Accounts Payable Imaging and
Workflow Automation (IWA)
Process Improvement
Miami-Dade County
Finance Department
Presented by:
Sandra Bridgeman, CPA, Controller
Imaging and Workflow Automation (IWA)
Outline
Purpose of the IWA project
Process prior to IWA
IWA implementation benefits
Vendor and department outreach effort
Other –
Technology, Challenges & Lessons learned
Purpose of the IWA Project
Streamline the accounts payable invoice process via:
Centralization of invoices
Adequate segregation of duties
Visibility through scanning
Electronic workflow for review and approval
Electronic invoicing
Indexed Filing
Scope: phased approach
50% volume in first 2 years
51% – 65% in 3
rdyear
Process Prior to IWA
AP Invoice Process
A semi-centralized accounts payable system
Vendor invoice is mailed to the individual department
Department staff does the review, matching and approval of
the invoice; enters information into FAMIS and forwards
original documentation to Finance Central Office
Finance AP staff reviews documentation, approves for
payment and issues check or ACH/EFT
Documents are stored for required retention periods
Inefficiencies
Manual process
Processes by initiating departments and Finance dept.
Potential abuse or fraud
Paper routed for approval
Lack of segregation of duties
IWA Implementation Benefits
Streamline the County’s Accounts Payable process
Significantly improved and simplified the retrieval/sharing process of an invoice
Eliminated paper handling during invoice processing
Eliminated the need for routing physical paper for approvals throughout various County locations
Eliminated much of the manual input of invoice information via smart look-ups
Expedited the release of payments to vendors
Eliminated the need for multiple copies of the paper invoice, various departments’ storage, and time for managing
Reduced the number of invoices not meeting the prompt payment Florida Statute and County Ordinance
Provided capability to handle an increased volume of invoices without additional staffing
Introduce a shared services concept with all invoices
IWA Implementation Benefits (Cont’d)
Lower invoice processing costs result from
Lowering administrative costs
Eliminating paper handling during invoice processing and retrieval
Print and copy savings
Eliminating of multiple departmental storage
Increased worker productivity by
Eliminating the time required to copy/file invoices
Reducing the time needed for search and retrieval
Reduced invoice receipt-to-payment cycle time by
Centralizing invoice processing
Automating routing of tasks to individuals
Improved invoice visibility and control by
Imaging the invoice as soon as received
Producing a document in electronic format
Vendor and Department Outreach Effort
Meeting with departmental sponsor
Assessment of current processes
Team visit and discussion
Table of organization
Assessment of existing process whether documented or not
Observation
Establish the idea of roles
Recommendation for new processes including IWA
Deployment schedule
Training of managers and users
Other
Implementation Challenges
Business process redesign
Introduction of new technology that requires new skillset
Technology – platform and software
EMC Documentum 6.7 platform and xCP User bundles
Retention Management
Captiva and Advanced Recognition
Brava for Docs and Redact-IT
(2) Canon ImageFormula DR-G1130 high speed scanners
Legacy financial systems: ADPICS and FAMIS
Q&A
_____________________________________________
_____________________________________________
_____________________________________________
_____________________________________________
_____________________________________________
_____________________________________________
_____________________________________________
Process Before IWA Implementation
P a p e r In vo ice P ro ce ss F in a n ce A P S e ct io n F ir e D e p a rt m e n t D v is io n s F ir e F in a n ce B u re a u P h ase S tart R e ce ive s in vo ice fro m V e n d o r via P ap e r F R D e p artm e n t D ivisio n s F R – S h o p S can s P ackin g S lip s F R F in an ce B u re au D e p artm e n t A cco u n t C le rkS can /In d e x In vo ice an d P ackin g S lip in to A p p licatio n X te n d e r . E n te r th e In vo ice in
A D P IC S
F R – Su p e rv iso r
V e rifie s in vo ice & ap p ro ve s in A D P IC S P e rfo rm F in an ce C o m p lian ce R e vie w an d A p p ro ve o r R e je ct F in an ce A P D e le g ate s fo r T ru st F u n d & R e so R e vie w an d A p p ro val o r R e je ctio n P e rfo rm T h re sh o ld R e vie w R e le ase o r C an ce l C h e ck (if n e ce ssary ) In F A M IS /A D P IC S : E n te r p aym e n t in fo rm atio n , vo u ch e r g e n e rate d. P aym e n t g e n e rate d , au d ite d an d re le ase d E n d
