The problem: every invoice becomes a small investigation.
A supplier sends a PDF for 100 bearings. The purchase order lists 100, but the warehouse has received only 80. Finance cannot tell whether the other 20 are in transit, on the dock or simply billed too early. An email goes to purchasing, another to receiving, and the invoice sits in a shared folder while the due date gets closer.
The difficult part is not typing the total into the ERP. It is proving that the supplier, quantities, unit prices, freight and terms agree with the transaction. Partial deliveries, multiple branches and inconsistent supplier descriptions make that proof harder. Teams end up treating clean invoices and genuine exceptions with the same manual attention.
When the evidence lives in inboxes, a second copy can be entered as a new invoice and a disputed line can be approved without its context. Automating entry alone makes those mistakes faster. The workflow needs to connect the invoice to its supporting records and preserve the reason it was released or held.
Where it shows up
- Staff re-key invoice headers and line items from PDFs.
- Invoices wait on confirmation that goods arrived.
- Freight, tax and unit-of-measure differences trigger email chains.
- Duplicate invoices are found during reconciliation instead of entry.
- Approvers see a total without the PO, receipt or exception history.
Why it's hard to keep up by hand.
Three-way matching sounds simple until invoices, orders and receipts describe the same purchase differently.
Documents do not line up
One invoice may cover several POs, while one PO arrives in several deliveries. Supplier part numbers and pack sizes can differ from your item master.
Exceptions need owners
A price mismatch belongs with purchasing; a missing receipt belongs with the warehouse. Finance needs the answer, not another unassigned task.
Speed cannot remove controls
Approval limits, separation of duties and duplicate checks still matter. An extracted bank detail or invoice total is not evidence that payment is safe.
How Faraday fixes it.
Faraday gathers the transaction evidence, identifies the differences and gives each owner a focused decision instead of a whole invoice to investigate.
- Step 1
Read invoices and ERP records
Connect supplier invoices with the vendor master, purchase orders, goods receipts, payment terms and existing invoice history. Start read-only so the team can inspect the proposed matches.
- Step 2
Match at the line level
Compare item references, quantities, units and prices. Distinguish a partial receipt from a price variance, and check whether the same supplier invoice has already been recorded.
- Step 3
Route the real exceptions
Send a quantity issue to receiving and a cost issue to the buyer, with the source records attached. Missing or ambiguous evidence stays unresolved rather than being silently filled in.
- Step 4
Approve and record
Finance reviews the match and exception resolution before approved records are written back to the ERP. Payment release remains subject to your existing authority and controls.
Invoice review · Supplier batch
Example data · Three-way matching
| Invoice | PO / receipt | Recommendation | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| INV-1048 · Bearings | 100 ordered / 80 received | Hold 20 units | The invoice bills 100; receiving must confirm the outstanding delivery. |
| INV-1052 · Seals | 50 ordered / 50 received | Ready for approval | Item, unit price and received quantity match the PO. |
| INV-1048 · Resent PDF | Invoice already recorded | Flag duplicate | Supplier and invoice reference match an existing record. |
What changes for your team.
| Workflow | Today | With Faraday |
|---|---|---|
| Entry | Re-key every header and line. | Review extracted details against their source. |
| Matching | Open the invoice, PO and receipt separately. | See the match and supporting records together. |
| Exceptions | Forward emails until someone responds. | Route a specific discrepancy to its owner. |
| Approval | Approve a total with limited context. | Approve with the match and resolution visible. |
| Audit trail | Reconstruct decisions from inboxes. | Keep the reason with the approved record. |
How to measure the impact
Measure invoice cycle time, touch time per invoice, first-pass match rate, duplicate flags and the age of unresolved exceptions. Separate clean invoices from disputed ones; faster entry is not a win if more mismatches reach payment.
Common questions about accounts payable.
What is accounts payable automation?
It is software that captures supplier invoices, checks them against business records, routes approvals and prepares approved entries for the accounting system. It does not have to include automatic payment. For industrial teams, matching invoices to POs and goods receipts is often the highest-value starting point.
What is three-way matching?
Three-way matching compares the supplier invoice with the purchase order and receiving record. The PO shows what was authorized, the receipt shows what arrived, and the invoice shows what is being billed. Differences in quantity, price or units need resolution under your matching policy.
How do you handle partial deliveries?
Match the invoiced quantity to the receipts available for that PO line. If only part has arrived, the remaining quantity stays an exception unless your policy explicitly permits billing before receipt. A missing receipt should not be treated as proof that the goods arrived.
Is invoice OCR enough?
No. OCR reads characters; it does not establish that a charge is correct. Useful automation also identifies the supplier, maps line items, checks duplicates, compares transactions and routes exceptions. People still need access to the original invoice when extraction is uncertain.
What data does Faraday need for accounts payable?
Supplier invoices, the vendor master, open and historical purchase orders, receiving records, existing invoices, payment terms and approval rules. A read-only review lets finance test the proposed matches before enabling approved write-back.
Does Faraday approve payments automatically?
The initial workflow keeps people in control. Faraday proposes matches and routes approvals; payment authority remains with your team. Any later automation needs explicit limits, separation of duties and a record of what happened.
How should we handle supplier bank-account changes?
Treat them as a separate verification process, not a routine invoice update. Confirm changes through an independently trusted channel and retain your finance controls. Information extracted from an invoice or email should not by itself authorize a new payment destination.
