Considering workflow software to automate processes and increase efficiency?
First, let’s take a look at how workflow can be used for more than just AP Automation. Then we’ll consider whether workflow software could help your organization.
Is a Workflow Software Solution Right for You?
You’ve probably seen your share of white papers on AP Automation, but Workflow technology should be almost unlimited in its use and capabilities. It automates virtually any business process where people are involved in sharing information and documents. A few examples:
Human Resources: Onboarding New Employees
Workflow software can streamline the entire HR process. It takes tedious HR functions like onboard and offboarding and automates them. It also distributes digital paperwork to all departments simultaneously and shorten a normally lengthy acceptance process.
Procurement: Purchase Approvals
Management wants to control spending. Most manual purchase approval processes involve more levels of management than are necessary, simply to ensure that everything is reviewed. Workflow software controls the approval process. It efficiently ensures that only the right people approve purchases. This saves both time for approval and unnecessary involvement.
Management: Travel and Expense
No one likes to fill out travel and expense forms for approval and reimbursements. First, it’s a pain for the traveler. And then it’s tedious work for the accounting staff.
But workflow software automates that entire process.
Read our article Travel and Expense Management Software Makes Everyone Happier for details.
Sales: Quotations
Let’s say your sales policy requires the sales manager to review all quotes to customers greater than $50,000.00. First, workflow software monitors specific events from other systems. So when you enter that quote into your quoting or CRM system it triggers a workflow event including notifying the sales manager with all the details of that quote.
Determining if workflow Software is right for you requires looking at several factors.
These factors can help drive the decision-making process and open the doors to improved efficiency, cost savings, and process control.
We discuss these in our detail post on “How to choose an accounts payable software provider”.
- Approval Levels & Conditions of Approval
- Cost of business processes (efficiency).
- Control, Visibility, & Accessibility
- Risk (Audit Trails / Document Mgmt)
- Integration between systems
Is workflow software right for you? Let’s start with a few questions.
- Do you use email as a way of routing documents throughout the company for approvals or reviews?
- Do you have to follow-up via email or phone to check on the status of approvals?
- Is there a need for an audit trail of various documents?
- Do you require fast and easy access to documents and where they are in the approval process?
- Do you require version control of documents?
- Can you perform a process faster if it was automated?
- Can you provide a better service to your customers if you were more automated?
Did you answered YES to one or more of these questions? Then you may be a candidate for a Workflow solution. Next, click on the button below and we’ll show you how workflow automation software can save you time and money.