NetSuite document management for AP departments
Accounts payable runs on documents, and manually keeping track of those documents can be a nightmare.
The procure-to-pay process requires a huge variety of documents, including vendor contracts, emails, proposals, certificates, insurance policies, and letters. All those documents are rarely in the same place. They could be attached to an email, stored on a device, or, in the case of paper documents, sitting on a desk, stuck in the wrong file folder, or — worst case scenario — lost or destroyed.
Without a central system to track and record AP documents and link those documents to transactions and communications, your business has limited visibility and control over its accounts payable.
In this article, we’ll look at how you can manage AP documents in NetSuite. First, we’ll look at how well NetSuite’s native document management functionality handles AP documents, Then, we’ll explore how an integrated AP automation solution with AP-specific document management features may be a better choice for your business.
Let’s dive in.
Why you need document management for accounts payable
Handling documents is a major challenge for finance teams. Each AP transaction generates vendor invoices and can include purchase orders, and shipping receipts. For a business that processes 12,000 transactions per year, that’s 3,000 documents that need to be verified, recorded, and stored every month (36,000 annually).
AP departments can easily become overwhelmed by the need to track, enter, verify, and record all those documents. But the problem doesn’t stop there. Any time you need to check a document or confirm an invoice detail or purchase order, it can kick off a wild goose chase as employees search emails, file cabinets, hard drives, cloud storage, and desk drawers for missing documents.
The problem isn’t going away either – in a 2023 survey by Stampli and Treasury Webinars, 80% of AP departments said they expected an increase in the volume of invoices their teams would need to process, and 53% said the complexity of those invoices would increase as well.
In other words, more documents to manage.
This challenge hasn’t escaped the notice of CFOs and controllers. In Stampli’s 2021 survey of finance leaders, over one-third (35%) of leaders said they mainly invested in AP automation to reduce the amount of paper their teams manage. Workflow bottlenecks were the second biggest reason (33%), followed by reducing the time employees spend on low-value tasks (29%).
Let’s look at the benefits of implementing document management systems.
Benefits of document management systems
Most AP teams have a system to manage documents, but without automation, even the best-designed document management process will bog down, or documents will slip through the cracks. For example, suppose a company doesn’t have a central address for all vendor communications or clear routing rules. In that case, documents can quickly end up in an inbox and never make it to accounts payable. Or in the case of paper documents, if a document isn’t scanned and captured, it could get lost or destroyed – leaving AP with the task of contacting the vendor for a new copy.
To help businesses manage their documents efficiently, many ERP providers, including NetSuite, include automated document management features in their solutions. Here are the benefits of implementing automating document management:
Improved productivity
As mentioned, AP teams can get bogged down in managing documents. Implementing a document management system using optical character recognition (OCR) technology can scan, digitize, and store documents, streamlining document processing and freeing AP employees to focus on higher-value tasks.
Better security
Invoices, purchase orders, and other AP documents contain sensitive business information. A document management system ensures that businesses can track documents and protect them from unauthorized access. For paper files, this meant locking them in file cabinets. Document management systems digitally store documents in a secure, centralized location.
Complete audit trail
Having a formal document tracking and storage system ensures that every document is recorded, making it easier for auditors to locate crucial documents when needed.
Oracle NetSuite customers can use NetSuite’s enterprise-grade document management system, File Cabinet, to centralize and manage their AP documents.
NetSuite document management
NetSuite provides a system that businesses can use to add reference documents to any record to facilitate tracking, indexing, and keeping documents organized. The documents themselves are stored in the NetSuite File Cabinet, a cloud-based storage and content management system bundled with the NetSuite platform. You can use the system to store and manage documents and attach them to almost any record type for many project management and business workflows, including accounts payable.
NetSuite document management has several business benefits:
- Documents are automatically attached to the record.
- A centralized interface where teams can manage content.
- Support for document templates, PDFs, image files, and Microsoft Office files.
- Secure document management managed by NetSuite’s authentication system.
- Users can drag and drop documents into File Cabinet on their desktop.
- Support for electronic signatures.
