Why 2023 is the Year to Automate Manual Finance Processes

However, as technology continues to evolve, new tools and applications have been developed to automatically conduct these time-consuming tasks with minimal human intervention. Utilising these technologies has dramatically impacted multiple industries, including the finance sector.

By standardising processes and automating tasks, teams can operate more efficiently, and employees can be more productive. Automation also helps reduce costs, lowers the person-hours spent on manual data entry, and minimises the risk of an error, improving compliance.

If your business hasn’t adopted a finance automation solution yet, 2023 is proving to be the perfect time to transform your finance function and embrace automation.

How Automation is Revolutionising Finance

There are a few ways automation streamlines payables processes and revolutionises the industry. These are just some of the reasons organisations are investing in automation tools this year:

1. Streamlining accounts payable and receivable

When it comes to accounts payable processes, automation software can easily spot anomalies and flag any potential errors. It also helps streamline invoice approvals, ensuring all payments are approved and completed on time. This makes the process far more accurate and efficient.

Increased accuracy, efficiency, and speedy payments also help improve vendor relations and strengthen your company’s reputation. A payables automation solution ensures invoices are quickly uploaded and processed while simultaneously reducing the risk of errors. This is possible since manual accounts receivable processes are replaced with automated workflows.

2. Perfecting payroll

Paying employees on time is crucial for employee satisfaction and retention. However, calculating payroll manually is labour-intensive and cumbersome. This is particularly true if your team is growing at a rapid rate.

Financial automation has changed this process for the better. Being able to gather and analyse data on schedules, time-keeping systems, holidays/time-off, etc., means businesses can ensure everyone is paid accurately and on time.

3. Improving reporting and analysis

Automation makes it possible to run consistent reporting and in-depth analysis. Departments and senior professionals can access real-time financial data anywhere, anytime by automating processes and using self-serve dashboards. Having accurate and up-to-date information helps with making faster data-driven business decisions.

Furthermore, automated ERP and CRM systems can pool data on customers, employees, products, sales and more, providing additional insights.

4. Adding value

As organisations need to process more and more payments, finance teams are becoming overwhelmed and are struggling to keep up using manual workflows. This means hours upon hours spent on manual data collection and entry, resulting in less time for analysis, inconsistent reporting, and an inability to provide valuable insights.

Automating these tasks frees up finance professionals’ precious schedules, allowing them to dedicate more time and energy to value-added tasks.

Almost three-quarters (73%) of finance leaders believe automation has already given their staff more time for value-added tasks. This isn’t just great for business, as automated processes are shown to increase employee satisfaction, which in turn boosts productivity and innovation.

5. Driving businesses forward through finance

C-suite members and department leaders, like marketing and sales, are increasingly calling on accounts payable and finance teams to provide raw financial data or relevant insights. Automation allows finance teams to provide correct and accurate data and information to other departments and help them craft their strategies and make critical decisions.

Because of this, the finance team is driving the business forward and helping it to achieve larger goals.

If automation is transforming finance for the better, why haven’t more businesses jumped on the automation bandwagon?

Common Objections to Automation

There are several reasons businesses are reluctant to embrace automation, one of the biggest being fear of change.

Managerial changes, investment costs, implementation, and educating employees on new processes and workflows can feel overwhelming. This notion is particularly true in 2023, with 72% of businesses expecting a recession this year, requiring a more conservative approach to spending.

Additionally, many professionals are concerned that automation will make them lose their jobs and that these new technologies will eventually replace them. Some struggle with technology overload, leading to fears of not feeling capable of adjusting to the new norm.

Furthermore, there are concerns over security risks when trusting robots to handle important financial data.

The Key Benefits You Need to Know

While these fears and concerns are valid, the advantages of financial automation far outweigh them.

• Cutting costs: Automation means fewer hours spent on manual tasks, which lowers operational costs and increases workflow efficiencies.
• Eliminating human errors: Manual tasks increase the risk of human error. Automating data entry and analysis reduces the risk of employees keying in a typo or the wrong information.
• Employee satisfaction: Employees who spend less time on tedious and repetitive tasks can focus their time and efforts on more value-added initiatives. They’re also more likely to feel more satisfied in their role as a result.
• Transparency: Financial processes often go through multiple team members before senior leaders and stakeholders sign off on them. With a payables automation solution in place and access to accurate real-time data, there’s more visibility and cross-organisational transparency.
• Scalability: If your organisation is in a state of growth, the increasing amount of data being collected can be overwhelming. You want a solution that can scale along your business as its needs grow.

What Are You Waiting For?

It’s easy to see how automation is revolutionising the present and future of the finance industry.

So, what are you waiting for? This is your sign that it’s time to invest in automation for your organisation in 2023. The more you can integrate automation into your accounting and financial processes now, the better positioned you’ll be for what the future holds.

Learn how Tipalti can transform your finance function with an end-to-end payables automation solution.