Picture this: Your company is struggling with time-consuming, repetitive, and error-prone manual processes in the procure-to-pay (P2P) cycle.

This leads to schedule delays, frustrated employees, and unhappy vendors, all of which disrupt your procurement process.

The solution to this all-too-familiar scenario? It’s Procure-to-Pay Automation.

In today’s fast-paced business environment, streamlining your P2P cycle isn’t just an option – it’s a necessity.

In this article, we’ll walk you through the essentials of P2P automation and show you how to take full advantage of it.

From uncovering the benefits and challenges of P2P automation, to highlighting crucial software features and key implementation steps, get expert insights from the Doxa team.

Ready to turn your P2P challenges into opportunities? Let’s dive in.

What Is P2P Automation?

P2P automation is a process where businesses use specialised software to streamline and automate manual tasks in the procurement process and accounts payable (AP) operation.

This reduces the time and effort required for manual data entry, minimises errors, speeds up processing times, and enhances overall efficiency, allowing for more accurate and timely financial operations.

What Are The Benefits of P2P Automation?

Here are the main reasons why you should automate your P2P cycle:

Saves Valuable Time and Costs

P2P automation eliminates time-consuming and error-prone manual tasks, allowing your team to focus on more urgent and strategic efforts.

It reduces processing time for purchase orders and invoices, minimises data entry errors and associated correction costs, and lowers operational costs through increased efficiency.

Additionally, it improves cash flow management through timely payments and opens up the potential for early payment discounts from suppliers.

Keeps Procurement Data Organised

By centralising all procurement-related information in a single, easily accessible system, it allows for quick retrieval of purchase orders, invoices, and contracts.

This centralisation provides real-time visibility into spending patterns and supplier performance, improving accuracy in financial reporting and auditing.

It also enhances data analysis capabilities for informed decision-making and reduces the risk of data loss or misplacement.

“With all the documents now on the (Doxa Connex) platform, Kimly and our suppliers are able to manage our business processes with greater efficiency.“

 

– Mr Louis Khoo, Director of Kimly Construction Pte Ltd

Simplifies and Eases User Adoption

User adoption is simplified and eased with P2P automation systems.

These platforms typically feature user-friendly interfaces that require minimal training and intuitive workflows that guide users through processes.

Many systems offer mobile accessibility for the on-the-go procurement management and customisable dashboards for different user roles.

Integration with existing systems ensures a seamless transition, further facilitating adoption across the organisation.

Improves Compliance With Regulatory Standards

Compliance with regulatory standards is significantly improved through P2P automation.

These systems help maintain compliance by enforcing predefined approval workflows and maintaining a clear audit trail of all transactions.

They automatically update to reflect changing regulations, provide built-in checks for policy adherence, and can generate compliance reports for internal and external audits, ensuring your procurement processes always align with current standards.

Reduces Bottlenecks in the Procurement Process

P2P automation reduces bottlenecks in the procurement process.

It streamlines operations by automating approval processes to reduce delays and providing real-time status updates on purchase requests.

This automation facilitates faster communication between departments, helps identify and address process inefficiencies, and enables concurrent processing of multiple requests, significantly speeding up the entire procurement cycle.

What P2P Processes Can Be Automated?

Let’s take a closer look at how exactly P2P automation with Doxa Connex can help you:

1. Purchase Requisition

Automating purchase requisitions allows employees to create and submit requests through an online portal.

The system can automatically route these requisitions for approval based on predefined rules, reducing delays and ensuring compliance with company policies.

2. Purchase Order

Automated purchase order creation and management streamline the process of generating and tracking purchase orders.

The system can automatically convert approved requisitions into purchase orders, send them to suppliers, and track their status, reducing manual entry and potential errors.

3. Purchase Invoice Approval and Processing

Automating invoice approval and processing ensures that invoices are matched with purchase orders and receipts automatically.

This reduces manual data entry, speeds up approval workflows, and minimises discrepancies between invoices and purchase orders.

4. Payment Processing

Automated payment processing involves scheduling and executing payments based on invoice data.

This ensures timely and accurate payments to vendors, reduces the risk of late feeds, and optimises cash flow management by integrating with financial systems for seamless transactions.

5. Vendor Management

Automating vendor management includes maintaining up-to-date vendor records, managing contracts, and tracking vendor performance.

This helps streamline onboarding, ensures compliance, and improves relationships with suppliers by providing better visibility and communication.

6. Supplier Rationalisation

Automated analytics dashboards provide valuable data for evaluating and identifying performing or underperforming suppliers based on predefined criteria.

This allows for best vendors to be selected based on performance metrics, cost, and other relevant factors, leading to better procurement outcomes.

Related Articles: Why ERP Isn’t Enough For Construction Payment Management

What Are Must-Have Features For P2P Software?

With these challenges in mind, Doxa Connex was developed with the following key features:

• Spend Analytics: Provides insights into spending patterns, helping identify cost-saving opportunities and track budget compliance through detailed expenditure data.
• Rule-Based Workflow: Automates approval processes based on predefined criteria, ensuring consistency, speeding up approvals, and reducing manual intervention.
• Centralised Storage: Organises all procurement and payment documents in one place, simplifying access, collaboration, and compliance.
• Transparent Process: Allows visibility into the status of transactions and approvals, helping identify issues and ensure accountability.
• Data Log and Audit Trail: A data log and audit trail track all system activities and changes, providing a record for compliance, security, and detailed auditing.
• Reports and Analytic Dashboard: Offer real-time insights and visual summaries of key metrics, supporting informed decision-making and performance monitoring.

Related Articles: The 6 Best Construction Procurement Software in 2024

A Successful P2P Automation Case Study

Kimly Construction, a key player in Singapore’s construction sector, stands out as a compelling case study. In 2022, they chose Doxa Connex to automate their procure-to-pay (P2P) processes.

This decision proved strategic in accelerating their journey towards end-to-end automation and digitalisation of processes.

In addition,Kimly was able to submit trade financing applications paper-free, facilitated by UOB’s partnership with Doxa Connex and Doxa’s trade financing module – marking a significant step forward in their digital transformation.

Mr Louis Khoo, Director of Kimly Construction, stated that Doxa Connex’s module enables them to:

• reduce manpower costs,
• increase productivity,
• achieve process efficiencies.

In fact, thanks to Doxa Connex, they realised a 30% reduction in man-hours spent on payment processing for suppliers and subcontractors.

Doxa Connex: Automate Your P2P Process With Ease

In conclusion, Procure-to-Pay (P2P) automation is a transformative solution that can significantly enhance efficiency and accuracy in procurement and accounts payable processes.

P2P automation allows businesses to better manage and optimise their cycle.

Enter Doxa Connex – a premier platform connecting buyers, suppliers, and financiers effortlessly.

Built on a strong enterprise-grade foundation, our highly flexible platform allows us to constantly add, improve and enhance features and workflows, especially for the construction industry.

To provide the best value for buyers, we’ve partnered with leading financial institutions including Maybank, UOB, OCBC, and more.

Our platform is trusted by prominent players in the construction industry such as Tiong Seng Group, Kimly Construction, and Sim Lian, creating a thriving ecosystem for growth.

Interested to see Doxa Connex in action?

Book a Demo Today!