The Global State of AP Automation Survey

Thank you for taking our short AP automation survey! All data is anonymous, and you will receive a link to the resulting report in a few weeks' time.

As a thank you for completing this survey, you will find a link to download our State of the Shared Services Industry VAW, worth $500!

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* 1. What is your job title or primary function?

AP Manager / AP Supervisor

Finance Manager

CFO / VP of Finance

Controller

Shared Services Executive

Business Analyst

Financial Systems

Other (please specify)

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* 2. Where are you based?

UK & Ireland

France

DACH

Benelux

Nordics

Eastern Europe

Other (please specify)

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* 3. What best describes your organisation’s approach to Accounts Payable (AP) automation? (Select best answer)

We are fully automated (electronic invoices and statements, automated matching, reconciliation, supplier notification, query management, exceptions handling etc.)

We are partially automated

We plan to automate our processes in the next 6 months

We plan to automate our processes but don’t have a start date / more than 6 months out

We are still investigating what AP automation could mean to our business

We have no plans to automate our processes

Other (please specify)

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* 4. What organisational model have you deployed for AP?

Single centralized AP location

Shared Services model across regions

AP is entirely outsourced

AP is partly outsourced (mainly transactional activity)

AP function sits in the business unit / decentralised

Other (please specify)

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* 5. How many AP clerks are employed globally to deliver AP services and activities? (Including scanning, filing, indexing, coding, matching, reconciliations etc.)

< 5

6 – 20

21-50

> 50

I don't know

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* 6. On average, how much does your company invoice each month? (US$)

< $5M

$5M – $50M

$51M – $100M

$101M – $500M

$501M - $1B

> $1B

I don't know

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* 7. On average, how many SUPPLIER invoices does your organisation process per month?

< 5,000 / month

5,000 – 20,000 / month

20,001 – 50,000 /month

50,001 – 75,000 / month

More than 75,000 / month

I don't know

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* 8. On average, how many COMMERCIAL invoices does your organisation process per month?

< 5,000 / month

5,000 – 20,000 / month

20,001 – 50,000 /month

50,001 – 75,000 / month

More than 75,000 / month

I don't know

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* 9. What type of invoices are you processing? (indicate most appropriate % per category; all answers should add up to 100%)

	10%	20%	30%	40%	50%	60%	70%	80%	90%	100%	Don't know/not sure
E-invoicing / EDI	E-invoicing / EDI 10%	E-invoicing / EDI 20%	E-invoicing / EDI 30%	E-invoicing / EDI 40%	E-invoicing / EDI 50%	E-invoicing / EDI 60%	E-invoicing / EDI 70%	E-invoicing / EDI 80%	E-invoicing / EDI 90%	E-invoicing / EDI 100%	E-invoicing / EDI Don't know/not sure
Paper/PDF/electronic	Paper/PDF/electronic 10%	Paper/PDF/electronic 20%	Paper/PDF/electronic 30%	Paper/PDF/electronic 40%	Paper/PDF/electronic 50%	Paper/PDF/electronic 60%	Paper/PDF/electronic 70%	Paper/PDF/electronic 80%	Paper/PDF/electronic 90%	Paper/PDF/electronic 100%	Paper/PDF/electronic Don't know/not sure
Keyed manually	Keyed manually 10%	Keyed manually 20%	Keyed manually 30%	Keyed manually 40%	Keyed manually 50%	Keyed manually 60%	Keyed manually 70%	Keyed manually 80%	Keyed manually 90%	Keyed manually 100%	Keyed manually Don't know/not sure
Via supplier portal	Via supplier portal 10%	Via supplier portal 20%	Via supplier portal 30%	Via supplier portal 40%	Via supplier portal 50%	Via supplier portal 60%	Via supplier portal 70%	Via supplier portal 80%	Via supplier portal 90%	Via supplier portal 100%	Via supplier portal Don't know/not sure

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* 10. On average, what percent of payments are paid...? (indicate most appropriate % per category; all answers should add up to 100%)

