What sets FileBound apart from other A/P services?

One of the biggest question on everyone's lips at the IOFM Accounts Payable Conference in Las Vegas this October was: What's the difference between all these automation companies? I met with 12 companies regarding their automation products and I want to share with you what I discovered.

So in my first article in of the series, I interviewed FileBound and asked, "What sets you apart from other A/P Automation Services?" 

What sets FileBound apart from other A/P services?

* An AP-specific version of FileBound is available and it can be easily adjusted to automate the structure and workflow for your specific AP practices. This allows for rapid implementation with fewer professional services.

* Cloud-based option reduces capital expense, provides the ability to quickly scale your solution to meet your needs and reduces impact on IT (the software can be deployed on premises).

* Data extraction from invoices and other documents is available as a component of FileBound, so there is no need to acquire, configure, train on and access multiple products. This supports straight-through processing from a single interface.

* Sophisticated mobile capabilities, including mobile capture, secure mobile access to documents and workflows (allowing users to not only see documents, but approve invoices, etc.) and the ability to truly leverage the touch capabilities of mobile devices.

* Document management, capture and workflow capabilities that can address multiple needs with Finance and Accounting and across the enterprise, allowing shared costs and maximum return on investment.

* Provides analytics needed to monitor and report on AP activities.

Is FileBound an American company?

FileBound is a very American company. It was founded in Lincoln, NE, where most of the specific FileBound operations remain. Earlier this year, FileBound became a member of the Upland family of enterprise work management solutions. Upland is based in Austin, TX.

How many clients do you have in North America? and Abroad?

More than 3,000 total.

How long has FileBound been in business?

Since 2001

Is there a particular ERP system that works best with your product?

FileBound is designed for easy integration with virtually any ERP system, giving our customers the flexibility they need. However, we do have some packaged integrations products such as Microsoft Dynamics.

Do you offer outsourcing/Offshoring services of any kind?

FileBound does not directly offer outsourcing/offshoring services (other than subscription-based functionality and professional services). However, FileBound’s extensive certified partner channel can offer these services. Many of our partners specialize in AP or specific verticals, and a number operate outsourced service organizations.

Is access to a "supplier network" part of your services?

Yes, FileBound has an extensive network of partners who can provide consultation, implementation, integration, support and other professional services. These solution providers must meet criteria for training and service delivery in order to represent FileBound products.

       

For more information on FileBound vist: http://www.filebound.com

Robert Ruhno

Founder & Social Media Manager

Accounts Payable Professionals Group

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Commerce Bank's A/P Automation

This Tuesday was the workshop with Commerce Bank, titled "the 7 steps to go paperless". The

location was the second floor meeting room at the Nasdaq in New York City Times Square. In attendance that day were several people from a supermarket chain, non-profit organization, and a finance company.

Commerce Bank calls their product, ControlPay. I found their product to be a nice choice, that would fit most companies. There are different combinations of their modules that can be implemented to fit the needs of your company.

These are the three Module for Commerce Bank's ControlPay:  

Invoice Presentment - Converts all invoice data to a queryable electronic format accessible through a single online system. EIPP accepts the following invoice formats: paper, email, vendor portal, EDI and flat file. 

Approval Workflow - Automates the enforcement of business rules, eliminates error-prone manual process and maximizes employee resources by utilizing:
 > Automatic invoice approval when business rules are met > Fewer paper touch points > Preset GL coding capabilities
Improves visibility for both buyers and suppliers throughout the invoice life-cycle with:
Approval anytime, anywhere via web-based access > Expedited discrepancy resolution > Electronic access to line item detail > End-to-end electronic audit trail 

Payment - The Electronic Invoice Presentment and Payment system consolidates a single electronic payment to Commerce Bank, simplifying reconciliation. EIPP provides a variety of vendor payment options such as card, check, ACH and wire. 

Source: http://www.commercebank.com/commercial/eipp/  

The feature that stood out for me was their credit card payment program.

The Credit card payment program gives you an alternative to paying by check, ACH, or wire. Commerce Bank takes charge of contacting your vendors to have them join the credit card payment program. So in exchange for a quicker payment via credit card, the vendor will assume a 2% fee. Commerce Bank then splits this 2 percent with your company, giving you a 1% virtual discount on any invoices from that vendor. Another neat feature of Commerce Bank program is that if your vendor are already subscribe to Commerce Bank's program at other companies they will automatically be signed up to accept credit card payments at your company.

Interesting facts and statistics that were mentioned at the workshop:

* Its not considered a capital project, you can mark it as an expense.

* The average AP clerk processes 150 invoices per day.

* Implementing this paperless program will take between 90 and 120 days.

* Start-up cost is between 10 and 15 thousand dollars.

* typically about 30 percent of vendors sign up for the credit card payment program.

* 95 percent paperless this is a good target you can get close to fully paperless but never 100 percent.

Robert Ruhno
Founder & Social Media Manager
Accounts Payable Professionals Group

The 7 Steps to Go Paperless workshop

I will be attending the The 7 Steps to Go Paperless workshop on June 25th at the NASDAQ Marketsite in NYC. This is going to be a hands-on demonstration of  Commerce Bank's Electronic invoice products. I looking forward to test driving this system! Here's a link to their site: http://www.commercebank.com/eipp

You can expect plenty of pictures and a summary of what I find out about their product (all will be on my blog post, soon after the event).

If you can think of any good questions I should ask them, please add a comment. I will get the answer for you!

Cheers,
Robert

Accounts Payable Conference & Expo

I really learned a lot of good information at the IOFM’s Accounts Payable Conference & Expo in Washington, DC this past April. My plan is to write a few blog posts here sharing some of this info. Of course the most talked about subject was automation.

I was able to speak to all of the automation vendors about what sets them apart from their competitors, and what the similarities were. While this variety can make it difficult to choose, it does give your company the chance to find an automation solution that fits their needs. Other topics included A/P Best Practices, vendor discount management, and alternate payment methods (besides check and EFT).

The idea of paying your vendors via credit card, was brand new to me. But this is an idea that I will be investigating deeply. I hope to write more about what i find out.

IOFM is having another Accounts Payable Conference & Expo in October. This one will be taking place in Las Vegas. I have already decided to attend this one too. Right now, I'm just looking for a good deal on plane tickets. If you are thinking of going to this conference in Las Vegas this year, send me a message! I would love to hear from you.

Robert Ruhno
Accounts Payable Professional Group

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