How did IT improve Novartis’s invoice processing?

"downtime. Now Novartis scans incoming invoices at a centrally located site, and the images are transmitted to the Input Accel for Invoices server for image improvement. Invoice data is then extracted and validated against supplier information. Most invoices are transferred directly for payment, with relatively few invoices requiring transfer to one of three accounts payable clerks who deal with queries manually. Novartis is a global leader in research and development of products that improve health issues. Input Accel was selected by Novartis to be part of its accounting system. Thanks to IT, overall efficiency has increased, processing errors are reduced, and accounting personnel can use their time and expert knowledge for more meaningful tasks than resolving invoice errors. For Novartis, it is “mission accomplished.” Critical Thinking Questions 1. What factors contributed to Novartis’s invoice processing being so complex? 2. How did IT help the company solve that problem? 3. What other uses and functions does Input Accel serve, and how will this be useful to Novartis over the long term? (You may want to visit the EMC/Captiva website, https://www.emc.com , for more information on Input Accel ’s capabilities.) Sources: “OpenText Acquires EMC Enterprise Division,” MetaSource , http://www.metasource.com, September 20, 2016; Novartis corporate website, http://www.novartis.com, March 20, 2006; “Processing Invoices From Around the World,” ECM Connection, https://www.ecmconnection, February 2, 2006; Kathryn Balint, “Captiva’s Paper Chase Paying Off,” San Diego Union-Tribune, December 9, 2005, pp. C1, C5."