The State of Information Management in Accounts Payable
Accounts payable departments have seen consistently high returns from implementing intelligent information management solutions. In addition to soft returns on investment, such as enhanced collaboration and information visibility, clear statistics on the top and bottom accounts payable performers point to the benefits of automation, including:
Despite this, according to AIIM, 50% of organizations have yet to implement accounts payable automation, and a third of organizations receiving more than 25,000 monthly invoices are still using paper-based processes?. So, what exactly is keeping organizations from implementing accounts payable automation??
As it turns out AIIM cites a lack of ROI as the second most common reason behind a lack of management initiative and highlights several implementation challenges?—all capable of affecting a project’s final ROI—that can be completely avoided with the right vendor.
Data Capture Complications
Invoices, purchase orders, proof of delivery, and other accounts payable documents come in various forms from vendors, including Paper, PDF, and Email. Leveraging the information on these documents to code transactions, glean insights like AP aging, and automate the matching and approval process is crucial to attaining a substantial ROI.?
Yet 55% of those with AP systems aren’t capturing this data with OCR?. This is likely due to the state of OCR for the past several decades when cost-prohibitive templates were needed for each unique invoice. This meant that every additional vendor required more professional service hours to automate their invoice process.
Recent AI breakthroughs in natural language processing eliminate this barrier by capturing this data accurately without the use of templates. In fact, our own AI-assisted invoice capture platform, TransformAI, boasts near 100% accuracy even on difficult header, footer, and line item data. Try it for yourself.
Integration Difficulties
37% of those who implemented solutions cite integration with their financial system as the largest challenge?. Integration challenges can quickly lead to additional implementation costs, extended project times, and errors that continue well into the solutions’ time in use. These combined factors can be a nightmare for those looking for a quick and sizable ROI.?
Vendors who lack integration experience for solutions that require a back-end approach can easily make these errors. API-driven integrations, on the other hand, are much more clear-cut and integration is often quick and simple.
To eliminate this roadblock, look for vendors who are highly experienced with your financial solution if it requires back-end integration. Otherwise, look for vendors who offer API integrations, especially if they can facilitate the process in-house.
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Change Management
30% of AIIM research respondents cited change management as the most significant implementation challenge?, and it’s easy to see why. People who have been working a certain way for years have developed a process, and while it may not be the most efficient method now, it’s the way they know. A solution won’t provide any ROI if staff refuse to use it, making buy-in an essential aspect of implementation.
Product education, training, and support resources are essential to achieving fast buy-in. Staff will see the results if they are using the solution optimally, so training should be a top priority. A solution with a simple but effective interface makes the adoption process even swifter as learning becomes easier.
To solve this challenge, look for solutions that prioritize this ease of use and provide complimentary training, education, and support.
How Square 9 Can Help
Square 9 is a leading provider of AI-powered intelligent information management solutions that take the paper out of work and make it easier to get things done. With digital workflows that automate many aspects of how you work today, we make it easy by extracting information from scans or PDFs, storing documents in a searchable archive, and building digital twins of your current processes through graphical workflows.
TransformAI takes the templates out of invoice capture!?
GlobalAutomation provides seamless API integration for a growing library of financial systems.
Square 9 offers complimentary product education, support, and an easy-to-use interface.
Sources
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