Speaker: Mary Schaeffer, AP Now & Tomorrow
Webinar Recording: https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/431351562
Internal controls are the crux to stopping fraud and eliminating duplicate payments in any AP process. It sounds straightforward and simple enough, but as those who are involved know only too well, simple is not the way to describe strong internal controls. To get it right, it takes in-depth knowledge and a commitment to strong practices.
In this information-packed hour, Mary Schaeffer of AP Now & Tomorrow will reveal how to:
- Pinpoint and fix internal controls that do not provide the protection your firm needs;
- Execute an effective segregation of duties across the AP platform;
- Eliminate old best practices that no longer work in AP and replace them with practices that protect the enterprise;
- Understand how invoice automation can help achieve your goals.
2. Agenda
O Internal Controls that No Longer Work
O Effective Segregation of Duties
O Practices that Don’t Work
O Eat This not That*
O Do This, Not That
O How Invoice Automation Can Help
* Men’s Health
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4. Internal Control Breakdown #1
O Segregation of Duties
Oversights
O Promotions
O The one exception
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5. Internal Control Breakdown #2
OPayments made outside AP
O ACH and/or Wire transfers
O Failure to follow same rigid standards used in AP
O Likely result: Duplicate Payment
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6. Internal Control Breakdown #3
O When an Employee leaves
O Retrieve credit cards
O T&E, p-card, fuel, one card
O Cut off system access
O Notify bank immediately
O Credit cards
O Signing/electronic authorizations
O Deactivate in the master vendor file
O For T&E
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7. Internal Control Breakdown #4
ORecurring Payments
O Leases
O End date???
O Early termination of leases
O Start of new one
O Don’t forget to cancel old payments
O Loans and early repayments
O Don’t forget to stop payments on repaid
loan
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8. Internal Control Breakdown #5
OThe Simple Test Few Do
O Employee addresses in HR file vs. Vendor
addresses in Master Vendor File
O Can be done in Excel using the
conditional formatting function
O Many false positives – research
O 2 in 6 years
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10. The Basics
O One person per leg
O Procure-to-pay process
O No exceptions
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11. Do You Have the Promotion
Problem?
O Do you rely on someone hired from
another department?
O When was the last time someone’s
access was closed off
O Don’t forget employees who left
O Run a report showing who has access to
what
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12. A Word S-Ox
O Section 404 relates to strong internal
controls
O Inappropriate segregation of duties is a
weak control
O Your employees will know
O The long term trusted employee
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13. When the AP Staff is Small
O Other departments help
O Automation helps
O Audit trail
O Who did what when
O Expect this to be a growing issue
O Most frequently moved
O Master vendor file
O Check signing
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14. Practices that Don’t Work
Do This, Not That
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15. Do This, Not That #1
O Best: Centralize receipt of invoices
O Worst: Allow invoices to go wherever the vendor
sends them
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16. Do This, Not That #2
O Best: Return to sender: unidentified
invoices
O Worst: Try and determine who ordered
goods on unidentified invoices
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17. Do This, Not That #3
O Best: Everyone uses rigid coding
standard
O Worst: Allowing processors to enter data
as they each see fit
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18. Do This, Not That #4
O Best: Return to sender: invoice w/o
invoice #
O Worst: Enter invoice data without an
invoice number or use the date or vendor
number as invoice number
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19. Do This, Not That #5
O Best: Regularly review statements for
open credits
O Worst: Never reviewing statements
hoping the vendor will alert you to open
credits
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20. Do This, Not That #6
O Best: Never return checks to
requisitioners
O Worst: Return checks to anyone who
asks
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21. Do This, Not That #7
O Best: Have a policy regarding use of
personal devices
O Worst: Ignore the issue allowing
employees to bring their own devices to
work and use for company initiatives.
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22. Do This, Not That #8
O Best: Learn as much as possible about
invoice automation including how various
vendors’ products work
O Worst: Ignore the issue hoping it will go
away
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23. Practices that Don’t Work
Do This, Not That
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24. Reality Moving Forward
O Technology and automation inroads
O IFO conference
O First ATM
O First online bill payment
O Costs are plummeting
O No longer a big-company phenomena
O Invoice automation is for everyone
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25. Benefits of Invoice Automation
O Human keying errors eliminated
O Personnel freed up to work on more value
added work
O Dispute resolution
O No processor playing games
O Paying favorites faster
O “Losing” problematic invoices
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26. Additional Benefits
O Faster processing
O Discrepancies identified early on
O Invoices sent for approval automatically
O Clear audit trail and hence
O Faster approvals
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27. Have You Scheduled a Demo?
O Call: 1-877-426-9245
O E-mail: info@anybill.com
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28. Questions/Comments
Share your thoughts and insights with
Mary Schaeffer by writing her at
marys@ap-now.com
Sign up for her free weekly ezine at
www.ap-now.com/ezinesignup.html
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29. About Mary Schaeffer
Editorial Director & Publisher
CRYSTALLUS, Inc. publisher Accounts Payable Now & Tomorrow
newsletter
• Creator of Institute of Financial Operations Accounts Payable
Innovation Certificate program
• Editor-at-Large CFO Publishing’s Learning Pro: AP Edition
• Nationally recognized accounts payable expert and consultant
• Frequent speaker at seminars, conferences and online events
• Regular contributor to the AICPA’s Corporate Finance Insider
• Writes a free weekly e-zine, e-AP News
• Author 17 business books including the just-published 101 Best
Practices for Accounts Payable
• M.B.A. Finance, NYU
• B.S. Math, York College
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