How artificial intelligence can help finance teams through economic downturns
While recessions affect every organization differently, they commonly result in efficiency-related cost-cutting measures, increased workloads for already stretched workforces, and spotlights on unnecessary expenses occurring within companies. These challenges often increase the pressure on accounting and finance teams to stabilize their organization's bottom line.
The good news is that this challenging situation presents a unique opportunity for innovation.
“Now more than ever, finance leaders will need to modernize with technology to remove manual processes”
- Finance Monthly.
In search of this modernization, organizations are turning to automation solutions that use artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) to maximize efficiency, reduce costs, and help create long-term financial stability.
In this blog, we’ll explore what AI can and can’t do, and how the machine learning technology built into Quadient AP by Beanworks can help your organization not only survive but thrive during an economic downturn.
What are AI and ML?
Artificial intelligence (AI) uses computers and machines to imitate how humans think and work. It helps solve problems and make choices, just like human brains do. However, it is unable to think as ethically, critically, and deeply as humans, and it cannot be used as a substitute for human experience and intuitive decision making.
Machine learning (ML) is an example of artificial intelligence (AI) that tries to copy how humans learn with data and algorithms. It gets more accurate over time, in both its predictions and understanding.
To be clear: neither of these technologies are in a position to replace people directly in the workforce. But when AP teams use software solutions with these technologies built in, like Quadient AP, team members can automate some of the more tedious and manual processes in their workflows and spend more time handling strategic and complex financial responsibilities.
Put technology to work for you
When it comes to AI and ML, Quadient AP offers two main advantages:
Invoice automation
Incredibly, 86% of businesses still rely on manual invoice data entry. Not only is this inefficient, but it’s also prone to errors. As AP teams spend hours and days identifying and correcting mistakes, payment deadlines can be missed — leading to damaged supply chain relationships, late fees and penalties, and missed opportunities for vendor discounts.
Quadient AP’s automation software uses AI technology to accelerate and streamline invoicing. Quadient’s SmartCapture solution uses OCR (Optical Character Recognition) and Line Item Capture to automatically recognize, extract, and consolidate invoice text, characters, fields and data — processing invoices with 99% accuracy and reducing manual data entry time by over 80%.
With less time spent on manual data entry, AP teams can focus on activities that can help generate value for their organization — such as taking advantage of early payment vendor discounts and strategically managing cash flow.
Want more proof? Read about how DisperSol Technologies — a pharmaceutical company based in Austin, USA — implemented Quadient AP to work for them.
“It’s cut our AP administrator’s workload in half. We love it! It automatically picks up data and uploads it to Quadient AP.”
- Connie Robertson, Controller at DisperSol
Fraud mitigation
Fraud is a catastrophic but all too commonplace issue for organizations. In fact, the average company loses 5% of its revenue to fraud each year — with the median loss per case being $125,000.
The three primary reasons that people or organizations commit fraud are:
- Opportunity, such as gaps in the control system
- Motivation, caused by issues such as financial hardship
- Rationalization, due to issues such as economic uncertainty
Many companies are under the impression that manual processes provide strong internal controls against fraud, but in fact, the opposite is true. Here are some alarming facts:
- 72% of businesses that made payments via paper checks experienced some kind of fraud
- 34% of companies admit their corporate and commercial credit cards have been the target of fraud
These facts make Quadient AP’s AI technology a key weapon to help organizations combat fraud. Quadient AP provides strengthened approvals and increased visibility into AP workflows, lessening opportunities for fraud to occur. One example of this is 3-way matching. 3-way matching ensures that the prices and quantities on an original purchase order, invoice, and receipt are all identical. If a team relies solely on manual processes, 3-way matching can be time-consuming and nearly impossible to manage. But with AP automation, 3-way matching can become an AP team’s workflow standard.
Are you ready to automate?
Whether you’re facing an economic downturn or just looking for ways to empower your AP team to be more strategically-minded, Quadient’s AP automation solution with built-in AI and ML functionality can help you innovate and adapt to the changing needs of a fast-paced global economy. The industry agrees; based on a global survey of more than 3,000 executives, managers, and analysts performed by MIT Sloan Management Review, “almost 85% believe AI will allow their companies to obtain or sustain a competitive advantage.”
If you’re ready to adopt Quadient AP as your automation solution and empower your accounting teams with this competitive advantage, we’re here to help.
