Woonin is the largest housing association in and around Utrecht. By switching to Archive-IT's I-Flow 365, Woonin has made its invoice processing less vulnerable and less dependent on manual work. We spoke to Aziz Gultekin, IT Contract Manager at Woonin.
From template-based recognition to smart invoice processing
Archive-IT was already a supplier to Woonin for the E-Content 365 document management system. The previous invoice recognition solution also came from Archive-IT. This solution worked on a template basis. "If a supplier changed their invoice or template, our invoice recognition would no longer recognise the invoice," says Aziz. "As a result, our staff ended up having to process around 90% of invoices manually. That made the process highly vulnerable and dependent on individual employees."
For Woonin, this was reason enough to take a fresh look at invoice processing.
In search of a future-proof solution
The decision to look for a new solution stemmed from two factors. "On the one hand, there was the large amount of manual work for our staff. On the other, there were security risks associated with using an outdated solution." Future-proofing was central to the choice of a new solution. "We wanted a solution that would be future-proof and, of course, require far fewer manual actions."
Ultimately, Woonin chose Archive-IT again. "Archive-IT is a familiar and reliable supplier for us. On top of that, I-Flow 365 is simple, future-proof and self-learning. Those were important reasons for us to choose this solution."
Good support during implementation
According to Woonin, the implementation of I-Flow 365 went smoothly. "Our implementation went well. Our implementation consultant, Rob, guided us well and was readily available throughout the process."
During implementation, it became clear that Woonin depends on an external party for certain changes, for example around permissions. Because of this dependency, some changes took a little longer than initially expected. The strong support from Archive-IT helped ensure the project continued to run smoothly overall.
Faster processing and a focus on data quality
Since I-Flow 365 went live, Woonin has noticed that invoices which can be processed without manual intervention move through the process faster. The switch has also led to improvements in how the process is set up. "We adjusted the supplier configuration in Empire so that invoices are processed more accurately. In my view, this is actually beneficial for data quality."
Woonin is also working more actively with suppliers to ensure invoices are submitted correctly. This requires a slightly different way of collaborating, but it contributes to a smoother invoice process.
Woonin continues to optimise the setup and performance of I-Flow 365 during ongoing use. This also includes looking at process monitoring, so that any disruptions can be identified as quickly as possible.
Advice for other housing associations
For organisations facing similar challenges, Aziz has clear advice: map out the challenges thoroughly in advance. "Keep a list of the challenges you come across and work out exactly where in the process they occur. Discuss the challenges with your users as well, so they understand what's going on and why."
Aziz also stresses the importance of establishing upfront what the organisation expects from a solution like I-Flow 365. "Involve users from the very start, so they can look at the solution critically right from the beginning. That ultimately delivers a better result with broader support."