Nonprofits Benefit by Automating Accounts Payable

The typical nonprofit accounts payable person spends their day processing invoices, reconciling them to the accounts, and ensuring the bills are paid on time. Manual processes are cumbersome and inefficient.

Areas of inefficiency include:

  1. Paper-intensive data entry process that relies on bills sent via the U.S. mail or electronically retrieved and printed.
  2. Manual data entry of bills into an accounting or spreadsheet program.
  3. Hand-writing checks, signing them, and placing them in an envelope to mail.
  4. Routing physical checks and invoice paperwork to managers for approval.
  5. Reconciling banking statements with accounting programs or spreadsheets.

Each of the five areas of inefficiency can be improved with software that streamlines and automates accounts payable. Such software also closes security gaps that may have occurred due to the pandemic when internal controls were lax given the uncertainty around in-person work. So, if another event occurs that forces the AP person to telecommute, they can still process invoices in a timely manner with a cloud-based system, that runs over the internet, and that can be accessed remotely,

Five Benefits of Automating Accounts Payable

There are many benefits nonprofits receive from automating accounts payable, but the following five are perhaps the most important.

  1. Improved Security

During the pandemic, when much uncertainty remained about who would be in the office on any given day, internal controls at many nonprofits were relaxed. Additionally, nonprofits who did not have cloud systems in place found themselves adding solutions to enable workers to telecommute.

Unfortunately, lax security both with internal controls and digital materials enabled criminals to take advantage of the situation. Nonprofits are always at a high risk of cybercrime since they generally lack a dedicated IT infrastructure to prevent or remediate against attacks.

An automated accounts payable system improves security in many ways. It eliminates time-consuming paper routing of approvals, automating invoice and payment approvals through email which cuts down on delay and potential fraud. It also helps secure the AP system itself against cyberattacks through the added security provided by cloud-based servers and software.

Paper checks can be mostly eliminated, making automatic bank transfer payments and e-checks a simpler, faster solution. These payment methods are also highly secure, ensuring that potential criminals cannot forge signatures on paper checks, for example, to steal funds.

  • Enhances forecasting accuracy

Manual AP processing makes forecasting extremely challenging since cash flow and recorded bank balances may not be entirely up to date. With automated AP processing, the balance shown in the system is accurate, and improves the ability to forecast cash flow, receivables, and payables. It takes some of the uncertainty out of forecasting, which is a huge help during these continuing uncertain times.

  • Transparency into the organization’s finances

With automated AP processing, anyone at your organization logging into the system can view the current state of their budget and payables. This adds a layer of transparency and accountability into the budgeting and payment system that may be more challenging to reach with manual AP processing.

  • Access to accurate data

Organizations that can access and use their financial data can make better decisions around budgeting and expenditures. With manual processes, this information can be difficult to access and utilize. With automated AP systems, reports can be generated quickly to help you utilize the valuable data found in the system.

  •  Easier audit process

The annual audit process is time-consuming enough. Manual accounting practices extend the timeline. Automating AP means faster access to information the auditing team needs, as well as easier access for them if they are auditing remotely (a new trend that arose during the pandemic).

Sage Intacct Automates AP Easily

To automate AP, you need the right software. Sage Intacct easily automates AP and other workflows with no IT support required. It makes working remotely easier, offers excellent security, and improves efficiency throughout the AP process.

With Sage Intaact, your organization can:

  • Add a robust cloud solution to automate AP without costly hardware or infrastructure support
  • Handle complicated fund accounting and grant management easily
  • Segregate, budget, and report on restricted grant funds
  • Comply with strict new audit processes
  • Automate workflows
  • Connect Sage Intacct to other systems to extend and enhance systems and share data

Watch a video demonstration or schedule a demo and consultation with Welter Consulting today. Visit Welter’s Sage Intacct information center for details.

With the right software, AP automation can bring your organization to a whole new level of efficiency. It’s faster, and software such as Sage Intaact makes the process of adding and using the system easier.

Welter Consulting

Welter Consulting bridges people and technology together for effective solutions for nonprofit organizations. We offer software and services that can help you with your accounting needs. Please contact Welter Consulting at 206-605-3113 for more information.