DRM, Inc.
"There’s no better option than AvidXchange. The solution and the service are outstanding."
DRM, Inc.
Arby’s is the second-largest sandwich restaurant brand in the world with more than 3,400 restaurants in eight countries. Omaha, Nebraska-based DRM, Inc. is one of its largest franchisees, owning and operating 98 Arby’s restaurants and employing more than 1,600 people in six Midwest states.
The company has committed to opening an additional 25 new Arby’s restaurants over the coming years.
• Industry: Hospitality
• Accounting System: NetSuite
• Customer Since: 2015
Mike Swope is the CFO of DRM, Inc. An integral member of the senior management team, he is responsible for developing DRM Inc.’s financial management strategy and modernizing internal processes to keep costs in check and enable continued growth.
Swope’s work includes overseeing the administration of AvidInvoice and AvidPay for NetSuite to ensure DRM Inc.’s accounts payable (AP) processes are running smoothly and teams are maximizing use of the integrated automation solutions.
Paper AP Processes Drain Precious Time
When Swope joined DRM Inc., paper-based processes were one of the biggest hurdles standing in the way of the company’s plans for expansion.
“The first thing I noticed when I came on board was the amount of paper blowing around the office,” said Swope. “People were running around with stacks of invoices, shuffling them from desk to desk for approvals, and the piles kept growing bigger and bigger. It was a paper nightmare.”
Wrangling paper was time consuming and the manual processes left important people, like purchasing managers and those working in Arby’s restaurants, out of the approval process. This made it tough for the company’s AP staff of four to confidently validate the scores of invoices they received from the company’s restaurants and vendors before submitting them for payment.
Disjointed, antiquated financial systems added to the challenge, requiring those involved in invoice processing and bill pay to jump from system to system, further draining time and resources.
“I quickly realized that outdated AP systems and paper processes were our most pressing challenges,” said Swope. “We needed to automate to streamline the work and allow us to grow.”
AvidXchange’s Integration with NetSuite Enables Growth Without Added Cost
Committed to enabling DRM Inc.’s expansion by addressing its paper challenge, Swope jumped into his new role and started to evaluate automated AP solutions, testing them for usability and their potential to save costs. He quickly decided on AvidXchange, the leading provider of automated AP solutions, drawn to its ability to eliminate paper and integrate bill pay to save companies significant expense.
DRM Inc. implemented AvidXchange’s AvidInvoice and AvidPay, a complete purchase-to-pay solution that provides anytime, anywhere access to invoices and facilitates faster payments. To further streamline the back office and save teams the time and hassle of jumping between systems, DRM Inc. later updated its accounting system to NetSuite.
When DRM Inc. decided to migrate to a new accounting system, it was a disruptionless transition as AvidXchange already had a seamless application programming interface (API) connecting AvidInvoice and AvidPay with Netsuite. By enabling the sharing and syncing of data, including invoice images and expense line items, and providing an embedded pay experience, the API integration allows DRM Inc. to pay its suppliers easily from one platform.
“AvidXchange for NetSuite feels like one system and allows a lot of people to get their job done without having to leave NetSuite,” said Swope. “We love that it’s so integrated.”
The integrated system eliminates the flurry of paper and the ensuing chase that once overwhelmed DRM Inc.’s AP department and ensures that the right people are involved in the invoice and payment processes. Authorized users have quick and easy access, saving time and enforcing accountability.
“When an invoice arrives for payment, it’s been through all the right approvals and it’s just a matter of double checking for accuracy,” said Swope.
Freed from the time-consuming manual tasks it once relied upon, his AP team is now able to keep up with growing workloads and take on other accounting duties.
Since Adopting AvidXchange’s AP Automation Products & Solutions, DRM Inc. Saves More Than $50,000 Per Year While Business Expansion Booms
Over the past 8 years, DRM Inc. sales have grown an impressive 54%. Thanks to AvidXchange for Netsuite the franchisee has been able to keep up with growth and hasn’t had to hire additional AP staff or replace a staff member. By enabling DRM Inc. to operate with fewer people, AvidXchange for NetSuite has saved the company an estimated $50,000 to $60,000 per year.
“I took a leap of faith when I joined the team and asked them to change the way they work by automating AP with AvidXchange, and I couldn’t be more pleased with the outcome,” said Swope.“The AvidXchange solution helped us cut back 25 percent and allowed us to grow at no cost to us.”
The results and a smooth implementation gave him a credibility boost in his new role and have helped to bring the team together with the shared mission of expanding their business.