Invoice Automation: The visibility and control you demand
Posted by Todd Calman on Mon, Dec 20, 2010 @ 04:27 PM
Have you noticed the staggering amount of paper that is surrounding you in your office? Does it sometimes feel like you are about to drown under a waterfall of paper? Paper is everywhere. For decades, this has been a rather inefficient system. Invoices get lost, mispalced, torn, or simply disappear when they are grabbed with a sheaf of unrelated papers. Electronic files and automated record keeping methods can solve that problem, with very few drawbacks and many advantages.
The challenge with paper systems is keeping it all straight. Managing accounts receivable, accounts payable, purchase orders, payroll, bills, records, reports, etc. is extremely overwhelming - and if you added up the employee time spent simply handling these papers, not even doing the tasks that need to be done to take care of them, you would be stunned. It is a waste of time and effort just to route and push papers in the directions that they need to go.
Enter invoice automation. While the thought of abandoning the tried and true methods of record keeping and reports that involve actual hard copy papers, with a bit of support and some proof, it is quickly realized that automated systems are the way to go. Imagine if paper didn't exist how many staff hours could be saved?
Automated payment and processing systems allow you to view, route, approve and pay multiple invoices with a single click. You can easily obtain reports to review, based on cost center, vendor, or any other variable that you demand, allowing for easy integration with all of your accounting systems. Automation will help you keep close tabs on spending for all departments. Long gone are the sleepless nights preparing detailed reporting.