File Cabinet works as a virtual drive in NetSuite to organize and store files. NetSuite users can upload documents to the File Cabinet, where they are accessible to other NetSuite modules. The documents can then be attached to records within NetSuite, making the documents searchable and accessible from within the ERP. There is an additional fee for File Cabinet storage based on the amount of storage the customer needs.
NetSuite File Cabinet is a powerful system that can assist AP teams in managing their documents. However, if your documents and data are in different systems and can’t be automatically integrated into NetSuite, you’re stuck with manually tracking down, scanning (for paper documents), and entering the documents into File Cabinet. By forcing your AP team to rely on manually entering documents, this limitation could compromise the effectiveness of your document management system as your business grows.
The best solution is to invest in an accounts payable automation platform that offers AP-specific automated document management and seamless NetSuite integration.
Integrated AP document management for NetSuite
Leading AP automation platforms like Stampli offer document management tailored to the unique challenges facing AP teams. Designed with AP document processing they use AI and machine-learning (ML) capabilities to learn your company’s procedures and process complex invoices, POs, and other AP documents.
Here’s how implementing an integrated AP automation solution with NetSuite optimizes AP document management:
Seamless integration with NetSuite ERP
Many AP platforms offer integration with NetSuite to share data and communications between the two platforms and provide a single source of truth for AP data. Leading platforms provide API integrations that enable real-time data synchronization, providing actionable data to stakeholders across the organization.
Stampli’s NetSuite integration is built in-house and supports all NetSuite fields, functionality, and use cases. It can be integrated in days, not months, with no changes to your existing NetSuite setup and no need for an expensive project-based implementation or expensive consultants. Stampli synchronizes AP data, documentation, and communications with NetSuite to make document management fast and seamless.
“What I appreciate most about the Stampli system is its user-friendliness,” said a Stampli customer. “It allows for seamless access to invoices from various vendors, with the added convenience of always having these invoices available on NetSuite, simplifying the process of searching for information. The automation feature is particularly impressive, as it eliminates the need to manually review all invoices—Stampli takes care of this, which is fantastic! Additionally, the ability to write comments, request information, and obtain approvals from one or more individuals enhances the collaborative and efficient nature of the system.”
Faster and smarter data entry and coding
Most AP automation platforms use optical character recognition (OCR) to scan and digitize paper documents and image files like PDFs. They offer digital storage and can often synchronize documents with NetSuite. Leading AP solutions go beyond OCR scanning by leveraging ML to automatically enter document details.
Stampli’s AI, Billy the Bot, learns your cost accounting rules and AP processes to automatically extract and code invoice details, including custom fields. “I like that Billy can read vendor’s invoices after scanning, and i do not need to enter the invoice manually,” commented one Stampli customer. “Stampli is helping me solve the problem of processing invoices manually, and this saves me time and helps in my productivity.”
Automated 2- and 3-way matching
Invoice matching in NetSuite can be complicated, requiring users to navigate multiple menus and screens. AP automation platforms attempt to streamline invoice matching by automating two- and three-way matching processes. However, many solutions don’t offer complete synchronization with NetSuite, so AP users still need to manually compare invoices, POs, and receipts.
Stampli supports full 2- and 3-way matching in NetSuite. It syncs live PO data with NetSuite so AP teams don’t need to go searching for documents. It also automatically checks invoices against POs and receipts within Stampli, which means users don’t need to switch from Stampli to NetSuite to find the receipt.
Centralized and accessible document storage
AP automation platforms securely store documents in a central, searchable location, making it easy for users to find documents when needed. Digitally storing documents also helps your business maintain a complete audit trail and keeps documents safe and secure.
“Organization is a big plus with Stampli,” says one Stampli review on G2.. “…being able to search and go back months and months without having to flip through papers. Also good to have a trail for everything to keep everyone accountable.”
Simplified communications
AP platforms simplify AP communications by providing a central dashboard, replacing email, text, and phone call, and helping users track documents. Stampli’s interface centralizes all communications and documentation on the invoice itself, making it easy for users, approvers, and auditors to review all the invoice information at a glance.
