unrestricted procurement for top performers to controlled access for underperforming vendors. This page explains the three standing levels, what triggers changes, and how standing affects your day-to-day procurement.

The Three Standing Levels

Standing	Score Range	Meaning
Preferred	80–100	Top-performing supplier. No restrictions on procurement activity.
Conditional	50–79	Acceptable performance, but the supplier is on watch. Standard procurement is allowed.
Restricted	0–49	Poor performance. Procurement is limited — additional approvals or blocks may apply.

Default Standing

New suppliers start with a Conditional standing until enough transaction history exists to calculate a meaningful scorecard. Once the first evaluation period completes, the standing updates automatically based on the calculated score.

Preferred

Suppliers with Preferred standing have consistently met or exceeded expectations across delivery, quality, and compliance metrics. These suppliers:

• Can be used in Purchase Orders, RFQs, and Invoices without any additional restrictions.
• May receive priority consideration when selecting vendors for new RFQs.
• Appear with a green indicator in supplier selection lists across the procurement module.

Conditional

Suppliers with Conditional standing are performing at an acceptable level but have room for improvement. This is also the default standing for newly onboarded suppliers. These suppliers:

• Can be used in all procurement documents without restrictions.
• Should be monitored — if scores continue to decline, the standing will drop to Restricted.
• Appear with an amber indicator in supplier selection lists.

Restricted

Suppliers with Restricted standing have scored below the minimum acceptable threshold. This triggers procurement controls:

• New Purchase Orders may require additional approval. Depending on your organization's configuration, creating a PO for a Restricted supplier may escalate the approval workflow to a higher authority level.
• The supplier is flagged in RFQ supplier selection with a red indicator and a warning message, so procurement officers are aware of the standing before inviting the supplier.
• Existing open POs are not affected. Restriction applies to new procurement activity, not to orders already in progress.

Restricted Does Not Mean Blocked

A Restricted standing does not automatically prevent all transactions with the supplier. It adds controls and visibility. Your organization's administrator determines the exact restrictions — some organizations require manager override to proceed, while others simply display a warning. Contact your administrator to understand your organization's specific policy.

What Triggers a Standing Change

Standing changes automatically when the supplier's scorecard is recalculated and the overall score crosses a threshold boundary.

Trigger	Direction	Example
Score drops below 50	Conditional → Restricted	Repeated late deliveries push score from 62 to 47
Score rises above 50	Restricted → Conditional	Supplier improves delivery and quality, score rises from 44 to 56
Score rises above 80	Conditional → Preferred	Sustained excellent performance pushes score from 75 to 83
Score drops below 80	Preferred → Conditional	A batch rejection drops the quality score, pulling overall from 82 to 74

Standing changes are recorded in the supplier's activity log with the date, previous standing, new standing, and the score that triggered the change.

Gradual vs Sudden Changes

Most standing changes happen gradually as transaction data accumulates. However, a single severe event — such as a large batch rejection or a compliance failure — can cause a significant score drop in one evaluation cycle. If you see a sudden standing change, check the Scorecard dimension breakdown to identify which specific metric caused the shift.

Impact on Procurement

Here is how standing affects each stage of the procurement cycle:

Procurement Activity	Preferred	Conditional	Restricted
Create a Purchase Order	✅ Allowed	✅ Allowed	⚠️ May require additional approval
Invite to RFQ	✅ No warning	✅ No warning	⚠️ Warning displayed
Submit a Purchase Invoice	✅ Allowed	✅ Allowed	✅ Allowed (invoice obligations must be honored)
Approve a Supplier Quotation	✅ Allowed	✅ Allowed	⚠️ Standing shown alongside quote

Invoices Are Always Processable

Even for Restricted suppliers, incoming invoices against existing Purchase Orders can always be processed. Standing controls are designed to influence future purchasing decisions, not to block payment for goods or services already received.

How to Review and Override Standing

Reviewing Standing

To check a supplier's current standing:

1. Open the supplier record from Supplier Management > Supplier.
2. The Health Standing field is displayed prominently in the header area, with a color-coded indicator.
3. For the full score breakdown, navigate to the Scorecard section on the same record.

Overriding Standing

In some cases, you may need to override a supplier's standing — for example, if a score drop was caused by a one-time event that has been resolved, or if business needs require continued procurement from a Restricted supplier.

To override:

1. Open the supplier record.
2. Navigate to the Standing Override section.
3. Select the new standing from the dropdown.
4. Enter a Reason for Override — this is mandatory and is recorded in the audit trail.
5. Set an Override Expiry Date — after this date, the system reverts to the scorecard-calculated standing.
6. Save the record.

Override Governance

Standing overrides require the Purchase Manager role. All overrides are logged with the user who made the change, the reason, and the expiry date. Your organization may have additional governance policies around overrides — check with your administrator.

Related Pages

• Supplier Scorecard — How scores are calculated and what drives changes
• Supplier Management Overview — The full supplier lifecycle
• Supplier Onboarding — How new suppliers enter the system with Conditional standing
• PO Approval Workflow — How additional approvals work for Restricted suppliers