The COVID-19 pandemic brought about many changes in our daily lives, many of which were temporary. But other aspects of our daily and professional lives will be changed for the long term. One such example is the rise of the remote workforce.
Aiding in the adoption of the remote work model is the proliferation of communication and collaboration tools that allow function-based teams to stay engaged with each other, customers, and vendors. Applications like Zoom, Slack, and Microsoft Teams allow a high level of collaboration and interaction vital for the remote model to work long-term. Many companies realize that the low-cost, low-overhead model of a remote workforce is here to stay for many.
One functional area that quickly adapted to a remote workforce model is the financial back office. Since many of the functions around the financial back office surround processing activities, companies had to shift those resources and activities out of the controlled environment of a shared service center or centralized processing operation while still being able to manage the performance and productivity of those workers.
When it comes to vendor management and vendor-centric back-office functions like accounts payable, procurement & purchasing, and accounts receivable, there are three critical components to a successful remote workforce initiative:
- Applications and solutions that easily support a remote workforce
- The ability to monitor the performance and productivity of process-based activities
- Driving more non-value-added functions and activities back to the vendor by establishing a vendor self-service initiative
How ICG’s solutions can help you go remote
ICG has helped several customers adapt to a remote workforce in a very short time. For example, Love’s Travel Stops & Country Stores and MGM Resorts International responded to the need to transition to a remote-based operation quickly without sacrificing performance, service, or functionality. Utilizing ICG’s cloud-hosted back-office solutions, these companies are positioned well for now and into the future with their low-cost, high-functioning remote operations.
Here are some of the solutions ICG offers to help our clients achieve this level of success in such a difficult environment:
- Accounts Payable Automation
- Workflow – Remote Processing & Approvals
- Data Capture & Document Assembly
- Matching
- PO Flip
- Vendor Portals (Supplier Portals)
- Vendor Onboarding (Supplier Onboarding)
- PO Dispatch & Update
- Dynamic Discounting
- ERP & Systems Integration
ICG is always working to create new and improved solutions, so this list may change and expand as time goes on.
- Communication and collaboration tools make the remote workforce possible.
- The financial back office was an early adopter of tools that reinforced the remote workforce.
- Driving vendor self-service is a great way to enable a remote-first back office.
If you want to initiate, expand, or streamline your AP or back-office operations, particularly for the remote workforce, contact ICG. You can also schedule a demo for your team to see one or more of our comprehensive back-office solutions. Let ICG be your partner in this new remote workforce world.