Stampli’s user interface “is extremely smooth and intuitive, offering not only a modern and clean look, but also a lot of impressive capabilities,” says one Stampli customer. “ I like the fact that when you are handling an invoice – whether coding, approving, or authorizing for payment – you see the invoice image, the coding screen, and the audit feed all in one screen. For coding, the AI has already demonstrated its learning capability just under two months into using the software; and additionally, you can click any text in the invoice image to copy it and then be able to paste it into the coding fields on the other side of the screen.
There are so many other little – or big – features that showcase Stampli’s attention to detail when it comes to making AP easier. One of the best has been the audit feed, which is visible whenever you view a specific invoice. It shows all steps that have been taken in processing the invoice (i.e., changes to coding or invoice image, approvals, etc.), including who did what and when. With this feed, I also like that you can ask questions of other users – or even vendors – from within Stampli and receive a reply, all of which occurs within the feed that is visible whenever you are viewing an invoice.”
Streamlined vendor onboarding and document capture
AP teams can spend a lot of time onboarding vendors and ensuring that all vendor documents (contracts, certificates, insurance policies) are recorded and up to date. Many AP automation platforms provide vendor portals that centralize vendor communications and allow vendors to upload documents.
Leading platforms feature advanced vendor portals that provide automated self-serve vendor onboarding, document compliance, and communications. For example, Stampli’s Advanced Vendor Management solution automates onboarding by capturing and storing critical vendor documents. Procurement and AP teams can easily check these documents to confirm if a vendor complies with supply chain requirements before sending orders.
One Stampli customer commented, “Stampli provides a compatible platform with our accounting software system that helps make the payment process easier…The vendor management portal has also been very helpful to our vendors in updating their information with us and asking us questions on specific invoices.”
Document lifecycle management
Most automated document management systems automatically track document expiration and renewal dates and remind users when a document is about to expire. Stampli’s Advanced Vendor Management solution ensures vendors comply with documentation requirements by tracking time-sensitive documents like contracts, insurance certificates, and professional certifications. When a vendor document is about to expire, the system prompts the vendor to upload an updated version. The system will automatically withhold payment if the vendor doesn’t update the document.
One contractor says Stampli “features a great vendor management system for subcontractor documents that makes vendor management for construction companies a breeze. It is intuitive and easy to implement and use by a wide variety of technology proficiency levels. Stampli is solving our problem of becoming data entry-heavy and our accounting team being bogged down with manual tasks rather than high-value tasks.”
Empower NetSuite AP document management with Stampli
Stampli is the industry leader in accounts payable automation and the best AP document management solution for NetSuite.
Other AP platforms promise seamless NetSuite integration and document management but only deliver limited functionality. Their solutions can read basic data and write simple objects but require expensive custom development or reconfiguring your ERP. Only Stampli delivers a pre-built integration that supports the full range of NetSuite’s native functionality right out of the box.
“Stampli is the solution we’ve been looking for,” says a Stampli customer. “Easy set-up and integration with NetSuite…Support is provided by an account manager that directs your implementation and remains with your account on a permanent basis afterward. The relationship that is developed during implementation is maintained after go-live.
Chat Support with a live human is outstanding. They respond quickly and have been able to resolve every problem that we have had. They were even able to make recommendations for NetSuite configurations to help resolve and ongoing problem that our previous service provider could not even diagnose.
[Stampli] provides a single source of receiving and processing ALL of our bills into one platform and syncing with NetSuite. We no longer have ‘exceptions’ with our complicated processes that a platform cannot handle. If Stampli cannot handle it by it native features alone, there are simple workarounds that have been able to work out perfectly. No expensive customizations or bypassing of their system is required.
Built for NetSuite certified
Stampli is a Built for NetSuite certified SuiteApp that meets all of NetSuite’s security, data privacy, and overall quality standards. It sets itself apart from other financial automation platforms by excelling in three key areas:
- Easy implementation: Avoid huge development projects. You can integrate Stampli with NetSuite in days, without needing to reconfigure your ERP or adjust your AP policies.
- Future proof: No constraints on future growth. You add or change NetSuite functionality anytime, with full backwards compatibility if you choose not to change.
- Up to date: Stampli supports new versions of NetSuite as soon as they’re released and is highly responsive to feature requests.
Contact Stampli today to set up a free trial and take control of your AP document management.
