Invoice processing is an intensive process where the Spend Cloud Invoice Processing module comes to the rescue. After receiving and manual coding by the central administration, the invoice begins its journey through the organization, seeking approval from relevant budget holders. With the automation of invoice processing, you streamline the time-consuming steps in the process, leaving only the need for verification.
PDF, UBL, XML
Automation and digitization start right from the moment of receipt. An invoice can enter Spend Cloud in two ways. If the (electronic) invoice is sent via email, it arrives in the Inbox. Upon arrival, the finance department checks the invoices and forwards them to the Coding section. If a paper invoice has been sent, it can be scanned and added using the upload function. These invoices will then automatically go to the Coding section.
Relevant Actions:
Coding and Assessing through Workflow
Once the invoices are registered in Spend Cloud, the finance department records the financial details. During coding, an employee is selected to assess/code the invoice. After approval, the invoice automatically follows the predefined workflow. Since this process is digital, there's no risk of losing invoices. All involved parties can see who is responsible for reviewing the invoice. If this doesn't happen in a timely manner, the budget holder receives a reminder. Invoices that deviate from the standard workflow are handled differently. An invoice that needs to be split can be submitted to multiple budget holders simultaneously. Each budget holder receives their own invoice line(s) for review and can assess them via a computer or the app.
After approving the invoice, Spend Cloud checks if the assessor has the necessary authorization. If the invoice amount exceeds the set authorization limit, the invoice is forwarded to the next authorization holder. This employee also has the option to approve or reject the invoice. Only when the invoice is approved by an employee with the correct authorization can it be exported. For accurate processing, it's crucial that information exchange between systems is seamless. For this reason, Spend Cloud has standard integrations with numerous financial software packages.
Relevant Actions:
Monitoring and Analysis
After transferring data to the financial software package, Spend Cloud archives the invoice in compliance with laws and regulations. The complete path the invoice has traveled is available in the audit trail. In addition to audit information, Spend Cloud provides progress reports and charts with various details on processing times. With this information, you can work on process improvement.
Relevant Actions:
Integration with other functionalities
Invoice processing is the result of procurement. These purchases often arise from an agreement made with a supplier. For an optimal situation where Spend Cloud automatically assesses invoices based on a contract or a purchase order and the delivery (3-way matching), Invoice Processing can be combined with the Purchase, Contract Management, and Obligations modules. In this combination, you always have visibility into the obligations the organization has undertaken. Additionally, this fully digitizes the entire purchase-to-pay process in Spend Cloud.