THE MODERNIZATION AND AUTOMATION OF
accounts payable (AP) was on track to become
mandatory in many countries even before the
COVID-19 pandemic. But global shutdowns
accelerated AP digital transformation, and com-
panies relying on manual payables processes
struggled to maintain operations.
“ The pandemic hammered home that orga-
nizations need not only full visibility into their
supplier universe but also true business continuity
that’s independent of physical offi ce locations,”
says Klaus Andersen, CEO of Basware, a global
cloud-based procure-to-pay and e-invoicing
solution headquartered in Finland.
AP automation is essential for a success-
ful enterprise, Andersen says—for cash fl ow
management, saving time, data-backed decision-
making, and more. He predicts three major trends
for 2021.TREND 1.Artifi cial intelligence (A.I.) and
machine learning will accelerate innovation
One of the core facets of AP automation
is the elimination of paper invoices and the
ability to receive quality data electronically. The
once-standard optical character recognition
technology relies on mapping each fi eld from
every new invoice. A.I. and machine learning have
completely revamped that model. Basware’s
SmartPDF AI, for example, uses machine
learning to convert data from PDF invoices into
an electronic format with a high level of data
accuracy and gets smarter over time, making
invoice processing faster and less wasteful
without manual eff ort.
“ Transforming an unstructured PDF invoice
into a structured e-invoice, agnostic of lan-
guage, sounds easier than it is,” Andersen says.
“In a few years, we’ll move toward increased an-
alytical capabilities leveraging A.I. and machine
learning. But for 2021, a lot of businesses can
make great gains with just the data visibility.”TREND 2.E-invoicing legislative mandates will
spread to more regions
Historically, the private sector has instigated
AP automation. But recently, government-
mandated invoicing standards in places like
Germany and India have increased, and Andersen
expects that trend to accelerate.
“Right now, there’s a lot of variance between
countries,” Andersen says. “ The pandemic is ad-
vancing the conversation about how legislation
can standardize the AP process and help protect
against tax and IT fraud, among other benefi ts.”TREND 3.The AP professional’s role will evolve
As automation solutions give AP profes-
sionals more bandwidth and data, their role is
quickly evolving, says Andersen.
“ They’ve historically been operators, in
principle, ensuring things are fl owing through
the system,” he says. “ With AP automation,
they can focus on just the exceptions, freeing
them up to help guide the business in terms of
‘Here’s what’s going on, and here’s where we
can improve.’”
Specifi cally, Andersen adds, AP profession-
als will increasingly need to interpret data and
translate it into business analyses, then com-
municate actionable insights to the C-suite for
enterprise success.
And that’s the kind of next-level, data-backed
decision-making that AP transformation can
enable—powering the innovation that will help
companies thrive in 2021 and beyond. ■WHAT THE FUTUREHOLDS FOR APAUTOMATIONThe pandemic has brought AP transformation
into sharp focus, proving that automated
payables processes are key for cash fl ow
management, saving time, decision-making—
and enterprise success.CONTENT FROM BASWARE“THE PANDEMIC
HAMMERED HOME
THAT ORGANIZA-
TIONS NEED NOT
ONLY FULL VISIBILITY
INTO THEIR SUPPLIER
UNIVERSE BUT ALSO
TRUE BUSINESS
CONTINUITY THAT’S
INDEPENDENT OF
PHYSICAL OFFICE
LOCATIONS.”
KLAUS ANDERSEN
CEO, Basware