The Game Changer for #AccountsPayable relates to the Technology the staff has for Remote Work. Remote work in accounts payable is now the norm, rather than the exception. The issues of Accounts Payable’s Technology and Remote Work go hand in hand. Accounts Payable’s Technology is a critical component of success when staff is working remotely. The #AccountsPayableTechnology is often overlooked when discussing whether or not the staff should work remotely.

Proper technology is definitely the Game Changer for Accounts Payable when it comes to Technology and Remote Work. Good Accounts Payable Technology and Remote Work are a match made in heaven. How good is your Accounts Payable staff’s Technology? For many the Accounts Payable Technology is not an issue that garners much attention. Don’t forget to ask, “Is your AP staffs’ technology good enough for remote work?

If it’s not you are wasting two valuable resources: time and money. Since remote work is something that will be with us moving forward, getting the right technology for remote work in accounts payable is very important. Whether this means two screens, that is computers with two screens or more depends on how you evaluate the situation.

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Host: Mary Schaeffer (https://www.ap-now.com/)

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When the Invoice Number Changes the goal is avoiding duplicate payments. This happens frequently. When the Invoice Number Changes you want to ensure the avoiding duplicate payments. Why? Because vendors rarely return duplicate payments, unless the customer identifies the mistake and asks for the money back.

So, the goal is this: don’t make duplicate payments in the first place. Of course, one of the main ways companies look to avoid making duplicate payments is be checking the invoice number. So, when the vendor changes the invoice number this throws a real monkey wrench into that task. Vendors claim they have a good reason for changing the invoice number. They say they do this when sending a second invoice so they can track which invoice gets paid.

The fact that the changing of the invoice number makes it difficult for their vendors whose goal is avoiding duplicate payments doesn’t concern them. Thus, every company needs to put in place procedures to be able to identify invoices when the vendor changes the invoice number.

This is Accounts Payable Sound Bite #37

Learn more about Yooz, US: https://www.getyooz.com/

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Duplicate and erroneous payments are such a big problem that there is a whole industry devoted to identifying and recovering those payments because as those who work in accounts payable know, rarely to vendors return duplicate payments.

They leave the task of identifying duplicate payments to their customers. Now, to be fair, some suppliers will immediately return a duplicate payment or issue a vendor credit. But that does not happen often. So, best practice organizations include in their invoice processing procedures, a check to ensure they are not paying a duplicate invoice, or invoice copy.

Host: Mary Schaeffer (https://www.ap-now.com/)

Guest: Laurent Charpentier (https://www.getyooz.com/)

This big emailed invoice processing mistake is made at about 60% of all companies, Eliminating it would save time and money. Printing invoices is the dirty little secret, the big emailed invoice processing mistake that most companies don’t like to talk about or even admit they have. In fact, many don’t even realize they have it.

By stopping this questionable practice, companies can save time and money. It will also make their #invoiceprocessing more efficient. So why do so many continue printing invoices? They print emailed invoices because it makes the data entry process go a little easier. But by printing the invoice, you give back a lot of the process improvements attributable to receiving emailed invoices. Making a dent on the #accountspayable issue related to #emailedinvoices helps.

Companies everywhere now email the invoice because it saves them money and it gets to the customer faster, hopefully resulting in a faster payment – although we know that does not always happen.

In the accounts payable processing of invoices, emailed invoices now have a large role, since that is the way most invoices are sent. If the solution recommended is adopted there is the side benefit of accounts payable satisfaction, as it makes the accounts payable team’s job a little bit easier. Add to this the resulting accounts payable contribution to the environment and it’s a win for everyone. Eliminating this accounts payable headache makes for greater accounts payable efficiency and let’s fact it, most accounts payable groups like to be able to save trees. This is episode 106 of the AP Now podcast,

This session of AP Technology Week focuses on some of the newer technologies like Blockchain, AI, crypto, RPA etc. The goal is to help you understand the fundamentals. Given the changing nature of the business world and the evolving accounts payable function, it is critical that professionals in the finance and accounting, sectors have a basic understanding of these technologies.

#APTechnologyWeek is all about the evolving #accountspayable function. At the top of this list is block chain. While it is not necessary that those who work in the field have an intricate understanding of what is blockchain, the do need to know the basics of what is blockchain technology.

