Extraction of critical data from invoices is a pivotal accounting and finance process that involves the meticulous transfer of information to databases or accounting software.
Traditionally Accounts Receivable & Accounts Payable, AR/AP is manual, time-consuming task fraught with manual data input errors like missing amounts, duplicate entries, or incorrect categories, and transposed numbers skew financial records and postpone payments.
Error rates from 2% – 6% become especially problematic when managing a high number of bills because it increases the likelihood of human error.
Can you imagine buying iPads, Chrome Books, laptops and wireless internet for 5 million public school children across 1,200 Independent School District in Texas with only 2 people to reconcile the invoices and perform AR/AP?
Operation Connectivity emerged as a collaborative initiative between Digital Glyde, Governor Greg Abbott, the Texas Education Agency, the Texas Legislature, Dallas ISD, and ESC Region 4. The project’s mission was to bridge the digital divide for economically disadvantaged students by equipping Texas’s 5.5 million public school students with e-learning devices and dependable internet access.
Digital Glyde’s Image Data Extract Accelerator (IDEA) with built in machine learning and artificial intelligence played a crucial role in this endeavor. In a matter of days, IDEA efficiently processed thousands of invoices in hundreds of different formats, from over 1,200 school districts, and hundreds of separate vendors, accounting for the purchase of over 5 million devices. The accuracy rate? An impressive 99%. The retrieved invoice data was seamlessly merged into TEA’s payment system, extracting essential details such as vendor and customer names, addresses, contact information, Tax Identification Numbers (TINs), and comprehensive invoice specifics like numbers, dates, descriptions, quantities, prices, discounts, and totals.
Gaby Rowe of Operation Connectivity highlighted the impact of this technological marvel, stating that IDEA’s capabilities not only saved significant time but also detected errors amounting to over $50 million on $450 million worth of invoices. This ensured that the necessary resources reached the children who needed them most.
To put things into perspective, an average accounts payable clerk processes approximately 1,000 invoices monthly. IDEA accomplished this feat in just three days. It’s no wonder that 71% of people anticipate that increased automation will dominate e-invoicing trends.
IDEA represents a shift from manual paper invoicing to automated transactions, showcasing how businesses can enhance efficiency and minimize errors. While only a fraction of companies currently boast fully automated systems, 26% are actively working towards this goal, with aspirations to achieve full automation by 2024.
