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Digitizing Payables for the Post-Pandemic Future
When Covid-19 forced businesses to move their processes online in 2020, the scramble to digitize and automate left many companies with a cobbled-together method for receiving invoices and making payments. Accounts Payable often had to figure out how to work remotely, receive invoices, and submit payments differently than ever before.
Making do during the pandemic meant AP had to tackle big challenges. Now, over a year after initial shutdowns, those temporary solutions may need to become more permanent. Business process automation software can provide the bridge your company needs between short-term pandemic fixes and a sustainable, flexible accounts payable system.
Digitizing and Consolidating Invoices
For companies that were still using paper at the start of the pandemic, one short-term solution was to sign and scan images of invoices and payments, then email them. This made for extra work and moved payables outside of a central tracking system.
The long-term solution for this is to consolidate all invoices—electronic and paper—into a single digital system. Accounts Payable automation from NextProcess comes with advanced image capture and data indexing technology. Any paper invoices your company receives will be scanned in and then treated just like any other digital invoice. This puts all your payables processing in one place, regardless of the document’s source.
Remote Access to Centralized System
It’s great having all the documents for your AP processing in one place. That’s not going to do much good, though, unless employees can access those files. With so many employees working remotely, coordinating payables can be a challenge.
Accounts payable automation has a solution for that as well. With cloud-based automation like we offer here at NextProcess, employees can all access the same system from any location. All they need is an internet connection, their password, and permission to access the software. It’s secure, convenient, and makes centralizing payables much simpler.
Digitizing Payments
At the start of the pandemic, it was still standard practice in many businesses to pay using printed checks. When you could print in-house this system worked just fine. With the move to more remote work, though, many companies ended up with check-printing happening in employee homes or had to authorize a few employees to come into the office and print checks.
Moving payments to an electronic system tightens up security. NextProcess’ flexible payment solutions make it very simple to manage electronic payments and to outsource check printing for suppliers who won’t take electronic payment. With our fast, secure system you won’t need to worry about accidentally issuing payment to the wrong person, overpayment, and duplicate payments anymore. It also makes managing payments to different vendors simple.
Looking to the Future
None of us know what the future holds. But by updating your accounts payable process to a flexible, customizable, digital automated system your company will be in a far better position to adapt to whatever life throws your way. Contact NextProcess today to set up a free demo so you can see how our AP automation can help your business prepare for the future.
