PayStream Sits Down with DataServ
Anna Barnett 8 Jul 2015Last week, PayStream Advisors sat down with an AP automation provider, DataServ. We spoke with them about their product, their history, and their upcoming business goals, and we got a sense of their unique approach to invoice receipt management.
DataServ is a SaaS, ECM-based platform that is ERP agnostic. They are best classified as a document management service: they offer their clients a quick, seamless, and error-proof way to take paper out of their business processes. They process over 3.3 million documents a month, and these are not all AP invoices and purchase orders—they also have the ability to handle document processes for Accounts Receivable and Human Resources, and they offer custom solutions to certain clients.
After a look at their product, we saw that their invoice receipt offerings and approval workflow functionality had strengths of data accuracy, security, and consistency. They handle invoice receipt with both classic and advanced AP automation strategies, including extensive digital mailroom services and advanced OCR data-extraction technology. They’re a little different than some of the other AP providers we speak to in that they do not offer some end-to-end features typically seen with invoice automation, such as a supplier portal and direct eInvoicing capability. However, their approach does offer something that is missed in many other places in the software market—versatility.
Research shows that direct eInvoicing is the most efficient way to automate the B2B invoice process, but the reality is that many organizations’ require more diverse strategies than simply strong-arming suppliers into cooperation with an eInvoicing network. In our upcoming 2015 Invoice Receipt Management report, we discuss the virtues of exploring solution providers with different invoice management approaches. (Look out for it in the next few weeks!)
We believe that while DataServ may run a little differently from some of the other AP and P2P providers in the market today, they are not without their hidden—and much needed—strengths. Their offerings are just right for businesses that are not ready or organizationally structured to accommodate an eInvoicing network overhaul. Thanks for sitting down with us DataServ. We look forward to seeing what you will do in the future.
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