As the case study details, the company already had some of its vendor data under active management, but many vendor data points required enhanced management. Critical data with inaccuracies included:  remit-to addresses, parent child connections, duplicate vendor entries and incomplete fields including TIN, email and fax numbers.

If the organization had embarked on its data cleansing efforts internally, the benefits would not have cost-justified the task. As such, it decided to work with an external partner. After evaluating a number of providers, this pharmaceutical company selected Lavante based on the power of its underlying technology and the portal it offers to access it. Lavante also offered a breadth of coverage to reach the majority of the pharmaceutical company’s vendors rather than just the top 10-20% of its vendors.

The company implemented the change process by centralizing data quality through one common channel in order to ensure accurate books. To achieve this, the solution was integrated with the pharmaceutical company’s vendor outreach and registration process through four key components: validation, updates, augmentation and de-duplication to primarily find duplicate payments.

To read more about this process, download the full case study by clicking here.
It clearly demonstrates how this global pharmaceutical company was able to recover $5MM in credit opportunities based on a total spend of $10 billion. In order to have the same EPS impact, the organization estimated they would have needed to generate between $50MM and $100MM in new sales.

An underlying platform for credit recovery proved to be the key success factor. Previous, largely manual consultant-led activities focused on only top vendors and their “statement reviews” and led to a lower recovery rate. In contrast, the Lavante platform cast a wider net, and this broader reach resulted in additional recovery opportunities that had been previously overlooked. This was critical for this pharmaceutical company as the top 10-20% of vendors were already “over-farmed” and the next tier down was where the most significant potential for recovery was found.

Procedures and Fixes for Vendor File Management,  AP Journal Online, January 2012.
Sherry DePew, Lavante’s vice president of product management, outlines the value of vendor files and an ongoing process for vendor-file cleansing.

Best Practices for Ongoing AP to AR Reconciliation in the Supply and Demand Chain, Accounting Software 411, January 2012
In this piece, Lavante CEO Joe Flynn shares valuable best practices to help companies drive a successful statement audit with their supplier base.

Finding the Dollars in the Haystack, Institute for Supply Management, December 2011.
Here, Henry Ijams, an analyst at PayStream Advisors, offers real world advice on statement auditing, with best practice methodologies in selecting a technology solution to conduct a comprehensive recovery audit that maximizes results. He outlines effective methods to uncover missing credits while reinforcing positive communication and liaison with valued suppliers.

Creative Credits – How Vendors Can Use Your Credits to Their Benefit if You’re Not Looking, Financial Operations, December 2011.
This article, written by Lavante’s vice president of product management, Sherry DePew, gives readers a unique view into the risks associated with leaving vendor credits on the books.

In addition to these resources, you’ll find a wealth of best practices and real-world guidance by joining an upcoming Lavante event or on-demand webinar.

Statement Audits: There was considerable interest in the presentation by one panelist who presented how automating the statement audit process using Lavante Recovery has delivered a steady stream of credit recoveries, beyond what was anticipated – in the first year over 1% of auditable spend was recovered. He covered how his company had moved from an inherited manual/paper based system to Lavante’s automated, web-based solution, which has provided seamless access to results through the online web portal. Lavante’s ability to automatically connect to and audit the breadth of suppliers vs. a smaller subset that a traditional recovery process would target, had an added benefit of improving communications and the overall relationship with vendors.

This focus on the importance of supplier relationships spilled over into the next hot topic the panel uncovered:

Supplier Management Portal: The need for an easy, transparent way to connect with suppliers and improve the supplier service function was another hot discussion topic. There were several presentations focused on this topic. One presenter focused on the process now underway to implement a vendor portal to the organization, leading with the findings that internal development of a supplier management portal would be cost prohibitive. Important issues in selecting a vendor were identified as: data integrity, eliminating duplicate vendors, and maintaining an accurate active vendor file. Ease of use, workflow approvals, and an increased turn-around time for approvals were also important elements cited. Questions about what incentives would drive vendors to join the network centered on the benefits vendors would enjoy and the possibilities of customizing the approaches for different types of providers.

I applaud the conference organizers (this was the first IFO conference in Toronto) in including this along with many other technology-oriented sessions at the event. Thank you to all of the panelists and audience members for a thought-provoking session. And, please check our website for more information about Lavante Recovery.

One of those industry watcher’s advice comes from a Lavante’s partners, Convey Compliance Systems, a firm that provides tax reporting software and services. Their spokesperson, Troy Thibodeau, noted that the entire 1099 reporting process had largely been overlooked by many organizations, leading to low adoption of the automation that would deliver added efficiencies and cost reductions. This attention deficit all changed when the healthcare reform act shined a very bright light on the operational and process problems that organizations face in the 1099 reporting area.

My colleague at Lavante, Sherry DePew added her expertise to the article, noting: “The majority of the people we talk to say this has given them time to get prepared. Everyone pretty much knows this is coming.”

The article expressed complete agreement that the expansion of 1099 reporting is inevitable. To best prepare to meet future requirements, companies should look to automate the process and to implement repeatable processes, both as a way to effectively manage the entire 1099 reporting process now and in the future.

For more information, click here read the entire article by Diane Sears. And, let us know what your thoughts are about this issue and how you are planning to prepare for possible changes.

During his opening remarks to kick off IFO Fusion, Executive Director, Tom Bohn spoke about the change as a more accurate representation of the group’s charter – to educate and inform its members. The IFO is more than an association of professionals; it is an institute of learning and spans capably across multiple departments in the financial and operational suites at enterprises of all sizes.

