Tag Archive - Business Process Automation

e-Invoicing is a Must Have Solution According to New Billentis Report 2013

 

e-Invoicing is critical for business viability according to the new Billentis Report sponsored by Celtrino

New Billentis e-Invoicing/e-Billing Report identifies savings of up to 80% for companies that switch from a traditional paper based system to an automated electronic system.

This report illustrates how e-invoicing allows a company to optimise its’ finances and stand out from the competition.

What you will learn from reading the report:

  • How to improve invoice management in the supply chain
  • The business case for invoice sender and receiver
  • The cost reductions for both sender and receiver
  • Success factors for e-Invoicing/e-Billing projects
  • An analysis of today’s e-Invoicing/e-Billing market

 

Download the Billentis Report now to see why e-Invoicing/e-Billing is a must have solution!

If you would like us to show you how e-Invoicing can benefit your company contact us on +353 1 873 99 00 or email marketing@celtrino.com


Posted on May 13, 2013 in B2G e-invoicing, Business Process Automation, Business Process Outsourcing, e-Commerce, e-Invoicing, eBilling, Report by
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Earth Day: Be Part of the e-Solution to Climate Change

 

Is your company doing its bit for the environment?

Mother EarthIf you have automated your invoice processes and eliminated the paper trail from your business then you are and well done! By switching from a manual paper-based system to an electronic delivery system, you are not only saving money and gaining a competitive edge in your industry but you are also lowering your carbon footprint and helping the environment.

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Posted on April 22, 2013 in Business Process Automation, e-Commerce, e-Invoicing by
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Paperless Office Solutions

 

Celtrino is on an eco-drive with its paperless office solutions.

Your company will boost your productivity and increase efficiency by using our e-Billing or e-Invoicing solutions.

Read about our ‘No Paper In, No Paper Out’ office solution featured in the AB Magazine and contact us to explore this cost savings option.

 


 


Posted on December 12, 2012 in Business Process Automation, e-Invoicing, eBilling by
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Eliminate duplicate invoices

 

Eliminate Duplicate Invoices

Ask anyone in accounts payable what takes longer to process than an invoice, and they will give a simple answer: a duplicate invoice. A standard invoice takes an unexpectedly long time to process from receipt in the post to despatch of payment, and it is this time factor that makes the entire procedure so costly. However if a second, identical invoice is received, the cost is further increased.

Continue Reading…


Posted on June 1, 2012 in Celtrino Express, e-Invoicing, eBilling, Electronic Billing, Supply Chain Performance by
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Business Processes Part 3 – Actions Post Implementation

 

Once the business case has been made for the introduction of processes and relevant systems have been identified for automation, the final stage is to implement the processes themselves. Whether the processes are for a small business, or a multinational corporation, the post implementation guidelines remain roughly the same:

Business Processes

  • Let the process grow and adapt. Process outlines which remain too rigid cannot scale as business needs change. By all means formalise the process, but allow the opportunity for future organic change and enhancements.
  • Involve others in process creation and implementation creating a shared ownership and common vision for improvement. Doing this will also overcome many of the political barriers which could otherwise prevent process realisation.
  • Maintain a culture of continual improvement. There is always room for the creation of new processes or the refinement of existing ones. Incremental changes will keep processes relevant to business needs and prevent them from becoming a hindrance in future.

Any process, internal or external, can help a business increase its levels of efficiency, but attempting a one-time, big-bang implementation is unlikely to have the permanent benefits desired. Processes need to be frequently revisited to allow for the identification of smaller improvements which will keep the process relevant. Changes in business model, customer demands or supplier will all necessitate changes to business processes – inflexible and infrequent analysis of processes will preclude this.

The responsibility for implementation of processes generally lies with management, but ultimately, all staff should be encouraged to participate in a continual process improvement.

Processes can exist as part of a supply chain management system, or as an internal operating procedure.  The scope is virtually limitless. Clearly, where computerised automation is required, a suitable platform will need to be sourced which provides the necessary framework in addition to flexibility for future refinements. Why not give Celtrino a call to discuss the Smart Admin platform and how it could help with your business process implementation projects?

 


Posted on April 5, 2012 in BPO, Business Process Automation, Business Process Outsourcing, Supply Chain, Supply Chain Management by
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Business Processes Part 2 – What can be made into a process?

