Three Valleys Water benefit from e-payments automation
March 26th, 2009 by SusanIf you want to introduce cost savings in your finance department you could start by reviewing your Bacstel-IP payment process. It may be that you are using multiple finance systems and are wasting valuable time manually collecting data from disparate sources. This is a process that can be fully automated using flexible web-based software.
Four years ago Three Valleys Water, part of Veolia Water UK and the largest water-only supplier in the UK, replaced its legacy Bacs payments software with BACSactive-IP Enterprise HSM from Accountis to automate their direct debit transfers, credit card transactions and supplier payments. The Workflow module was mapped to match their business processes, so manual tasks could be eliminated wherever possible. Following implementation of the web-based software, Three Valleys has enjoyed improved administration, greater automation and increased transparency.
Three Valleys Water have kindly agreed for us to write a case study about their project, which highlights just some of the benefits a web-based payments system offers, including:
- Unlimited number of authorised users in multiple locations
- Users login / access via any browser
- One view of all transactions from multiple back-end systems including Oracle
- Instant access to activity logs making problem diagnoses far more effective
- Automated email notifications, as part of the approval process, helping reduce cycle times and improve productivity
Click here to read the case study
April UK Stamp Price Increase – It’s no joke!
March 20th, 2009 by SusanThe price of sending out paper invoices in the UK is about to go up again. The Royal Mail has issued its price guide for 2009, showing that from the 6th April, the price of 1st and 2nd class stamps (for standard letters weighing up to 100g) would rise 3p to £0.39 and £0.30 respectively. This increase helps only to highlight the benefits of switching from paper to electronic.
With the average e-invoice transaction costing only £0.25, there are significant savings to be made….and that’s just on postage. With e-invoicing there is no paper, ink and envelopes of course. However, the most notable savings result from improved process efficiencies, such as copy document issuing, query management, reconciliation, archiving etc. According to Billentis, by introducing e-invoicing an organisation can save 57% on the cost of processing an invoice, but savings can be higher in organisations where the process is more complex.
Paper Invoicing is just so snow… I mean slow
February 4th, 2009 by Susan
If there was ever a week that highlighted the benefits of electronic invoicing, it was this one.
Much of the UK was brought to a standstill due to heavy snow, with roads closed and public transport disrupted. In some locations over 50% of the workforce were unable to get to work, or had to stay home to look after children because schools were closed. According to the Federation of Small Businesses, it is estimated that this week’s big freeze could cost the UK economy £3.5 billion.
Undoubtedly, amongst those stuck at home were finance staff (who process invoices) and postal vehicle drivers (who deliver invoices) plus many more who are normally involved in the end-to-end invoicing process.
Anyone processing an invoice electronically on the other hand – e.g. working from home or using a mobile device - will have been able to process their invoices as normal by logging into their online supplier/buyer portal.
Extreme weather conditions such as this don’t happen very often, but when they do, they help to highlight the flexibility of an online process.
Fighting the credit crunch with Paperless Direct Debits
October 17th, 2008 by SusanCan Paperless Direct Debits help suppliers and customers survive the credit crunch? I think so. For customers Paperless Direct Debits (PDDs) help to spread the cost of payments, rather than waiting for one big bill. Some customers can benefit from discounts offered to direct debit payers. For suppliers it helps with cash-flow and also improves efficiency and speeds up the payment process.
PDDs can include telephone, internet, and telephone key-pad processing. For example, many of our customers use an online system (BACSactive-IP) to enable staff to take details by phone and set up/manage PDDs using a web browser. Others also offer a simple online form for customer’s to fill in themselves. Benefits can include:
- All online - Details can be viewed 24/7 in one location, providing a high level of control, visibility with the option of instant reporting.
- Fully automated - PDDs complement existing systems to make processes more efficient. An online direct debit system can be integrated with back office software to enable straight-through processing.
- Online set-up - Customers can go online to set-up their own direct debit payments therefore keeping administration expenses to a minimum.
- And, of course, no paper, which eliminates associated costs of printing and delivery.
Some Case Examples
Salford City Council added a paperless direct debit function to their existing website. A secure webpage enables finance staff and customers alike to make direct debit payments for council tax, business rates and rent. Using management screens, finance staff can view the newly set-up direct debit mandates, make submissions and download reports from BACS, all within seconds.
Other example applications include Glasgow City Council who use BACsactive-IP to take council tax payments and Scottish & Southern Energy and Veolia Water who use Accountis to take energy bill payments.
Electronic Invoicing applications
We work with a number of organisations to integrate PDDs into their electronic invoicing process, as one of a number of payment options. In these instances, e-invoicing customers not only receive, download, query and approve invoices online, they also pay for them by direct debit. Major plus points for suppliers include reduction of Days Sales Outstanding (DSO), improved cashflow, and management of their income. Customers can enjoy a hassle-free, faster and more streamlined invoice approval and payment process.
Related Links: Accountis Direct Debit Collections
Technology boosts attractiveness of supply chain financing
October 13th, 2008 by SusanIn case you missed this RBS article in Finance Week recently, the PDF is now available to view on the Resources page on accountis.com.
