Have you ever wondered where your processes stand against industry leaders or how you can take your services and organizational procedures to state of the art levels? Are you frustrated because you don't think you have the finanical or human resources needed to employ 'best' practices? This handy resource provides documented strategies and tactics for accounts payable used by several highly admired companies. You'll gain practical knowledge you can turn into "Best" (or Almost Best) Practices as well as examples of practices to avoid.   Order your copy today!

Table of Contents:
Introduction xi Chapter 1 Invoices 1 Invoice Handling: Approvals 1 Forwarding Invoices 6 Verifying Invoice Data 8 Invoice-Coding Standards 11 Short-Paying Invoices 16 Paying Small-Dollar Invoices 19 Handling Unidentified Invoices 21 Handling Invoices without Invoice Numbers 23 Case Study: How One Pro Took Accounts Payable Out of the Picture when Resolving Customer Discrepancies 25 Chapter 2 Checks 29 Check Printing 29 Check Signing 35 Check Stock Storage 40 Distribution of Checks 42 Check Fraud 45 Rush or Emergency Checks 50 Case Study: Information Sheet: Segregation of Duties 54 Chapter 3 Operational 57 Duplicate Payment Avoidance 57 Paying When the Original Invoice Is Missing 61 Limiting Calls to Accounts Payable 63 Petty Cash 65 Supplier Statements 69 Case Study: Expert Demonstrates How to Put the Web to Work for Accounts Payable 71 Chapter 4 Master Vendor File 77 Master Vendor File Setup 77 Using Naming Conventions 81 Making Changes to the Master Vendor File 85 Master Vendor File Cleanup 87 Case Study: Experienced Accounts Payable Pro Shares Master Vendor File Control Secrets 90 Chapter 5 P-Cards 97 Design of the P-Card Program 97 Establishing Procedures 99 Setting Controls 101 Increasing Usage 105 1099s and P-Cards 106 Terms 108 Rebates 110 Case Study: P-Cards Improve Accounts Payable Process at PETsMART, Rock-Tenn, and Rouse 111 Chapter 6 Travel and Entertainment 119 Formal Policy 119 Cash Advances 123 T&E Report Form 125 Verifying Data 127 Handling Receipts 129 Reservations 130 Reimbursing Employees 132 Unused Tickets 133 Case Study: Making the Most of Direct Deposit 134 Case Study: TransUnion’s Successful Low-Tech, Low-Budget T&E Solution 136 Case Study: Follow IBM’s Lead: 21 Steps to an Award-Winning T&E Process 139 Case Study: How Zurich America Developed Its Own Electronic T&E Report 145 Chapter 7 Regulatory Issues 151 1099s 151 Sales and Use Tax 154 Unclaimed Property 156 Case Study: How to Avoid Sales and Use Tax Audit Disasters 159 Case Study: A Typical Company’s Unclaimed Property Experience 162 Chapter 8 Cash Management 167 Taking Early Payment Discounts 167 Payment Status Information for Vendors 170 Bank Accounts and Fraud 172 Other Cash Management–Related Initiatives 174 Case Study: General Electric’s Approach to Electronic Invoicing and Payment Processing 176 Chapter 9 Technology 181 Imaging and Workflow 181 The Internet 185 E-Invoicing 187 Case Study: PPL Electric Offers Lessons on Setting Up an Accounts Payable Imaging Solution 189 Case Study: An Accounts Payable Web Site 194 Case Study: How the Accounts Payable Manager at Merck Overhauled Department Procedures and Technology 199 Chapter 10 Communications/Customer Relations 209 Payment Status Information for Vendors 209 Communicating Relevant Information to Vendors 211 Communicating with Internal Customers 214 Improving the Procure-to-Pay Cycle 217 Case Study: Interactive Voice Response Frees Accounts Payable from Annoying “Where’s My Money” Calls 219 Case Study: How Automated Accounts Payable and Purchasing Systems Mesh at BNSF 222 Index 229