Background
This manufacturer is the strategic partner of choice for companies who want value across the entire supply chain. A manufacturer of raw materials that is an integral part of numerous supply chains for products that range from packaging and industrial products to cosmetics, health and foods. The manufacturer was founded in Ontario, Canada and has been in business for over 70 years.
Challenge
This manufacturer was dealing with some critical challenges in areas of staff overhead, turnover and the retirement of key people. This company puts a very high value on their people and would prefer not having to eliminate them if at all possible. Aware of advances in system and process automation technology in the area of finance, the company’s desire was to leverage those efficiency capabilities to modernize their processes, specifically in the Accounts Payable department. The reality of having multiple remote offices presented a challenge that they believed could be solved with centralization that would provide their staff with easier access to the information required to do their jobs more productively. Complex logistics transactions, as a result of dealing with a large number of vendors with unique freight requirements, also presented its own set of challenges.
Solution
Prior to implementing ACI’s AP Assistant™ all invoice processing was handled manually, in many cases taking a week or longer to get some invoices approved. The ability to realize the desire for centralization through the implementation of AP Assistant™ brought immediate results in invoice approval and turnaround. Additional customization to automatically validate freight charges with business rules customized to their specific requirements brought them to where they now experience more than a 90% invoice auto-approval rate – with no human intervention – on the same day the invoice is received. Simple and easy remote access is now available to their authorized users giving them seamless entry into a single, unified platform from any location. With AP Assistant’s™ ‘Automation Intelligence Engine’ they were able to automate the majority of AP processes without the requirement of increasing staff overhead, allowing them to significantly reduce human error. This allowed them to repurpose some of their staff in other areas of the company and not replace retired staff.
Results with Ash Conversions
As a result of implementing AP Assistant™, the cost of resources was lowered significantly. They were able to create a100% touch-free automatic invoice processing environment resulting in a 90% auto-approval rate. Their unique freight charge challenges were overcome with a custom solution, allowing for much smoother and simpler processing and approval of invoices that included freight charges. Remote access allowed them to create a centralized environment with global access.
To see a demo of AP Assistant™ and to learn how your organization can benefit from Accounts Payable Automation, click the ‘Request a Demo’ button below.
