In theory, your accounts payable team is there to improve supplier relations, hunt discounts, and find the best possible businesses for you to partner with. All of these come with invoices that need to be paid. This can include raw materials, software, and even freelancers and consultants. AP is there to make sure that suppliers get paid, and you get the goods and services your company needs to thrive.Īs we mentioned above, accounts payable teams work with other staff to make sure they have what they need. In large and established businesses, invoice management is usually part of the accounts payable process. And this becomes vital as their number grows.īut before tackling that, let’s say a few quick words about accounts payable. But as we’ll see shortly, there are faster and more accurate ways to handle invoices. This is standard operating procedure for most growing businesses. Already there’s plenty of double handling.īut even if the invoice arrives flawlessly with the AP clerk, there’s still the matter of entering its data into a spreadsheet or invoice processing platform, getting validation from a manager or CEO that the bill is legitimate, making the payment (via a bank), and entering all of this data again into accounting ledgers. If there are any issues with the invoice (spotted by the AP clerk), the invoice then goes back to the point of contact and then back to the supplier for changes. This is not usually a finance team member or accounts payable clerk, which means that this invoice has to be forwarded on. But there are usually multiple people involved, and there are plenty of opportunities for error.įor one, invoices are typically sent to the point of contact within a business - the user of the service.

Which doesn’t sound all that complicated. At its most simple, the process involves receiving an invoice from a third party, validating it as legitimate, paying the supplier, and noting the payment in company records. What is invoice management?Īlso known as invoice processing, invoice management is the method by which companies track and pay supplier invoices.

Business invoice definition