Taking the Pain Out of AP Management: Why Finance Leaders Are Updating Their Invoice Policies

Accounts payable (AP) should be smooth and strategic. But for many businesses and organisation, it’s still manual, error-prone, and frustratingly time-consuming.

Whether you're a CFO at a mid-sized firm, a finance manager juggling multiple priorities, or leading transformation in a global enterprise, chances are your AP processes are holding you back. Too much paper. Too little visibility. And way too many workarounds.

Managing vendor invoices isn't just about processing paper. It involves handling backup documentation like account coding, approvals, and notes, all of which need to be stored, retained, and easily accessible. Without a clear policy, organisations find themselves navigating without a map, leading to the hidden cost of outdated AP processes:  

• Inefficient Workflows: manual approvals and processing slow down operations

• Compliance Risks: inadequate documentation can lead to audit failures

• Employee Frustration: ambiguous policies cause confusion and errors

If that sounds familiar, you're not alone.

Why Manual AP Is a Silent Growth Killer

When AP is still running on spreadsheets, emails, and guesswork, problems pile up fast:

• Late payments that damage supplier relationships

• Duplicate or fraudulent invoices slipping through the cracks

• Limited visibility into cash flow and budget forecasting

• Overworked teams stuck chasing approvals instead of adding value

It’s not just inefficient but could be risky. And it’s costing more than you think.

What Leading Finance Teams Are Doing Differently

Smart finance leaders across industries are shifting to automated, policy-led AP processes, not just to reduce workload, but to create better control, agility, and resilience.

Instead of scrambling each month-end, they're:

• Enforcing clear invoice policies without micromanaging

• Automating invoice capture and approvals

• Gaining real-time insights into spend before it happens

• Scaling without hiring more headcount

It’s not about working harder, it’s about setting up smarter systems that support growth.

Taking the Pain out of Accounts Payable Management - an invoice policy template

Here are some tips and a template to help you create a vendor invoice and other payment request document management policy

Download template

Building a Modern Invoice Policy: Key Considerations 

Creating an effective invoice policy doesn't have to be daunting. Here are some foundational steps: 

• Clarity is Crucial: Ensure the policy is straightforward and free of unnecessary jargon. 

• Collaborate Across Departments: Involve various teams to address challenges and foster buy-in. 

• Reference Existing Policies: Align with document retention and authority delegation guidelines. 

• Consistency Matters: Apply the policy uniformly to all employees to build trust and adherence. 

• Highlight the Benefits: Communicate how the policy reduces risks and improves efficiency. 

• Accessibility: Make the policy easily available through multiple channels. 

• Address Change Management: Be prepared to handle resistance and provide support during transitions.  

By implementing these strategies, organisations can significantly reduce the time spent on approving and processing invoices, addressing exceptions, and managing documentation, allowing employees to focus on their core competencies instead of administrative tasks.  

Where to Start: Build Your AP Policy Foundation

Most AP chaos stems from a lack of clarity. If teams don’t know what’s expected, they’ll make their own rules, and that’s where inconsistencies, delays, and compliance issues thrive.

That’s why having a clear, enforceable invoice policy is essential. It’s the backbone of a streamlined AP process.

And the best part? You don’t have to start from scratch.

We’ve created a free, plug-and-play invoice policy template designed to take the guesswork out of AP. Whether you’re standardising for the first time or upgrading a legacy process, this resource gives you:

• Best-practice policy structure

• Editable sections for your workflows

• Built-in guidance to support compliance and automation

Download the invoice policy template now and start building a faster, smarter AP process — without the headaches.