Technology Record - Issue 22: Autumn 2021

70 www. t e c h n o l o g y r e c o r d . c om V I EWPO I NT Transforming accounts receivable C RA I G O ’ NE I L L : V E R S APAY With effective collaboration and deep integration, businesses can improve their efficiency and accelerate cash flow T he pandemic fundamentally disrupted the business-to-business payments experience and facilitated a hastened adoption of dig- ital channels for both buyers and suppliers alike. While businesses scrambled to adapt and find new ways of meeting their customers’ escalating expectations, the world evolved, and before our eyes rose a new global economy – one that prior- itises digitisation and convenience. With this digital revolution taking the econ- omy by storm, most corporate functions have significantly and dramatically changed, with accounting and finance departments being no exception. Having been provided the motiva- tional jolt necessary to overhaul invoicing and payment practices that have long been mired in inefficiencies, businesses are now seeking to aug- ment their current accounting operations with robust digital capabilities to drive efficiency and accelerate cash flow. While the catalyst for change may be attrib- uted to the pandemic, this desire for digitisation is predominantly driven by buyers, as they’re looking for greater involvement in – and to influence – the payments process. To satisfy their demands – and ultimately provide better customer experiences – companies in return are kickstarting projects that are expected to deliver major improvements in efficiency. As both parties’ aspirations come to a head, fantastic, united experiences are burgeoning, resulting in a wholly new approach to accounts receivable – Collaborative Accounts Receivable. Many accounts receivable (AR) transac- tions rely on traditional, highly-manual, and time-consuming processes. Activities such as preparing and sending invoices, and receiving and processing checks, are tedious, inefficient, and prone to errors, but where traditional AR processes truly fall short is in their neglect of the most important stakeholder: the customer. There is a significant communication gap between AR departments and customers, inhibiting AR processes from reaching their fullest potential. Unfortunately, traditional AR automation alone is unable to mend that widening chasm. The significant pains per- taining to wasted time, underutilised talent, and delayed cash flow as a result of man- ual accounting processes can certainly be addressed through automation but getting to the root of – and resolving – these issues requires businesses to critically rethink and retool their processes as well. So, while companies have gone full bore on dig- itisation and are seeking automation opportuni- ties en masse – our research has uncovered that 95 per cent of AR/AP workflows are either being digitised or will be digitised within the next year – true AR transformation will only be achieved when digitisation is viewed as a strategic lever, “95 per cent of AR/AP workflows are either being digitised or will be digitised within the next year”