Category: Software

Knowing Your Procure To Pay Risks Makes Good Financial Sense

How much oversight do you really have over your accounts? You might have a fair idea of what is coming in and going out every month, but what do you know of the detail and your procure to pay risks? The fact is that it would be unfeasibly time-consuming to have every payment you make or receive checked against invoices, statements and other paperwork. That’s why duplicate payments, fraud and other glitches can cost businesses so much. The more transactions you make, the more money you are likely to be losing due to payments that are unnecessary. An accounts payable audit helps you to find where the leaks are in your system, throwing up warning signals when it seems like you have paid clients or suppliers when you shouldn’t have done. Recovery audit software allows you to gain back what you have lost over time.

Often the problem will be innocent enough. The average invoice might have something like twelve fields of data in it. Fill out or copy one of these wrong and the result could be an inaccurate payment – perhaps too much, perhaps too little, perhaps something that has been paid already. The mistake could have happened at your end or when the invoice was raised. However, in some cases it’s more dishonest than this. Unscrupulous suppliers might double-send an invoice, knowing that you don’t have the systems in place to catch such tricks. The amount might be familiar, and so it goes through the accounts without a second thought.

Duplicate payments and other types of overpayment can add up to a significant fraction of a firm’s turnover. If you engage in high volumes of low-value transactions, then even a small proportion of these will start to make a dent in your profit margin – and could mean the difference between sinking and staying afloat. Carrying out an accounts payable audit will often pay for itself the first time you do it. However, you should learn about procure to pay risks as soon as possible, because the longer you leave it the lower the chances of getting back your money. Companies go out of business, and individuals die or move away. If this has happened then realistically there is not a good chance of being compensated. Perhaps more importantly, you need to know what is going wrong now – it won’t just be past mistakes. There may be instances of ongoing fraud you need to protect yourself against, or cases where repeated problems occur month after month, and cost you more and more as you go on.

Please visit https://www.fiscaltec.com/ for further information…

Overpayments, Missed Tax Rebates – what can go wrong in Accounts Payable?

In the 1970s, many enterprises expanded or merged to form complex corporate structures. At the same time, many began to outsource more of their functions than usual, developing a need to process hundreds, sometimes thousands of invoices as well as the regular pay roll functions. To solve this problem, the tradition of regular accounts payable audit was born.

Nowadays, most companies of a certain size rely on outsourced specialist companies to create functional and efficient accounts payable audit and reduce or, preferably, eliminate the revenue loss that always comes with overpaid invoices, duplicate payments, misapplied tax, unclaimed rebates, inaccurate currency conversions, VAT and discount adjustments, and all the other little things that can go wrong when running a big and complex company with a robust financial operating system. Because although a couple of incorrect payments to a contractor or supplier may not seem much on their own, they have an insidious way of adding up sometimes to millions of dollars.

Traditionally, a recovery audit is undertaken at regular intervals to correct any miscalculations, errors or even deliberate fraud attempts by contractors, suppliers or staff. These audits are undertaken after payments have been completed, and often end up considerably increasing a company’s bottom line. Usually a recovery audit, as well as identifying specific mistakes, will also spot problems in management or process which may be allowing these mistakes to occur. Then, the workforce are trained and systems changed in an attempt to reduce the mistakes made in compliance and correct payment.

Now, many of these accounts payable suppliers use recovery audit software to complete a constant and efficient survey of effectiveness throughout the year. Modern recovery audit software comprises a set of tools which can be operated by accounts payable departments to monitor compliance and weed out incorrect payments or duplicate payments. These analyse payment history through web-based on-demand systems which monitor transactions deeply.

With this kind of transaction monitoring, customers are discovering a large number of historical overpayments – which can be requested, either by the accounts payable company or, if preferred, by the company itself. Patterns can also be revealed which may indicate a problem in processing systems, an inefficient or even fraudulent staff member, or a consistently dishonest contractor.

