Bill Gates once said, “The first rule of any technology used in a business is that automation applied to an efficient operation will magnify the efficiency…” The trend toward touchless or automated processes in business seems to surround us. Automation has largely replaced bank tellers, store cashiers, toll road clerks, and video rental stores, reducing labor costs and improving the speed of service to consumers. Phone Apps have replaced equipment such as fax machines and scanners. On a grander scale software, such as Oracle and Fishbowl can manage large-scale distribution centers and integrate all facets of business operations.
As technology evolves and becomes more accessible to businesses, many organizations are exploring options to improve efficiency through automated processes. Touchless invoicing has come front and center in the debate on whether to automate. The reason? Manual invoicing is prone to process gaps that are remedied by the adaptation of touchless invoicing technology.
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When it comes to invoice processing, the biggest businesses with the highest capabilities and a staggering number of invoices are seeing the results of automating business processes. It’s no surprise that they jump on board, while others clutch paper invoices and file cabinets for dear life. Why? Because change is intimidating and expensive, and options are limited for smaller companies. Initially, this was the case with implementing touchless invoicing when the trend began. Setup fees and training of existing employees were substantial barriers to entry into the automated processing game for smaller firms. The confusion regarding which Application Programming Interface (API) or Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) to utilize was enough for management to nix consideration before the idea got off the ground.
Businesses that have not previously utilized automation need to understand the shortcomings of manual invoice processing and how those are eliminated with a touchless process.
Overall, the benefits of automated invoice processing include measurably reduced errors, redundancies, and timely do-overs, which have been drivers for escalating costs in manual invoicing processing.
In implementing new processes, thoughtful consideration is imperative to mitigate risk and ensure success going forward. The shift to touchless invoicing is no exception. When contemplating the specific product mix to facilitate automation, one size does not fit all. Options vary across Application Programming Interfaces, Electronic Data Interchanges, Enterprise Resource Portals, and Online Portals. Outsourcing may be an attractive option to low-cost regions. The volume of invoice processing that is performed should be considered when deciding the initial cost that will be invested. The broad options available to corporations today assist in easing vendors with varying scales to participate in touchless invoicing as a value-added strategy, as opposed to a reason to incur crippling setup costs. Although many businesses fall under the 80/20 rule, where 80 percent of invoices are generated from 20 percent of vendors, the goal is to set up an efficient process for all involved in the business mix. Software as a Service (SaaS) providers offer cloud-based, or on-demand services which allow firms to essentially pay-as-you-go, without straining IT and management. Be prepared to explore features such as portal onboarding for smaller companies with limited technological capabilities so that no vendor is left behind.
As for the steps involved in moving to an automated process, knowledge is king.
Invoicing as the wave of the future has gained momentum and for good reason. Due to the rapid adaptation of this trend, measurable data on its performance across industries is circulating. A 2019 blog by iPaybles reports the cost of processing an invoice is decreased by as much as 70 percent when using touchless invoicing versus its manual counterpart. GoCardless, an authority that produced, Invoicing in the US: A Complete Guide, states that firms using automated invoicing get paid 33 percent faster, on average. With this data rolling in, it is no surprise that automation in business processing is being deemed a vital strategic initiative.
The IBM Institute of Business perhaps said it best in a 2018 executive report, “…automation is good for rules-based, repetitive tasks with well-structured activities, clearly defined rules taken from well-structured data sources, and systems that result in visible and measurable outcomes.” This is the very definition of touchless invoicing, built from the experience and knowledge of the past.
Megha Gupta is a lead systems analyst who has worked with companies such as Oracle, IBM, Amazon, and Starbucks. She has 13+ years of IT experience in Oracle ERP, SAP, Payment Platforms, and Indirect Procurement Systems. For more information, email megha.ebs@gmail.com