AP Automation for Higher Education

Transforming Supplier Invoice and Payments with SpendConsole and SAP Business Network for TAFE New South Wales.

Summary:

• 35% reduction in manual handling of invoices
• 100% of email invoices transitioned to SpendConsole
• Decommissioned legacy systems - Kofax and Process Director
• Proof of SpendConsole and SAP Business Network working in harmony
• Seamless experience for suppliers

Customer Profile:

Our customer is the largest training and vocational education provider in Australia, with an extensive network of over 110 colleges operating state-wide. They offer a diverse range of courses to nearly half a million students annually, spanning from hairdressing to welding, graphic design, business management, and even commercial aviation. To support their extensive course offerings, the customer maintains relationships with 4,000 active suppliers and spends over $400 million annually on goods and services. The organisation has over 400 supplier contracts, but they also engage in low-value purchase ordering with local suppliers as part of their commitment to the communities they serve.

Background:

To manage their vast supplier base and sustain their course offerings, our customer had implemented the SAP Business Network and Ariba solutions for their Source to Pay processes. While the implementation was largely successful, nearly 45% of invoice volumes continued to be sent via email, posing challenges in invoice and payment processing. The reliance on manual handling and OCR scanning for invoice data entry led to inefficiencies, poor user experience, and significant supplier queries. The organisation faced difficulties in ensuring compliance controls were met, and visibility on payments was limited for both suppliers and internal teams.

Approach:

After an extensive market evaluation, the customer chose SpendConsole for its cutting-edge AI capabilities and seamless integration with SAP Business Network and Ariba solutions. A collaborative effort involving a small team of procurement, finance, and ICT resources worked with the SpendConsole team to implement the solution successfully in just over 12 weeks, replacing the legacy OCR solution.

Solution:

SpendConsole's comprehensive AI capability effectively manages the AP Mailbox, accurately reads both structured and unstructured invoices from a broad range of document formats, including pdf, jpeg, excel, csv. Suppliers are given the choice to send invoices using a channel of their choice. This includes eInvoices directly from their accounting systems, via PO Flip over the SAP Business Network or via Email.

SpendConsole validates the invoices for accuracy, and automatically allocates them to corresponding purchase orders and receipts. Automation rules were set up to help automatically reject or quarantine invoices that did not meet the specified compliance criteria such as duplicates or invoices over and above thresholds. With seamless integration with the SAP Business Network and SAP Ariba, this AI-powered solution revolutionised the invoice processing workflow and significantly improved efficiency.

With SpendConsole's implementation, the customer achieved a remarkable transition, moving 100% of manual email invoices to the new platform within 16 weeks. This transformation resulted in substantial efficiencies, improved compliance controls, and an enhanced user experience. The solution introduced a variety of new dashboards and reports that provided valuable insights into Accounts Payable performance, productivity, and spend classification.

Results:

The successful implementation of SpendConsole brought about transformative results for our customer. They experienced a 35% reduction in manual effort or time savings, thanks to the powerful AI capabilities of SpendConsole. Automation of invoice processing significantly reduced the need for manual data entry, leading to faster and more accurate payments. The precise and automated validation process ensured that invoices were processed accurately and efficiently, resulting in reduced query resolutions and a smoother supplier experience.

The introduction of SpendConsole's AI-powered automation rules further streamlined the process by automatically handling exceptions and deviations from the standard invoice processing workflow. This resulted in reduced manual intervention, faster invoice resolution, and enhanced compliance controls. The seamless integration with SAP Business Network and Ariba empowered suppliers, AP teams, and business stakeholders to enjoy a highly intuitive user experience with the unified platform. The new dashboards and reports provided valuable insights into Accounts Payable performance and spend classification, facilitating data-driven decision-making for better financial management. Moving Forward: The success of SpendConsole's implementation has marked the beginning of a fruitful collaboration with our customer. Numerous additional business requirements have been implemented, strengthening the partnership further. As the largest training and vocational education provider in Australia, our customer continues to empower its communities by providing high-quality education, now supported by an efficient and streamlined invoice processing system through SpendConsole.