SoftCo

Background

In 2016, the Finnish Government set an ambitious goal to automate and streamline its entire purchase-to-pay (P2P) process across more than 70 departments, targeting an annual savings of 15 million euros for the state. Led by the Finnish Government Shared Services Centre for Finance and HR, Palkeet, the new centralized service, called ‘Handi,’ was a key component of the government’s digital transformation strategy, spearheaded by then Prime Minister Juha Sipilä’s administration to digitize public services.

Challenges

The scale of the project presented unique challenges, with a strict timeline and high expectations for automation. Following an extensive European tender process, Palkeet chose SoftCo Procure-to-Pay to meet these needs. SoftCo was tasked with delivering a tailored solution that could process over 1.2 million supplier invoices annually, manage supplier relationships, and handle complex procurement workflows across diverse government departments. The ultimate objective was to achieve 90% automation of purchase invoice processing, minimizing the need for human intervention and ensuring compliance across the board.

Solution

SoftCo worked closely with Palkeet to customize and implement the Handi solution, designed to centralize and automate P2P processes for the Finnish Government. The timeline required the solution to be signed off within six months, with a full rollout to all government departments within 24 months. Through extensive collaboration and over 50 system integrations—including with the government’s SAP system—SoftCo provided a seamless, scalable platform that aligned with Palkeet’s high standards and unique requirements. The solution incorporated everything from online requisitioning and catalog management to vendor management via a dedicated portal, allowing vendors to maintain catalogs, track invoices, and manage registrations directly through the portal.

Benefits

SoftCo’s solution was successfully rolled out to all 73 Finnish Government departments by March 2020, on time and within budget, creating a unified and efficient operating model across the government. The Handi service delivered a “best in class” electronic procurement and invoice processing system, replacing outdated service solutions and setting a new standard for automation. Departments like the National Board of Police estimated annual savings of 800,000 euros from increased automation alone. Similarly, the National Land Survey of Finland reported that automated invoices cost just 82 cents each to process, compared to €4.13 per manually processed invoice, representing an 80% cost reduction.

Kati Siikonen, Process Manager at Palkeet, remarked, “We have implemented a project that has progressed as planned and within the planned budget.”

SoftCo’s transformative solution not only met but exceeded the Finnish Government’s strategic automation goals, establishing a sustainable, efficient, and cost-effective P2P model that contributes to the government’s broader digitalization strategy, saving millions of euros each year.

Challenge

apetito is the UK’s leading creator and supplier of meals for the health and social care sector, faced numerous challenges with their manual P2P process. The disjointed process involved manual tasks across multiple systems, lacking an interface with SAP for matched invoices. The approval, receipting, and processing of invoices lacked automation and was costly and time-consuming. As apetito were growing approximately 10% annually, the manual process strained their finance team and in return carried a high risk of errors. Recognizing the need for streamlined processes and tighter internal controls, apetito sought a solution to automate and optimize their procurement operations.

Solution

SoftCo provides apetito with an end-to-end Procure-to-Pay solution, encompassing all elements from Pre-approved spend and e-Procurement through to automated invoice capture, matching and approval. In addition, apetito use SoftCo Advanced Analytics, which combines SoftCo real-time reports with Amazon QuickSight Business Intelligence Service to inform and support decision making. SoftCoP2P fully integrates with apetito’s existing ERP system, SAP. The solution enables apetito to capture invoices electronically on receipt and reducing the time required and improving the accuracy of invoice registration and validation. SoftCo SmartMatch on invoices saves hundreds of hours of employee time and facilitates straight-through processing of invoices.

Results

SoftCoP2P now manages all of apetito’s operational spend. By utilizing Pre-approved Spend across the entire organization, apetito gains real-time tracking and visibility into consumed resources. They have achieved an impressive 80% straight-through processing rate for PO invoices, with 10% not compliant and 10% requiring validation by the AP team. This has reduced their month-end close time by 60%. With SoftCo’s advanced analytics, apetito gains complete control over their P2P process, leading to increased early payment discounts and the elimination of late payment penalties. Integration with SAP enables seamless data tracking across entities, establishing a single source of truth. Currently, apetito pays 90% of vendors on time, reflecting the success of their transformation with SoftCo.

Challenge

Smyths Toys had experienced a significant period of growth, both organically and through major acquisitions across Europe. As a result, their supplier base had grown considerably, and they faced challenges in processing invoices across multiple locations. Their manual invoice processes involved a number of different touchpoints, with AP staff needing to manually route invoices to the appropriate business user for approval. This process would sometimes take several days, particularly if an invoice needed to be queried. The process had become all the more difficult with the switch to remote working. Smyths Toys required an automated solution in order to remove the inefficiencies and high costs within their AP process.

Solution

Smyths Toys chose SoftCoAP to replace their manual AP processes and handle their growing number of invoices to speed up approval times and payments to vendors. Implementation of AP was rapid and the efficient onboarding and training coupled with the user experience of the solution ensured the benefits of the system could be experienced immediately. Smyths Toys staff can now log onto the centralized AWS hosted cloud-based solution from their remote locations with unique login details and specific permissions, in order to carry out their duties. The solution captures all vendor invoices, replacing manual data entry allowing the AP team to code the correct GL and cost center and instantly send for approval.

Results

SoftCoAP has enabled Smyth’s Toys to gain complete visibility and control over their accounts payable process and has removed the manual processing of their growing number of invoices. As a result, invoice processing costs have been significantly reduced. Invoice approval times have decreased by almost 30% in only the first 3 months of using the system, resulting in more on-time payments, enhanced supplier relations and fewer queries.