 

We saw in the first instalment of this three part overview of business processes that implementation of processes carries a number of benefits based around creating efficiencies through de-duplication of effort. Having established the ‘why’, we can now shift the focus to the ‘what’.

Business Processes Typically, anything that is done more than once in any workflow becomes a candidate for conversion into a process. Look carefully at each sector of your business and identify where particular actions are repeated, taking in the smaller details as well as the larger picture; when designing processes there is nothing wrong with starting small. From the way in which a component is fabricated, down to the transfer of incoming mail onto a computerised accounts system, each department of any business has areas where efficiencies could be created by automating repetitive tasks.

Traditionally, processes are broken into two categories, Top/Down processes that address high level tasks, and Bottom/Up that automate lower level issues. Top/Down processes are created to be more general, providing a flexible guideline for completing a larger task, essentially directing the way in which a task is to be completed without specifying the exact steps to be taken. Acting almost like goals, Top/Down processes help define the ‘big picture’ and the steps required to make the final goal.

A Bottom/Up process however is far more prescriptive, acting like a recipe for the specific steps required to complete a smaller task. Typically, Bottom/Up processes, by their very design, are less flexible than their Top/Down counterparts, although it is possible to create some room for minor adjustments. Bottom/Up processes define the smaller steps required to maintain the Top/Down overview and goals.

Once potential processes have been identified, they should be implemented as soon as possible to reap the benefits immediately.

In the final part of this series we will examine the nature of ongoing process improvement.


Posted on March 23, 2012 in BPO, Business Process Automation, Business Process Outsourcing, Supply Chain Management by
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Business Processes Part 1 – What Are Processes and Why Should I Care?

 

Business Processes For any business looking to save cash, the obvious answer to look for potential efficiencies within their workflow. These efficiencies can be found in several places, but efforts to save time are often the most effective over the long term allowing for better utilisation of resources.

Enter the ‘process’ which effectively create a template for business operations which can then be repeated over and over again, de-duplicating effort and reducing the need for intervention. Over time, processes become incredibly important because:

  1. Processes save time. Identifying areas of commonality allow for repetitive systems to be created which can then be reused at each appropriate point, saving time and resources.
  2. Processes increase accuracy. Breaking the workflow into smaller segments allows for continual improvement of each sub-section, leading to greater savings in the long run.
  3. Processes allow transference of responsibility. By templating and documenting how a particular process works, the tasks can be passed on to other business units or contractors, reducing administrative burden and costs.
  4. Processes can be scaled to fit requirements. Once defined, a reusable system can automated and implemented quickly, allowing additional time for refinement for maximum efficiency.

These four positive benefits of processes, make it easy to see just how important and valuable they can be to a business. The beauty of processes is that they can be applied to virtually any aspect of a business, be it internal workflows or as a wider part of their supply chain management strategy.

Best of all, the reduction of duplicated effort by implementing a process creates the most valuable resource of all – time. And as the old saying goes, ‘time is money’.

Don’t forget to check back for part 2 in this series – ‘What can be made into a process?’


Posted on March 21, 2012 in BPO, Business Process Automation, Supply Chain Management by
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5 Ways to Reduce Administration Costs

 

Despite the turn of the year, 2012 looks set to be another year of austerity and cost reductions. Several well known names from the UK high street have set the tone by reporting less than impressive Q4 results and some are even entering administration.

Here are five suggested ways to reduce operational costs through increased backroom efficiencies.

Administration costs, Smart Admin, e-Invoicing

  1. Adopt e-Invoicing
    By converting to digital invoicing, a business can make immediate savings on staffing, stationary, postage. Factor in slightly less tangible factors such as time and the argument for e-Invoicing is hard to ignore when investing to make greater savings.
  2. Create dynamic pricing and discounting structures
    Offering customers discounts for settling payments early may reduce profits, but a healthy cash flow and balance book is preferable to a sheaf of outstanding invoices. A scale of sliding charges and fees can require intensive intervention to oversee however, so companies introducing such a system should look at implementing our third recommendation simultaneously.
  3. Automate your workflow
    To combat costly human error, introducing automation can speed each step of the payment process by removing the need for manual intervention. The less manual processing that is required, the smaller the margin for error and the less workforce required for accounts payable.
  4. Centralise
    Bring your financial operations into one department. Managing finances across different departments is time consuming, and if time is money, delays in financial processing cost your business. Cut the delays by bringing financial control into a single centralised location and you will recognise associated cost savings.
  5. Digitise your paper
    Your clients may not have an electronic invoicing and payments systems and so they will continue to return physical paperwork. As a result you will need to find a way of capturing this information and getting it into your own accounts system.

