2019 Financial Leaders' Benchmarking Report
12 P2P Benchmarking Insights
There is no doubt that knowledge is power. Just consider this example from one of the top grocery chains in the US.
When a senior director benchmarked his company’s accounts payable performance, he discovered payments were being issued more frequently than typical of other firms. So he reduced payment frequency from daily to three times per week, the company now saves more than $4 million annually.
Examples like these are why apexanalytix offers free benchmarking opportunities that can help financial services teams make informed moves that are sure to pay off. No more guessing.
Our most current benchmarking report consolidates data from three sources: a survey of accounts payable performance, a survey of technology adoption by AP, P2P and financial shared services teams, and a survey of the action plans of senior financial executives.
Cumulatively, this data reflects the experiences of more than 300 financial leaders around the globe across 34 industries – from automotive and banking to transportation and retail. Most participants work for companies with annual revenues of $2 billion to $10 billion-plus.
Here are just 12 of the many insights we’ve uncovered – many of them opportunities for breakthrough changes that can get your team noticed:
Controls & Risk Management
1. Though accounts payable recovery audits and statement reviews are commonplace among benchmark participants, other promising audit opportunities are largely ignored – from escheatment and pricing to taxes on goods and services.
2. AP organizations typically own the controls/compliance function, but few have adopted a broad range of protections. One example: Less than half of respondents screen vendors before payments are made.
Key Performance Metrics
1. Best-in-class performers have transformed their operations with 100% touchless invoicing and payment processing. Median and bottom percentile performers, though, lag well behind.
2. Cost per invoice varies widely across industries (from $0.77 in telecom to $8.14 in oil and gas) – as does the calculation process.
Working Capital & Cash Management
1. 27% of the firms in our benchmark survey have adopted 40 or more standard payment terms in markets around the globe. Only 18% have five or less.
2. Only 40% of benchmark participants have adopted early pay discounting as a cash management strategy. 42% fail to even track early-pay discount opportunities.
Organization & Partnerships
1. Most companies in our survey still organize accounts payable and procurement under separate leadership. To span the divide, two out of three say they promote collaboration across functional siloes to optimize performance, improve working capital and reduce risks.
2. Offshoring remains the exception, not the rule. Of those who have adopted offshoring, 46% use captive resources, while 54% use outsourcing partners.
Newer Technologies
1. More than 40% of respondents in our technology benchmark survey have plans to adopt new technologies to transform their current P2P processes.
2. Unfortunately, 90% of respondents feel unprepared to get the most out of new technologies – highlighting the need to consider partnering with tech-savvy providers.
Technology for Supplier Information Management
1. Many companies in our tech survey have yet to automate supplier information management. Half still rely on manual data capture during supplier registration. Surprisingly, more than one in five are capturing vendor data from the first invoice submitted.
2. Less than a third of those surveyed regularly look for duplicate vendor records – a significant factor in costly duplicate payments.
Want to know more?
Request access to our Sneak Preview: Ultimate P2P Benchmarking Report Webinar or download the 2019 Benchmarking Report.
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