Why Volopay is a flexible AP automation platform?

Also known as the 4-eyes principle, this is an authorization type that involves two people to make the final decision. This dual-authorization method has its application in expense approval too. There will be a maker and a checker. The maker creates the request and sends it for approval. And the approver ensures that it’s error-free and approves or rejects it.

Employing this method will highly reduce expense fraud and errors. Any error made by the maker will be captured by the checker and rectified. Typically, maker-checker workflows are created manually by the accounting team. But how it gets executed matters the most. That’s how you can decide whether this workflow yields maximum efficiency or not. 

You need automated AP software to digitize this whole approval process. That way, the request will be forwarded to approvers instantly once it's created. Volopay allows you to achieve this automation. You can set customized maker-checker workflows for different variety of expenses.

You can either set no approver for a typical payment or have multi-level approval for it. Each approver will be assigned roles and tag them with relevant workflows. Approvers can log in to their dashboard anytime and take a look at pending approvals. It is flexible for any kind of workflow. Whether it’s invoice approval or expense reporting, it yields the same efficiency. Volopay’s automated AP software is also flexible in terms of workflow customization.

Whoever you buy raw materials or services from are your vendors. You need to onboard them into your accounting application to pay them. This is to maintain all vendor-related information in one place and pay them on time. You also get a 360-degree view of your spending with all required documentation lying together. 

Typically vendor onboarding takes days and that prolongs the first few payments too. As it snowballs, you won’t be able to match invoices and PO properly nor approve it on time. Every time there is a new invoice, accountants need to go back to your vendor database, match information, and send it for approval. But this can be cut short and automated with Volopay.

AP automation platforms like Volopay have their in-built vendor management tool. Here, you can create vendors, store their invoices, analyze their spending, or link their new invoices. It’s extremely easy and flexible to transfer an invoice into a bill as you already have vendor information in place. 

Whether you buy from them regularly or once, it’s easy to update, store, and delete the vendor within the system. There is no limitation on how many vendors you can add to the system. Hence it’s flexible for most SMEs as they deal with many irregular purchases.

When an accounts payable system is stand-alone, its functions are limited within itself. Unfortunately, accounts payable cannot act independently and need interactions with other departments too. For a smooth operation between the purchase, payment, and operations teams, the automated AP software must be linked with ERP (Expense Resource Planning).

But end-to-end integration is not common, especially among startups. They might have well-advanced ERP software in place or even have an invoicing system with OCR. without AP integration, their accountants will still be forced to transform data from AP to ERP manually. Also, if you use multiple payment modes like cards, wallets, online banking, etc., it’s even complicated to sync them manually. 

Enter Volopay, an AP automation platform with an integration option. It has an open API and can sync with some of the most common ERPs like Quickbooks and Xero. Even if you use other ERPs, you can still connect and sync your Volopay account with it using open API. 

By connecting them, your payment data are instantly fed into your ERP, helping you trace back the payments effectively. Another advantage of Volopay AP integration is that you can choose which payments to sync and see the synchronization status. 

Volopay also has an auto-classification of payments option post-syncing, which again shuns manual work. By syncing effectively with ERP, it’s easier to make audit trails. You understand why a payment has been made just by looking at it. 

Related read: Benefits of AP automation and seamless ERP integration for your business

In this digital era, every business somehow gains benefits from the global market. Though they get services/products with international standards, paying them in a non-native currency becomes a challenge. Earlier, there were bank transfers and unions that took five to seven business days to transfer the payment. There were fewer ways to track the payment. On top of that, these options are expensive too.

They are now replaced by wallets, cards, and international payment services. Though they are transparent in operations, one thing hasn’t changed. It’s the price. Spending more on spending is unaffordable for small businesses. Again, you use a separate platform just for international payments, which is a burden for accountants. 

Want to bypass both drawbacks in one attempt? Volopay has a solution for this. They are multi-currency wallets. Your Volopay account will have a wallet in your native currency. In addition to that, you can also have wallets in other currencies you regularly use.

Here, you load money in foreign currencies and spend money in the same. With this, you avoid the conversion fee that you pay traditionally when transferring in native currencies. Also, you can track the payment and send it much faster.

A small to medium-sized business receives up to 50 to 100 invoices per month. And an accountant can process up to 10 invoices per day. It also depends on what methods are being followed to process it. Though the shift from paper to digital mediums is happening, there are still vendors who send paper invoices by mail.

When you process them through conventional methods, it can be time-taking. An invoice can take up to 7 to 10 days to get cleared. Also, it’s prone to errors and typos. An AP automation platform is what you need to sharpen this. As invoice processing also involves matching them with PO, it can delay payments further.

Volopay offers you the best solution for invoice processing. It already has a vendor management system. Your invoice can be in any form; scan and upload on Volopay and create a bill instantly by choosing relevant fields. Now, it’s ready for the approval stage. Depending on the workflow chosen, it reaches the relevant approvers and notifies them simultaneously. Once approved, it’s ready for payment. You can schedule payments ahead of time. 

You will not be left clueless post-payment. Volopay gives you a real-time view of your payment status. Once the payment is made, receipts can be downloaded right there. And the payment can be synced with your other accounting software. It’s flexible for companies of any size as it allows the smooth processing of any number of invoices.