Document Management in Ontario: The Positive Impact on Accounts Payable

Document management in Ontario allows organizations to capitalize on solutions that eliminate unnecessary cost and add value. Document management impacts many departments and functions within a company, including accounts payable. For example, you can automate accounts payable so you process a greater number of invoices within shorter time periods. By eliminating paper and simplifying the invoice approval process, business can save money.

The superiority of electronic processes over paper processes is a widely accepted concept. However, the migration to document management solutions in Ontario has not been as obvious as you would expect.

The High Cost of Maintaining Manual Accounts Payable

Each time you purchase something on credit, you create an account payable for your business. Typically, you owe the amount taken on credit to your supplier within 30 days. But, if you pay early, vendors frequently will give cash incentives in the form of discounts. To get these discounts, companies must process invoices and send payment to the vendor in as little as 10 days.

Processing invoices in such a short period is very difficult for many accounts payable departments. Their document management in Ontario may not be capable of quick turn-arounds, especially if it’s a manual system. And if invoicing errors need to be resolved, the task can become impossible.

The manual steps in a paper-based system for document management in Ontario can cause the invoicing process to take upwards of 30 days. And, the accounts payable process could be further hindered in the following situations:

• Businesses typically process invoices tied to a purchase order. However, it’s not uncommon for some invoices not to originate from a purchase order. When a purchase order has been issued, accounts payable staff still needs to make sure the line items agree. When the paper invoice arrives, it gets keyed into the system and is matched line-by-line against the purchase order.

• When purchases are made without purchase orders, the accounts payable department usually doesn’t know the invoice exists until it shows up. Because no prior approval took place, these invoices must be routed through a separate approval process.

• When invoice discrepancies arise, resolution involves back and forth communications among suppliers and internal departments before they can be processed through document management in Ontario. The additional processing time adds costs and time. In fact, many companies require dedicated staff just to resolve invoicing disputes.

Creating a Better Way to Do Business with Document Management in Ontario

The benefits of document management in Ontario for accounts payable are quite evident. By streamlining and automating the entire process, document management eliminates the high overhead and delays associated with manual paper processing. Your business operates in a much more cost and time efficient manner.

Specific benefits for document management in Ontario include:

• Replacing costly, error-prone paper processes with automated records management
• Capitalizing on vendor discounts and avoiding late fees
• Improving vendor relationships and increasing favorable terms
• Resolving vendor disputes instantly with supporting documents easily retrieved
• Providing flexibility to submit invoices in various formats
• Eliminating invoice delays and automating document routing
• Optimizing approvals, payment cycles and reporting
• Automating invoice and check match ups
• Removing the need for additional staffing with volume increases
• Facilitating audits with quicker access to needed documents and transaction histories

Implementing document management in Ontario leads to higher performance levels for your business. When you replace a manual process with an electronic one, you get a better managed, more efficient and increasingly profitable business operation.