16 Ways. AP Automation. Can Improve Your Workday in 16

Transcription

1 16 Ways AP Automation Can Improve Your Workday in 16

2 The Power of the Network The Future of Accounts Payable Through AvidXchange s Network, vendors can submit invoices in a variety of convenient ways. Invoice data is extracted and input into your accounting system via AvidXchange s invoice automation software. The same vendors that are submitting their invoices through our network can then also be paid through our network. We have a full-service payment network that maintains your vendors payment data for you, and identifies their accepted payment type. By identifying if they can accept electronic methods, we see an average electronic payment mix of 35-45%. This network of vendors creates opportunities for discounts, and also maximizes your potential to lower your payment processing costs by paying vendors in the most efficient way possible. Applying automation to your AP and payment processes means eliminating paper invoices and checks from your organization entirely while reducing your processing costs by more than half along the way. 2

3 New Time For Once, Time is on Your Side! As an AP professional, you re always working against the clock. Wouldn t it be nice to stay ahead of the clock for good? Your company could save thousands of dollars that are tied up in the paper process, but one of the biggest things you will save is time. Automation reduces the invoice approval time from an average of 28 days to 2.7 days. With automation, you can easily eliminate repetitive and timeconsuming tasks like opening and sorting invoices, manual data entry, and waiting for interoffice mail or overnight courier for approvals. Think of all the things you could accomplish if you weren t busy copying and scanning files to archives searching for lost or misplaced invoices, and fielding inquiry calls! With the time savings achieved from automation, many accounts payable departments turn their attention to higher-level tasks like early vendor discounts and rebate procurement. The CFO can assist the CEO in highlevel decision-making in ways that help the organization grow. Increase Efficiency. Go Paperless. 3

4 The Cloud Anytime, Anywhere Access! Cloud computing is the delivery of on-demand computing resources over the Internet. Cloud-based applications also known as Software as a Service (SaaS) run on networks in the cloud. These networks connect to devices via the Internet with the user of a browser or personalized user interface. With AvidXchange s cloud-based invoicing and payment automation solutions, you ll have: Did you know that the primary source of business fraud is rooted in paper-based transactions associated with manual approvals and routing? Cloud-based invoicing and payment solutions enforce strict adherence to business regulations, reducing opportunities to commit fraud. 24/7 up-time Anytime, anywhere access Secure SSAE 16 facility and backup procedures State-of-the-art disaster recovery procedures Dedicated support specialists 4

5 Visibility & Tracking AvidXchange s Invoice and Payment Automation Solutions gives you visibility into your bill payment process by digitalizing all invoices and payments, whereas with paper checks a payment could get lost in the mail, take longer to arrive to the vendor than anticipated, or sent to the wrong address. In an automated system, you know when invoices come in, which balances are outstanding, when payments are due and who hasn t approved invoices and payments! Have peace of mind knowing you are in control of your AP payment processes. Get real-time visibility into payment statuses with a few clicks of your mouse. Comprehensive search and reporting tools make it easy to search for and retrieve invoice and payment information when vendors call or auditors are at your doorstep. Faster Processing Times Greater Accuracy in Payments Less Staff Time Allocated to Data Entry 5

6 Fixing the Paper Problem Every day we speak with finance professionals about the advantages of automating their accounts payable and payment processes. Many understand the benefits of automation: increased control, realtime visibility, increased security, and cost and time savings, but many are still hesitant to leave paper in the past. With automation, you can archive your company s payment history electronically for immediate recall and disaster recovery. This makes audits easy, because the history of every invoice is always available. According to the Federal Reserve, American businesses and consumers wrote 21 billion checks in That s more than four times as many checks as were written that year in the European Union s 28 member countries. Isn t it time to leave paper in the past? Processing paper invoices and checks is timeconsuming, costly, and dated. By transitioning to a paperless process, our customers have reduced their processing time by 700%, cut their processing costs in half, and tripled their output without adding staff. 6

