What to Look for in a Global AP Solution

The Harvard Business Review recently caught my eye. Titled “Global Business Speaks English,” Tsedal Neeley’s piece laid out the reasons why “adopting a common mode of speech isn’t just a good idea; it’s a must, even for an American company with operations overseas, for instance, or a French company focused on US customers.”

Neeley’s thesis and argument make a great deal of sense. For an international business to be truly effective, a consistent way of communicating is often necessary. Such a program streamlines processes, allows for effective collaboration and creates a common backbone for a firm’s business practices, no matter where they take place.

There’s much to be said on the third point – and it speaks to even more than language. As business increasingly goes global, firms worldwide can take advantage of top tier vendors, no matter where they’re located. For instance, a firm with offices in New York, London and Tokyo can utilize the same service in each of its locations, entering vastly different information but receiving a valuable, common deliverable.

Yes, this even extends to invoice processing.

The best AP automation solutions are available worldwide, as a service.

At Edenred Pay, there are two keys to our global efforts. One is a scalable approach and the other is a foreign language invoice processing system.

Scalability

When it comes to taking invoice processing global, scalability is exceedingly important. By taking a “hub and spoke” approach, top AP automation solution providers can offer best-in-breed scanning and digital mailroom services nearly anywhere in the world. At Edenred Pay, we’ve taken the tack of building a global network of scanning partners. This allows us to quickly and efficiently “staff up” where it’s necessary. And our digital mailroom technology enables nearly any kind of document to be inputted in almost any country. Then, it can be securely transferred digitally for quality control purposes. That way, we’re able to offer global customers the same level of invoice processing service as our U.S. customers.

Foreign language document processing

Global invoice processing solutions providers do more than simple “translation.” The best AP automation solutions make true mapping possible. If, for instance, an invoice arrives in German, solutions created by global capture services can recognize that it’s an invoice. Then convert it to a digital record and automatically populate it into an ERP system, such as Oracle, in any language.

It’s a global business world. And that means that, from language to vendors, it’s never been more important to standardize techniques, processes and deliverables. Remember: Almost no matter where you are in the world, the very best AP automation technology is available to you – if you know where to look.

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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.