	10%	20%	30%	40%	50%	60%	70%	80%	90%	100%	Don't know/not sure
Early, with payment discounts	Early, with payment discounts 10%	Early, with payment discounts 20%	Early, with payment discounts 30%	Early, with payment discounts 40%	Early, with payment discounts 50%	Early, with payment discounts 60%	Early, with payment discounts 70%	Early, with payment discounts 80%	Early, with payment discounts 90%	Early, with payment discounts 100%	Early, with payment discounts Don't know/not sure
On-time, no penalties	On-time, no penalties 10%	On-time, no penalties 20%	On-time, no penalties 30%	On-time, no penalties 40%	On-time, no penalties 50%	On-time, no penalties 60%	On-time, no penalties 70%	On-time, no penalties 80%	On-time, no penalties 90%	On-time, no penalties 100%	On-time, no penalties Don't know/not sure
Late, but no penalties	Late, but no penalties 10%	Late, but no penalties 20%	Late, but no penalties 30%	Late, but no penalties 40%	Late, but no penalties 50%	Late, but no penalties 60%	Late, but no penalties 70%	Late, but no penalties 80%	Late, but no penalties 90%	Late, but no penalties 100%	Late, but no penalties Don't know/not sure
Late, with penalties	Late, with penalties 10%	Late, with penalties 20%	Late, with penalties 30%	Late, with penalties 40%	Late, with penalties 50%	Late, with penalties 60%	Late, with penalties 70%	Late, with penalties 80%	Late, with penalties 90%	Late, with penalties 100%	Late, with penalties Don't know/not sure

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* 11. On average, how many supplier inquiries (via email or phone) do you receive each month?

< 500

500 – 1000

1001 – 2500

2501 – 5000

> 5000

I don't know

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* 12. On average, how long does it take to resolve a supplier inquiry?

Real-time, via self-service capability

< 10 minutes

10 minutes to half an hour

Half an hour to half a day

> half a day

I don't know

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* 13. On average, how long does it take your team to process an invoice? (Including sorting, data capture, filing, matching, compliance, etc.)

Automated so < 30 seconds

30 seconds–2 minutes

2 – 5 minutes

5 – 10 minutes

10 - 20 minutes

>20 minutes

I don’t know

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* 14. As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, how has the total number for each of the following changed?

	Increase	Decrease	No change	I don't know
Invoices processed	Invoices processed Increase	Invoices processed Decrease	Invoices processed No change	Invoices processed I don't know
Paper invoices processed	Paper invoices processed Increase	Paper invoices processed Decrease	Paper invoices processed No change	Paper invoices processed I don't know
Electronic invoices processed	Electronic invoices processed Increase	Electronic invoices processed Decrease	Electronic invoices processed No change	Electronic invoices processed I don't know
Invoices processed straight-through (no human touch)	Invoices processed straight-through (no human touch) Increase	Invoices processed straight-through (no human touch) Decrease	Invoices processed straight-through (no human touch) No change	Invoices processed straight-through (no human touch) I don't know
Discounts taken on invoices	Discounts taken on invoices Increase	Discounts taken on invoices Decrease	Discounts taken on invoices No change	Discounts taken on invoices I don't know
Employees in AP team	Employees in AP team Increase	Employees in AP team Decrease	Employees in AP team No change	Employees in AP team I don't know
Ave. time to process an invoice	Ave. time to process an invoice Increase	Ave. time to process an invoice Decrease	Ave. time to process an invoice No change	Ave. time to process an invoice I don't know
Ave. cost to process an invoice	Ave. cost to process an invoice Increase	Ave. cost to process an invoice Decrease	Ave. cost to process an invoice No change	Ave. cost to process an invoice I don't know

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* 15. Which of these processes are already automated or considered operational priorities for your finance team going forward?

