Organisations across all industries are feeling the impact of the current economic downturn and looking for ways to cut costs and increase efficiencies without disruption to their productivity. Ideal solutions should be implemented swiftly; leveraging earlier IT investments and not requiring large capital investments.

According to the European Commission, businesses across Europe can save up to 18 billion € by using an e-Invoicing solution. The Aberdeen report from May 2007 quotes a reduction of processing costs of 74 – 89%. Whether you are looking to cut costs quickly or sustain your business for future growth, OB10 will help you achieve your goals:

Reduction in costs – OB10 customers reduce by typically 60%
ROI in less than one year
Improve efficiency – removing manual tasks
Sustain your business growth

Focus within your organisation – improve efficiency and reduce costs
We all know that paper invoicing is inefficient, expensive and error prone. It uses expensive resources to manually input data and deal with supplier queries due to lost invoices, incorrect or missing information resulting in inefficiencies and inaccuracies which can affect cash flow management and effective forecasting.

Imagine if the manual invoice handling process could be removed. If data was received directly into your accounting system – containing all the information you require. As a business you would immediately increase efficiency, reduce processing time and costs and rely on invoice data for cash flow and forecast management.

Electronic invoicing from OB10 enables your suppliers to send data in their preferred format directly to your accounting system. We will work with you and your suppliers to ensure you receive reliable, tax compliant electronic invoice data. This not only enables you to remove manual input from the process and to focus staff on tasks that add value to your organisation, but also provides accurate real-time data to improve working capital and management reporting.

> Find out more on how e-Invoicing from OB10 works

Get the most from your suppliers
There has never been a more important time for buying organisations to support their supply chains. Suppliers are an integral, essential component of your business. Many suppliers are struggling due to the drop in business volumes, late payments and pressure being placed on them to squeeze profit-margins. It is important to you and the success of your business that your suppliers can continue to offer their services or products through the economic downturn – for your own benefit.

Reduce your costs and support suppliers with Supplier Payments
The Supplier Payments service is a powerful combination of e-Invoicing and innovative supply chain financing from Abbey UK Corporate Banking, bringing benefits to buying organisations and suppliers alike.

Developed with our partner Abbey UK Corporate Banking, this proven working capital solution reduces the cost of finance for the whole supply chain. In contrast to most other forms of supply chain financing, the payment is provided in the form of early cash to the supplier. Because payment is made early, your suppliers benefit from a reduced cost of finance and are able to provide services or products to their full potential. At the same time, you are able to support your suppliers during this difficult economic situation whilst maintaining your working capital position. Alternatively you may choose to negotiate a reduction in the cost of goods purchased.

www.ob10.com

This article is from E-invoicing Platform. Read the original post at: OB10: potential savings e-invoicing up to €18 billion.

The importance of the CEN/ISSS Workshop deliverables
The Adobe whitepaper shows once again the importance of the deliverables of the CEN/ISSS Workshop deliverables. At this point the Workshop is in its second phase, having delivered at least one groundbreaking deliverable: the Draft Good Practice Guidelines. These guidelines are available here, here and soon on www.cenfiscalesguidelines.com Some groups with other interests on e-invoicing do not quite agree with these Guidelines. But we arguably can not ignore the fact that this is a serious attempt to remove one of the major barriers on e-invoicing: uncertainty on e-invoicing.

Intelligent PDF: removing barriers?
The intelligent PDF approach presented by Adobe could also serve as a mean to remove a barrier to e-invoicing: adoption in a B2B environment.

E-invoicing is acknowledged to be an unstoppable innovation across and outside Europe. Taking a leap in the future, full scale e-invoicing would mean that the vast majority of organisation is not only sending e-invoices, but also –and this very important– receiving e-invoicing.

One of the results from a major survey conducted by e-business watch showed that most of the companies prefer to receive e-invoices per e-mail in PDF. This is not the answer that some of the BSP would like to hear. But it clearly shows that receivers are in need of control over the inbound e-invoice.

The intelligent PDF approach of Adobe does just that. It combines the humanly interpretable PDF with a for computer systems readable XML format. So now we can receive and read the PDF invoice and having established the perception of control over the e-invoice, we can now extract and import the XML data into our financial software.

This enables e-invoicing between business partners regardless of size, sector, business processes and accounting software. If in fact the intelligent PDF approach guarantees compliance with the respective national VAT legislation, it would also be usable in cross border e-invoicing.

Intelligence in authenticity and integrity?
Interestingly enough, the Adobe intelligent PDF whitepaper mentions the possibility to sign the PDF document. So the PDF document is the format that is being used for formal validation. The invoice’s XML data can be submitted for material validation against external documentation such as supplier contracts. E-invoices archived in PDF/A guarantee the fidelity of the invoice, while the use of XML ensures that invoice data can be transformed to any format required by auditing software.

