Sample spec

Invoice matching agent

One agent from a sample study at Meridian, a mid-sized company, on its invoice to payment process. 12 people interviewed. Names and figures are illustrative.

Accounts payableAgent specsInvoice matching ShareExport

Invoice matching agent

CoversSteps 3 to 5
Interviews12 people
Systems
ApproverTRTheo R.

Summary

The invoice matching agent handles the middle of the invoice to payment process at Meridian. It covers steps 3 to 5: find the purchase order, match the invoice to it, and approve the match.

It sits after the invoice is logged (step 2) and before the invoice is posted in SAP (step 6). Step 5 is the bottleneck, where invoices wait 1 to 2 days with the controller.

Scope

In scope: finding the purchase order (step 3), matching the invoice to it (step 4), and the approval gate on step 5.

Out of scope: receiving invoices (step 1), logging them in the tracker (step 2), posting in SAP (step 6), and the pay run (step 7).

Rules from the interviews

  1. Match on PO number, amount and quantity. Allow a 2% tolerance on amount.

    NKNora K. 18:05+6

  2. Send any invoice over $25,000 to the controller before it posts.

    TRTheo R. 09:41+11

  3. If the PO changed after the invoice date, match against the latest version.

    SMSam M. 12:20+3

Drift from the SOP

The SOP says step 4 matches in SAP. 9 of 12 people described step 4. 7 of those 9 match in Excel first.

The agent matches in SAP, as the SOP says, and writes the match status to the PO tracker. Before the agent goes live, the team should confirm that SAP is the record of the match.

4 of 12 people said anything under $50 is posted without a match. The SOP does not state this rule.

The agent does not copy this rule. It matches every invoice, including those under $50. Whether the rule stays is an open item for the controller.

Identity and access

Service identitysvc-ap-match, its own account
ReadsSAP MM purchase orders (EKKO), SAP FI supplier invoices (RBKP) and AP postings (BSEG)
WritesMatch status in the PO tracker
NeverPosts payments or changes vendor bank details

Human approval

TRTheo R., ControllerTheo R., the Controller, approves any match over $25,000 and any match with a price variance. Theo R. can grant an approval, review a decision, or reverse one.GrantReviewReverse

Context the agent needs

Paid date. Finance uses the payment run date. AP uses the posting date in SAP. Three reports depend on which meaning applies. Without one agreed definition, the agent gives confident, wrong numbers.

PO lineage. A purchase order starts in SAP MM (table EKKO). The PO tracker is an Excel file on a shared drive. The agent reads the PO in SAP MM and records status in the tracker.

The tracker has no owner. See open items.

Open items

  1. Name an owner for the PO tracker. It has no owner today.

  2. Sign off the paid date definition. Theo R. owns it, and three reports are affected.

  3. Confirm step 7, the pay run. Only 5 of 12 people described it.

  4. Decide whether the under-$50 rule stays.