Drilling down into data electronically removes human error and provides clear and readable evidence of patterns of fault, error or simply systems that are outdated and can be altered to see an increase in bottom line profit. No wonder that so many managers are adopting this new recovery audit software as a key service for their businesses!

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The experts choice for Accounts Payable Audit support

As with every change and with the crossing of each new frontier, the constant development of business – and the constant revolutionising of accounting technology and multiplication of business models and practices – presents companies with new challenges and new problems. Your Accounts Payable department is now a greatly more complex beast than its predecessors of even a decade ago were: and it is charged with weighty and serious new responsibilities. What’s more, any increase in the size of your AP department, let alone in its complexity, inevitably opens the door to an increased range of faults: and they can add up. The new complexity and range of the ways in which AP departments receive payments has created mind-boggling new tasks – and this means new dangers of things falling between the cracks. In a more complex, modern business, old problems like fraud, duplicate payments and overpayment still loom large, but in new ways.

Stamping out everyday mistakes like duplicate payments, faulty procedures or even failures to get the most out of the software that you use demands effective self-auditing. In order to really get to grips with the challenges of a modern and expanding AP operation, you need an outstanding Accounts Payable audit system. That’s where Fiscal Technologies €™AP Forensics software service comes in. AP Forensics is an easy-to-use system which can give you an oversight of your whole AP operation from A to Z.

The technology choices that businesses make are now crucial to the success of your accounts payable audit operation. The recovery audit software that you use has to be absolutely top of the range or else it is simply useless. Fiscal Technologies’ accounts payable audit software package AP Forensics falls firmly into the former category. One of AP Forensic’s greatest virtues is its simplicity. The system is designed to be as straightforward and intuitive for AP professionals as possible, so that information gleaned from your AP Forensics audit can be quickly converted into effective corrective action.

Accounts Payable Audit software isn’€™t the only important weapon in Fiscal Technologies’ armoury. Recovery audit software, designed to assist with recovery of money lost through overpayments or other errors which are detected after the transaction has been completed, is a vital tool: AP Forensics has the software solutions that are needed for effective recovery audits, as well as audits of your AP departments procedures.

Fiscal Technologies€™ decade of experience in the AP field points to the fact that if your staff are not adequately motivated; or if they are not suitably prepared for the fast pace of technological and organisational change, then even the most well-meaning management strategies for improving AP will leave your team feeling shell-shocked rather than empowered. AP Forensics is the software package that you need that can deliver the clear information and hard facts that AP teams require to navigate their way confidently through the changing AP environment.

Please visit http://www.fiscaltec.com/uk

Bottomline Technologies: best bet for BACS

“The past is a foreign country: they do things differently there.” – So says Leo Colston, the hero of L.P. Hartley’s famous book The Go Between. Undoubtedly this is true of the worlds of business and computing when we look back to 1968 from the vantage point of the present day. Despite the inroads into the popular imagination made by programmes like Mad Men, the general impression one has of business life in the 1960s is of a rather sleepier, simpler age: the image of gentlemen in sharp suits executing business deals in a formalistic and gentlemanly manner, their days punctuated by long and alcoholic lunches. This world, in which old boys’ networks rather than social networking sites were the order of the day; when computers were frequently bigger than the plant machinery they counted or ran; when ‘bugs’ in computers more often than not were genuine beasts stuck in the works – seems to be separated from the ruthless, iconoclastic, fast-paced and carnivorous world of post-1980s economic life by a whole lot more than 46 years.Â

But one thing has remained unchanged in those 46 years: BACS payments. Invented in 1968 by Dennis Gladwell of the Joint Stock Banks Clearing Committee, BACS began life as the Inter-Bank Computer Bureau, it cut out the time-consuming and inefficient system of paper-based transfers between banks. Today, thanks to constantly-improving BACS software, BACS is continuing to cut down on paper usage, and make payments more reliable and rapid, for thousands of firms around the world. Since 2005 the clearing-house has been moved from a telephone-based system to BACSTEL-IP servers, and BACS has really come into its own as an online service, making for even quicker transfers.Â

Even though some other services are challenging for its spot as the world’s leading payment transfer service, over 5 billion BACS payments are made every year, and while some competitors may claim to have faster systems than the BACS software, the majority of all the workers in the UK still receive their wages via BACS.

