Being the Accounts Payable Manager comes with a lot of responsibilities. The primary role of an AP manager is to keep track of the company’s AP process to ensure everything is being processed correctly and as efficiently as possible. However, being a good AP manager doesn’t mean looking over every staff member’s shoulder to monitor their work.
Here are some habits you should adopt if you want to be the best AP department manager possible:
1. Stay Updated With The Latest AP Software
A good AP manager will always be on the lookout for AP software updates that are beneficial to the company. Everything from the latest online PO system upgrade should be looked into by an attentive manager.
2. Prioritizes Minutes Instead Of Hours
Thanks to AP automation, a good AP department no longer requires hours of manual data entry. Instead, a good manager takes a few good minutes to assess data quality before submitting any reports.
3. Streamlined Focus
As a manager, you should ensure the staff focuses on one invoice instead of being distracted by a mountain of paperwork. This is only possible with the use of an automated AP system.
4. Enhances Department Productivity
With the use of an online PO system and other automated AP tools, invoice processing time is significantly cut down, which is why a good manager should fight for a system upgrade.
5. Discourages Overtime
Any reliable and good AP department manager will not require overtime work for their employees. Thanks to their work ethic and the help of a new AP system, the woes of overtime is a thing of the past.
6. Not Afraid To Admit Their Mistakes
No one is perfect, even a senior AP manager will make some mistakes once in a while. The key is to accept these errors and learn from them. Do not pass the blame to a staff member, own up to it and become a better manager in the process.
7. Empowers Their Staff
Micromanaging is never a good sign. Have faith in your staff members to make the right decisions to make your and their time at work more productive and less stressful.
8. Be Willing To Learn
The new automated AP system will require new training. A good manager will gladly learn the process and accept the changes that will come.
9. Avoid Frequent Emailing
The AP automation means that all invoices are sent electronically, which should drastically reduce the time needed for checking one’s email. A reliable and efficient manager should not spend hours just checking and reading emails. There are more important tasks at hand.
10. Learn To Properly Delegate
A manager should not do everything on their own. They should be able to delegate the different tasks to each staff member to increase efficiency. When a manager does everything for the AP department, productivity will be very low and the staff will not learn to do their jobs properly.
11. Work With The Team
Barking orders and demanding too many things from the department staff is also a bad sign. A manager must find the balance between delegation of tasks and their own work.
Being a leader or a manager doesn’t mean you should be bossing people around. It means working with everyone to enhance productivity and also encourage learning and independence.
An online online PO system can help turn the gear of your business from slow to lightning fast. Contact Nexus Systems today and let’s give your business a good boost!