IT playbook · AI Employee: Ivy

New Device Order

Order placed within 1 business day; MDM-ready on arrival

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The problem

Ordering a laptop takes 5-15 business days end-to-end for what should be a same-day decision. IT waits for manager approval on the model, procurement waits for a PO number, finance waits for a cost center, the vendor waits for a shipping address, and the new hire waits — often two weeks past their start date. Meanwhile the fleet has 30 laptops sitting in warehouse limbo because nobody tracks the in-transit pipeline against upcoming needs.

At a glance
Trigger
Form
Approvals
IT manager + budget owner approval
What it does
Writes to your systems
Systems
Procurement (CDW/Apple) · MDM · NetSuite
How it feels in production

An hour-by-hour walkthrough.

New hire Priya starts on 2026-10-01, role Senior Engineer, remote in Berlin. Ivy sees the HRIS event 45 days before start, resolves the device requirement (MacBook Pro 14" M4 Max per role catalog for engineers), and drafts the order: - Vendor: Apple business (has direct-ship agreement + Berlin warehouse) - Config: MacBook Pro 14", 36GB RAM, 1TB SSD, EU keyboard - Cost: €2,890 including VAT - Shipping: direct to Priya's home address (verified via HRIS onboarding form) - Cost center: engineering platform (from manager's default) - Expected delivery: 2026-09-24, one week before start (per role's onboarding SLA) Ivy routes the draft to Priya's manager for the one-click config-check (any model deviation from role catalog needs manager approval + reason). Manager approves. Ivy submits the order through the Apple portal, generates the PO in Coupa, associates it to the correct cost center, and creates the asset-in-transit record. Ivy tracks the shipment. Any delay triggers automatic rerouting decision: expedite (cost approval), swap from warehouse stock, or notify onboarding coordinator to prepare a loaner. On delivery, Ivy verifies receipt, pushes the enrolment profile to Apple Business Manager (device auto-enrols in Jamf on first boot), and hands off to the new-hire-provisioning playbook. IT never has to remember to order Priya's laptop. Procurement sees the pipeline. Finance sees the accruals. Priya has a working laptop on day one.
How it works

Step by step.

  1. 01

    Detect the need 45 days ahead

    Watch HRIS for new hires 45+ days out + role changes needing new hardware + refresh-cycle-due employees. Resolve device requirement from role catalog.

    Workday · HRIS · Role catalog · Asset lifecycle
  2. 02

    Draft order with correct config + logistics

    Config from role catalog (engineer vs. designer vs. sales rep), keyboard region from location, shipping address from onboarding form, cost center from manager default. Vendor selection based on region.

    Role catalog · Vendor registry · Shipping address service
  3. 03

    Manager confirmation + procurement approval

    One-click manager confirmation on config (deviations from catalog need reason). Procurement approval per matrix (usually auto-approve within role budget). Finance cost center validation.

    Slack · Teams · Coupa · Approval flow
  4. 04

    Execute order + track shipment

    Order placed via vendor portal (Apple Business, CDW, Dell). PO in procurement system. Asset-in-transit record created. Shipment tracked with delay detection + reroute options.

    Apple Business · CDW · Dell · Coupa · Shipment tracking
  5. 05

    Handoff to provisioning on delivery

    Verify receipt (delivery confirmation or user pickup). Push enrolment profile to Apple Business Manager / Autopilot. Handoff to new-hire-provisioning for account setup on first boot.

    Apple Business Manager · Autopilot · Jamf · Intune
Systems and wiring

What you connect to make this run.

Workday · HRIS

read

New-hire signal (start date, role, location). Manager and cost center resolution. Onboarding form for home shipping address.

Apple Business · CDW · Dell · Lenovo

read+write

Vendor portals for order placement + shipment tracking. Direct-ship agreements per vendor per region. Automated PO reconciliation on delivery.

Coupa · Ramp · Airbase · Procurement

read+write

PO generation with correct cost center. Approval matrix enforcement. Accrual entries for orders-placed-not-delivered. Reconciliation on invoice receipt.

Apple Business Manager · Autopilot · MDM

read+write

Zero-touch enrolment profile push. Device auto-enrols in MDM on first user login. Reduces manual imaging + shipping delay for pre-imaged laptops.

What changes

Before and after, honestly.

Time from new-hire signal to laptop ordered
Before
5-14 days after hire confirmation
After
Under 4 hours (45 days ahead of start)
% of new hires with laptop on day 1
Before
55-75%
After
97%+
IT hours per device order
Before
45-120 minutes
After
5-10 minutes (exceptions only)
In-transit inventory visibility
Before
Unknown / spreadsheet
After
Real-time (finance sees accruals, procurement sees pipeline)
Related

Playbooks that pair with this one.

IT

New Hire Provisioning

Device delivery hands off to account provisioning on first boot.

IT

Asset / Inventory Sync

New devices land in the inventory the moment they're ordered.

IT

RMA & Repair

Warranty issues on new devices route to the RMA workflow.

Frequently asked

Answers about this playbook.

What if role catalog is missing for a novel role?

Novel role flags for IT + manager collaboration on config. Once decided, added to catalog for future hires in that role. Catalog compounds; novel roles become fewer over time.

How does it handle BYOD or reimbursement models?

BYOD policy per role/region. Reimbursement flow (finance side) triggered instead of order flow. Same 45-day-ahead signal + expected-ready confirmation from new hire.

What about refurbished / refurb-eligible devices?

Refurb pool checked before new order. Devices from offboarding + returning from RMA populate the pool. Refurb dispatch same flow as new order once assigned.

How does it handle regional differences (VAT, shipping restrictions)?

Vendor + shipping selection per region. Some countries have import restrictions requiring local purchase; some VAT-recovery flows differ. Regional rules per country in the vendor registry.

What if the new hire's start date changes?

HRIS change detection triggers order reschedule. Delay = pause the order or hold delivery in warehouse. Advance = expedite or accept the earlier availability. Manager notified either way.

See it run on your data.

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