In the article Ian Watkinson and Lee Murphy from The Royal Bank of Scotland explore how electronic invoicing can help corporates to make the supply chain more efficient and improve key financial ratios such as Days Sales Outstanding. Or you can view it directly from financeweek.co.uk
“Model B” Introduced at the European EXPP Summit 2008
October 7th, 2008 by SusanThe last day of Europe’s main e-invoicing event has now become a discussion forum for the European EIPP operators. This year saw the Third E-Invoicing Operators’ Forum being held in Frankfurt.
One of the most interesting presentations of the day was given by the event organiser, Bruno Koch of Billentis. Bruno presented what he termed to be an alternative and more pragmatic model for e-invoicing service provision and called it “Model B”. According to the research conducted by Billentis, e-invoice volumes are dominated by the small-medium and consumer sectors. The table below illustrates the spilt of invoice volumes according to organisation size.
In total, about 81% of invoice volumes are exchanged in the small-medium and consumer sectors and in these sectors the predominant format is PDF. Bruno argues that operators should provide better services to capture invoices as documents, to use PDF as the primary e-invoice format with EDI/XML data provided as an additional service.
In “Model B”, the operator accepts real documents (e.g. Word, PDF, etc.) from the sender and delivers the document electronically to the recipient in a manner which is secure and compliant with the tax laws. As an additional service, the operator also extracts the data from the document and delivers the data in a format suitable for the recipient.
Providing services that most parties find easy to understand, access and use is the only way operators can drive mass adoption.
Interestingly, this is exactly the mechanism used by Accountis with its ebPrinter technology. With Accountis, anybody that can print an invoice, can send an e-invoice.
Click here to see Bruno Koch’s presentation in PDF format and visit www.accountis.com for more details on the ebPrinter.
Another Successful EXPP Summit
October 6th, 2008 by Susan
We have just returned from the EXPP Summit in Frankfurt.
Thank you to everyone who visited our exhibition stand and helped to make the event such a huge success, yet again.
The EXPP Summit continues to be the best e-invoicing event for meeting other solution providers and sourcing new partners/customers. The event highlight for us was Ian Watkinson’s presentation on the RBS E-invoicing solution, which was well received and generated much interest.
Bruno Koch of Billentis, the event organisers, also made an interesting speech at the Operator’s Forum - more about that tomorrow.
We look forward to EXPP 2009!
Accountis Interviewed at Sibos
October 3rd, 2008 by Susan
Ifor Williams, Accountis Sales Director was interviewed by Finextra at Sibos.
Ifor answers questions on the green benefits of electronic invoicing and comments how the paperless invoicing process is playing an increasingly important role in corporate social responsibility projects.
You can view the video by following this link.
Going Green at Sibos
September 15th, 2008 by SusanAccountis is at Sibos this week and we are taking part in SibosOnline Green Zone. Run by Finextra, SibosOnline Green Zone will be the centre of all green, sustainable and environmental issues at the event.
No doubt your organisation has, or is currently implementing some kind of sustainability plan. Looking at ways of reducing our impact on the environment has become part of daily working life - using recyclable products, saving energy, reducing waste - there is so much we can do, and everyone in the workplace can get involved, even if it’s just simply switching off a monitor or taking the bus to work.
Reducing the amount of paper we use is where companies like Accountis can help. Huge quantities of resources are consumed by businesses each day to create and deliver paper invoices. Huge quantities of waste are also produced in their disposal. This can easily be eliminated by replacing a slow, inaccurate manual process with a faster, more efficient electronic service. And it’s not just paper invoices that can be replaced, it’s all financial supply chain (and releated) documents including delivery notes, purchase orders, statements, remittances etc. Just imagine the amount of energy and resources you could save immediately by taking them online.
Visit SibosOnline Green Zone and you can offset some carbon emissions by taking part in the transaction banking survey.
The Positive Side of the Credit Crunch
September 11th, 2008 by SusanDifficult times for businesses
Everywhere in the press these days is news of a continuing global credit crisis. In such testing times there is an even greater incentive for corporates to focus on simplifying internal processes in order to increase efficiencies and cut costs across the enterprise. Many of the companies we talk to are doing precisely this, taking stock after a period of sustained growth and looking at ways to improve their business for the longer term. E-billing and e-invoicing projects are top of the agenda.
Electronic Invoice Presentment (EIP) - A Sliver Lining to the Credit Crisis?
The good news for those looking to improve processes and cut costs is that there are projects which can undertaken within only a few months and deliver tangible benefits within a similar timescale. EIP projects in particular have the ability to quickly transform business processes. Take DHL Europe and their European e-billing project for example. Here is a project which is paying for itself in terms of corporate process efficiencies which are resulting in real accountable cost savings as well as very real customer benefits. Moreover these deliverables are being achieved very quickly, on average it takes only one month to deploy e-billing within a country. DHL are in fact at the forefront of this new technology and it is great to see how such a massive organisation can pioneer within this space.
Success Breeds Success - European Country Rollout for DHL
Such has been the success of DHL’s project, they have swiftly moved from a pilot phase involving Belgium to a mass country rollout. As a region DHL are targeting 1/3 of their invoices to be delivered by their e-billing solution and have further plans to roll the system out to a total of 30 countries across the European region. DHL expects to cut up to 336,000 paper invoices a year in the UK alone, where it plans to migrate 40% of customers to the system by the end of 2008. The moto is clear, the more countries with access, the more customers enrolled, the greater the cost savings, now that is good news.