Beyond your AR team: How AR Software Benefits All Departments
It's one reason why about 83% of digitally maturing companies, 71% of developing companies, and 55% of early-stage organizations use cross-functional teams.
To this end, AR management software is a vital and underrated technology on the path toward an organization's cross-functional maturity.
Here's why.
Accounts Receivable software brings shared visibility across departments
An accounts receivable software (AR) solution doesn't just streamline finance departments; it opens a window into other siloed departments in your organization. Through its unified dashboard, sales, customer service, marketing teams, and even Exco have a panoramic view of what the other is doing in pursuit of cash flow, which is the energy of every organization.
By centralizing financial data and enabling real-time financial reporting and sharing, AR software allows "department team-ups." For companies, team-ups are a latent resource, bringing diverse perspectives, broader skill sets, and new ideas, according to research by Deloitte/MIT Sloan Management Review.
As opposed to single departments working in silos, cross-functional teams are more likely to improve cash flow, cash collection, payments, and collection management and unlock outstanding cash reserves in the order-to-cash (O2C) process.
It's a big claim. Let's dissect that.
Sales and AR teams
Through the AR software dashboard, sales teams can provide insights into customer relationships and anticipated payment patterns, enabling AR teams to tackle potential issues before they develop into late customer payments or, even worse, write-offs.
Using AR software, sales teams can:
- Identify customers at risk for early intervention and restrict further sales to such customers
- Track payment trends and credit limit usage to support customers with changing payment habits
- Use purchase history analysis for strategic sales and marketing planning
- Evaluate credit risk based on new account openings and credit applications
- Monitor customer feedback to address concerns and minimize churn
- Identify "inactive" customers that haven't made a purchase in recent months
- Track newly acquired customers
By leveraging these features, your sales teams can proactively identify and manage at-risk customers, ensuring potential payment issues are nipped in the bud. Additionally, features that track payment trends and analyze credit limit usage allow for more precise decision-making during sales and marketing planning, ultimately boosting profitability.
Legal and AR teams
Legal teams can work alongside AR teams to create and implement effective collection strategies.
How does this look in real-time?
- Collaborate with AR teams to develop and enforce compliant collection strategies
- Utilize real-time data to make informed legal decisions on collections
- Monitor compliance with legal and regulatory standards in collections
- Address and mitigate legal risks in debt recovery processes
- Analyze contract terms and payment histories for legal advisories
Collaboration between legal and AR teams is essential for creating and implementing compliant collection strategies. AR Software relies on real-time data to inform legal decisions and ensure compliance with legal and regulatory standards.
Customer service and AR teams
Thanks to real-time information sharing, customer service teams have a birds-eye view of the entire AR process via a user-friendly dashboard - enabling complete transparency.
What can customer service do with this fly-on-the-wall view?
- Access real-time payment information for personalized customer support
- Track and respond to complaints and customer feedback
- Enhance customer satisfaction through streamlined billing processes
- Identify and report potential client account issues to AR
Integrating real-time information sharing empowers customer service teams to become more informed and proactive departments. By leveraging a single source of truth for accounts receivable data and a user-friendly dashboard, they can enhance their support, improve customer satisfaction, and work seamlessly with AR teams to ensure the organization's financial health.
Accounts receivable automation software impact on Exco
When AR software integrates into the operational fabric of an organization's ERP system, leaders receive vital, high-quality data in their quest for better organizational decision-making and goal alignment.
An AR accounting solution like System1A provides Financial Information Symmetry in One Application - enabling stakeholders to make informed strategic business decisions.
What kind of impact can AR software have on Excos?
- Enable the collection of data-driven financial insights from multiple departments
- Ensure financial transparency and accountability in decision-making
- Enhance alignment across departments on financial objectives and performance
- Monitor and manage enterprise-wide risks effectively
C-suite executives aiming for more informed decision-making can leverage analytical and high-quality financial data, which is pivotal in aligning organizational goals. How is this achieved? By seamlessly integrating AR software, such as a comprehensive solution like System1A, into the ERP system.
What is the best accounts receivable software?
It depends on a bunch of factors, such as assessing feature requirements, ease of use, integration with existing systems, and vendor support. Consider the features that matter most to your business, your team's technical proficiency, and the vendor's customer support services.
Find out more in our credit controller's guide to accounts receivable automation software.
Inter-departmental teamwork, it's possible with System1A
System1A provides financial information symmetry in one application to enable data-driven business decisions around your accounts receivable function.
How does our advanced accounts receivable platform achieve this?
- Real-time reports helping various departments make data-driven decisions
- Automate sending invoices, credit notes, and statements, making sales and collections more transparent across departments
- Quick, bulk distribution of financial documents, ensuring all departments have current information for better coordination
- Streamline customer communication to align departments like sales, customer service, and finance on customer interactions
- Centralize the management of customer and supplier documents, promoting consistency across departments
Simplify cross-team collaboration, streamline your AR processes, and empower your teams to make informed decisions - in one easy-to-integrate, cloud-based platform.
By granting company teams access to a single source of truth for their financial information, System1A enables cross-team collaboration and interactions with customers, suppliers, and stakeholders around AR-related functions.
Talk to our sales team for a hassle-free walkthrough.
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