What is Account Payable (AP)? What is Procurement to Pay (P to P process)?
Accounts payable or Procure to Pay is a part of accounting that is involved with paying the invoices of a company, payable to the suppliers or vendors. The majority of the job openings are for Accounts payable or P to P. That is because this type of job is very important to a company. There is a demand for account payable jobs and there is no sign of this diminishing in the future.
If you are considering a career in accounts payable, then this is a guide that can help you as it will outline for you an accounts payable description. There are some skills and basic information that you need to learn so that you can apply to the type of accounting job that you want.
Scope of a Job in the process of Account Payable (AP) or Procure to Pay (P2P) :
When you are working in the process of accounts payable or procure to pay, then you are in charge of handling the payments either in the form of cash or cheques or bank transfer payments. You are also handling the details and records of payments that are due to be made to creditors or vendors. Other responsibilities include reviewing the invoices for their correctness to process. Check requests for payment from respective departments and match invoices with the purchase orders or approval. You are also in charge of maintaining records and vendor master data. You may need to correspond with vendors and respond to any of their specific inquiries. Record the transactions, account for the tax and payments thereof. Sometimes it is also necessary to reconcile vendor balances so that balance as per Company records must match with the balance in the Vendors’ records.
These are just a few of the duties and responsibilities that you have to do on a daily basis when you hold an account payable job. If you are thinking of pursuing this type of career then there are some skills and specifications that you will have to learn.
Getting prepared for P2P job :
You must have knowledge of general accounting procedures, specifically those related to accounts payable or procure to pay. You must also have experience in some computer applications / ERP that are related to accounting. Proficiency in data entry and management is also very important for your day-to-day functions. It is also an added bonus if you are organized and can pay attention to details along with having great accuracy. Good communication and problem-solving skills are also vitally important. The most important skill you need to have is being able to use discretion and maintaining customer confidentiality.
If you are planning to pursue this career it can be helpful if you have a Bachelor’s degree in accounting, bookkeeping, and finance.
You can apply as an accounts payable clerk, manager, or supervisor. It all depends on your level of experience. The more experience you have the better job position you can apply to.