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Asking the Tough Questions
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Humans are naturally inquisitive. We are driven to want to learn how things work so that we can make them better. This characteristic finds it way into all aspects of life, including work in accounts payable.
This issue sets out to answer some of the most important questions posed by AP professionals: How can we better manage cash flow? Are we vulnerable to vendor fraud? Why do strikers picket in circles? Okay, two out of three isn't bad. |
| Patrick Harbin – Editor
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Managing Cash Flow |
While we may wish that the economy moved along at a constant pace free from influence; that's simply not the way things are. Instead issues such as rising commodity prices, debt crises, and rapidly changing currency values have created a dynamic, fluctuating economy.
As a result of this ever-changing economy, businesses may experience periods where cash flow is tight. The following tips are ways that AP can help manage cash flow when this happens:
- Stretch payment terms out for at least 60 days
- Pay early to receive invoice discounts
- Employ strategic sourcing to eliminate multiple vendors providing similar goods
- Persuade suppliers to warehouse up to half of your monthly order and allow you to withhold payment until you receive the shipment
In addition to these tips, there are AP automation solutions that can help businesses manage cash flow when money is tight and when it's not. Be sure to sign up for TAPC's upcoming free audioconference, Workflow for Cash Flow for CFOs and Controllers, featuring David Hay, former director of Shared Services for Hewlett-Packard. The economy is flexible; you should be too.
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| AP Fraud: It Can Happen to You |
Businesses of all types can be victimized by AP fraud. Whether your department works for a large government bureaucracy or a northeastern university, crooked employees and vendors will look for ways to exploit weaknesses in internal controls.
In Patrick's latest post, he discusses three fraud cases currently in the news. From a contractor billing a company for work not done to a college faculty member using her p-card to pay for limo service, AP fraud definitely comes in all shapes and sizes. Go to Patrick's Blog
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Just for Fun! |
As any television junky probably knows by now, American screenwriters have been on strike since last November. As new episodes are replaced by images of picketing writers, one question begs to be answered: why do picketers walk in circles?
Perplexed by American strikers' habit of walking in circles in front their businesses, a British journalist set out to discover the reason behind this distinctly American practice. Read the full BBC article.
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