A #blockchain tutorial will certainly help them understand what is blockchain technology. The same can be said for cryptocurrencies. Just as it is important that blockchain technology be explained, so should cryptocurrencies. While blockchain’s most famous application is certainly cryptocurrencies, it is only the tip of the iceberg. AI, or an explanation of AI is also critical as it is being widely used in RPA today. Artificial intelligence is creeping into most automation solutions for the accounts payable function. The most common application that our audience might be aware of are the numerous ap automation and invoice #automation solutions available on the market today.

As automation sweeps through the business world, and especially through and into the accounts payable function, it is critical that professionals have some AI explained, as well as RPA explained.

The session includes some discussion of accounts payable use of blockchain, blockchain examples as well as real life blockchain applications.

AI, RPA, blockchain, cryptocurrencies (not just bitcoin) are all infiltrating the accounts payable function.

This session of Accounts Payable Technology Week focuses on Remote Work Expense Reimbursements. Reimbursement requests for remote work expenses has become a hot issue. The panel started off with participants sharing the craziest (funniest) things they have seen or heard about on reimbursement requests. It is one of five parts of a limited series focused on fraud in the #accountspayable function.

Also discussed by the panelists were questionable expense reimbursement requests, including but not limited to reimbursement requests for food, reimbursement requests for ergonomic chairs, and other issues. Not everyone agreed on these matters.

What’s more, as mentioned by the panel during this discourse, returning to work expenses may be an issue that some will also have to address. This is session is part of the AP Now podcast brought to you by AP Now.

This is Episode 104 of the AP Now podcast.

Learn more about the P2P Network: https://www.p2pnetwork.org/

Learn more about Recharged Education: https://www.recharged-education.com/

Learn more about Regina Italiano: https://www.linkedin.com/in/regina-italiano-b67b782a/

Learn more about Mandy Jenkins: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mandy-jenkins-apam-312617a9/

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Working from home and working remotely are now firmly established as protocols for many, many organizations. No longer is this something that only a few do. Hence, it is critical that every organization address this issue with a clear eye and a goal of treating all employees equitably. This may seem pretty straightforward at first, but when you start to delve into the matter, it becomes clear that it is not as simple as it might first appear.

One of the panelists pointed out that given the different reimbursement approaches taken, care had to be taken to ensure that duplicate payments are not made.

Host: Mary Schaeffer (https://www.ap-now.com/)

Guest: Ellen Leith, P2P Network ( https://www.p2pnetwork.org/ )

Guest: Lynn Larson Recharged Education: https://www.recharged-education.com/

Guest: Regina Italiano: https://www.linkedin.com/in/regina-italiano-b67b782a/

Guest: Mandy Jenkins: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mandy-jenkins-apam-312617a9/

Credit: Music: https://www.purple-planet.com

This session of Accounts Payable Technology Week focuses on Fraud, and perhaps more specifically, fraud that sometimes happens internally. It is one of five parts of a limited series focused on fraud in the #accountspayable function.

Fraud protection not only means fraud prevention it also includes fraud detection. While ideally the detection occurs before the funds go out the door, sadly, it is often only discovered after multiple episodes.

This is Episode 103 of the AP Now podcast.

Accounts payable fraud in the form of embezzlement is sometimes referred to as pink collar crime. This is because it is the one type of crime that is committed more frequently by women than men. But that is not to say that men don’t embezzle. They absolutely do. As Kelly Paxton likes to say, pink collar crime is about the position not the gender She explains in more detail during this session. Our guest on this episode of the AP Now podcast is Kelly Paxton, a certified fraud examiner with years of experience. She’s recently written a book on the topic.

Book link: https://greatwomeninfraud.com/#embezzlement

Fraud protection in an organization should be advanced as it happens. Whether you call it corporate fraud or internal fraud or employee fraud, occupational fraud hurts not only the reputation of your organization, but the organization’s bottom line.

During the session, Paxton shares insights, tips and advice for those looking to protect themselves. She also introduced the concepts of fraud hashtags and a fraud therapist. Paxton demonstrates her recommendations through real life examples, cases where companies have been defrauded by employees through all sorts of mechanisms. She reminds the audience that “trust is not an internal control,” as too many companies have learned the hard way.

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Host: Mary Schaeffer (https://www.ap-now.com/)

Guest: Kelly Paxton (https://pinkcollarcrime.com/)

Credit: Music: https://www.purple-planet.com

This session of Accounts Payable Technology Week focuses on Automation, and perhaps more specifically, the automation of the accounts payable process. It is one of five parts of a limited series focused on automation of the #accountspayable function. Frequently, #apautomation simply focused on the #invoice piece. But many of today’s #accountspayableautomation solutions also include the #payment piece.

