10 Ways AP Automation Solutions Make Remote Work Easier

It has been a whirlwind of change for accounts payable leaders.

• New ways of working
• New operational challenges
• New fraud and compliance risks
• New demands for cashflow and spend visibility

Now comes the hard part.

Accounts payable leaders must find ways to achieve sustainable improvements in efficiency, effectiveness, and supplier collaboration as staff Work from Home.

Ninety-one percent of accounts payable professionals are working remotely, at least in part, according to research from the Institute of Finance and Management (IOFM).

Optimizing Work from Home arrangements is key to:

• Low operations costs
• Timely invoice approvals
• Getting the visibility required for effective cash management
• Happier suppliers and a stronger supply chain
• Higher employee morale and lower turnover
• Less risk of fraud and compliance violations

Regrettably, the problem is that many accounts payable departments do not have the infrastructure, technology, and support that remote work demands. To get suppliers paid when staff Work from Home, many AP departments rely on requiring their employees to work longer days. In fact, they use risky workarounds. Chief among them is using email for invoice approvals and onboarding suppliers.

Cloud-based solutions enable accounts payable departments to achieve optimum performance, no matter where staff work.

Here are ten ways AP automation solutions support Work from Home:

1. Digital mailrooms enable departments to receive invoices via email, File Transfer Protocol (FTP) upload, or a supplier portal without sending staff into an office.
2. Data capture extracts and validates from invoices without keying or paper handling. Leading AP automation solutions can manage structured and unstructured invoice data and multi-page invoices.
3. Capture-in-the-cloud puts the onus on a third-party to capture and validate invoice data on a department’s behalf and deliver perfected data to downstream processes and systems.
4. Dynamic workflows securely route invoices based on pre-configured business rules.
5. Exceptions management tools eliminate back-and-forth emails and phones chasing down information by prompting suppliers to provide missing or inaccurate invoice data.
6. Mobile capabilities enable purchasers to effortlessly approve or reject invoices and review historical transaction data, even when staff are working remotely.
7. Self-service online portals enable suppliers to submit invoices and other payables documents, check the status of invoices and payments 24/7/365, and collaborate with buyers.
8. ERP integration seamlessly uploads information on approved invoices.
9. Electronic payments put a stop to the printing, stuffing, and mailing of paper checks.
10. Graphical dashboards help keep processes moving – and Work from Home staff accountable. The dashboards provide managers with real-time visibility into invoice status and key metrics. The Key Performance Indicators provided by automation help managers’ departmental progress.

Accounts payable automation solutions provide what departments need when working remotely:

• Flexibility and accessibility
• Intelligent workflows
• End-to-end visibility
• Compliance and security

Consequently, all this improves accounts payable productivity and accountability when staff Work from Home.

Furthermore, cloud-based accounts payable automation solutions have built-in safeguards for ensuring ironclad security. These include single sign-on, roles-based access, chain of custody and segregation of duties assurances. Additionally, 24/7 monitoring, audit logging, data encryption, and more.

Leading organizations are achieving real, measurable results from cloud-based AP automation solutions.

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Edenred Pay, an Edenred Company, is the global leader in invoice-to-pay automation. Our integrated platform connects businesses with suppliers, ERPs, banks, FinTechs, and payment rails to automate, optimize, and monetize the entire B2B payments lifecycle – from invoice receipt through payment reconciliation. Edenred Pay’s efficient, integrated solutions create a frictionless process and help deliver value to the enterprise by enhancing visibility and monetizing AP.

Visit www.edenredpay.com or contact us to learn more.