We are all fond of those good old Excel sheets. Scratch that, they are the most dreaded demons of the business world, sharing the throne with no coffee in the maker, and Friday evening client calls. They have been the backbone of accounting and finance management for companies of all niches and sizes, and every employee at one time or another has been at war with them. Enter: automation. Excel’s key cause of extinction in the finance department and the modern-day solution to a multitude of growth issues, automation is your financial guru’s best friend.
While some businesses have already rushed to implement the latest automation tools into their systems, others hesitate as they aren’t certain to what extent such an investment would simplify and streamline the entire process. If you belong to the latter group, make sure to check out the following advantages of automation, so that you can start benefiting from this innovation as soon as possible.
Managing your internal structure
Late salaries and failed payments shouldn’t be an issue in any modern company. No matter how rare, such instances drive employees to lose trust in the employer and start looking into other options, of which they certainly have many. Poor database maintenance and other delays your financial department may face can all be handled with the right automation approach.
For organizations that need to manually approve and enter every request, it’s no wonder that delays and late payments such as these end up affecting not only the bottom line but the reputation of the brand as well. If you systematically automate your employee payments, you’ll provide another reason for your employees to stay.
Not to mention the fact that contemporary businesses work with a range of collaborations, from in-house teams, agencies, to freelancers. They all expect to have options with different payment methods, and a unified, automated system should be able to do just that.
Cashflow improvement
If your business depends on a multitude of customers, you have by now probably encountered a common issue: late payments missed payments or failed renewed subscriptions from old customers. These little missteps cause chaos when it comes to your cash flow, as you then don’t have the funds you need to pay your vendors, to cover your own internal expenses, and simply run a business without risking delays and ruined relationships.
Implementing automation in the shape of reliable direct debit services helps your business streamline recurring payments from regular customers. Such solutions are an excellent option for people who like to use different devices to pay for your services, and you can also include a range of payment options to make sure everyone is satisfied. Plus, you can safely integrate these solutions with your own internal systems by utilizing flexible API’s and ensuring secure data handling through PCI compliance.
Streamline client and vendor relationships
In addition to diversity in payment methods, personalization has become a business buzzword every single company needs to consider when crafting client and vendor contracts. That simply means that nobody will settle for a cookie-cutter contract solution or a template offer. They all want their needs considered and taken into account when crafting that specific arrangement. That is perfectly possible even with your accounting alone working on such efforts, but it takes precious time, costs large sums of money, and it often fails to deliver.
An automated invoicing platform can help tailor-make every single invoice to each client and vendor you work with. These platforms can calculate everything based on the data they gather from your collaboration and turn them into packages that correspond with their particular requirements.
Saving time and funds
All of the examples above have two main things in common that link them into this one, the underlying benefit of automation: saving time and money. When you can spare your accounting department the grueling task of invoicing and your employees the time-consuming manual data entry, you’re allowing them to spend their time on what they do best and what actually brings money to your business.
The bottom line is that automation defines and redefines how you run your business, by removing hurdles and obstacles at every turn and letting your business operations flow. All that energy and all those hours will be better spent on finding creative solutions to run and grow your business.
Eliminating human error
Finally, another common truth that connects all the dots into a unified picture is increased efficiency. Not that software is infallible or that humans always make mistakes without exception, but human error is a frequent issue in every company’s accounting department.
Automated systems override this possibility, as they rely on raw data, and they are capable of spotting mistakes sooner rather than later, which helps your organization adapt when needed. Automation simply helps standardize how your entire finance department works, in turn saving your employees the stress and the pressure of making sure every digit and every letter is where it’s supposed to be.
We have a long way to go when it comes to innovating for the future of business and automation in general. However, these perks alone go in favor of this option, and you shouldn’t ignore the positive impact automation can have on your business and your future.
