Top 10 problems solved by Infor SunSystems Cloud in Education.
Problem #4: Inefficient Procurement and Purchase Control
This is the fourth in a series of blogs highlighting ten of the most common challenges faced by finance teams in the education sector. In this blog, we focus on problems arising from poor control of purchasing and procurement.
The challenge
Procedural control of purchasing is of interest to all kinds of organisations, both commercial and public sector. In education, concern is heightened by tight budgets, regulatory scrutiny and the need to demonstrate that every pound of public money is used effectively.
In colleges and multi-academy trusts, income is largely fixed due to the way funding is allocated. Costs, however, are rising all the time. Without proper procurement control, organisations lose the ability to absorb these pressures and may be forced to implement unwelcome cost cutting measures that impact educational provision.
In education, inefficient procurement and poor purchase control risk more than budget overspend; they can also create compliance and governance risks. Funding bodies expect high standards from the organisations they fund. Procedural control and adoption of best practice are one of the key ways in which organisations can mitigate these risks.
How SunSystems Cloud helps colleges control purchasing and procurement
LAKE solutions based on SunSystems Cloud deliver robust procedural control across the complete buying cycle, from expression of need to approval of payment. They help strengthen managerial control, streamline processes and improve visibility for everyone involved.
Some examples:
Segregation of duties
Appropriate segregation of duties is essential for budget control and fraud protection. For example, in SunSystems, there is clear segregation of duties between someone who raises a purchase order and the person who approves it.
Stronger internal control
Continuing with the example above, SunSystems simplifies purchasing for those that are initiating purchases while ensuring compliance with sourcing, authorisation, and financial controls. Workflow streamlines the approval process and can be adapted to meet your needs. Crucially, procedures such as management of workflow rules remain under managerial control.
Clearly communicated procedures
SunSystems has a key role to play in helping you inform colleagues of your organisation’s procedures and their role in them. The implementation process almost inevitably involves some aspect of business process review. That review along with subsequent roll-out of the new solution, helps you communicate new procedures to colleagues. The new solution then reinforces those procedures with appropriate controls.
Improved purchase-to-pay visibility
SunSystems improves visibility in two ways.
Firstly, visibility of process. Notifications, such as alerts for purchase orders awaiting approval, help ensure tasks are completed on time and improve process visibility for everyone involved.
Secondly, managerial reporting. Dashboards have become a must-have component for any organisation looking to invest in financial management systems. In SunSystems, dashboards can be tailored to the specific needs of different users. The P2P (Purchase-to-Pay) dashboard, for instance, includes summary totals for the number of orders, receipts, and invoices that have been raised. You can expand on any of the charts, or tables. And from there you can drill down to view the detail that lies behind headline figures.
Take the next step
These are just some of the ways that Infor SunSystems Cloud from LAKE could help your organisation. To find out more, please download a copy of our SunSystems Cloud Beginner’s Guide – Education.
In the next blog in this series, we highlight problems arising from restricted financial transparency.
By Jon Isherwood