Using an electronic invoicing platform like Celtrino’s Smart Admin can help achieve each of these goals and thereby slash costs as a result. Interested? Get in touch to find out more!


Posted on February 22, 2012 in Accounts Payable, Business Process Automation, Cash Flow Management, e-Invoicing by
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Are you Over Complicating e-Invoicing?

 

The rush for the paperless office and associated riches available through efficiencies and cost-savings is a compelling argument for many businesses. They then rush through the initial planning only to discover that the complexity of such a deployment is far greater than they had initially anticipated.  Discontent is quickly followed by despair and can even result in the new system being ditched altogether.Over-complicated e-Invoicing?

What goes wrong? Many businesses are simply not prepared for the culture shock associated with the changes required to their processes and cannot adjust to the more rigid structures required. Although “touchless” systems promise the greatest returns on investment, the fact that they also affect every part of an organisation means the greatest disruption, even if it is only short-lived.

And here lies the nub of the problem. The deployment of an e-Procurement system is all or nothing; it must be implemented across the entire company simultaneously, or not at all. There are no piecemeal implementation options.

Contrast this with e-Invoicing which is the process of replacing paper-based invoice documentation with its electronic equivalent. In this scenario, all of the benefits of a touchless system are still available (reduced staff burden, reduced time to payment, ongoing reduced costs), but the impact is borne by the accounts department alone.

The implementation of an e-Invoicing system for many companies provides the perfect opportunity to test out a single paperless department and solve the common deployment problems on a smaller scale. These lessons can then be carried forward, once the business benefits have been properly recognized, and a wider deployment authorised.

The implementation of any electronic platform will always require changes to business processes, but much of the complication can be reduced by taking on a smaller challenge first. Although e-Procurement may be your company’s eventual target, an e-Invoicing roll out may provide the practice you need to get the process right.


Posted on December 19, 2011 in Business Process Automation, e-Invoicing, eProcurement by
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ERP Automation

 

ERP – It’s all about automation

Regarded by many as a must-have application for the modern business, Enterprise Resource Planning systems have become ever more common, helping companies to assume control of their day-to-day operations with a high degree of accuracy. Whether deployed at a single site organisation or a multi-national corporation, ERP has become an essential part of those businesses.

Despite the prevalence of ERP however, the major benefit of such systems is often missed. Much is made of potential cost savings, but few understand that these savings are not based on methodology or concepts, but on a reduction of duplicated effort and automation of common tasks. A business’ greatest cost is always its workforce, which is ultimately where the greatest cost savings are found.

Automate for savings

ERP automationMost business processes contain inherent inefficiencies, but it is only during analysis and benchmarking that they come to light. Unfortunately many businesses only carry out process analysis exercises during major projects. At these times resources to address such issues are often unavailable. An ERP implementation provides the ideal opportunity to not only identify inefficiencies, but also implement changes to reduce or minimise them.

ERP systems have the added benefit of not only highlighting inefficiencies, but also providing a way by which automation can completely negate them. Legacy systems typically involve the same information to be entered and manually updated several times throughout the manufacturing or production procedure. ERP platforms can reduce much of this manual data entry, progressing virtual paperwork through the production chain automatically.

This use of automation immediately reduces the amount of time spent by employees on administration, allowing them to focus on carrying out their core duties without worrying about burdensome paperwork. Eventually automation of enough common tasks will create efficiencies sufficient to allow for workforce redeployment and/or reduction. It is at this point that cost savings increase from minimal to significant, finally realising the cost savings promised by ERP vendors.

As an addendum, it is also at this point that we must delineate between those tasks that the ERP system is best placed to automate and those tasks that are best automated outside the ERP – the tasks associated with supply chain management. A common failing of many ERP projects is loading the ERP system with tasks that it was not designed to automate.


Posted on December 14, 2011 in Business Process Automation, ERP, Supply Chain Management by
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