Case Studies

Sharing our real-life examples from past experience with clients. These showcase how specific problems were solved, what approaches were taken and what results were achieved.

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Accounts Payable Automation

The automation of purchase invoice processing reduced staffing requirements from five accountants to one person, whilst delivering improved accuracy, timely reporting, significant cost savings, and enhanced cash flow control.

Result

saving £250,000 in costs | 6,000 staff hours | 4 employees

Company Profile

Manual Purchase Invoice Processing, Delayed Payments and Poor Expense Management System

Issues caused by manual invoice processing:

Errors and payment delays:	Mistakes and late payments strained supplier relationships.
Resource drain:	Four additional employees had to support AP, disrupting their primary roles.
Cash flow gaps:	Poor prioritisation and misaligned payment terms impacted liquidity.
Staff retention issue:	High workload and lack of growth opportunities led to resignations.
Contractor reimbursement issues:	Delayed reimbursements led to the loss of key suppliers.
Inefficient expense management:	The outdated system lacked flexibility, causing late submissions and not offering employees flexibility of using business cards instead of personal.
Late month-end reporting:	Month-end reporting was delayed by five days due to significant backlogs in invoice processing.
Interdepartmental conflict:	The finance and operations teams were in constant disagreement, blaming each other for inefficiencies and errors.

Implementation of an All-in-One Solution: Invoice Automation, Expense Management and Virtual Cards. Revision of Accounts Payable (AP) Policy and Introduction of Strong Control Environment, Achieving Timely and Accurate Reporting whilst Improving Cash Flow Management.

Recognising the urgent need for transformation, S.I.A. Consultancy conducted a comprehensive review of the company’s accountspayable and expense management workflows and implemented these solutions:

Introduction of an AP automation tool:	Researched and implemented the most suitable software solution for automated invoice processing and payments.
Enhancement of review controls:	Introduced a two-step approval process involving both operations and finance teams for verification. Implemented controls for timely reporting, payments, and fraud prevention.
Improvement of cash flow management:	Real-time reporting of purchase invoices enabled better financial forecasting and ensured timely payments. Reduced invoice processing time contributed to improved cash flow through significant cost savings.
Virtual cards implementation:	Virtual payment cards were introduced to streamline expense management, replace personal credit cards with business cards, and enable single-use card payments for one-off supplier transactions.
Improvement of contractor expense and payment management:	New software allowed management of complicated company-specific contractor relationships, addressed exclusively by one software provider – Payhawk.
Replacement of expense management software:	The outdated system was replaced with a modern solution offering streamlined approval processes, mobile app expense submissions, and business card integration for travel expenses. This eliminated reimbursement delays and reduced both expense and payment processing time.
Implementation of all-in-one system:	The search for invoice automation presented an opportunity to implement an all-in-one system comprising invoice automation, expense management, and virtual cards for multiple entities.
Supplier payment policy update:	Payment terms were aligned with business needs through the creation of a payment terms matrix for different supplier categories, preventing future cash flow issues.
Introduction of AP financial metrics and KPIs:	Introduced AP financial metrics and KPIs to monitor timely invoice and expense processing, ensuring prompt approvals and payments.
Cross-departmental collaboration and training:	Finance, operations, and IT teams received comprehensive training on the new system to ensure seamless adoption and cross-departmental collaboration.

By deploying these solutions, AP processes became structured, reliable, and efficient.

Efficiency, Cost Savings, Improved Cash Flow Management and Staff Retention Rate.

The transformation delivered immediate and measurable results:

Quantitative Savings:

6,000 staff hours saved:	Automation reduced manual invoice processing efforts, allowing employees to return to their core responsibilities.
£250,000 in cost savings:	Process efficiency improvements and better financial controls led to significant cost reductions.
AP staff count down from 5 to 1:	Reduced AP staff count from five employees to one person.
Qualitative Improvements:
Improvement of working capital and cash flow management:	Real-time AP reporting improved financial forecasting and supplier payment scheduling.
Implementation of review procedures:	Implemented AP financial metrics and KPIs for financial monitoring and planning.
Better staff retention and engagement:	Employees no longer had to work excessive hours, as their roles shifted to higher-value analytical tasks. The finance team improved their relationships with other departments. Increased staff engagement allowed them to build new skills, having a positive impact on staff retention rates.
Stronger supplier relationships:	With timely payments, the company regained supplier trust and ensured uninterrupted service delivery.
Enhancement of CO₂ reporting:	AP automation facilitated enhanced CO₂ reporting data collection.
Consolidation of financial processes:	Streamlined expense and payment management across all business entities.
Strengthened control environment:	Introduced 2-step approval by the operations team and review controls by the finance team.

AP automation is no longer a luxury—it is a necessity for businesses looking to eliminate errors, free up valuable resources, and improve cash flow management. The success of this transformation demonstrates that a well-structured AP process is key to long-term financial stability and operational excellence.

If your business is struggling with inefficient AP processes, it’s time to embrace automation and drive sustainable financial growth.

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Accounts Payable Automation

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