The guests on this session, Yooz’s Laurent Charpentier and the APA’s Jamie Radford both share their considerable expertise on both the #accountspayable function and how it is impacted and enhanced by #automation. Links to their organizations follow.

Learn more about Yooz, US: https://www.getyooz.com/

Learn more about AP Association: https://www.ap-association.com/

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For many organizations, some level of automation is now considered one of the accounts payable best practices they incorporate into their accounts payable operation. That’s the reason the executives for Yooz and the AP Association were invited to participate in this session for AP Technology week.

Some of the issues addressed in this session on accounts payable automation include the ability of an automation solution to read invoices sent by email, how to address the issue of supplier concerns when initially shopping for an automation solution, how accounts payable handles the deluge of multiple copes of the same invoice, how accounts payable finds the time to address the multitude of vendor inquiries in a more efficient and less time consuming manner and much more.

Whether you call it invoice automation, accounts payable automation, ap automation or p2p automation, automation of the accounts payable function is here to stay. In this episode of the AP Now podcast, these savvy pros share insights on how to make the most of whatever solution you select in order to run a more cost-effective, fraud-resistant, regulatory compliant accounts payable function.

This session of Accounts Payable Technology Week focuses on payments, specifically, payments that can be used in lieu of paper checks. Since the payment issue is so critical it is being used to launch AP Technology Week. It is one of five parts of a limited series focused on fraud in the #accountspayable function.

#Accountspayabletechnologyweek was designed to present information to the accounts payable community about a number of important issues related to technology. Clearly #payments is an important one and getting rid of as many inefficient, costly paper checks is at the top of the list. Checks remain the most commonly used payment tool, although ACH, or electronic payments have clearly been growing. Use of p-cards or company credit cards has also been expanding. In fact, it is generally considered an accounts payable best practice to try and eliminate as many paper checks as possible, with #ACH at the top of the list. #pcards #companycreditcards

Industry thought leaders, Recharged Education’s Lynn Larson and Nacha’s Rob Unger are the guests on this panel as each has specialized expertise of interest to our audience. You can learn more about their organizations using the links below:

Learn more about Nacha: https://www.nacha.org/

Learn more about Recharged Education: https://www.recharged-education.com/

There was also a brief discussion of fraud and more specifically accounts payable fraud throughout the session. Payment fraud has become a huge issue.

Another area that has come under some scrutiny are the accounts payable portals, which some refer to as vendor portals or automation portals. These AP automation and invoice automation solutions are often quite popular with the accounts payable community but much less popular with the AR and credit community. The vendors are also sometimes not enthused with vendor master portals when they are of the self-service variety. A discussion of the use of virtual cards was included.

The session included a brief explanation of Nacha’s new Phixius solution. Although both guests claim to not be instant payment experts both had some real insights into how real time payments are likely to impact that payment space. There was a brief explanation towards the end of the consulting services offered by Nacha Consulting and Recharged Education Consulting. Payment efficiency and payment innovation were the themes of this AP Now podcast.

This is Episode 101 of the AP Now podcast.

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Host: Mary Schaeffer (https://www.ap-now.com/)

Guest: Lynn Larson ( https://www.recharged-education.com/)

Guest: Rob Unger (https://www.recharged-education.com/)

Credit: Music: https://www.purple-planet.com

Figuring out how accounts payable partners with other departments is key to establishing a strategic AP function. Whether it’s working with purchasing or working with other departments data will play a key role. The data in accounts payable is often an under-utilized tool when it comes to analytic work.

In this 100th episode of the AP Now podcast, The Accounts Payable Association’s Jamie Radford joins AP Now’s Mary Schaeffer to discuss how accounts payable professionals today are now an integral part of a dozen different departments helping them achieve their goals and meet their obligations. It is not unusual for a CEO or a CFO to turn to the accounts payable team to provide needed data intelligence for special projects or to monitor budget or cashflow.

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Host: Mary Schaeffer (https://www.ap-now.com/)

Credit: Music: https://www.purple-planet.com

The unthinkable happened: fraud. A fraud happened now what should you do to prevent

Frequently this involves some sort of sophisticated accounting fraud and it is difficult for

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Host: Mary Schaeffer (https://www.ap-now.com/)

Credit: Music: https://www.purple-planet.com