Most invoices flow through matching and get paid without human touch. The work in accounts payable is the exceptions: invoices that do not match an order, arrive without a receipt, duplicate an earlier invoice, or carry the wrong tax details. Exceptions stall payments, upset suppliers, and pile up when nobody owns them.
Handling exceptions in order
- Triage daily: sort exceptions by age and amount, so old and large blocks get attention first.
- Assign an owner to each exception, since an unowned exception is an unpaid invoice.
- Contact the right person: the buyer for order problems, the receiver for receipt problems, the supplier for invoice problems.
- Record the resolution against the invoice, so the same problem next month is recognised faster.
Track which exception types recur most. A recurring type is a process flaw, and fixing the process beats clearing cases one by one.