Owing its inherited membership to a number of pre-existing associations, The IFO will continue to serve all of its communities with dedicated curriculum. AP professionals that enjoyed focused networking and education at IAPP events will still enjoy the same opportunities to meet with and learn from peers.

Similarly, TAWPI members that enjoyed a consistent diet of education on automation solutions and other modes of work place improvement can still count on an uninterrupted program. And the same consistency can be expected from all of the groups now aligned under the new flag.

From this bloggers perspective, Fusion attendees not only understood the decision to unify under the new name, but they also appreciated the change. The reactions I heard from attendees at the conference showed that they are looking forward to the many benefits that will follow the announcement. “I have been coming to IAPP for 15 years,” said one AP manager from a $10b manufacturer, “and I have consistently been exposed to the most relevant ideas in my space that were going on at the time. The only problem was that I was not getting feedback on the topics that were happening in the departments outside of or adjacent to mine. The new IFO structure will expose me to all of the information I need to make good decisions and to know why I am making those decisions. I am excited!”

From the Lavante perspective, IFO Fusion presented yet another great annual opportunity to network, meet prospects and get exposed to the most cutting edge technologies and ideas in the financial space. In addition, this year’s theme: Motion Pictures, created the perfect backdrop for the event. While on the trade show floor, Lavante leveraged an Indiana Jones themed booth into an Oscar-worthy affair. If you had your picture taken with Indy, and want the digital files – let us know! We can shoot those over to you.

Here are some themes I heard rise to the surface throughout the four-day event:

• Tax & Compliance Issues: Numerous sessions and discussions were devoted to this topic. Attendees were looking not only for more understanding about regulations, but specific details on how to move from non-compliance to compliance. Two recurring examples were the changing landscape around the 1099 reporting laws and foreign citizen reporting.

• Automated, Comprehensive Statement Audits: PayStream Advisors & Lavante held a joint session presenting new research on Statement Audits as a Best Practice in Recovery Auditing, focused on the difference between traditional AP recovery audits and dedicated statement audits. The audience expressed great interest in innovative technology for statement auditing, as well as the resulting increased recovery dollars and vendor updates. Lavante’s booth was constantly filled with prospects wanting to learn more about our statement audit technology.

• Selecting & Deploying Innovative Technology: Not only were there sessions devoted to this subject, but considerable activity on the exhibit floor. I met with several Lavante customers attending the conference specifically to look for technology to help with invoicing and supplier management. The high interest in this topic was clearly demonstrated when the joint session led by Basware & Lavante, The Future of Accounts Payable: Improve Data, Improve Processes, Discover Technology had the highest attendance of any conference session (over 100, standing room only).

• Building a Strong, Motivated Team: Many sessions and considerable “buzz” was devoted to how to motivate and build a strong, successful AP team. I saw sessions and witnessed many hallway conversations that focused on cost-effective ways to reward and recognize internal staff in order to build the best, most productive team possible.

These are just some of the main themes that I picked up at the conference. I welcome feedback from others attending the conference about great sessions or themes you saw emerging.

The same innovation and fearlessness that was present in Joe’s Irish ancestors are apparent in him today. Joe’s achievements in technology are a simple matter of identifying an opportunity and being undaunted in the pursuit of his goals. Joe grew up in the recovery audit industry and recognized a massive opportunity for large corporations to recover credits that are sitting unrecognized at their suppliers. He also realized that the manual processes used in traditional recovery audits were not going to scale to support an ongoing, full-scale review of supplier AR records, leaving a significant percentage of these dollars undiscovered. Joe founded Lavante (originally Audit Solutions) in 2001 with the vision to build the processes, technology and applications to help companies find these untapped dollars and drive them to their bottom line. From Joe’s original vision, Lavante has grown to not only a well-respected solution but one that has fundamentally changed the recovery industry, with solutions that help Fortune 1000 companies across industries find more dollars, with near immediate results.

Joe was just one worthy recipient in the ITLG ceremony, surrounded by a many others who have all descended down from a proud and hard working culture. Lavante thanks the ITLG for creating this award, for shining a well-deserved spotlight on Irish and Irish-American leaders, and for recognizing our fearless leader Joe.

I’d like to use this format to repeat a few of the Lavante SIM features called out by Sears in her article.

1. It drives compliance from suppliers. It automates the process of gathering information that would cost your company money, time, and resources if it were missing. Perhaps most importantly this year, with the 1099 tussle, Lavante SIM performs an automating taxpayer identification number (TIN) match to ensure quality data. In addition, it automates the process of collecting data and documents by pinging suppliers when their expiration dates are approaching. Lavante SIM also offers an out-of-the-box solution for new supplier set-up and data collection, taking note of details such as the supplier’s status as woman- or minority-owned.

2. It’s affordable.Lavante SIM is a software-as-a-service (SaaS), so organizations don’t have to invest their IT time in setting it up in-house. Also, organizations can start with one or two components and add others as they go. Known for its high-yielding audits in the profit recovery space, Lavante offers a unique solution for keeping the cost of its vendor portal product low. Lavante’s recovery services can pay for the project.

3. It‘s scalable. Charges are based on the application’s ability to get suppliers to comply with data requests. It’s a subscription model based on the number of suppliers per month per tier.

Check back for more links to media coverage of Lavante SIM.

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Wow!  If you have not already seen them online, IAPP has posted a number of videos relating to FUSION 2010.  They have been professionally produced and the do a great job capturing the energy of the week long event.  Whether you were there and you want to relve the fun or if you missed out and you want to see what everyone is buzzing about:  Follow the link to FUSION Videos to view all the fun.