Most finance teams we meet want the same thing: to close the month faster, with fewer manual steps and fewer errors to chase afterwards. Visma Net has the tools for it, but there is a big difference between having the features and actually using them. Here are the five processes where automation usually pays off fastest, in the order we most often introduce them.
1. The supplier invoice workflow
The manual invoice workflow is almost always the biggest time drain: invoices that arrive by email, are entered by hand, sent around for approval and coded one by one. In Visma Net we let invoices come in electronically, get interpreted and matched against purchase orders or previous coding, and go out for approval automatically.
The gain is twofold. Data entry time almost disappears, and the classic closing question, "which invoices haven't come in yet?", is replaced by a list that already exists in the system.
2. Bank reconciliation
Reconciling the bank line by line against the general ledger is a task that should no longer exist. With a bank connection in Visma Net, statements are read in continuously and matched against outgoing and incoming payments automatically. What is left to handle manually are the exceptions, and that is exactly how it should be.
The effect is not only felt at closing. A bank that is reconciled every morning means the liquidity picture is always current, not once a month.
3. Accounts receivable and dunning
Reminders and interest invoices are a textbook example of work that matters but does not require judgment in every single case. We set up rule-based dunning workflows: which customers get reminders, when, in what tone and with which exceptions. The finance team handles the exceptions instead of the routine.
This is also usually where cash flow improves first, not because customers get better at paying, but because no reminder is ever forgotten.
4. Accruals and recurring journal transactions
Rent, licenses, insurance and subscriptions look the same every month, yet are surprisingly often posted by hand. Visma Net's accrual templates and recurring transactions make sure they are posted correctly, in the right period, without anyone having to remember them.
At closing, this is the difference between checking that something is already done and sitting down to do it. The check takes minutes; the doing takes days.
5. VAT and the reporting package
Last in the chain: the VAT return and the recurring reports to management and the board. Once the underlying data is automated as described above, the VAT return goes from investigative work to a control step. We build the reporting package as saved views and reports directly in the system, so the numbers are pulled from where they actually live instead of being pasted into spreadsheets.
The order matters
It is tempting to start with the reports, because they are what management sees. But reports built on manual underlying processes are just a faster way of showing uncertain numbers. That is why we always start with the workflows (invoices, bank, receivables and payables) and let reporting come last, when the data it rests on can be trusted.
We do every rollout together with your finance team: we configure, you work in the workflow from week one, and the handover is documented so the routine does not depend on a single person. If you want to know where your biggest time drain is, we are happy to do a mapping session of your current state. It is free, and you keep the results whatever you decide to do next.