7 Storage With AP automation, invoices are automatically stored in a centralized, searchable database so you can easily reconcile invoices and produce financial reports on demand. No more mountains of paper or hours spent thumbing through file folders! No Paper! No Problem! You can track the status of any invoice at any time, giving you the ability to analyze critical metrics like approval cycle times and month-end accruals. And with one-click accrual, you can see what s pending approval, how it s coded, and the dollars outstanding in an easy-to-use journal entry format. Automate Your Process. 7

8 Expedite Approvals Approvals Anytime, Anywhere! AvidXchange s Invoice Automation Solution is designed to mirror your current approval processes and workflows, but without all of the paper and inefficiency. By automating the process, your company will be able to track invoices electronically, streamline workflows, and have a central repository for anytime, anywhere access to invoice data. AvidXchange s Payment Automation Solution enables companies to pay vendors electronically while maintaining all of their banking relationships and their current approval workflows. AvidPay s PayControl feature creates flexibility for things such as step-level approvals and multiple approvers. 8

9 08 Maintaining Master Vendor Files Vendor information is in constant flux. Contact names, phone numbers, addresses, and terms change frequently. For AP professionals, vendor management can be one of the toughest challenges to death with in a manual, paper-based environment. In an automated system, a standardized vendor setup process means fewer duplicate payments and fewer opportunities to become a victim of fraud. You ll also eliminate IRS B-notices and fines and ensure business is not conducted with companies on federal watch lists. Companies should always obtain a W9 or equivalent form prior to vendor set-up and payment. TIN (Taxpayer Identification Number) validation and vendor name matching should be performed using the IRS TIN match system. 09 Higher processing cost when performed manually vs. through an automated system. Vendor Compliance Having an accurate and up-to-date vendor database means greater vendor compliance, which alleviates a lot of the pain associated with tax and audit season. 9

10 10 Audits Audits can be as burdensome as outdated, manual processes. Often an auditor will spend 2-3 days searching through file cabinets spilling over with paper invoices. In an automated system, it may only take 2-3 hours for an auditor to complete their task. By providing an auditor read-only access to your online portal, they can easily search for any invoices they d like to review and see the audit trail immediately. No More Filing Cabinets! Automation provides greater visibility into the entire audit process. There s no such thing as a paper trail: you simply log into your portal to see the entire history of any invoice from receipt through payment. It makes it easier on your auditor(s), but more importantly it makes it easier on you during the audit process. Automate Your Process. 10

11 11 Advanced Fraud Detection In a paper-based environment, your company s documents are constantly at risk. Physical copies of sensitive information can be easily misplaced, altered, or destroyed. If these documents are lost or tampered with, you no longer have access to the data necessary to effectively operate your business. Research has shown that paper documents and checks are leading sources for fraud because data is not protected. In fact, 48 percent of payment fraud can be tracked back to paper checks. According to a recent survey by the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE), nearly 70 percent of corporate respondents have been victims of check fraud. Accounts payable and payment automation enforces strict adherence to business rules, reducing opportunities to commit B2B fraud. Manual processes rely on post payment review to detect deviations from business rules. By the time you ve detected an issue or discovered an error, the fraud has already occurred. AvidXchange s advanced fraud detection technology scrutinizes every invoice and payment request before it s a problem. Our AP automation solution enables you to: Identify a source as a trusted vendor Provide conditional approval rules Identify duplicate and similar invoices Configure unique workflow steps and approvals Issue immediate notification alerts Identify and eliminate fraudulent invoices Automation ensures that your company s invoice and payment information is secure in a cloud-based environment that can be accessed anywhere at any time. Automated fraud detection is one of your organization s best lines of defense against fraudulent and duplicate requests for payment. 11

12 12 Data-Driven Decision Making The roles of corporate controllers and CFOs are evolving from traditional finance responsibilities to more ubiquitous functions that can help to diagnose the overall financial health and profitability of an organization. This diagnosis relies heavily on having the right tools in place to capture accurate data that different members of the organization can have visibility into to use for analysis. If you re in the tech industry, you ve probably heard the term big data. Big data describes the large volume of data both structured and unstructured that inundates companies on a day-to-day basis. With AP automation, AP professionals have the ability to analyze this data for insights that lead to better strategic decisions. 13 Cash Management Higher processing cost when performed manually vs. through an automated system. With the time gained from automating accounts payable, AP professionals can focus on higherlevel tasks including in-depth analysis and keeping up with the latest technological and financial advancements. Controllers and CFOs have real-time visibility into all the metrics involved in cash flow, which impacts your organization s bottom line. 12

