- Invoice Automation Software – Allows you to streamline your invoice process while maintaining current workflows.
- Bill Payment Automation – Helps you pay your suppliers faster and make 100 percent of payments electronically.
- Purchase Order Automation – Lowers your number of unapproved purchases, coding errors, and delays with an automated solution.
- Utility Bill Management – Ensures you will never miss a payment again and verifies that the bills you are getting are accurate via automated tools.
Each of these tools works together to make the AP process more efficient for businesses. Options like AvidXchange can offer all of these tools to automate the full end-to-end process of your current AP workflow.
Accounts Payable Management
Managing accounts payable systems can take a large portion of time for many middle-market companies. Accounts payable management refers to the handling of all the dues your company has. Navigating the various accounts payable rules and regulations is also a big responsibility here. Every company has to maintain this responsibility or they risk falling into debt.
Due to the importance of this process, many businesses elect to use software to keep on top of things. Software like AvidXchange allows companies to manage their process with ease, all while getting rid of many of the risks associated with human error.
There are many benefits to such platforms, but the main ones include:
- Increased Visibility – Cloud-based platforms like AvidXchange allow users to review and manage their AP needs from anywhere in the world.
- Flexibility – Businesses can pay suppliers faster with flexible management options like Mastercard, direct deposit, or check.
- Control – As long as they have internet access, businesses can have control over their AP processes. They can view and make an accounts payable journal entry from anywhere.
- Security – Companies like AvidXchange offer tools to ensure payments don’t fall through the cracks and that businesses remain in good standing with their vendors.
Companies like AvidXchange offer tremendous value to their users. Automated AP systems allow businesses to focus on bigger needs for their company. Through AP management systems, companies can take AP management off of their list of responsibilities.
Accounts Payable Procedures Flowchart
An accounts payable procedures flowchart can be of use in showing the accounting process. Handling accounts payable procedures manually is a complicated process. Understanding what goes where and when can be greatly assisted by an accounts payable invoice processing flowchart.
When looking for sample accounts payable policy and procedures manuals online, keeping GAAP in mind is important. GAAP accounts payable procedures are what many regard as the “gold standard” in accounts payable. More value is available in exceeding that standard as well.
Flowcharts are also important when looking for AP software. That is because some companies may not fit in well with your current flow. Knowing the way that you’re currently operating is an important element when finding a platform to take over that process.
Whatever your particular flowchart looks like, finding a company that works along with it is important. Businesses aligning with a new procedure can often find themselves scrambling, and learning a new process may cost a company time and money.
Luckily, AvidXChange’s versatility may be able to help. AvidXchange has over 210 integrations, which means you can likely keep your existing workflow and systems in place when adopting AvidXchange. AvidXchange offers an end-to-end accounts payable solution.
AvidXchange provides a way to keep your accounting solution efficiently maintained. After all, the purpose of the software is to streamline your payment process, not to pile on inconveniences or to make the process more convoluted.
Accounts Payable Process Steps
An accounts payable process flowchart is likely going to involve many steps. The accounts payable process flow chart usually helps companies keep track of these steps. From the moment you receive the invoice to when the money leaves the bank, an intricate process is undertaken.
Accounts payable process steps assist a business in ensuring their bills are paid. The concern isn’t only keeping up with records, however; validating accuracy is also important. Tools like AvidUtility by AvidPay offer thirty separate validations on each utility invoice to ensure accuracy.
Validation is a process that many businesses attempt to undertake on their own. The failure to ensure that a bill is accurate can lead to overpayment. AvidUtility uses an automated validation process that:
- Validates the continuity of start and end dates
- Checks for any out-of-cycle or missing bills
- Reads meters for continuity and accuracy
- Monitors typical consumption amounts and flags anything abnormal
- Detects duplicate bills or charges
- Reads rate variances and monitors for irregularities
All of these features work toward ensuring that your utility payments are accurate and paid on time. The risk of missing one of these critical steps is often disconnection or late fees. AvidUtility offers a written guarantee along with the full-service program—and that means your bills get paid on time.
In sum, this software can assist in the automation of the many accounts payable steps.
Best Practices In Accounts Payable Process
The best practices in accounts payable process often involve streamlining. Though accounts payable best practices is a broad term for a multitude of ideas, improving efficiency is often a commonality. When looking through list after list of AP best practices, one is likely to find that most of them boil down to efficiency.
One of the best ways to improve efficiency is through automation. Automated solutions like AvidXchange offer the ability to expedite your AP process. AvidXchange can also be used to implement AP best practices into your existing workflow. In other words, in many cases you may not have to abandon your existing systems to make use of AvidXchange.
Trying to drastically change your system can halt important progress or affect productivity. In addition to this, it is common for tasks to go missing during these transitions. Fortunately, AvidXchange offers over 210 integrations. This allows middle-market businesses to plug AvidXchange directly into their current systems and potentially make them more efficient in the long term.
Embedding these best practices into your AP workflow through automation frees up time and increases reliability. AvidXchange is a cloud-based platform, as well, meaning access is available anywhere at any time. That increased level of visibility and reliability is a powerful tool for any business.
Accounts Payable Process
Businesses that are looking to revamp their accounts payable process should keep GAAP in mind. The GAAP accounts payable definition can be summed up as “the generally accepted accounts payable principles.” These are the best practices by which every business should write their accounts payable manual.
The full-cycle accounts payable process is time consuming for many companies and involves many steps. AP processes often take a large amount of time and resources. Due to how long the process takes, businesses may find it better to automate the process through software programs like AvidXChange.
There are many accounts payable platforms available, and choosing the right one for your business is important. An automated solution will assist by:
- Reducing Costs – End-to-end automation reduces effort and paper. Approvals are just a few clicks away.
- Offering Scalability – Combine the savings with an easier system for an increased workload and get a platform that works for you.
- Enabling Remote Capabilities – Cloud-based solutions allow for viewing and managing AP processes from anywhere. Gone are the days of rushing into the office on the weekend for a crucial task. These days, a phone and an internet connection are all that anyone needs.
- Reducing Fraud – Through e-payment adoption, businesses can enhance their financial security. Companies like AvidXchange assist in this while providing vendors with flexible payment options.
For these reasons and more, it may help to research systems and find the one that best meets your needs.
Accounts Payable Cycle
There are many platforms on the market for assisting in the full-cycle accounting process. One way businesses can narrow down their choice is to consider the parts of their cycle they wish to cover; an accounts payable cycle is often multi-layered.
There are two different options to consider: full-cycle accounting options and partial ones. Full-cycle accounting is the term used to describe all of the activities that an accounting department performs. These platforms can assist with all tasks that go towards the creation of financial statements for a reporting period.
Platforms like AvidXchange can help facilitate a full-cycle accounts payable process. It can also be integrated with your existing workflow. Through the use of various accounts payable cycle formulas, these platforms can automate your entire AP process. This frees up time and enhances the security and visibility of the AP workflow. As such, businesses that do not take advantage of these tools are likely to find themselves at a disadvantage compared to their competitors.
A full-cycle accounts payable system like AvidXchange allows businesses to take much of the process off their list of duties, thus freeing them up for more important endeavors.
