Case Study:
Santa Fe Relocation
Learn how Santa Fe Relocation transformed their accounts payable processes with our bespoke DocuWare solutions.
Santa Fe Relocation Overview
Background
Founded in 1980 and headquartered in London, Santa Fe Relocation is a leading global provider of relocation services, offering a comprehensive suite of solutions including moving, destination services, immigration, and assignment management. With a rich history that includes the acquisition of Wridgways, Australia’s oldest relocation company, and Interdean, one of Europe’s largest removal firms, Santa Fe has built a strong international presence.
As the company expanded, Santa Fe encountered significant inefficiencies within their finance function, particularly driven by manual processes across the AP department. With scalability front of mind, Santa Fe sought a solution that would streamline processes, improve efficiency, and support their global growth.
Challenges
Santa Fe faced significant operational challenges that impacted their accounts payable department. The team struggled with paper-based processes, leading to inefficient invoice approvals, missed early payment discounts, and high postage costs for document transfers across Europe. Manual data entry into their ERP system also consumed valuable time and resources.
To address these issues, Santa Fe needed a solution that could streamline processing and provide scalability for future growth. The lack of efficiency and the burden of manual tasks made it clear that automation was essential to improve overall workflow and enhance financial controls across the business.
Key Requirements
ELITE thoroughly assessed Santa Fe’s challenges and collaboratively established the criteria that would define the project’s success:
- Centralise and securely store invoices and related document
- Integrate seamlessly with the existing ERP system (Exact)
- Automate invoice processing to eliminate manual data entry
- Enable digital routing and approval workflows for global teams
- Ensure compliance with financial controls and regulatory requirements
- Improve visibility and transparency in the accounts payable process
- Provide a scalable solution to support future international expansion
The Solution
ELITE implemented DocuWare Cloud to automate and streamline Santa Fe’s accounts payable processes, addressing inefficiencies and reducing manual workload. This solution not only improved overall efficiency but also provided the scalability needed to support the company’s growth and global operations.
Physical and digital invoices were scanned into DocuWare and automatically indexed, capturing all relevant data without manual input. This integration with Santa Fe’s ERP system (Exact) eliminated the need for data entry, significantly reducing time spent on administrative tasks.
To further improve efficiency, DocuWare’s automated workflow routed invoices for digital e-approval, enabling seamless collaboration across global teams.
This digital routing eliminated the need for costly international postage and expedited the approval process.
The solution also included built-in rules for substitutions and escalations, ensuring that tasks were handled without delays, even when team members were absent. This increased financial control, transparency, and cash flow, while also allowing Santa Fe to retire physical filing systems in favour of secure, electronic storage.
Outcomes
The implementation of Docuware brought about significant improvements for Santa Fe, addressing their operational challenges and delivering tangible benefits across their accounts payable processes:
Increased efficiency
The automation of invoice processing and data entry saved considerable time, allowing staff to focus on higher-value tasks
Enhanced collaboration
Digital e-approvals and centralized access to documents improved workflow efficiency globally
Improved scalability
Docuware’s flexibility supported Santa Fe’s expansion, extending to other functions like expense management
Strengthened compliance
Provided better visibility and financial controls, ensuring compliance with
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