Reduce costs and gain better control with AI-driven accounting

Integrating artificial intelligence (AI) into the finance department offers more than just efficiency. Here are five ways to leverage AI insights to reduce costs, improve liquidity, and gain better control.

Increased insights for better decisions

Every CFO is focused on gaining insights to make the right decisions and improve profitability. To succeed, you need both reliable key figures and the ability to dive deep into the data to understand cost structures and key drivers. Most of the answers can be found in POS, accounting, or CRM systems, which contain details on everything from new deals to invoicing.

Challenges on the cost side

The cost side, however, is often more complex to extract relevant information from in a timely manner. Incoming invoices can consist of hundreds of pages and thousands of line items, and many invoices are still not electronic (such as EHF invoices), requiring significant manual work. AI solutions can help you extract data faster and with higher accuracy, identifying patterns and structures that can be analyzed.

AI provides better data quality and decision support

By introducing AI into the accounts payable (AP) process the automation rate can increase to between 70-90%, which is higher than with rule-based systems and RPA, which are also time-consuming to maintain. AI adapts to new suppliers, dimensions, and other changes, learning continuously to ensure improved quality and accuracy over time. The AI engine extracts all information from the invoice, including line item details such as descriptions, quantities, and prices, along with invoice and due dates, supplier names, and potential early payment discounts.

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This deeper insight allows you to improve budgeting, cost control, and provide a better foundation for strategic decisions, ultimately increasing the overall efficiency and value creation in the company. AI ensures consistent invoice processing as it categorizes data across suppliers and understands the context and dimensions. As a result, all potentially useful information is made available in an efficient manner.

5 benefits of using an AI-driven AP solution

1. Increased purchasing power

By mapping all purchases—both central and local—in real time via web-based dashboards, you gain new insights that can lead to greater purchasing power and better negotiation leverage. This can result in more favorable agreements for the entire organization.

2. Better invoice control

With a native AI solution, you can gain 100% line-item visibility on all purchases. This includes details like mobile expenses, which can uncover unnecessary costs and subscription fees. For example, you can identify employees subscribed to services that are not essential for the business.

3. Electricity consumption and insights from registries

AI automation of incoming invoices provides structured data on electricity usage. By combining this with spot prices, you can identify where you have competitive terms and where you should negotiate better prices and conditions. Better insights into energy consumption can also help reduce overall usage.

4. Active use of liquidity

AI provides insights into due dates and payment terms, which can be used for active liquidity management. By leveraging cash discounts and managing payment streams, significant savings can be achieved. AI can identify when it’s advantageous to pay invoices early for discounts and when it’s more beneficial to wait.

5. “How Are We Doing?”

AI provides access to near real-time data, allowing you to act quickly on deviations and make better decisions based on up-to-date information. This ensures that management always has relevant and timely insights, even for invoices still in the approval process. With AI, the accounting process can be closed faster after the end of the month, providing a more accurate picture of the financial situation.

Using AI in accounting gives companies the opportunity to optimize financial processes and achieve higher efficiency. Automating with artificial intelligence improves data quality, speeds up invoice processing, and enhances financial insights. This leads to greater profitability, better cost control, and more strategic business decisions.