Sales lifecycle field guide

This is the operating reference for a complete OSERP sales process. The backbone has 14 stages. A company may use a shorter flow template, but it never changes the meaning of a stage. A quotation is not an invoice, a delivery is not a payment, and saving a draft is not posting.

The 14-stage map

#	Stage	What the operator is deciding	Stock effect	Accounting effect
1	Lead	Is this enquiry real and owned?	None	None
2	Opportunity	Is it worth pursuing and at what value?	Optional ATP check	None
3	Quotation	What exactly are we offering and for how long?	Soft availability	None
4	Sales Order	Has the customer committed?	Reserve / promise	Commitment if configured
5	Approval	Can the exception be authorised?	Reservation held	Posting blocked
6	Fulfillment	Are goods or services ready?	Pick allocation	No final posting
7	Delivery	What quantity was actually handed over?	Goods out	Accrual if configured
8	Shipment	Which carrier and tracking event applies?	In transit	Freight accrual if configured
9	Invoice	What legal amount is due?	Final impact confirmation	AR, revenue, tax, COGS
10	Payment	What receipt clears which invoice?	None	Bank/cash and AR clearing
11	Returns	What came back and why?	Return receipt	Reverse COGS/revenue as configured
12	Credit Note	What commercial or tax adjustment is granted?	Optional	AR/revenue/tax reversal
13	Collections	What is overdue, disputed, or promised?	None	Provision/write-off if configured
14	Closure	Is the lifecycle complete and auditable?	No open movement	No open event

Header fields: enter once, control everything

The header describes the transaction as a whole. Header values are inherited by new lines, printed documents, approval policies, numbering, tax, and reports. Change them before adding lines whenever possible.

Header field	Purpose and example	Validation / operational rule
Process type	SALES; selects the sales backbone and permissions	Do not change process type after lines exist
Document type / stage	Quotation, order, delivery, invoice, etc.	Stage controls posting and available fields
Document number	Human-readable number such as SO-DXB-2026-00421	Generated by numbering policy; never reuse
Company	Legal entity issuing the document	Must match the selected branch and books
Branch	Operating location responsible for sale	Controls local defaults, tax registration, and reporting
Customer	Legal customer / account	Select the customer record; do not type a name into remarks
Customer address	Bill-to and ship-to destination	Confirm tax jurisdiction and delivery destination
Customer PO no. / date	Customer’s reference at order stage	Optional for sales order; preserve exact reference for matching
Document date	Commercial date shown to customer	Used for validity, ageing context, and audit trail
Posting date	Accounting date	Must be in an open period; period locks can refuse posting
Expected delivery	Promise date used by fulfilment	It is not the invoice due date
Due date / payment terms	When the customer must pay, e.g. Net 30	Drives ageing and collections; never substitute delivery date
Currency	Transaction currency, e.g. AED, USD, EUR	Customer and company currency must be compatible with an FX rate
Exchange rate	Rate to company base currency	Effective on posting/document date; stale or missing rates must be resolved
Price basis	Tax-inclusive or tax-exclusive entry	Determines how unit price is converted to net and tax
Tax regime / place of supply	Determines GST/VAT components	Confirm domestic, inter-state, export, or exempt treatment
Salesperson / owner	Accountability and commission attribution	Drives pipeline, target, and follow-up reports
Warehouse	Default fulfilment source	Every stock line must resolve to a warehouse
Shipping method / carrier	Delivery promise and freight ownership	Required by logistics policy when shipment is enabled
Project / cost centre / segment	Management dimensions	Use the dimension that owns the margin, not a generic default
Remarks	Human context not represented by a field	Never hide a required reference, tax fact, or approval reason here

