Invoices and approvals get stuck
Supplier invoices arrive by email, approvals happen in chat and payment status lives in a spreadsheet. Nobody knows what’s waiting on whom.
Typical in: Construction, logistics, wholesale, multi-site service firms, training centres, any company where managers approve costs
What it looks like
A supplier invoice arrives in the accountant’s inbox. It needs the project manager’s approval, so it’s forwarded. The project manager is on site, sees it a week later and replies in chat. The accountant matches it to the order by hand, books it and updates the payment spreadsheet. Meanwhile three more invoices from the same supplier are waiting somewhere else.
The same happens with your own invoices: they can’t go out until someone confirms the work is done and collects the documents. From 1 January 2028, invoices between Latvian companies must also be structured e-invoices, so PDFs in inboxes are on borrowed time.
How many of these sound familiar?
- Suppliers chase you for payment you didn’t know was due.
- The accountant spends hours forwarding emails and asking “did you approve this?”
- Your own invoices go out late, so cash comes in late.
- The owner signs everything, because there’s no other way to stay in control.
What the research says
Three companies, same problem
Ezerkrasts Build
About 400 supplier invoices a month, each needing approval from the project manager of the right site. The accountant forwards emails and waits. Some invoices sit for three weeks, late fees appear, and one supplier put deliveries on hold until the account was cleared.
Kārkli Logistics
Each customer invoice needs the carrier’s documents attached. Collecting them takes time, so invoices go out two to three weeks after delivery. Cash is always tight, even in good months.
Zinis Training Centre
Trainer invoices, purchase requests and holiday requests all go to the director by email or chat. When she travels, everything stops. The accountant keeps a separate list of what has been approved, and it’s never complete.
Illustrative examples. The companies are fictional; the situations are typical of the industries we work with.
How we fix it
- 01
One way in.
Supplier invoices arrive at one address or as e-invoices. Key data is read automatically and matched to the order, project or contract.
- 02
Approval routes by rule.
Amount, project and supplier decide who approves. Approvers get a reminder and can approve on their phone, and overdue items escalate.
- 03
Connected to accounting.
Approved invoices go to your accounting software with the right codes. Payment status flows back, so nobody keeps a separate list.
- 04
Outgoing invoices on time.
Invoices are created from completed jobs or orders with the documents attached, and overdue customers get polite automatic reminders.
What changes
Before
After
A typical first project
An approval flow for incoming supplier invoices, connected to your accounting software, with a dashboard of what’s waiting on whom. First working version in about four weeks. It starts with a free Process Mapping session.
Apply for a free Process MappingFind out what’s slowing your business down.
Start with a free analysis to identify your biggest bottlenecks and discover where improvements will have the greatest impact.