Executive’s Guide To Utilizing Managed Services For Your Procure To Pay Process
Procure To Pay Service Providers
The process of procure to pay (P2P) can be critical component of business operations, often carrying with it high expenditure and risk. It makes sense, then, that many organizations have turned to managed services providers (MSPs) to handle their procure to pay requirements. In this article, we examine the different aspects of opting for managed services solution, form the perspective of C-Suite executive.
Understanding Managed Services
Managed services are outsourced operational activities that are taken managed by an external service provider, who promises certain level of expertise, performance and availability. By in-sourcing MSPs, organizations can free up resources, ensuring that their procure to pay processes remain up and running despite the challenges of business cycles.
Analyzing Your Requirements
The first and most important step for any executive looking to outsource their procure to pay processes to an MSP is to analyze the particular requirements of their organization. It is important to find provider who can meet the specific needs of the business, such as specific data security and compliance requirements.
Considering the Cost of Services
The cost of managed service solution will depend on the features required by the organization and the cost of the provider’s services. It is important to compare the price of an MSP to that of an in-house option to determine which is more cost-effective. Additionally, the length of the contract should be taken into account, as it can affect the overall cost of solution.
Assessing Potential Providers
There are multitude of managed service providers offering procure to pay solutions, and it is important to conduct thorough evaluation of potential candidates. Among the factors that must be considered are the provider’s experience, their reliability and scalability and the quality of their customerservice. It is also important to evaluate the customersatisfaction of each provider to ensure they are providing consistent level of service.
Maintaining Quality Assurance
Once provider has been chosen and the contract established, it is important to maintain high level of quality assurance. This means monitoring and evaluating the performance of the provider on regular basis, to ensure that their procure to pay processes are up and running smoothly. This can be done with the assistance of specialized quality control software, or through regular meetings between the provider and the in-house staff.
Outcome-based Metrics
In addition to quality assurance, outcome-based metrics should also be set for the provider. These measures track the performance of the provider and ensure that the organizations goals are being met. This could include tracking customersatisfaction, throughput times or cost reduction.
Conclusion
Choosing managed services provider for your procure to pay process can be cost-effective way to ensure that your organizations processes are up and running, while freeing up resources. However, it is important to carefully analyze the requirements of your organization, evaluate potential providers, maintain quality assurance and set outcome-based metrics. Taking comprehensive approach to managing services will ensure that your organizations objectives are met.