Detail-row fields: each item or service has its own truth

Line field	Purpose and example	What OSERP does with it
Line no.	Stable sequence 1, 2, 3	Preserves print, fulfilment, and audit order
Item / service	Select SKU-CHAIR-001 or a service	Supplies description, UOM, tax defaults, and price history
Description	Customer-facing wording	Printed on quote, delivery note, and invoice
Quantity	12 chairs or 40 service hours	Drives stock, revenue quantity, and open quantity
Open quantity	Remaining quantity after partial delivery	Prevents delivery above the approved order
UOM	PCS, BOX, KG, HOUR, etc.	Must match the item’s conversion rules
Warehouse / bin	Exact stock source and bin	Controls availability, picking, and goods-out location
Batch / serial	Traceability identity where required	Required by item tracking policy at fulfilment/delivery
Manufacture / expiry date	Lot quality and shelf-life evidence	Travels with the batch and supports recalls/FEFO
MRP / selling price	Printed or regulated selling price	Supports retail pricing and label generation
Unit price	Net or tax-inclusive according to price basis	Never use floating-point assumptions; OSERP calculates decimal money
Discount % / amount	Line concession, e.g. 10%	Can trigger approval thresholds and changes taxable base
Tax code / rate	VAT/GST/exempt classification	Splits output tax components and tax reporting
Line total	Quantity × price − discount + tax as applicable	Must reconcile to the header totals
Project / cost centre	Line-level margin ownership	Allows one invoice to serve multiple projects
Line remarks	Installation note, colour, serial request	Operational note for pick/pack/service teams

Stage-by-stage operating procedure

1. Lead

Create the customer/contact, enquiry source, owner, industry, need, estimated value, and next action. Do not add a fake SKU merely to record interest. Exit as qualified or rejected, with a reason and follow-up date. No stock or ledger entry is created.

2. Opportunity

Record expected value, probability, expected close date, competitors, products, decision-maker, and next step. Use availability as a question, not a reservation. A probability of 70% is a forecast input—not revenue.

3. Quotation

Set customer, validity dates, currency/rate, price basis, payment terms, delivery promise, tax regime, and salesperson in the header. Add one line per item/service with quantity, UOM, warehouse, unit price, discount, and tax. Review subtotal, discount, tax components, round-off, and total. Send the quotation; do not post it.

4. Sales Order

Convert the accepted quotation or create an order from an approved customer PO. Confirm delivery date, warehouse, quantities, payment terms, and credit exposure. OSERP can reserve / promise stock here, but the order is still not an AR invoice.

5. Approval

The approver sees the exception: discount above threshold, margin below policy, credit limit, unusual payment terms, export risk, or delivery override. Approve or reject with a note. The stage gate blocks the downstream posting until the required role acts.

6. Fulfillment

The warehouse or service lead turns open quantities into a pick/pack task. Select bins, batches, and serials; record substitutions or shortages. A partial pick leaves an open quantity. Never edit the customer’s ordered quantity to hide a shortage.

7. Delivery

Create the delivery note from the fulfilled lines. Enter delivered quantity, transporter, vehicle, e-way bill where applicable, and proof-of-delivery reference. OSERP prevents delivery above approved/open quantity. Goods-out or delivery accrual occurs only according to the configured posting rule.

8. Shipment

Record carrier, tracking number, freight terms, dispatch date, destination, package count, and in-transit status. This stage explains where goods are while they are between warehouses or with a carrier; it is not a second invoice.

9. Invoice

Invoice delivered quantities or completed services. Recheck legal company/address, tax registration, place of supply, currency, exchange rate, payment terms, due date, and period. Posting creates AR, revenue, output tax, and configured COGS effects. Print/export only after the posted number is assigned.

10. Payment

Select payment mode (bank transfer, cheque, cash, UPI, or card), receipt date, bank/cash account, instrument/reference number, and allocation to one or more invoices. A cheque requires its number; an unallocated receipt is not the same as a cleared invoice.

11. Returns

Create a return against the delivered quantity. Capture return note number/date, reason, condition, batch/serial, inspection result, and receiving warehouse. Returned quantity cannot exceed delivered quantity. Quarantine damaged stock instead of returning it to saleable inventory.

12. Credit Note

Select the source invoice, reason, affected lines/amount, tax treatment, and allocation. A credit note reverses AR/revenue/tax as configured; it is not a deletion of the original invoice. Manual credits should pass the configured approval policy.

13. Collections

Use ageing, promise-to-pay date, dispute reason, contact log, collector, escalation, and next action. A collection activity does not reduce AR until a payment is posted. Provision or write-off is a controlled accounting action, not a note on the customer.

14. Closure

Confirm delivered or cancelled quantities, posted invoice or documented non-billable outcome, allocated receipts, completed returns/credits, and resolved disputes. Close only when no open stage, stock movement, approval, or accounting event remains. The audit timeline remains read-only evidence.

