82% of Finance Professionals Believe Document Management Can Reduce Business Disruption Caused by Bad Weather
The findings of a survey by V1 Document Management highlights that over three-quarters of senior finance professionals believe that document management software can reduce the disruption caused by bad weather on their accounts payable (AP) and accounts receivable (AR) functions. In addition, 53% of those surveyed state that they have personally experienced disruption to their AP and AR processes as a result of adverse weather conditions.
Document management software author, V1 Document Management, carried out the research with 100 senior financial professionals (finance directors and managers) across a range of public and private sector organizations.
V1 Document Management’s survey reveals that 82% of senior finance professionals believe that document management can reduce disruption caused by adverse weather conditions, such as snow and floods, with 25% of these stating that document management would significantly minimise the impact of bad weather on their AP and AR functions. 14% of respondents say that their business would be unaffected regardless of whether they had document management in place or not, whilst 4% are unsure.
With organizations relying on the efficient delivery of sales invoices for effective cash collection, any disruption to the postal service caused by bad weather can delay payments being received, impacting cash flow. Disruption to the receipt and circulation of purchase invoices can also result in delays with paying suppliers which, in turn, can lead to late payment penalties.
As document management software enables the electronic delivery, circulation, storage and processing of business documents, it is not reliant on the postal service and so key financial documents can still be delivered, received and circulated during disruptive weather conditions.
Lynne Munns, Vice President of V1 Document Management, says, “Document management systems are vital to ensuring business continuity during bad weather. By using these systems to efficiently deliver, circulate and process financial documents, this ensures that the finance department continues to operate smoothly regardless of the weather.”
Over half (53%) of those surveyed state that adverse weather conditions have caused disruption to their AP and AR processes. 42% say that they have been unaffected, while worryingly, the remaining 5% are unsure whether bad weather has negatively impacted their finance functions or not!
The recent appalling weather conditions on the east coast should be a lesson learnt for organizations. If they are to avoid disruption to their finance functions and ultimately, ensure positive cash flow, implementing electronic document management systems are key.
- Lynne Munns, V1 Document Management
One respondent, a finance manager from a manufacturing company, comments, “If bad weather delays Royal Mail deliveries, our customers do not receive their invoices swiftly which can affect payment at month-end.” Another respondent, a finance director from a university, admits, “We have recently lost vital archives due to flooding.” A number of respondents also cite that they have experienced delays with paying suppliers as a direct result of bad weather.
Munns adds, “The recent appalling weather conditions on the east coast should be a lesson learnt for organizations. If they are to avoid disruption to their finance functions and ultimately, ensure positive cash flow, implementing electronic document management systems are key.”
