Payment Data Is Back-Office Automation’s Hidden Gold Mine

In the world of B2B payments, the shift from paper-based payments to digital solutions is often framed as a move toward efficiency and cost reduction. But beneath the surface lies a more profound transformation: the potential to harness vast amounts of payment data to drive strategic business growth.

While reducing manual processes and eliminating paper checks are significant wins, the real game-changer can be the untapped value of automation’s data-driven insights.

For too many decades, B2B payments have been bogged down by manual invoicing, check-writing and reconciliation processes. Finance teams spent, and continue to spend, countless hours processing transactions, managing vendor communications and troubleshooting payment issues.

Automation, however, can help turn these administrative tasks into an opportunity for strategic advantage.

By digitizing and automating the payment process, businesses gain access to a wealth of data that was previously locked in spreadsheets, PDFs and filing cabinets. This data can now be analyzed to uncover patterns, optimize financial operations and inform decision-making. For example, companies can analyze payment cycles to improve cash flow management or track vendor performance to negotiate better terms.

Real-time data also facilitates smoother internal workflows. For example, procurement teams can access updated financial data to ensure budget compliance before initiating purchases. Automated approval processes can route payment requests through the correct channels, minimizing bottlenecks and ensuring that critical payments are never delayed. As a result, businesses can maintain operational momentum without the friction of manual processes.

Read more: How to Take a Flamethrower to Free Trapped Treasury Data

Moving B2B Payments From Back-Office Burden to Strategic Asset

Against a dynamic operating landscape like today’s, payments automation is not just about efficiency. It’s about leveraging data to become more agile and strategic.

“We’re super-focused on automating all the financial flows within the finance function,” Chris Taylor, newly appointed CFO at Flashfood, told PYMNTS during a discussion for the PYMNTS series “A Day in the Life of a CFO.”

By reducing administrative overhead and improving data transparency, companies can reallocate resources toward innovation and expansion initiatives. When coupled with a modern ERP system, businesses gain instant visibility into financial transactions, cash flow and outstanding liabilities. This level of transparency allows finance teams to make quicker, data-driven decisions, such as optimizing payment schedules to maintain healthy liquidity.

PYMNTS Intelligence has found that treasurers with high levels of influence are far more likely to report that their companies have predictable cash flows, expect revenue to increase and are agile in responding to shifting marking conditions.

“The middle to back office, they’re no longer just a cost center,” Meghan Oakes, vice president of customer success at FIS, told PYMNTS. “They’re a value-added partner for everybody within the business. There are many different aspects of that middle to back office that are now at the forefront of how companies operate.”

See also: The Integration Pros: How CFOs and Treasurers Bridge Operational Silos

The Growing Imperative of Data-Driven Transformation

Automation also bolsters risk management by leveraging data analytics for fraud detection. Traditional payment methods are susceptible to human error and fraud, but automated systems can identify anomalies in real time. For example, machine learning algorithms can detect unusual transaction patterns, flagging potential security threats and ensuring compliance with regulatory standards.

This capability is particularly valuable in industries with complex supply chains or international transactions, where the risk of fraud and compliance breaches is high. By harnessing data insights, companies can maintain a secure and trustworthy payment ecosystem.

Additionally, predictive analytics can help businesses assess supplier performance. By integrating payments data with procurement and operational data, organizations can evaluate suppliers based on factors such as on-time delivery, pricing consistency and responsiveness. This data-driven approach ensures that businesses maintain relationships with high-performing suppliers, ultimately leading to improved supply chain resilience.

Crucially, firms that are able to unlock data via automation may be those best positioned to reap the advantages of concurrent technological advances such as artificial intelligence (AI).

“For a long time, the industry has offered up paperless alternatives to payments,” including virtual cards, and real-time payments are poised to gain even more traction, Alex Hoffmann, general manager of North America at Edenred Pay, told PYMNTS. “What GenAI adds on top of all this is that beyond the payment, we can automate the invoice-to-pay cycle.”

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