How To Modernize Payments And Thrive Post-Pandemic

In A Decade of Digital Transformation in 12 Months, 46 C-suite executives spoke with PYMNTS for its Q2 eBook on what the world will look like as recovery rolls on and the next iteration of normal rolls out. In this excerpt, Greg Bloh, CEO of Transcard, talks about how embedded payment solutions can help businesses bring their payments into the modern era, and how they can seamlessly integrate with any legacy software or ERP application.

Read the entire eBook here.

The outdated approaches to payment processing that many businesses have relied on for years became a serious liability during the pandemic. Making and receiving check payments is harder when staff can’t get into the office, as they waste more time chasing down approvals and payment information. Managing cash flow is tricky. And businesses may be forced to choose between circumventing checks and balances and getting suppliers paid.

The root of the problem is the hodgepodge of point solutions and closed-loop payment networks that most businesses use to make and receive payments. Each point solution and network comes with its own passwords and logins, file formats, account requirements and proprietary integrations. And many of these solutions and networks were built around checks and paper remittances.

The result is inefficiencies, unnecessary complexity and risk across the payment lifecycle. Accounts payable (AP) and accounts receivable (AR) practitioners spend most of their time keying (and rekeying) data, shuffling paper and chasing down information. In fact, AP and AR managers typically spend more of their workday on transaction processing than on the managerial tasks they were hired to perform. And poorly integrated systems create rework, payment and data silos, poor treasury connectivity and delays in getting information to downstream systems. Worse, no one can ever be sure where payments stand, making working capital management an uphill battle.

As economies begin to reopen and businesses gradually bring their employees back to the office, senior management is focused on how to return to growth. For businesses to succeed post-pandemic, they must find ways to reduce costs, eliminate inefficiencies and complexity, achieve real-time cash flow and corporate spending, enhance the customer experience and mitigate the risk of fraud.

That’s why businesses of all sizes are accelerating their efforts to radically transform their underlying payments processes and cost structure. Over the past year, it’s become increasingly clear that separate payment systems and closed-loop payment networks won’t cut it in the new normal.

Embedded payment solutions go a long way toward helping businesses modernize their payments and thrive post-pandemic. Embedded payments solutions seamlessly integrate with any legacy software or ERP application. AP and AR professionals can manage their payments from familiar screens and without having to log into another system. Multi-rail capabilities enable businesses to disburse or receive payments in any format or using any payment network. One or more payments can be made in real time or scheduled for later. Supplier payment preferences and payment terms are managed automatically. Rich remittance details flow with the payments and are uploaded directly to the supplier’s ERP touch-free. And payment data is reconciled in real time.

Shortcomings in the way businesses make and receive payments were exposed and exacerbated during the pandemic. Digitizing payments won’t singlehandedly solve these problems. To help their businesses thrive in the post-pandemic normal, AP and AR professionals must rethink the point solutions and closed-loop payment networks that they use to disburse and receive payments.

Embedded payment solutions will do just that.