How Stampli’s Advanced Vendor Management Makes Issuing 1099s Easier

My year-end closing process was a disaster last year, and I vowed not to drag my accounting staff through the same process this year. If I don’t make the closing process less painful, I’ll definitely lose some of my staff — which puts me in a deeper hole moving forward.

What made it so difficult?

The team performed a lot of manual tasks, which required more time and generated more errors. We all work more hours during the first quarter to complete the monthly accounting work, close the prior year books, and to finish all those annoying, once-a-year tasks, including 1099s.

Mistakes have a snowball effect.

Last year, a number of vendors told us that their 1099s were incorrect, and the time my staff spent making corrections put us behind on other work. We value our vendors, and they were upset that the information we reported had to be changed. This is tax information — getting it right is important, and we dropped the ball.

Bottom line?

My staff was stressed, and my CFO was concerned that we wouldn’t get the year-end books closed before the board meeting.

It was miserable, so I decided…never again.

In case you’re not familiar with Stampli, you should know that it’s a complete accounts payable (AP) Automation platform that brings together accounts payable communications, documentation, and payments in one place. Using Stampli gives me full control and visibility over corporate spending.

I really like Stampli’s Advanced Vendor Management tool, which makes issuing 1099s much easier for the accounting team. 

Here’s how.

Automated Vendor Data Collection

Half the battle with 1099s is gathering all the required vendor information. Stampli automatically captures vendor information from invoices and purchase orders that we receive. The vendor’s company name, address, and tax ID number are collected without the need for manual data entry, and the risk of error is much lower.

Vendors used to send invoices and other documents to one of four people in the AP department, depending on the vendor’s geographic location. It was a mess- we never knew if AP was getting all of the information that was sent. If someone went on vacation, would a team member check the email inbox?

Not always.

With Stampli, vendors send data to a single email address, so the AP team doesn’t lose track of documents sent to multiple recipients. 

Another variable we have to track is payments.

Accurately Track Payments

Stampli tracks vendor payments by date, amount, and payment method (check, ACH, card, etc.), and the total amount paid to a vendor for the year. All of the payments are listed in Stampli, and the staff isn’t going to multiple sources to add up payments, or manually adding totals in a spreadsheet. 

Time to issue 1099s? All the info is in one place in Stampli. 

Generating and Sending 1099s to Vendors

My team pulls a report, and can quickly identify each vendor who must receive a 1099, according to the IRS rules. The old days of printing 1099s and rushing to the Post Office are over. Stampli allows vendors to receive their 1099s electronically, which saves my staff tons of time.

We collect data, track payments, generate 1099s, and send them electronically, all by using Stampli. In fact, the team uses Stampli to streamline our entire AP vendor process.

Improved Document Management

Our construction business collects other types of documents from vendors, including:

• Insurance certificates: When we hire subcontractors (plumbers, electricians), we need proof that they are insured before working on our jobs.

• Licenses: Architects and engineers must provide a current copy of their license, in order to work on our projects.

If we don’t have these documents, or they’re not current, it creates legal risks for our company. In the past, we’ve had to pull people off our jobs because of missing paperwork.

People got upset, as you can imagine…

Well, problem solved with Stampli. Just look at these tools, and how they improve document management:

• Collect any type of vendor information (names, addresses, bank information), and set up requirements for vendors to provide documents.  
• Vendors can upload invoices directly into the vendor portal, eliminating the need to send email attachments.
• To make data collection easier, you can create onboarding forms based on the type of vendor.
• Put controls in place that require vendors to submit current documents before payments can be sent.

Think of it from the vendor’s point of view. I’d much rather do business with a firm that makes document collection easier. The vendor portal allows vendors to check on the status of an invoice, and it’s a place to ask questions.

The AP staff no longer deals with lost documents, frequent phone calls, and vendor frustration over delayed payments. Vendors are happier, and my team has more time to work on tasks that add value to the business. Who wants to be stuck entering data into spreadsheets?

If I were you, I’d consider using Stampli’s AP Automation solution to complete more work in less time, and with far fewer errors. They have an award-winning customer success team — these people know accounts payable, which gives my team peace of mind. Simplify your life with Stampli.