Extract purchase order data from emailed Excel forms automatically

Reads purchase order spreadsheets attached to Outlook emails and converts them into clean, structured data.

How the work actually flows

It branches. Exactly one path is taken.

Pattern: Exclusive Choice (4)

flowchart TD trig>"email with po attachment arrives"]:::trig s0["convert attachment to text"]:::task s1["extract po details"]:::task s2["check for errors"]:::task trig --> s0 s0 --> s1 s1 --> s2 gx{"× are there errors"}:::gate s2 --> gx p00["send error notice to buyer"]:::task gx -->|"has errors"| p00 p10["send confirmation and pass data"]:::task gx -->|"no errors"| p10 p00 --> out p10 --> out out[/"structured error checked po data"/]:::out pay{{"no manual retyping or errors"}}:::pay out --> pay classDef task fill:#e7f6fe,stroke:#34b8f0,color:#2c2a29 classDef svc fill:#f6f8fa,stroke:#7c8795,color:#2c2a29 classDef mi fill:#e7f6fe,stroke:#0079a8,color:#2c2a29,stroke-width:2px classDef human fill:#fff,stroke:#0079a8,color:#0079a8 classDef store fill:#f6f8fa,stroke:#0079a8,color:#2c2a29 classDef trig fill:#00a4eb,stroke:#0079a8,color:#fff,font-weight:bold classDef trigtime fill:#00a4eb,stroke:#0079a8,color:#fff,font-weight:bold classDef trigdata fill:#8ad4f5,stroke:#0079a8,color:#06314c,font-weight:bold classDef gate fill:#fff,stroke:#e8a23d,color:#6b4708,font-weight:bold classDef out fill:#1f9d6b,stroke:#167a53,color:#fff,font-weight:bold classDef pay fill:#06314c,stroke:#021f33,color:#fff
Starts itA stepOne path onlyResultPayoff
Build size
Advanced

A larger build with multiple systems, AI reasoning, and custom rules.

Business functions
Document Processing & OCR
Connects
OutlookOpenAI
Featured in

The problem it solves

Someone on your team has to open every emailed purchase order form, manually re-type the details, and check for errors before anything can move forward. It's tedious, error-prone work that piles up every time a buyer sends in a form.

Who it fits

A business that receives purchase orders or similar forms as spreadsheet attachments over email.

How it works

  1. A new email with an attached purchase order spreadsheet arrives in the shared inbox
  2. The attachment is converted into readable text
  3. AI reads the form and pulls out the purchase order details and line items
  4. The system checks for common errors like a missing PO number or mismatched totals
  5. The buyer gets a confirmation or error notice, and the clean data is passed along to your other systems
Quick estimate

What it is worth to you

Your numbers, your hourly cost. We add nothing hidden.

per week
minutes
$ per hour
0Hours freed per month
0Value per year at your hourly cost

Assumes the freed hours are put toward other work and that manual re-entry time was consistent across POs.

What you get

A structured, error-checked purchase order record ready to feed into your accounting or ERP system.

What you need

A Microsoft Outlook account and an OpenAI API key.

We can build this. But should you?

The hard question is not how to build it. It is whether this is the right thing to build first.

That is what a Fractional Chief AI Officer figures out with you, before anyone writes a line of code.

Let's Talk Strategy

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