Church Empowers Growth with New AP Automation Process

Summary

Business: Religious Organization

Invoices: 250/month

Employees: 50 full-time, 50 part-time

Locations: Orlando, FL

ERP: Sage Intacct

The First Presbyterian Church of Orlando is a historic congregation in Orlando, Florida, founded in 1876 when Orlando was just barely a town. Since then, the membership has mirrored the city's growth and grown rapidly both in terms of members and needs. Today the historic and modern church campus covers a full city block and, with approximately 2,500 members, is the largest Presbyterian church in Florida and the fourth largest in the nation.

Paperless

Centralized data storage for fast audit tracking and reporting

Streamlined

Automated process, from electronic invoicing to digital payment notification

Accountability

Anywhere, any time approval process

The Challenge

The church historically had a traditional paper-based accounting system that consisted of using niche general ledger software and Sage Intacct Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software. However, this approach proved to be cumbersome and time-consuming. Managing stacks of documents became increasingly labor-intensive, with invoices having to be physically routed throughout the building. The need for multiple approvers further complicated matters, and cutting checks weekly often led to late payments and dissatisfied vendors.

Tom Levesque, Director of Finance at First Presbyterian, highlighted the challenges they faced. He explained, "We operate in a two-entity environment, consisting of the church and its foundation, each with its own separate financials and bank accounts." To move from a paper-based process and improve efficiency, the church sought an invoice solution that was less complex, eliminating the need for check printing and reducing process inefficiencies.

“All of the tasks that used to require some human intervention are now just done automatically, without touching it."

– Tom Levesque, Director of Finance at First Presbyterian Church of Orlando.

The Solution

Levesque found the perfect solution to his challenges. He recalls, "During my first Intacct conference I came across the Yooz booth. It was probably the first time that I had really considered AP automation." After carefully evaluating various automation providers, the church ultimately chose Yooz.

Levesque's decision to select Yooz was influenced by several factors, with two standout features being the platform’s exceptional ease of use and the superior Optical Character Recognition (OCR) processing capabilities. In addition, the church appreciated Yooz's transaction-based pricing model, which proved to be both cost-effective and user-friendly. The pre-existing seamless integration with Sage Intacct also played a crucial role in their decision-making process.

“In the old days the Accounts Payable person had to constantly follow up. Automation has eliminated the need.”

The implementation of Yooz AP automation software resulted in immediate cost reduction and significant efficiency gains for First Presbyterian. It also enabled the church to promote the adoption of electronic invoicing among its vendors.

As a result, only a few invoices now arrive by mail, and these can be easily scanned into the system. The church has also experienced improved efficiency through payment notifications sent via-email, which has been particularly beneficial in managing the numerous independent contractors associated with the church.

Levesque was particularly impressed with the level of Yooz support. He states "I have a dedicated support person. It's nice to go back to the same person," emphasizing the value of being able to consistently work with the same individual for assistance and guidance.

"I didn't know how much pain we had until we switched but Yooz handles our dual entity structure very well within the same system, seamlessly and without any chaos."

Tom Levesque

Director of Finance

The Future

Thanks to AP automation, Levesque has improved his ability to assist and manage the expenses of the 10-15 church departments, ensuring that they stay on track. And, with the near elimination of check printing, a crucial objective has been achieved, leading to increased efficiency and compliance.

Automation has enabled the church to continue expansion without the need for additional staff, storage space, or worries. All this thanks to the streamlining of processes and optimization of resources.

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