[Nemo]

In addition to the response I submitted (PO + credit card combination), I'll mention the following:

In my first 2-3 years, I put almost everything on a personal credit card and got reimbursed. I never want to go back to that. Even though a system like that makes it easy to buy stuff on the spot as soon as the need comes up, it's bad from a school perspective (paper trail not as good, easier theoretical chance of unethical shenanigans) and it's very inconvenient from my personal finance perspective. I much prefer doing all of the purchasing through the proper channels.

Of course, there's also that parallel purchasing system: mentor or coach simply buys stuff on their own and donates it. I don't even want to know how much that adds up to.

Overall, I've found it very important to have a good relationship with administrators that is built on their ability to trust me with the team's finances. They don't like it when an account goes way in the hole.