Removing walls with Smart Invoice Approval Workflows

Imagine starting the day knowing your Accounts Payable Team won’t be wasting hours deciphering spreadsheets with complex approval layers, or chasing down who needs to sign off on what. No more blind spots. No more approval bottlenecks. That peace of mind would be priceless, wouldn’t it?

This is the new reality for AP teams using AppZen’s Smart Invoice Approval Workflows. 

The latest enhancement to Autonomous AP automates the tedious task of routing invoice approvals so teams can focus instead on higher-priority tasks that drive business value. 

Automating your standard operating procedures isn’t anything new. What is making a more powerful impact is combining the power of AI with automation to identify trends and suggest configuration improvements. This is where AppZen sets itself apart. Our AI Agents use your information to make decisions and complete tedious and overly complex tasks for you. 

The problem: The maze of invoice approvals

For many Accounts Payable teams, maintaining accuracy and compliance in the face of multi-tiered approval structures, diverse business units, and the constant influx of new vendors is as frustratingly complex as running through a carnival maze. It seems to take forever. You hit a lot of walls. And it’s keeping AP trapped in a cycle of manual routing, endless follow-ups, and limited visibility into workflows.

Manual routing

AP teams spend significant time identifying who should approve each invoice, leading to delays and errors.

Complex approval layers

Organizations with multiple approval tiers struggle to ensure invoices follow the correct path.

Diverse business structures

Companies with various locations, departments, and entities face the task of routing invoices to the right approvers across different business units.

Lack of visibility

Ensuring compliance and maintaining control is difficult without a clear approval trail.

The solution: Smart Invoice Approval Workflows

There is a way to remove the walls of that maze. AppZen’s Smart Invoice Approval Workflows feature adapts to your unique organizational structure, automates the routing process, and is flexible enough to evolve with the business. It’s a powerful new tool that tackles these challenges head-on. Here’s how:

Precisely map approval chains

Navigate sophisticated approval hierarchies by automatically detecting cost centers and requestors, so invoices always reach the right approver.

Customize workflows

Configure approval routes based on factors such as invoice amount, vendor, department, and cost center.

Route invoices automatically

Automatically send invoices to the correct approvers every time.

Easily set up and adjust rules

Create and modify routing rules directly in AppZen–no need for custom development.

Manage complex approvals

Multi-approver support lets you easily manage scenarios such as routing invoices based on vendor, entity, amount, line-level conditions, or any other invoice field.

Adapt to organizational changes

Quickly adjust workflows as your company structure or approval needs change.

Making both AP’s and approvers’ lives easier

AppZen’s Autonomous AP is already transforming our customers’ business operations–this Smart Invoice Approval Workflows feature offers even more benefits. From reduced manual effort and increased accuracy to faster processing times and enhanced compliance, the solution addresses some of the core pain points of invoice approvals. With clear insights into the approval process, audits and reporting are simplified.

It also makes it easier for approvers to complete their reviews accurately and timely. There are no missed or incorrectly routed approval requests from AP. Sensitive invoices are always reviewed, for tighter spending control. As invoices are approved faster and compliance becomes second nature, your AP Team and approvers can get on with more strategic initiatives.

Combine existing approval structures with AI

Want to use an existing approval workflow? No problem. AppZen can import your approval hierarchy via CSV, JSON, and AFAIK so you can keep your approval hierarchy intact. Its intelligent automation considers your established workflows when routing invoices for approval.

Import existing approval hierarchies: Keep company policies and approval flows across different business units without rebuilding.

Ensure full visibility: Comprehensive audit trails and customizable notifications for approvers keep everyone informed with all relevant context.

Automate conditional auto-approvals: Reduce manual intervention by automatically processing invoices that meet predefined criteria.

Customize task descriptions: Show task summaries and descriptions for each approval step and specify what information is shown during the approval process.

How AppZen customers use Smart Invoice Approval Workflows

One multinational consumer goods company uses Smart Invoice Approval Workflows to route approvals based on a combination of entity, supplier, requester, and invoice type–all in line with their organizational structure. North America’s largest online pet supply retailer also uses this new feature to manage approvals spanning departments, locations, and projects, all with multiple approvers.

AppZen’s Smart Invoice Approval Workflows feature gives you a direct path across the labyrinth of approvals with streamlined, intelligent automation. It’s the difference between starting your day with a stress headache or kicking it off with a sense of control and accomplishment. Our flexible, powerful solutions prove that peace of mind isn’t just possible—it’s your new standard operating procedure.

Want to learn more? Contact us about Smart Invoice Approval Workflows today.