Optimize your Accounts Payable Team for a Data-Driven process
As you know, “Every dataset tells a story; you have to begin with proper data analysis.” Data analysis helps spot trends, forecast cash flows, measure deviations, and create charts for strategic decision-making. Drilling down into the data till you reach the root of the matter is the most reliable approach to finding a permanent solution.
With large-scale operations and thousands of invoices processed every month, organizations are increasingly adopting Accounts Payable Automation to streamline their invoice processes. Unfortunately, the data search functionality of the solutions is often overlooked while evaluating the available Accounts Payable Automation alternatives. Advanced search capabilities in your Accounts Payable tool can save enormous time and resources, while the ability to perform customized searches and get instant output empowers the team.
When the right data reaches the right person at the right time, it can utilize the untapped potential in your accounts payable database. Watch this exciting webinar to get better insights on how to build and implement a comprehensive invoice audit and accounts payable process to manage paper and paperless vendor invoices with a scalable AP automation solution:
Benefits of Data-Driven Accounts Payable Teams
Data analytics can be essential for the Accounts Payable process to help your entire organization make better decisions. Here is what a data-driven accounts payable team can help you accomplish:
1. Easy Approval, Workflows, and Compliance
The Accounts Payable solution pays attention to ease end-users who take care of invoice approvals. However, approval is quick and easy, in line with the organization’s guidelines. The Accounts Payable solution provides real-time communication updates, so all the users can always be sure about the latest status of the invoices. The solution makes sure that all users can see what is delaying the approval and payment of the invoices. In addition, clear audit trails and an easy-to-navigate archive with documented approvals make your P2P process entirely auditable.
2. Real-time Insights and Better Vendor Relationships
The Accounts Payable solution provides CFOs with real-time insights, such as statistics, to analyze the bottlenecks in their AP department to improve efficiency. Ratios like average days until invoice payment (DPO), spend per vendor, company, unit department, project, and budget spending help CFOs easily access financial data and identify risks or opportunities for cost savings or better contract terms.
With the right accounts payable automation solution, you have 24/7 insight into spending. Proper dashboards and analytics allow CFOs to have more and quicker insights on spending and better-informed decisions.
Making timely payments to vendors is an excellent strategy to strengthen your relationships. A quick, simple transaction shows your organization’s trust and provides early payment discounts.
3. Easier Planning
Planning includes identifying and removing bottlenecks in the process. For example, bottlenecks arise when the number of invoices your employees can process outweighs the number you receive.
If an accounts payable manager finds himself in this circumstance, they should use accounts payable analytics to figure out how to solve the problem. For example, consider using automation solutions built for accounts payable teams if human data entry is the problem.
Relevant metrics are used by Accounts Payable management to schedule tasks for the department and allocate resources where they are most needed. For example, if you detect a high volume of invoices filed in January, you can prepare to bring on more staff members at that time next year to help with the Accounts Payable workload.
Synopsis
The advent of innovative technologies has fundamentally transformed the way business is conducted in recent times. As companies focus more on refining internal processes, current accounts payable teams need to move beyond their transactional roots and demonstrate their strategic value.
As a result, new technologies are entering the market at an unprecedented rate. Accounts Payable teams are now well-positioned to broaden their influence and evolve into a more strategic function. For example, the best accounts payable teams must now aim to become strategic partners capable of demonstrating their value and affecting the highest levels of business operations.
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