	Already automated	High priority for 2020	Will implement in 1-3 years	No plans / I don't know
Invoice Scanning	Invoice Scanning Already automated	Invoice Scanning High priority for 2020	Invoice Scanning Will implement in 1-3 years	Invoice Scanning No plans / I don't know
E-invoicing / EDI	E-invoicing / EDI Already automated	E-invoicing / EDI High priority for 2020	E-invoicing / EDI Will implement in 1-3 years	E-invoicing / EDI No plans / I don't know
Data capture / OCR	Data capture / OCR Already automated	Data capture / OCR High priority for 2020	Data capture / OCR Will implement in 1-3 years	Data capture / OCR No plans / I don't know
Automatic invoice matching	Automatic invoice matching Already automated	Automatic invoice matching High priority for 2020	Automatic invoice matching Will implement in 1-3 years	Automatic invoice matching No plans / I don't know
Online invoice exception handling	Online invoice exception handling Already automated	Online invoice exception handling High priority for 2020	Online invoice exception handling Will implement in 1-3 years	Online invoice exception handling No plans / I don't know
Online supplier query management	Online supplier query management Already automated	Online supplier query management High priority for 2020	Online supplier query management Will implement in 1-3 years	Online supplier query management No plans / I don't know
Workflow / invoice approval	Workflow / invoice approval Already automated	Workflow / invoice approval High priority for 2020	Workflow / invoice approval Will implement in 1-3 years	Workflow / invoice approval No plans / I don't know
Automated compliance checks	Automated compliance checks Already automated	Automated compliance checks High priority for 2020	Automated compliance checks Will implement in 1-3 years	Automated compliance checks No plans / I don't know
Online or mobile approvals	Online or mobile approvals Already automated	Online or mobile approvals High priority for 2020	Online or mobile approvals Will implement in 1-3 years	Online or mobile approvals No plans / I don't know
Full analytics and reporting	Full analytics and reporting Already automated	Full analytics and reporting High priority for 2020	Full analytics and reporting Will implement in 1-3 years	Full analytics and reporting No plans / I don't know
T&E Automation	T&E Automation Already automated	T&E Automation High priority for 2020	T&E Automation Will implement in 1-3 years	T&E Automation No plans / I don't know
Spend analytics	Spend analytics Already automated	Spend analytics High priority for 2020	Spend analytics Will implement in 1-3 years	Spend analytics No plans / I don't know
Advanced analytics (predictive/prescriptive)	Advanced analytics (predictive/prescriptive) Already automated	Advanced analytics (predictive/prescriptive) High priority for 2020	Advanced analytics (predictive/prescriptive) Will implement in 1-3 years	Advanced analytics (predictive/prescriptive) No plans / I don't know
Outsourcing of invoice processing	Outsourcing of invoice processing Already automated	Outsourcing of invoice processing High priority for 2020	Outsourcing of invoice processing Will implement in 1-3 years	Outsourcing of invoice processing No plans / I don't know
ERP integration	ERP integration Already automated	ERP integration High priority for 2020	ERP integration Will implement in 1-3 years	ERP integration No plans / I don't know
Automated T&E expense management	Automated T&E expense management Already automated	Automated T&E expense management High priority for 2020	Automated T&E expense management Will implement in 1-3 years	Automated T&E expense management No plans / I don't know
Dynamic / variable discounting	Dynamic / variable discounting Already automated	Dynamic / variable discounting High priority for 2020	Dynamic / variable discounting Will implement in 1-3 years	Dynamic / variable discounting No plans / I don't know
Automated supplier onboarding	Automated supplier onboarding Already automated	Automated supplier onboarding High priority for 2020	Automated supplier onboarding Will implement in 1-3 years	Automated supplier onboarding No plans / I don't know
Robotic Process Automation	Robotic Process Automation Already automated	Robotic Process Automation High priority for 2020	Robotic Process Automation Will implement in 1-3 years	Robotic Process Automation No plans / I don't know
BPM Workflows	BPM Workflows Already automated	BPM Workflows High priority for 2020	BPM Workflows Will implement in 1-3 years	BPM Workflows No plans / I don't know
Vendor self-service portals	Vendor self-service portals Already automated	Vendor self-service portals High priority for 2020	Vendor self-service portals Will implement in 1-3 years	Vendor self-service portals No plans / I don't know

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* 16. What are the key drivers for automating POs / invoices? Please rank from most important (1) to least important (10)

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* 17. Which ERP System(s) does AP engage with? Please check all that apply

Oracle EBS

Oracle Financial Cloud

SAP Business One

SAP S/4Hana Cloud

SAP ECC

Lawson

NetSuite

Peoplesoft

JD Edwards

Epicor

Sage

Intacct

QAD

Infor

iRely

Microsoft Dynamics

Custom built / I don’t know

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* 18. Which of the below statements apply regarding your use of ERP systems?

Our entire company or organization is on the same ERP system, including AP

We use a different ERP system in AP than used in other departments

Our AP team uses multiple ERP systems in one location

Our AP team uses multiple ERP systems in multiple locations

I don’t know

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* 19. What is preventing your organization from switching to automated AP solutions? (Select only your top 5 options)

Impact of COVID-19

Lack of capital

Lack of internal resources to support projects

Lack of a compelling business case

Lack of an internal champion to push for these initiatives

Lack of support from IT for implementation

Dissatisfaction with current solutions on the market

Concerns about managing the change

Concerns about lack of security / risk of fraud

Poor past experiences with technology initiatives

Competition among other projects internally

Resistance from suppliers

Lack of technical knowledge among employees

Lack of Partners for implementation

Other (please specify)

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* 20. Is cloud service for AP processing something you/your organisation is considering? If so, what would be your implementation preferences?

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* 21. If you would like to be the first to receive the resulting report from this survey, please leave your email address below:

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