London Calling for Next Gen Accounts Payable Professionals

For those who feel that Accounts Payable (AP) is the brains of the payments industry, guess what? In many ways, it’s also the heart. Look at what’s happening in the UK right now as a new Labour Government politicizes payments, and for a good reason: fairness. 

It’s putting an already transforming AP function on the spot for improving…society. 

The incoming Labour Government’s push to enact a Prompt Payment & Cash Flow review is designed to one-up the existing Payment Reporting Practice, protecting small and medium businesses (SMBs/SMEs) from being last in line at invoice time. 

According to Jamie Radford, founder of the UK-based Accounts Payable Association (APA), the new rule is tougher and starts with government disbursements. Vendors must also comply. 

“The new government has introduced a consultation process to try and move towards a fairer payment,” Radford said. “This will mean that payment processes will have to change and become stricter.” 

“That will rely on people and training in terms of their accounts payable function. Very importantly, it will rely on partners such as automation providers to assist in making processes simpler, more accurate, and more cost-effective.” 

It’s just one of the fascinating things happening in Britain as the once and future fintech capital of Europe buzzes about the welcome, yet potentially arduous process of being compliant, secure, fast, “fairer,” and everything else payments now demand. 

“We are seeing a move now towards [a] fairer payment culture and changing the [payment processing] culture within organizations,” Radford explained. “But the major impact in terms of the accounts payable world is going to be very much led by payments.” 

High-Performance AP 

With its October 2024 conference organized around the theme of “high performance” in payables and adjacent areas, the APA and its members find themselves on the leading edge of a huge payments trend – fairness and inclusivity – that is global and growing. 

Absent the kinds of decrees and protections common in Britain and the EU, such as PSD2 and GDPR, the US often moves slower domestically on these kinds of initiatives. On the upside, US practitioners may learn a few things watching England’s AP transformation. 

When asked to define “high performance” in AP, Radford said it’s a hook for conveying best practices in payables, related processes, and technology, to benefit the back office. 

“We're working to help organizations understand the true value of the payables process and payables teams so that AP can become what we call a strategic pillar,” he said. 

That means pulling down silos between departments and systems, embracing technology, and making sure it’s fit for purpose. Radford said that’s partly about AP staff not fearing the robots, but rather using the freedom they afford “to be more analytical, to add value.” 

Increasingly, he said, “AP teams are removing themselves from mundane processes, and they're looking at the more analytical areas.” For example, “the information outputs, the way they can add value to organizations by drilling down into the types of costs that businesses incur, and how they can work with their procurement functions to add value there.” 

Turn and Face the Change 

To keep the funnel filled with accounts payable professionals who are up to date on evolving systems and best practices in the UK, the US, or anywhere else requires education. Associations worldwide are all over this, and the APA is perhaps a step ahead. 

The association offers its APAQ certification, which stands for the Accounts Payable Association Quality program. As more Millennials eye retirement and Gen Z ascends the corporate ladder, fresh market knowledge is needed. 

“It's a global quality program, and we assess the processes, the people, and the technology,” Radford said. “We look at areas such as fraud, and we go through almost an audit [process]. We are assessing for best practices and, very importantly, for continuous improvement.” 

The idea of continuous improvement is gaining favor in the UK and elsewhere as part of a general push to get more value from technology investments and staff while future-proofing AP teams for double-edged swords like generative AI and what happens next. 

The changing face of accounts payable is all about AP automation now, and Radford is a firm believer. Here again, AP teams need reskilling and upskilling. 

“We've seen an upsurge over the last three to four years,” he said. “A lot more organizations are moving towards automation. And I think the automation providers are starting to listen to their customers about their needs and wants.”