Two Colleagues Give Different Vending Order Instructions: Establish One Approval Route
A vending order can become confused when two colleagues send different instructions to the supplier. One may ask for a revised product layout while another confirms the original specification. Both messages can be well intentioned, but the supplier needs to know which instruction is authorised before equipment is prepared or delivered.
Treat the disagreement as an unresolved decision, not a reason to send a third informal message. Gather the relevant references and establish who is responsible for approving the order. The aim is to give the supplier one clear, current instruction while preserving the history of how that instruction was reached.
Identify the point of disagreement
Write down exactly what differs: the model, configuration, payment equipment, delivery date, stocking arrangement or another part of the scope. Distinguish a request for information from an instruction to change the order. A colleague asking whether an option is available should not automatically be recorded as approving that option.
Compare each message with the latest acknowledged quotation and purchase order. Use document dates and revision references rather than relying on the most recent email subject line. When discussing vending equipment for your business, explain that conflicting instructions exist and ask the supplier to identify the version currently recorded against the order.
Establish the approval authority
Ask the business’s purchasing lead who may approve changes and whether particular changes require another person’s review. The facilities contact may understand the site requirements while finance controls expenditure. Both can contribute without each independently issuing final instructions to the supplier. Make the distinction between consultation and approval explicit.
Do not infer authority from seniority, familiarity with the supplier or attendance at a demonstration. Follow the organisation’s actual purchasing process. Where the order is already accepted, ask the supplier how changes must be requested and what consequences need review. Do not promise internally that a change is free or immediately available before receiving confirmation.
Send a consolidated instruction
Prepare one short schedule listing the agreed requirement, the relevant order reference and the person authorising it. State which earlier instruction it replaces and which items remain unresolved. Ask the supplier to acknowledge the schedule and identify any effect on price, lead time, delivery arrangements or service scope.
For example, colleagues might agree to keep the original machine but request a different stock layout. The supplier should confirm whether that layout is suitable for the intended products and included in the agreed work. Until that answer arrives, record the change as requested rather than completed. This avoids treating internal agreement as supplier acceptance.
Keep the handover aligned
Once the supplier confirms the final version, circulate it to the people receiving delivery and arranging the handover. Remove superseded copies from the working pack while retaining them in the order history. A delivery team should not be judged against an abandoned specification that somebody printed several weeks earlier.
At handover, check the delivered equipment against the agreed schedule and record discrepancies through the normal process. If another change is proposed, use the same approval route instead of reopening parallel email conversations. A clear decision owner and a traceable acknowledgement make the order easier to administer without excluding the colleagues who know the site best.
Related guidance: A Vending Purchase Order Has Two Revision Numbers: Establish the Agreed Specification.
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