Last week, we announced that Citrix Systems has selected Open Text for a solution that helps manage content from Accounts Payable (AP). The idea is to optimize AP workflow to improve overall speed, control and visibility of its operations as well as extract additional value from its investment in SAP® solutions.

Citrix offers a good example of what we're seeing in the larger market: More companies looking to optimize accounts payable to reduce costs and improve efficiency. With the right approach, companies can cut average invoice processing time by improving the handling of problem invoices, avoiding duplicate payments, and taking better advantage of early payment discounts. About 85 percent of invoices coming into the typical company are still in paper form, so automating the handling of invoices once they're received is critical.

There are several strategies companies can follow to successfully automate the handling of AP processes and documentation. The key is to take a holistic view of the process, rather than view each invoice independently, transaction by transaction. Understanding each invoice in the broader business context and being able to connect invoices to other related content, such as supporting documents, change orders, email-trails and other information, is essential for success. Today, this content is disconnected from invoices and AP systems. Here are some of the strategies companies should consider when assessing how they can improve automation of AP processes and the handling of AP content:

• Move aggressively from paper to universal electronic invoice processing. This involves scanning paper-based invoices and then applying optical character recognition software to extract as much information as possible. Vendor self-service portals, vendor networks, electronic transfers and other Web-based solutions are gaining momentum as techniques for reducing paper volume.
• Don't just automate broken processes. Recognize the difference between process automation and process optimization. Organizations that focus on automation run the risk of having a fast bad process. Take a close look at process flows to ensure that they are well-designed and fully optimized. From there, automation can begin to deliver significant gains.
• Address the problem of information silos. For many organizations, an important part of the solution has proven to be a set of enterprise content services tightly integrated with transactional systems such as SAP or Oracle. These services can pull together content from across the enterprise stored in multiple repositories and present it to users in the context of a particular vendor, project or invoice. In some cases, related content from different systems can be presented in a familiar client application, such as Microsoft Office Outlook or Excel, saving the need to launch a separate application window and reducing training costs. Content services also provide comprehensive search capabilities to help users quickly locate content across multiple systems.
• Consider the company's broader records management needs. Many companies now need to incorporate invoices into a broader records management system that maintains all business-critical documents according to pre-defined rules. Records management needs are driven by compliance and regulatory requirements.

You can find out about Open Text's ECM solutions for AP here. There's also a recently-published study on Open Text's AP solutions by research firm PayStream Advisors which you can find here.