The continued dominance of this banking behemoth means that the BACS-accredited training schemes offered by Bottomline’s dedicated educators, who know the BACS system inside and out, are of irreplaceable value for businesses – and the same goes for the BACS and Faster Payments software which Bottomline services have developed. When it comes to the leading worldwide payments system, Bottomline Technologies lead the way in BACS software.

Please visit http://www.bottomline.co.uk/ for further information about this topic.

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Bacs payments allow you to automate your accounts processes

Since bacs came onto the scene in the late 1960s, it has grown in popularity until now, some 44 years later, when it is utilised by the majority of organisations in the UK. Bankers automated clearing services allows financial transactions to be processed electronically, meaning that cash and cheques are no longer necessary for the vast number of big payments – anything from wage packages to bills. Bacs software allows businesses, charities and other organisations to enjoy the benefits of this, which are numerous. Consequently, those groups which do not make bacs payments are becoming fewer and fewer in number. One of the biggest benefits of bacs is security. Transferring funds electronically means that money does not have to be handed over in person, and cheques do not have to be filled out or cashed. The potential vulnerabilities of online processing notwithstanding, this makes for safer payments. This is of particular use to employers with large numbers of staff; pay day would require keeping significant quantities of cash on the premises, or else writing large numbers of cheques.

Speed is another benefit. Bacs clears within a maximum of three working days, but in reality it is usually much faster. FPS (faster payments service) is practically instant, meaning that money appears in the recipient’s account almost immediately after it has been sent.

But one of the most significant benefits to businesses and other organisations is the automation of accounting processes that bacs allows. Bacs software can be integrated with accounting software. This results in a proportionally higher degree of predictability for finances and a better oversight of cashflow. Payments can be scheduled for a given point in the month – pay day being the perfect example – and so surprises due to unpredictable payments are less likely to occur. This means that overdrafts and interest charges are less likely to be used and had.

All in all, there are many reasons why organisations have used bacs payments and are continuing to do so. The chief benefit of bacs comes down to convenience – and the peace of mind that results from that. Bacs software allows payments to be automated, as well as being done safely and swiftly. Speed is still occasionally an issue, but FPS has avoided this in the vast majority of cases (some 95 percent). In any case, CHAPS and SWIFT processing are available for an additional fee, and these have a guaranteed (same day) time frame.

Please visit http://www.bottomline.co.uk/ for further information about this topic.

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Accounts payable audit systems can protect from fraudulence and error

Is your organisation paying more than it needs to? Look to world-class accounts payable audit software to detect unnecessary duplicate payments, as well as invoicing errors, compliance issues and supplier fraud. Recovery audit software can be used to help your Accounts Payable team in their efforts to control and improve processes.  Using this software takes away the need to employ costly Recovery Auditors to identify and recover duplicate payments. Instead, by empowering your own Accounts Payable teams with the right tools, costly auditor fees are cut and internal processes are improved.

There is a significant risk that medium and large organisations pay their supplier invoices twice. Duplicate payments are one of various overpayment errors that go undetected in the accounts payable process, and usually the most pricey. The total amount overpaid, one way or another, can run into many thousands of pounds or more for small or medium-sized businesses.

If you are uncertain whether this is an issue for your organisation, recovery audit software providers can usually provide proof with an AP health check that is often offered for free to qualifying organisations. This check consists of a partial analysis over several days to demonstrate any errors, compliance issues or supplier fraud within your system. This evidence then forms the basis for a sound business case.  The benefits of using this software are chiefly cutting unnecessary costs – which is no small benefit. It is important to act quickly as the opportunity of recovering extra payments drops each month. This is because every month some of your suppliers go out of business, merge or get bought. Old invoices cost more to recover, so cost increases with each month, too, and so it makes sense to secure a health-check as soon as you can in order to act on any inconsistencies.