13 14 Collaboration AP automation can bring numerous benefits, including real-time visibility into performance, increased accuracy, and improved compliance with tax laws and industry regulations. But what about collaboration? According to research by PayStream Advisors, the effects of automation technology reach far beyond just the AP department. Automating accounts payable processes can lead to faster decision-making abilities and better relationships with vendors while improving cross-departmental communication. Instead of keying in data or filing physical documents, AP specialists can focus on higherlevel tasks like verifying data, handling exceptions, fielding questions from suppliers, and maintaining the master vendor file. The time savings from automation allows managers and specialists to work together on dynamic discounting, supply chain financing, p-card rebate programs and other solutions that can save the company money. AP supervisors and managers can collaborate with staff to handle delicate issues such as disagreements with suppliers. One of the first things AP departments notice when they automate is a drop-off in inquiries from suppliers, as most of these questions concern the status of payments. In an automated environment, vendors receive notification from the system when their payments are pending. After automating, calls from suppliers concern more pressing issues such as short payments, discount terms, and quality of items delivered. 13

14 15 Let the Software do the Dirty Work! The AP Pest is No More! As an AP professional, you spend a lot of time tracking down approvers and pestering them to sign off on items that may already be weeks old. With AP automation, AvidXchange works with you and your AP team to understand your current approval process. Then, we build that approval process into your rules-based workflow. Once the workflow is established, then invoices are automatically routed to approvers when it s received into the system. The approver then looks at the invoice within the portal, and can either approve it or dispute it. No longer will you have to gently remind approvers to do their job and approve things - you ve got intuitive software and aging reports to do the dirty work for you! Increase Efficiency. Go Paperless. 14

15 16 Month-End / Year-End Closing To ensure that financial statements are accurate and timely, most companies utilize journal entries and detailed checklists for the various tasks that must be completed during month-end / year-end periods. Many of these manual, paperbased processes can be streamlined with AP automation. In an automated system, all invoices are automatically stored in a centralized, searchable database so you can easily reconcile invoices, quickly satisfy vendor requests, and produce management reports on demand. The AP team can track the status of any invoice, anytime anywhere, giving you the ability to track critical metrics like approval cycle times, approver productivity, and month-end accruals. And with one-click accrual, you ll see what s pending approval, how it s coded, and the dollars outstanding in an easyto-use journal entry format. When it comes to month-end closing, you ll have: For AP professionals, tracking down invoices from the previous month and closing them out can be a tedious and timeconsuming task, let alone for the entire year. Time savings and visibility into approvals Improved controls with approval documentation Historical data and improved analysis Regular approvals no fire drills at month-end Missing invoice identification Accrual process reporting We ve seen companies dramatically improve their month-end close by automating accounts payable processes. A stressful, weeklong ordeal can quickly become an organized, efficient 1-2 day process. Who doesn t like the sound of that? 15

16 Conclusion: Create Efficiency in 2016! Thank you for reading Ways AP Automation Can Improve Your Workday in 16 This guide was created by AvidXchange. Avidxchange revolutionizes the way companies pay their bills. Serving more than 5,000 clients throughout North America and 300,000 vendors nationwide, Avidxchange is an industry leader in automating invoice and payment processes for companies spanning multiple industries including Real Estate, Financial Services, Energy, and Construction. Interested in automating your payables in 2016 and creating efficiencies for your AP team? Watch a 4-minute guided tour of our software Request a personal Automation benchmark analysis Request a personal Cost per Invoice (CPI) benchmark analysis Our automation specialists will create a customized demo and walk you through the streamlined workflow of an automated AP process. To schedule a demo, click here! 16