The age of AI: Automated statement reconciliation

You spoke and we listened. We asked Xelix customers what would be truly transformative for their overstretched Accounts Payable teams. And they said ‘automated supplier statement reconciliation’.

(Okay, so maybe not those exact words. But we heard your challenges and got to work).

If your AP team is drowning in the dreaded reconciliations – and you crave more efficient AP processes and increased AP controls – take a look at our statement reconciliation software.

The problem with a manual vendor reconciliation process

Where do we start? Even the name is boring, and that’s before you start the actual process. And what a process – manual, inefficient, time-consuming. Manual reconciliations are one of those grit-your-teeth-and-get-through-it jobs that make AP teams question their life choices. As one Xelix customer put it: ‘Manual recs are the bane of my life’.

But we’re not just here to talk about making your life easier (although that would be a great outcome, don’t you agree?) We also need to talk about the strategic and operational risk associated with manual recs.

Like the fact they take so much time that AP teams often put them off and only complete them reactively.

Due to the low coverage, AP teams tend to encounter overpayment, duplicate invoices, miss credit notes and have to deal with a high volume of supplier statements and supplier queries.

The manual nature of this task also means that its prone to human error and that no audit trail exists which makes things a little difficult when trying to investigate a case.

The age of AI: reconcile supplier statements in record time

In the age of AI, ML and AP automation, anything manual tends to feel like much harder work than it should be.

In fact, you can complete your supplier reconciliation process 10x faster by using Xelix. You can also rely on an up-to-date, accurate ledger for financial reporting, as well as drive better payment-on-time performance, all whilst protecting your bottom line.

However, we understand that there’s a lot of hesitancy around the accuracy of AI. So, here’s our Head of Data Science – Paul Solomon, explaining how we ensure world-leading accuracy when it comes to Supplier Statement reconciliation. 

Be proactive with your AP controls

In a past article, we talked about the importance of being proactive rather than reactive when it comes to Accounts Payable. Proactivity means planned, ordered and in control. Whilst reactive often means chaos and calamity.

When it comes to statement reconciliation, too many businesses are struggling with reactive processes, often only performing vendor statement reconciliations when a supplier has raised a query or dispute. This firefighting approach leads to unplanned activity that can derail your day or even week.

But automating the vendor reconciliation process puts you in control. You’re no longer chained to a desk, drowning in data, trying to spot mistakes and worrying you’ll make one yourself. You’re working 10x faster and getting a list of discrepancies delivered straight to your desktop.

Here’s how it works.

As a result:

• Your supplier statement reconciliation process shrinks to a manageable size – no more bored-to-tears AP teams contemplating a new career
• You’re able to perform it more often – identifying and rectifying issues as they occur and cover a lot more reconciliations 
• You’re able to apply it to all suppliers, not just the usual suspects – and spot more issues
• Your supplier relationships will improve 

Improve your supplier relationships

The benefits don’t end there.

To the outside world, Accounts Payable might seem like it’s just about number crunching. But we know that it isn’t just about the stats and spreadsheets for you. AP processes are an essential element of relationship management. Keeping those happy who keep your books busy, is fundamental. Shoddy AP processes and controls just aren’t going to cut it.

With a regular proactive approach to reconciliations, suppliers are in the loop. Xelix highlights issues in real-time, so they can be resolved quickly, and more payments can be made on time. And that means fewer disruptive phone calls chasing up payments and a dramatic reduction in disgruntled suppliers.

Plus, you can easily flag and request missing information using an all-in-one report rather than play email ping-pong about individual pieces of data or documents. Everything is tracked within the system, providing a complete audit trail and status transparency. It’s just easier all-round.

Strengthen your AP team morale

And, of course, it isn’t just supplier relationships that improve. We’re pretty sure no-one grows up dreaming of manual checks and admin work. Tying up your team with unfulfilling tasks saps staff morale. This can lead to high turnover, reduced capacity and additional costs for your business. 

Automating your statement reconciliation process gives your Accounts Payable team time to focus on more engaging and value-adding tasks – or even just enjoy fewer late nights – and happier staff stay put.

Automated supplier statement reconciliations really is the gift that keeps on giving.

Transform your vendor statement reconciliation process with Xelix

If you’d like to see how this all looks in action, book a personalised demo with us. We're looking forward to starting the conversation with you!