One of the biggest drawbacks in accounts payable processing is that most often it is a manually-based operation. It’s slow, paper-intense, and difficult to track where invoices are in the process. The amount of manpower required to complete payable cycles also presents an even greater risk for errors. Meanwhile, the filing of invoices and supporting documentation costs organizations in time and space; particularly the time lost by workers hunting for records that might be filed off-site, incorrectly, or even lost. Even so, a great number of companies still agonize over traditional processing when process automation has been a viable alternative for more than 10 years. A recent survey by The Institute of Financial Operations (www.acom.com/downloads/ifo-2014-ap-automation-study/) shows that under 10 percent of survey respondents report their operations as highly automated, and 29 percent reported that paper accounts for more than 90 percent of their invoices.
The Good News
With an improving economy, survey respondents reported that they’re experiencing an increase in invoice volume. The increase brings additional expense and even higher visibility to the gains made by those who have automated their operations. Reducing invoice entry and payment error rates have been well-proven benefits of AP automation. These benefits combine with the “hard cost” realties of labor-intensive AP cycles, which further motivates organizations to forge ahead in pursuing payables technology initiatives in 2015. A great time and segue into some very good reasons for changing to automation:
Better News – Automation Designed for Microsoft Dynamics GP
The result of a two-year development effort, ACOM has designed true groundbreaking integration with Microsoft Dynamics GP (www.acom.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/DS_V_GP_EZCM_BROCHURE.pdf?304794). Driven by ACOM’s content management platform, AP automation now delivers “real-time” Microsoft Dynamics GP functionality at each processing level – directly from Microsoft Dynamics GP screens.
An End to Manual Processing – OCR
The result of ACOM’s powerful Readsoft OCR engine, information is automatically extracted from incoming invoices and documents, interpreted, and then based upon its content, routed to process queue or directly to Microsoft Dynamics GP. Just think of it: The right documents in the right place for action within minutes!
Intelligent Workflow – Completely Adaptable – Interactive with Microsoft GP in “Real-Time”
The system (www.acom.com/solutions/ms-dynamics-gpgreat-plains/) enables users to edit and complete Microsoft Dynamics GP transactions directly from workflows. No more importing or exporting of data, allowing for “live” Microsoft Dynamics GP transactional flow:
- Automatically creates payables transactions directly into Microsoft Dynamics GP from workflow approval or directly from OCR data
- Live transaction queues – stage “Pending Approval” and “Ready to Post” batches ready for immediate action
- Workflows completely configurable to your business rules – launch simultaneously with invoice images ready for three-way matching, review, and approval processing
- Automatically create sales orders directly from incoming P.O.s
- Real-time accrual reporting and error handling
Imagine having all invoice information at your fingertips: Supplier ID, total outstanding liabilities, workflow status, and digital invoice images. Your department and company headquarters can have complete control and visibility of the business processes, documents, and information required to run businesses in real-time.
ACOM’s Microsoft Dynamics GP integration further extends functionality with Enterprise Content Management – taking users beyond AP to capture, process, access, and manage information for any department, division, or individual companies from a single platform. And with one central platform (www.acom.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/FLYER_V_MULTI-COMPANY_GENERIC.pdf?603d18), there’s no need for multiple installations and costly customization. The control and visibility are maintained without compromise to individual departments or company identities, business rules, and financial models.
To learn more about ACOM Solutions’ offerings and automating AP for Microsoft Dynamics GP, complete the information at www.acom.com/lp/LP_V_DYNAMICSU_GP-EZCM_0315.html?utm_source=ARTICLE&utm_medium=DYNAMICSUNIVERSITY&utm_campaign=GP-EZCM