The software is easy to use, and requires no special training. In fact, free online training is often offered by the provider. Tailored specifically to your business’s needs, fraud and risk are reduced and profitability increased. When put into place before a payment run, the software prevents unnecessary payments and therefore avoids the high expense of recovering money externally or internally.

For effective prevention and protection from fraudulence and error, improvement of your cost efficiencies and current AP systems, recovery audit software provides the answer. accounts payable audit programmes can process all past payment data for duplicate payments, helps you comply with internal and external guidelines, and protects valuable working capital – all at a low cost of ownership.

Please visit http://www.fiscaltechnologies.com/ for further information about this topic.

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Bacs software prioritises confidentiality

It doesn’t matter what kind or what size of business you are in, it goes without saying that it has in common with all businesses the need to make and receive payments. Indeed, the very definition of the word business implies the practice of acquiring or selling goods or services. The most commercially successful businesses tend to be those that make highest number of exchanges; for those with their sights set on topping the market, buying and selling the right commodities at the right price becomes an art to be repeated as frequently as possible. With an increased number of exchanges comes an increased level of responsibility, however, clients will expect to pay for and receive their goods quickly and without encountering mistakes or delays. bacs software can help meet these clients’ demands by minimizing errors and time lapses because, quite simply, BACS payments are both efficient and almost infallible. There was once a time when BACS were synonymous with slowness – sometimes taking over three days to clear. Now it is a different story; these automated payments represent one of the fastest and most secure methods of exchanging money.

The improved service provided by BACS means that increasing numbers of businesses are using this payment method to conduct the transactions they are involved in. The fact that one improvement has been in security has been a key factor in this increase: optimum levels of security really are paramount in business because not only do they keep businesses’ secrets confidential and their revenue protected against fraud, they also safeguard the banking and personal details of clients.

Customers who feel appreciated by the businesses they deal with are much more likely to use a company’s services or invest in their goods again. Indeed, in the opposite situation clients who feel badly treated are likely to complain and blight the reputation of a business. Altogether, businesses and their clients are advised to use BACS software to make and receive their BACS payments. Anything other than bacs has simply not stood the test of time and proved itself to be efficient.

Please visit http://www.bottomline.co.uk/ for further information about this topic.

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An accounts payable audit might throw up surprising results

Accounts departments, just like any other department in a business, are subject to human error. Even if your computer networks are infallible, or at least remove the most obvious problems, there are still the weak links in the chain: the people who enter the numbers and send the invoices in the first place. And unfortunately, more so than other departments, accounts are more likely to be exploited for financial gain. This is where an accounts payable audit can come in extremely handy, and might turn up some surprising results. Errors such as duplicate payments, and deliberate fraud in accounting, can cost your business large amounts of cash that you may not have. Of course, you may be able to discover the discrepancies and solve them yourself, but this takes time and, therefore, money; there is also the reality that if you did not see them the first time, you’re unlikely to come up with much new the second or third time through. The law of diminishing returns states that the more time you spend on the problem, the less efficient you will be. That’s where recovery audit software can be worth its weight in gold.

No one wants to think that their business is inefficient – or, worse, that con-artists are exploiting it. However, the reality is that if you own a business, there are almost certainly problems in the accounts system. In an ideal world, for many reasons, these would not exist. Some ballpark figures suggest that error rates equal roughly 1 percent of turnover on average; others maybe a little more or less. That money could be better spent on paying staff and suppliers, or paying down debt. Errors may be unavoidable, but allowing them to go unchecked is not.

If you’re in any doubt about the upside of recovery audit software, then check with the suppliers. If they are worth your money, then they should be able to guarantee that the cost of the package will pay for itself – perhaps even straight away. Plus, if having those procedures in place means that you will avoid duplicate payments and other overpayment errors in the future, you will only continue to profit on your investment. An accounts payable audit is a straightforward way of recouping past losses and preventing future ones. At a time of uncertainty, no-risk ways of doing that can only be a good thing.

Please visit http://www.fiscaltechnologies.com/ for further information about this topic.

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