- Our business is unique. How can IntelAccount support our individual process requirements?
- Will we lose control of financial decisions?
- Security is huge for us. How does IntelAccount protect our data and financial information?
- Do we have to buy new financial or purchasing software in order to work with IntelAccount?
- How much work is involved in setting up IntelAccount service? We’re just too busy to take on complicated new systems.
- Do we need to identify internal processing problems and fix them first?
- Do we have to make any upfront investment in order to work with IntelAccount? How do we pay for the service?
- How does financial data created by IntelAccount connect with our existing financial systems?
- Our current system seems to work well for us. If it’s not broken, why risk “fixing” it?
- Our internal A/P staff is nearby, ready to answer any question or discuss problems. Will we get the same support from IntelAccount?
1. Our business is unique. How can IntelAccount support our individual process requirements?
Because each business is unique, we customize services for each client. Yet we are able to provide economies of scale because there are many processes every business has in common, such as accounting and purchasing. We’ve developed our systems with these commonalities in mind – up to the point of incorporating your special requirements, such as your chart of accounts, vendor list, inventory file, security protocols, document routing and approval hierarchy, general ledger coding standards and other unique elements. The end result is a system that looks a lot like your internal one, but one that we’re able to quickly change at any time to meet your evolving needs.
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2. Will we lose control of financial decisions?
No. Decisionmaking control is in your hands. You decide who approves POs and invoices and when to approve them. Bill paying and cash management are also under your command. You decide when, what and how much to pay. In fact, a study by Accenture of 236 global corporations showed that those who outsourced non-core functions like A/P actually enjoyed greater financial control.
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3. Security is huge for us. How does IntelAccount protect our data and financial information?
We ensure security along all fronts:
- We employ proven network security measures such as firewalls, network access passwords and network monitoring tools to keep unauthorized individuals out.
- IntelAccount’s security standards also follow best practices including separation of duties related to financial transactions, as mandated for larger public companies by the Sarbannes-Oxley Act of 2002.
- User-level security allows you to decide which employees have access to particular files, i.e., certain employees may be able to create POs and look up PO history, but not have document approval access, etc.
- Authorized users must log in for each function such as creating a PO, invoice approval, or document search.
- User-level tracking follows users when they are in the system, records and stores each action they take for later review.
- IntelAccount also precludes stolen check stock by imprinting your specific financial information on blank check stock one at a time when paying vendors.
- In many cases, payments are made electronically to further reduce the exposure to fraud or financial misconduct linked to paper-based transactions.
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4. Do we have to buy new financial or purchasing software in order to work with IntelAccount?
No. Most companies already have financial software packages such as Quicken or Peachtree, or an ERP system. While IntelAccount’s systems are separate from yours, they’re designed to flow seamlessly into your systems, enabling you to maximize your original software investment with real-time reporting, analytics and management decision support tools.
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5. How much work is involved in setting up IntelAccount service? We’re just too busy to take on complicated new systems.
With IntelAccount, there’s no software to buy, implement, configure and learn. We do all the work for you, implementing service configured to your requirements. Most of the data already exists in your financial software system, and staff training usually takes less than an hour. That’s why our clients rely on us to take over non-core, time-consuming A/P functions so they can focus on business, and channel resources to be more productive and profitable.
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6. Do we need to identify internal processing problems and fix them first?
No need to spend the time and energy. IntelAccount does the work for you immediately, with best-in-class systems, processes and expert personnel – at a fraction of the current cost.
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7. Do we have to make any upfront investment in order to work with IntelAccount? How do we pay for the service?
There is a small set-up fee. Other than that, no software or upfront investment is required. When you work with IntelAccount, you only pay for the services you need, when you need them – saving up to 70 percent over traditional processes. If your cost structure is like most companies, you spend up to $20 processing each invoice. IntelAccount replaces this expensive, time-consuming process with one simple step – online invoice approval, making A/P data available faster than ever before and giving you total control.
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8. How does financial data created by IntelAccount connect with our existing financial systems?
Easily. All of your transaction data is uploaded to your financial software or ERP system. The timing and transfer mode are determined by you when the service is set up. We can either enter it directly into your system or send you the transaction file for internal data upload – unlike some A/P providers that maintain data offshore and upload it when convenient. With IntelAccount, there are no security risks or user management issues to contend with. Control is in your hands.
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9. Our current system seems to work well for us. If it’s not broken, why risk “fixing” it?
Unless A/P is your core business, comparative analysis shows that it makes a lot of sense to outsource the function as most large companies do. Most of them also had systems that they believed worked well. Many even believed that they were operating at maximum efficiency. Yet, in an Accenture study of 236 large corporations, the top benefits realized by outsourcing A/P were cost reductions of 30 to 50 percent and maximizing efficiencies. Even more important, these companies were able to focus more sharply on their core competencies by working with an A/P expert like IntelAccount.
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10. Our internal A/P staff is nearby, ready to answer any question or discuss problems. Will we get the same support from IntelAccount?
One of our missions – and inherent in our culture – is to surprise and delight clients with our level of service – from the CEO to each and every staff member. We promise a two-hour response to customer or customer vendor questions. If the issue is more complex and takes longer, we will keep you informed of progress on an agreed upon schedule until resolution. Our best practices include an escalation policy requiring a team manager’s involvement in issues taking more than two hours to correct, and a senior manager’s involvement in those requiring more than four hours.
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