Maybe it is also interesting to use the XML data for formal validation. This would implicate that not only the PDF document is signed, but also the XML file, for instance with XADES or XMLDSIG. Then, the XML feed can also be used for formal validation even when archived. Additionally it would be very interesting for SME’s to use the PDF document for material validation.

So, the Adobe intelligent PDF is more intelligent compared to the plain old PDF docyument. We can expect it to have an impact on removing the barrier of awareness, including the aspect of adoption by have the perception of being in control. And maybe the approach can be made even more intelligent by incorporating XML signing. This would be very interesting because then it would not matter which document is being used for formal validation: PDF or XML, or both. Creating ease of use (which will be explained in the next Featured Article).

Read the Adobe white paper here:

This article is from E-invoicing Platform. Read the original post at: Intelligent PDF: removing barriers?.

To make the whole invoice process completely paperless, OB10 also archives invoices electronically, providing access for both suppliers and buyers via the OB10 Portal. Conducting the invoicing process in this way saves vast amounts of paper (as well as postage, logistics, transportation, etc. for delivering invoices) and helps the finance function to become more environmentally compliant.

The award is run by the Green Organisation, an independent non-profit, non-political group supported by the Environment Agency and the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health. Green Apple Awards are presented to Companies that have recognised the benefits that can be gained from environmental best practice, and also realise the business benefits of being green. Jamie Gunn, CEO, OB10, commented, “We are delighted to receive this Green Apple award for the second year running from the Green Organisation. It’s great news that the environmental benefits of e-Invoicing are being recognised. Businesses need to be fully aware of the damaging consequences of paper invoices. It is not only the cost and efficiency savings that can be made, but with the amount of paper invoices in circulation, in Europe alone – that equates to 763 housand tons of paper or almost 13 million trees, not including the fuel and landfill space that is also saved.”

In the past year alone, OB10 has electronically processed more than four million transactions on behalf of its global customer base, the equivalent of 85 tons. Using standard industry calculations1, that saving represents 1,443 trees which have been spared, as well as enough fuel to run 100 cars for over 1,000 miles, fuel a home for 42 years and 208 cubic metres of landfill space. With OB10’s year-on-year global growth, and the increasing acceptance of electronic invoicing, the environmental savings are set to increase even further. To put it into context, the 1,443 trees that OB10 saved last year could have absorbed up to 231,485 kilograms of Co2 in just one year, and released enough oxygen back into the atmosphere to support a staggering 2,886 human beings.

About OB10
OB10  is the leading global B2B e-Invoicing network. OB10 simplifies and streamlines the complex invoice-to-pay processes. Neither client organisations nor their suppliers are required to implement any hardware or software, and OB10 is independent of data file formats. OB10 can reduce the cost of paper invoice processing by typically 60 percent and can deliver an ROI in less thana year if the programme follows OB10’s best practice guidelines. Operational across Europe, North America and Asia, OB10 is compliant with the requirements of VAT, tax and e-Invoicing legislation and receives invoices from suppliers in over 100 countries. To ensure unrivalled and rapid supplier enrolment, each new customer’s suppliers are supported by an implementation services team responsible for getting them up and running on the OB10 network. Customers include: Agilent Technologies, Barclays, BP, Cargill, DHL, DSG International, Eli Lilly & Company, Fisher Scientific, General Motors, GlaxoSmithKline, Hewlett Packard, IBM, Kellogg’s, Logica, Lufthansa, Mohawk Industries, Norwich Union, SaraLee, Shaw Industries and Steria.

Source: www.OB10.com

This article is from E-invoicing Platform. Read the original post at: OB10 awarded a Green Apple Award.

Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA) adoption promised to deliver on the grand visions of European harmonisation and a cashless society. But in reality it has been regulatory compliance that has driven adoption for most banks. Company directors and corporate finance departments have asked ‘what’s in it for us?’ and been met with a wall of silence. It is no surprise that financial institutions have been reluctant to engage with the directive. But the vision of eSEPA, an electronic approach to SEPA, is beginning to attract interest.

Using SEPA rules as a driver, banks can create an electronic financial supply chain that is faster and more cost effective for customers, primarily those within corporate finance. Beyond compliance this is an opportunity to revolutionise the financial supply chain and create a ‘win win’.

This progression is long overdue. In a recent report ‘Is European Regulation the Stepmother of Invention?’ TowerGroup research director Gareth Lodge notes that innovation in payments has been lethargic at best. “Many of the processes today are largely based on what was done yesterday – or rather yesteryear. SEPA gives the opportunity to change not just legacy solutions but legacy thinking. The regulation offers an opportunity for banks to reinvent their operations with an eye toward the future, not the past.” The key element for corporates is the chance to reinvent the financial supply chain. Building services around SEPA standards will capitalise on existing investments and attract new business.

