Today, this story was in the Washington Post. My gut tells me this is not an isolated case.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/02/19/AR2009021902964.html?hpid=sec-metro

It tells the story of how the Montgomery County Health and Human Services (HHS) office could not account for grant money and did not verify invoices and payment.
You would think with today’s advances in systems, missing money in public institutions should be very difficult. Or, perhaps those systems have not maintained the pace of change.

The stress and search for cash has hit every organization and individual in this economy. When you apply that type of pressure, surely cracks will develop. The Madoff and Stanford Financial scandals are perfect examples. Now, we have billions flowing from the government for enhancing programs just like this. The need for strong audit and controls are critical.

I have a simple hope. As the stimulus money flows, we need to invest in appropriate tracking and management to go with it. Prodagio has been working with some of the largest and best run counties in the nation on social services management and systems. Luckily, they are ahead of the game as they have already made the investments to secure the integrity of their programs. They have invested in improved social service systems to reduce administration cost, but also to minimize fraud, maintain separation of duties and provide better audit trails. The result is more money going to those who need it.

With all the recent economic changes, we decided to dig down into what is driving our Procure-to-Pay customers right now. Traditionally, the value of Accounts Payable solutions has been operational – to process invoices as inexpensively as possible. Our clients have always seen beyond core efficiency. It is not that they don’t value the operational improvements. They bank those benefits every day; but, they also see how with the right technology they can move beyond simple post-and-pay efficiencies.

Based on this experience, we see an invoice as a demand on your cash. On first blush, it seems simplistic. But when you let that perspective guide feature development instead of just operational efficiency then a new class of functionality emerges. The software no longer just ensures that bills are paid with as little cost as possible. To create maximum benefit for your organization, software needs to allow you to control timing, prioritizing and interrogation of supplier demands. This is even more important in today’s climate.

Every organization should be looking into a variety of strategies:

-Maximize discounts on bills you have to pay.
-Identify duplicate payments before a check is cut.
-Ensure you work closely with Procurement and lines of business to strategically manage critical vendors.
-Develop strategies for vendor negotiations that allow you to control timing and terms.
-Shift processing cost and data entry to vendors with Vendor Portals.
-Monitor for potential fraud by watching vendor and payment trends.
-Aid the CFO with compliance with detailed record-keeping, audit trails and process control.
-Maintain your corporate reputation and keep essential suppliers happy.

There is an article in IAPP’s February newsletter (http://www.iappnet.org/) called “Transforming AP into a Profit Center.” It corroborates the same themes our customers have been telling us.

This is a good time to give your Accounts Payable process some serious consideration. Outsourcing invoice payments to cut costs might give you some measure of efficiency; but, it won’t help you sleep better at night, manage your vendors effectively or ensure you’re not a victim to invoice fraud or errors.

Some things are too important to hand off – we think your company’s cash falls into that category.

On February 18, 2009 at 1pm EST, Imagitek, Ltd. will be hosting a live webcast: “An Invoice is a Demand on your Cash – Why Take Chances?”

This important event will focus on the things AP managers and finance executives can do to ensure invoice integrity and gain better visibility over financial obligations.

The event is free. To learn more and register, visit Prodagio AP webcast.

The Roadmap to Streamlining Accounts Payable

RSVP required.

IKON and Prodagio Software have teamed with Goodman & Associates in sponsorship of this free workshop. Nat Goodman CPA, APM, MBA and President of Goodman & Associates will lead this information-packed morning session which will earn three (3) CPE hours. He will outline a step-by-step methodology which will enable the financial manager to assess their disbursement performance in an effort to drive process improvement.

The workshop will concentrate on:
• Employing benchmarks and metrics to assess your AP process
• Balancing your scorecard
• Examining performance gaps
• Recognizing accounting & organizational disparities (Pitfalls)
• Focusing on what drives AP productivity and quality
• Identifying e-solutions
• Prioritizing process improvements
• Selecting vendors

Workshop Leader

Nat Goodman is credited with significant consulting accomplishments on five continents. Nat served as the corporate comptroller for Sears Roebuck de Mexico and the controller for Hartmarx Specialty Stores. He was manager of various individual shared-service functions including AP, payroll, general ledger, credit cards, etc.

He is the author of the International Accounts Payable professionals’ 200 Page CAPP Certification Manual and the 100 Page Accounts Payable Manual for Associates, which are the basis for their respective certification exams. Additionally, Nat was managing editor of the IAPP Newsletter. Nat is now concentrating on payables/procurement in the form of speaking engagements, seminars, writing and consulting. He co-authored IOMA’s 300+ page Complete Guide to Accounts Payable Best Practices along with their recently issued AP Shared Service Benchmarking and Analysis research report. In 2009, his Complete Guide to AP Fraud and Internal Control will be published.

Agenda
8:15-8:45 Continental Breakfast
8:45-9:00 Introduction
9:00-10:00 Workshop
10:00-10:15 Break
10:15-11:45 Workshop continues
11:45-12:30 Paradatec/Kodak presentation
12:30 -1:30 Lunch
1:30- 2:30 Prodagio Solutions ( AP workflow tool)

One lucky attendee will win a Dell Mini Note 9 netbook computer.

Space is limited, RSVP today at Prodagio Live Events.