Century Helps A Local Agricultural Coop
Go Paperless
Operating grain elevators throughout western Kansas and Colorado, Skyland Grain provides service to hundreds of Kansas farmers.
About Skyland Grain
Operating grain elevators throughout western Kansas and Colorado, Skyland Grain (skylandgrain.com) provides service to hundreds of Kansas farmers. They have a total licensed grain storage capacity of approximately 48 million BU, Skyland’s mission is “Connecting our producers to the world.” Each day, hundreds of documents need to be processed across 20 locations spanning over 300 miles.
As the Office and HR Manager, Teresa Hammond felt the pain of gathering and processing invoices for accounts payable. The team at Century Business Technologies helped Skyland implement a paperless process with workflow automation to streamline the accounts payable process and reduce lost documents, ultimately leading to greater customer satisfaction.
Challenge
Solution
With a growing number of locations and vendors, Skyland faced many challenges with their paper-based process.
1. Getting Invoices in a Timely Fashion
Invoices were being sent through an internal mailbox system. Received invoices would be logged in a book and then put in an envelope that would be delivered to the main location. “Too often this could take a couple of weeks.”
2. Lost Invoices
This paper-intensive process resulted in many phone calls. Trying to track down paperwork wasted considerable amounts of time. Sometimes invoices were lost, causing even more challenges.
3. IT Distraction
As a growing company adding new locations, the capacity of the Skyland IT team began to stretch as it focused on core initiatives and supporting new users. According to Richard Wolf, IT Manager, providing support for printers and copiers became more of a challenge for the team. “We used to have to order toner for our devices. Employees would say ‘We’re out of toner’ and we had to scramble to get the supplies.”
In 2013, the team at Century Business Technologies worked with Skyland Grain to explore how technology could be used to automate the paper-based process. Following an analysis of the current process it was recommended that Skyland consider creating a paperless environment using Square 9, a document management and workflow solutions provider. “When we ran across Square 9 and the workflow automation, we got very excited,” recalls Hammond.
Each location was equipped with a Savin multifunction system with scanning capability. Through a simple, customized control panel, users scan invoices over the internet through a secure VPN connection to a central inbox in Square 9. In the home office in Johnson, KS, two accounts payable team members process the invoices. In addition to scanned paper invoices, many vendors send digital invoices. “We encourage everyone we do business with to send us electronic documents.” Similar to the scanned invoices, these digital invoices can be processed in the same inbox. At the home office the invoices are entered into an automated workflow which direct them to the correct people for easy approval.
Once the invoices are approved, they are sent for payment. A process that used to take weeks can now happen in less than a day. Century Business Technologies also helped Wolf lighten the burden on the IT department by managing all of Skylands copiers and printers. With the Managed Print Services program, the Century support team monitors each of the devices and automatically sends toner when devices are running low. If a device needs service, a field technician is dispatched to resolve the issue.
Benefits
The automated paperless solution helps Skyland Grain fulfill its mission to “connect producers to the world.” Hammond and Wolf are happy with the paperless solution and see multiple benefits.
1. Faster Turnaround Time
The automated workflow has dramatically reduced turnaround time on accounts payable. “We can have an invoice turned around in 24 hours now instead of weeks,” stated Hammond. Not only does this reduce the administrative burden of manual processes and tracking down lost documents, it also leads to greater customer satisfaction.
2. Consolidate Workforce Automating
The accounts payable process has allowed Skyland to continue to grow. With the new process in place, the office is much more efficient. This drives real cost savings along with scalability.
3. Process Standardization
Before the paperless solution, the accounts payable process varied slightly between each location, leading to inconsistencies which created inefficiency. At the home office, the invoices are entered into an automated workflow which direct them to the correct people for easy approval. Once the invoices are approved, they are sent for payment. A process that used to take weeks can now happen in less than a day. Century Business Technologies also helped Wolf lighten the burden on the IT department by managing all of Skylands copiers and printers. With the Managed Print Services program, the Century support team monitors each of the devices and automatically sends toner when devices are running low. If a device needs service, a field technician is dispatched to resolve the issue. Each location was equipped with a Savin multifunction system with scanning capability. Through a simple, customized control panel, users scan invoices over the internet through a secure VPN connection to a central inbox in Square 9. In the home office in Johnson, KS, two accounts payable team members process the invoices. In addition to scanned paper invoices, many vendors send digital invoices. “We encourage everyone we do business with to send us electronic documents.” Similar to the scanned invoices, these digital invoices can be processed in the same inbox. automated workflow ensures each location is using the same process. According to Hammond, “Employees can go to any of our locations and experience the exact same process.”
4. Access Documents Remotely
An additional benefit is the ability for our auditors to have access (remote and on-site) to our document management system for our yearly audit. The option to give them access has saved time and money. They can begin pre-audit processes remotely, as well as access our A/P information on-site. The auditing team has used S9 for the last (2) years and have given us a "high-five" on the system. They have worked with our IT to develop specific reports to retrieve information as they need it. Overall they are very pleased with the S9 document management system.
the result
“We can have an invoice turned around in less than 24 hours now instead of weeks.”
Continuous Improvement
The team at Century Business Technologies continues to work with Skyland to improve the process. Most recently, the Square 9 Global Action workflow automation module makes it easy to map and change workflows. The team is also rolling out the Square 9 Global Capture module to automate capturing and indexing documents. The plan is also to begin moving other departments to paperless processes. When asked what other organizations should do when it comes to deploying a paperless office, Hammond’s advice is simple: “Get started!” Wolf advises that companies think very strategically about how they configure their paperless system to make sure that it aligns with the business processes.
About Century Business Technologies
Century Business Technologies is a full-service solutions partner dedicated to integrating technology to deliver results. The company provides managed services, workflow automation, hardware solutions and much more to businesses across Kansas and throughout the United States. The team of solutions specialists and programming experts is backed by responsive support technicians. As a WBE certified woman-owned business, Century Business Technologies is dedicated to improving the businesses and the communities it serves. Learn more at CenturyKS.com
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