Source: Accountingweb

This article is from E-invoicing Platform. Read the original post at: Corporate finance benefits from SEPA going electronic.

Tax authorities took a cautious view towards e-invoicing in the first round. In some countries even cumbersome extra demands were put on this new practise and crossborder invoicing was made difficult and costly as regulation started to increasingly differ.

Then there was a question. Why should not sending and receiving paper and e-invoicing be treated in the same way from the VAT angle? All invoices are after all produced in the same auditable process and should be stored in the same retrievable way. Are not e-invoices in fact more secure already because of the e-transport and tracability? Why should this practise have additional VAT-angle demands?

Nobody could find any good reasons for causing especially SMEs additional costs and pain by imposing more demands on sending invoices in structured e-form and mostly in managed networks as opposed to paper mail or unstructured e-mail messages. In fact it should be the other way around……………….

Then there was light.  Most countries in EU now seem to be ready for ET of e- and paper. This is the biggest favour that can be done to the SME-sector – increasingly being forced into e-invoicing by larger trading partners. It will make them much more competitive, cost-efficient and integrated parts of trading networks and provide learning by doing for the next digital document layers. Structured documents can also clearly cut their accounting cost.

This article is from E-invoicing Platform. Read the original post at: BLOGPOST: Equal treatement on its way.

The technology is moving to the mainstream as the European Commission pushes it as part of its drive to cut costs in supply chains.

The Corporate Action on Standards project, set up by the European Payments Council, said that e-invoicing allows companies to cut the average EUR30 cost of processing a paper invoice by 80%.

Businesses that want to take advantage of e-invoicing can do it themselves, use an e-invoicing service provider or work with their banks.

Stefan Foryszewski, senior vice-president at e-invoicing service provider OB10, says businesses are looking at e-invoicing but only “the more enlightened ones.”

“The market is still fairly immature but awareness is beginning to grow,” he says.

Forysewski advises businesses moving to e-invoicing to ensure that their enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems are compatible with the system they chose. They must ensure the system they chose can be easily integrated with all suppliers. And they must ensure they comply with the taxation laws in the different regions they receive invoices from.

Building an e-invoicing system is challenging for companies to do on their own and the capital investment required may be hard to justify as the economy slows.

DHL began rolling out an electronic invoicing and payment system from Accountis in July last year. The project aims to save millions of pounds across Europe by reducing billing costs by 15%.

Brian Thumwood, e-billing programme manager at DHL, says the company chose a third-party supplier to avoid the risks of building its own system. “We looked at doing it ourselves but the complexities associated with the legal structure in different countries and the technology made us work with a supplier.”

Businesses only need minimal technology in place to use a third-party service, such as dedicated servers, a connection to the e-invoicing service, and the use of workflow systems.

Peter Ratcliffe chairman of Accountis points out that many e-invoicing suppliers have been bought up by larger businesses which means their software is no longer commercially available. For example, E-invoicing software providers Harbor Payments and Xign were acquired by American Express and JP Morgan respectively in 2007. As a result, companies that set up their own e-invoicing services would have to write their own software, he says.

Banks are using e-invoicing service providers to create their own services. Abbey launched a corporate e-invoicing service in July last year in partnership with e-invoicing network provider OB10, as part of a service to offer finance to supply chains.

Tom Crowe, director of sales and delivery financial supply chain solutions at Abbey Corporate Banking, says take up of e-invoicing is slow because it is a new concept in the UK.

But he said that businesses will take it up because of the savings that can be made. “Anything they can do to make businesses more efficient they are keen to look at particularly in a period of economic uncertainty,” he says.

The Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) has announced that the first customers of its e-invoicing system, provided by Accountis are going live this month.

In the current economic climate an 80% reduction in the cost of a paper invoice will be attractive to business managers attempting to cut unnecessary costs. IT departments must, however, decide how they are going to implement e-invoicing to maximise the return on investment.

What is E-invoicing?

E-invoicing is an alternative to Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) as a method of dealing with supply payments electronically. It also helps get the best out of ERP systems by automatically putting more accurate information into the systems.

E-invoicing uses the internet to connect businesses with their suppliers and automates the processing of invoices in accounting systems. It speeds up payment times, improves the information in ERP systems, reduces the human resources required and eradicates inputting errors. It also cuts postage costs and reduces waste paper.

EDI is a point-to-point computer connection between a business and a supplier which uses a network provider to process transactions. Large businesses use this method to connect with their major suppliers.

Source: Computerweekly

This article is from E-invoicing Platform. Read the original post at: E-invoicing could help firms through recession.