Worked example: Lulu-style multi-country sale

Lulu’s UAE company sells 100 units from the Dubai warehouse to a Saudi customer in SAR. The quotation keeps the customer’s SAR price; the invoice stores the SAR amount and the dated SAR→AED rate. The order reserves Dubai stock, fulfilment allocates batches, delivery records the carrier and e-way/transport reference, and invoice posting books AR in the company books with the configured export tax treatment. The Saudi receipt is recorded in SAR and cleared against the invoice; any rate difference is recognised by the FX policy. A return receives stock into the nominated warehouse and the credit note reverses only the returned taxable lines.

Troubleshooting checklist

• Cannot submit: open Stage details; required party document, payment mode, or cheque reference is missing.
• Wrong tax: check company registration, branch, place of supply, customer country, and price basis before changing the rate manually.
• No stock: check item, warehouse, bin, batch, open quantity, and reservations—not just the item name.
• Invoice will not post: check period lock, numbering, posting template, missing ledger account, FX rate, and approval state.
• Ageing is wrong: correct due date and payment terms; never use delivery date as due date.

For exact screen controls and verified field limits, use OSERP Atlas, field limits, and coverage notes. Where a field is configurable, this guide describes its business meaning; the tenant’s policy is the final validation authority.

Sales implementation worksheet

Use one repeatable transaction while configuring and training. For Demo Retail Group LLC, the consultant should complete the following evidence for each stage.

Stage	Minimum evidence	Example value	Why it matters
Lead	Contact, source, owner, next action	Saudi wholesale enquiry	Ownership and forecast
Opportunity	Value, probability, close date	SAR 85,000 / 70%	Pipeline only, no revenue
Quotation	Currency, validity, tax, lines	SAR, 14 days, export	Commercial offer
Order	Customer PO, warehouse, reservation	PO-SA-8842 / Dubai	Commitment and ATP
Approval	Exception, approver, decision	12% discount / Sales Director	Segregation of duties
Fulfillment	Pick list, bin, batch, shortage	DXB-A-04 / lot A	Physical readiness
Delivery	Actual quantity, carrier, proof	96 units / POD-901	Goods-out evidence
Shipment	Tracking, packages, in-transit state	DHL / 4 cartons	Custody location
Invoice	Legal party, tax, rate, due date	SAR / dated rate	AR and tax posting
Payment	Bank, reference, allocation	SAR transfer / bank ref	AR clearing
Return	Quantity, condition, inspection	4 damaged units	Stock and claim
Credit	Source invoice, reason, tax	4-unit credit	Controlled reversal
Collection	Promise, dispute, next action	15-day promise	Receivable ownership
Closure	No open quantity or event	Closed with audit	Complete lifecycle

Fourteen-stage test script

Run a happy path and a refusal path for every stage. The happy path should create one quotation for 100 chairs, convert it to an order, reserve stock, pick 100, deliver 96, invoice 96, receive a partial payment, return four damaged units, issue a credit, and close. The refusal path should attempt delivery above open quantity, invoice before approval, post in a locked period, allocate an expired batch, create a duplicate receipt, and issue a credit without a source. Capture the response, message, user, timestamp, and absence of an unwanted journal.

At each stage ask five questions: what is the business decision, what field proves it, what quantity or value changes, which permission allows it, and which audit event records it? If any answer is “remarks only,” the process is under-modelled and should be reviewed with the product owner.

Amount and date reconciliation

For a 100-unit order at SAR 125 each with a 5% discount, net is SAR 11,875 before tax. If tax is 15%, tax is SAR 1,781.25 and total is SAR 13,656.25. Delivery of 96 units leaves four open units; invoice only 96 unless the policy allows advance billing. The payment allocation must show whether it clears total, tax, or a partial amount. Document date, posting date, delivery date, tax date, due date, and service period may differ; each report must state which one it uses.

API and integration handover

For every converted document retain source quotation ID, order ID, delivery ID, invoice ID, receipt ID, external reference, tenant/company scope, and idempotency key. A retry of the same order or receipt must return the original result. A changed payload with the same key is an idempotency conflict. Integration tests should verify decimal money, cursor pagination, permission scope, webhook signature, duplicate events, and period-lock refusal.