SharePoint vs OpenText: The Best Purchase Order Automation Platform in Miami

In the current competitive landscape, companies of all sizes must develop ways to boost productivity and efficiency, while lowering costs wherever necessary.

One of the best places to start is with business process automation (BPA). Via BPA, you can streamline monotonous and taxing tasks, lessen the burden for your staff, and upgrade your processes by increasing efficiency and amplifying accuracy.

There are a number of tasks and business sectors that could take advantage of BPA. Some of the most common adopters are Accounts Payable teams who can use BPA to automate invoicing, purchase order processing, and payroll.

In this article, we’re going to hone in on purchase order automation - how it operates, why automation is a great option for this area, and compare a couple of our favorite PO process automation tools: Microsoft SharePoint and OpenText.

To begin, let’s go over what purchase order automation is and how it functions.

What is Purchase Order Automation?

Automated purchase order platforms employ business software equipped with machine learning (ML), robotic process automation (RPA) technology, and artificial intelligence (AI) to automate the purchase order procedure.

Via automation, purchase requests can be created in a few clicks from pre-formatted templates, and routing capability can deliver authorizations directly to the supply chain vendor when the approval workflow is finished.

This removes any need for physical involvement, document filing processes, and makes the process smoother and more manageable.

The Purchase Order Process

While the purchase order process may differ slightly from organization to organization, the following offers a good example of a standard, manual purchase order process.

Step 1: The first step is to create a purchase order.

Step 2: Then another staff member will review and approve/reject the purchase order.

Step 3: After that, the purchase order must be forwarded to the contractor.

Step 4: Once filled, the company will then acquire its product or service.

Step 5: Then the company will receive the vendor invoice.

Step 6: The invoice should be reviewed and authorized, and payment is released to the vendor.

Step 7: Then the final step of the purchasing procedure is to file the associated documents to provide an audit trail.

This might not seem like a great deal of steps, but to make this workflow to run efficiently, all parties from your AP staff, to sales representatives, vendors, and executives, must all deliver correct, timely responses. Most businesses can attest that this is easier said than done.

There are numerous advantages to automating these steps, which we’ll review in the next chapter.

The Advantages of an Automated Purchase Order System

There are numerous benefits to utilizing purchase order automation tools for your business. These include:

• Cost Savings

• Time Saved from By-Hand Tasks

• Real-Time Operational Visibility

• A Faster, More Efficient Procurement Procedure

• Decreased Manual Error

• Improved Human Resource Utilization

So, now that we have established what purchase order automation entails, the aspects of the operation that could be automated, and the gains of purchase order solutions, let’s now go over a couple of our favorite automation solutions, Microsoft SharePoint and OpenText.

SharePoint vs OpenText

SharePoint Overview

SharePoint is an enterprise content management software (ECM) that in its base form, is a tool for handling, collaborating on, and distributing material.

Having said that, with the inclusion of Microsoft PowerApps Power Automate, you can simply adapt SharePoint’s functionality to enable automation to many of your AP procedures.

Pros

• Superb UX/UI

• Short learning curve for new users

• Metadata search improves searchability

Cons

• No integrated data imaging or capture capability

• Struggles at fulfilling compliance requirements in a few sectors

• SharePoint Online not equipped to fulfill Corporate ECM needs

OpenText Overview

OpenText is an ECM tool as well, but offers advanced add-ons that enable firms to automate workflows, augment organizational activities, and reduce the risk connected to governance and intellectual property.

Pros

• A better option for companies that must adhere to strict regulations

• Robust document management, classification, filtering, and access restrictions

• OpenText Documentum expands its features with case and inventory management functionality.

Cons

• Complicated UX/UI

• Typically requires professional tuning to guarantee that it meets business needs

• Can get costly for corporate capabilities and add-ons

SharePoint & OpenText Pricing & Features Diagram

How Wave Can Aid You in Implementing Purchase Order Automation in Miami

The reality is manual processes in your accounting system basically slow your company down, generate bottlenecks and process headaches, and consequently hurt your progress and flexibility.

Prolonged payment cycles can also contribute to greater costs associated with purchase order and invoice processing, reduce your visibility and control, and can add strain to your vendor connections.

At Wave, we can aid you in optimizing your accounts payable (AP) processes thoroughly, including procurement, data entry, purchase orders, payments, approval process, invoicing, and even document storage platforms.

We work closely with Microsoft Dynamics, SAP, Netsuite, Oracle, as well as ERP and ECM tools like the ones we’ve discussed in this piece and also Oracle, Xerox, MFiles, and more.

We can help you deploy your accounts payable automation tool on-site, in the cloud, or in a hybrid model based on your organizational regulations, budget, and compliance requirements.

To discover more, connect with us right now for a free consultation.