A Buyer’s Guide to Accounts Payable Automation Software
Organizations across industries rely on Accounts Payable (AP) departments to help them operate efficiently. But the question of whether their AP departments themselves are efficient can vary from one organization to another. Unfortunately, it’s not uncommon for North American organizations for AP processes to be manual and time-consuming. To increase AP department efficiency, leading organizations are implementing automation tools. This can help departments cut costs and drive revenue organization-wide. Technology is the key to sustaining bottom-line protection for AP departments.
Traditionally, large corporations that are equipped with more financial and technological resources have driven AP. As cutting-edge technology has spread and become more accessible for a variety of businesses, however, companies of all sizes have begun incorporating automation into their back offices. As a result, a wider variety of AP automation tool types have sprouted and flourished as has an increasingly competitive assortment of software providers.
In keeping watch over this trend, Levvel Research has made observations that provide valuable insight into what to expect in 2020.
Top three market observations for 2020:
- Providers will observe a rising number of prospects already using automation software. They will have to adjust their positioning strategies accordingly. The AP automation market has become more saturated. It’s become fairly common for AP departments to have some form of automation in place. This reality also applies down-market. This is because even small and mid-size enterprises (SMEs) and middle-market organizations have increased their AP tool adoption over recent years.
- Supplier portals are driving the modernization of invoicing methods. In Europe and Latin America, government mandates drive electronic invoice (eInvoice) adoption. The U.S., on the other hand, is in the process of establishing some standards for digital invoices. But the increased presence and use of supplier portals in AP automation software have made eInvoices more common all the same.
- The most difficult part of automating AP is the tool evaluation process. Levvel Research shows that companies don’t automate their AP processes due to a lack of executive sponsorship, limited technical resources, and a lack of sufficient financial resources.
