{"id":1525,"date":"2026-01-18T15:34:03","date_gmt":"2026-01-18T20:34:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog2wrkdev.wpenginepowered.com\/accounts-payable-automation\/"},"modified":"2026-09-30T07:47:37","modified_gmt":"2026-09-30T11:47:37","slug":"accounts-payable-automation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog2workato.wpengine.com\/accounts-payable-automation\/","title":{"rendered":"Accounts Payable Automation: Definition and How to Implement"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Is your accounts payable process filled with manually burdensome steps?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Individual tasks, like reminding colleagues to sign an invoice or transferring invoicing data to your accounting system, may not seem like much on their own. But when you add them up, they translate to a process that\u2019s time-consuming, unpleasant to perform, and vulnerable to significant errors.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You can address this directly by using accounts payable automation (also known as AP automation or accounts payable process automation). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

We\u2019ll walk you through more specific benefits from using this type of finance automation<\/a>, as well as how, exactly, you can implement it. But first, let\u2019s review what it is.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Related: An overview on payroll automation<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

What is Accounts Payable Automation?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Simply put, it’s the use of automation to streamline end-to-end accounts payable processes.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

To execute it, you’ll need to use a platform that can listen to your apps for specific business events (triggers). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Once a business event occurs, the platform can then deliver real-time business outcomes (actions). For example, a trigger can be a procurement request for an asset, while a corresponding action can include creating a purchase order request form.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With this definition in mind, let’s explore why this type of automation is gaining popularity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Related: Overview on cash reconciliation automation<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

3 Benefits of Accounts Payable Automation <\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

According to research by MineralTree<\/a>, the number of organizations that have implemented AP automation has gone up by 14 percentage points in just a year. In addition, over the next 2 years, another 20% of organizations plan to implement this type of automation. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why are organizations turning to it in droves? It\u2019s hard to pinpoint the main driver, but it solves 3 key challenges that organizations want to address:<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"3<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

1. It prevents you from performing a manually-burdensome process that\u2019s vulnerable to errors. <\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

As your organization scales and you begin to work with dozens, if not hundreds, of vendors, it becomes increasingly difficult to manage invoicing manually.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You might forget to send a purchase order to certain internal stakeholders for review; you might forget to update an invoice\u2019s status in the ERP once a payment is made; and you might even update an invoice\u2019s status incorrectly. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Any of these mistakes can lead to late or inadequate payments, which hurts your relationship with vendors. On top of that, your team might be spending several hours every month manually inputting information across systems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With accounts payable automation, you can avoid these mistakes and save a significant amount of time, as your team no longer has to perform many of the manual tasks themselves.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"When<\/a><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

2. It lets you report with better accuracy and more thoughtful analysis.<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

When you don\u2019t have a complete, up-to-date view of all your vendors, you can\u2019t provide the type of reporting and analysis that leadership demands.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You can use accounts payable automation to track each of your vendors in a single platform. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

That way, your team will not only be in a position to provide error-free reporting, but they\u2019ll also be able to allocate more of their time towards identifying ways to manage vendor relationships better (versus hopping between apps to find information).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. It provides visibility across your vendor relationships.<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

When information around invoicing isn\u2019t recorded in a way that\u2019s accurate, timely, and visible, your colleagues in finance and in other departments simply can\u2019t keep up-to speed on your AP data.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With accounts payable automation, you can help anyone in your organization proactively and independently keep tabs on vendors\u2019 or partners\u2019 invoices, whether it\u2019s an accounts payable specialist or a sales enablement manager.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Related: How to automate invoicing<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

How to Automate Accounts Payable<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Now that you know what accounts payable automation is as well as why it\u2019s important, you\u2019re ready to learn how you can implement it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here\u2019s a breakdown of each step:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. Identify all the applications you use throughout the accounts payable process. Then map out how you\u2019d like the data to flow between them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. Present the systems you\u2019d like to connect and how you\u2019d like them to communicate with each other to your colleagues in IT. They can then use your guidance to build the workflow automation quickly using an enterprise automation (EA) platform.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s worth noting that IT\u2019s experience in implementing automations across other business lines can help them in spotting ways to automate a specific step in yours further, or, just as helpful, they might identify new automation opportunities within the workflow.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. Once the automation is built, you can work quickly on testing it and giving IT feedback if anything isn\u2019t working.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Related: <\/em>How Approval Bot<\/em> empowered Tango Card to transform their vendor billing workflow<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Accounts Payable Automation Example<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Say you use the following apps to manage your procure-to-pay process<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"How<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

You can use an EA platform to connect those two apps and build the following set of workflows:<\/p>\n\n\n\n