How Corporate Fleet Cards Help Modern Transport & Logistic Businesses

PlutoCard now becomes GetPluto — your new one-stop solution for all payables.  

What's New?

After much anticipation and hard work, we're excited to announce the migration from plutocard.io to getpluto.com, a step towards redefining corporate payments.

With getpluto.com, we are extending our vision beyond providing corporate cards. 

We understand the challenges that businesses face when handling their finances. It involves more than swiping a card and filing expenses. That's why we've developed a comprehensive suite of products and features to simplify everything from procurement to payables. 

So, whether you want to streamline purchase requests, integrate your ERP without impacting costs, or manage reimbursements — getpluto.com has you covered!

Beyond Cards: The All-In-One Platform

Here's a glimpse of what Pluto has to offer:

1. Procure-to-pay: Streamline your procurement process from purchase requests to invoice matching, all in one place.
2. Bill management: Centralize bill management and payments for faster approvals, better vendor relationships, and more accurate two/three-way matching.
3. Accounting ERP integrations: Sync seamlessly with major ERPs like Xero, Zoho, QuickBooks, Dynamics, and Netsuite to close your books 10X faster.
4. Petty cash management: Digitize cash-in-hand management to eliminate leaks without losing flexibility or visibility.
5. T&E reimbursements: Simplify travel and expense reimbursements with unlimited budget-controlled corporate cards and custom approval workflows.
6. Corporate cards: Get budget-controlled corporate cards with built-in compliance management — from receipt capture to policy enforcement. 

“We have been using Pluto for a few months now, and we literally have everything in one place.”

~ Lee Kersen Mascarenhas, Head of Operations at BloomingBox

From Our CoFounder — Mo Aziz

Pluto's Corporate Cards have been serving the largest businesses in UAE powered by a platform built for companies of all sizes: from small-scale SMEs to businesses with 1000s of employees.

But company spending does not happen just through Corporate Cards…

At Pluto, we believe CFO & Finance teams need a unified, comprehensive platform that solves all types of corporate spending problems end-to-end.

The new Pluto is our step towards this future where UAE businesses get a best-in-class platform, helping manage company spending across Cards, Reimbursements, Invoice Management, Procurement & more.

Join Us At getpluto.com

We're excited about the possibilities that getpluto.com brings. 

We understand the importance of this change and are here to support you at every step of the way, offering a more comprehensive platform to meet all your financial needs.

Sign up for a demo or create a free account at getpluto.com today and discover how Pluto simplifies payments for—finance teams, procurement teams, and employees.

Thank you for your continued support!

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‎Introduction

In this blog post, we will dive into a discussion between two individuals about the future of financial services and the opportunities and challenges in the SME (Small and Medium-sized Enterprises) segment. The speakers discuss the impact of technology on businesses, the need for innovation in business payments, and the changing landscape of entrepreneurship. Let's explore the key themes discussed in this conversation.

The Impact of Technology on Businesses

The conversation begins by highlighting the significant focus on consumer-centric technology companies in recent years. Companies like Uber and Instacart have revolutionized the way individuals access services and products. However, the speakers note that there has been a lack of focus on technology solutions for businesses. This is starting to change, with a surge in B2B marketplaces and business planning tools emerging.

The Evolution of the SME Segment

The speakers acknowledge that the SME segment has traditionally been overlooked due to various obstacles and challenges. However, they discuss how the COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the need for digital transformation in businesses. They mention that 56% of SMEs have pivoted or shifted their business models towards digital channels. This shift has opened up new opportunities for technology companies to cater to the evolving needs of SMEs.

Pain Points in Business Payments

One of the pain points discussed is the inefficiency and frustration associated with business payments. The speakers highlight the challenges faced by businesses when making and receiving payments. They mention the difficulties of distributing petty cash to employees, the reliance on personal cards for business expenses, and the cumbersome process of entering vendor details in banking portals. These challenges result in cash leakages, accounting nightmares, and inefficiencies.

The Opportunity for Innovation in Business Payments

The speakers emphasize the need for innovation in business payments. They discuss the potential for technology solutions to address the pain points faced by businesses. By streamlining payment processes, reducing fraud, and improving efficiency, businesses can save time and money. The speakers believe that there is a significant opportunity to disrupt the traditional business payments landscape and provide better solutions for businesses of all sizes.

The Changing Landscape of Entrepreneurship

The conversation concludes with a discussion on the changing landscape of entrepreneurship. The speakers predict that businesses will continue to shrink in size as more functions become automated. However, they also anticipate the emergence of a new breed of entrepreneurs who will serve multiple businesses through their own ventures. This shift towards self-employment and the gig economy is expected to create new opportunities and challenges for both entrepreneurs and businesses.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the discussion highlights the need for technology solutions in the SME segment and the opportunities for innovation in business payments. The speakers emphasize the importance of addressing the pain points faced by businesses and predict a future where entrepreneurship takes on a new form. As the business landscape continues to evolve, it is crucial for businesses and entrepreneurs to adapt and leverage technology to stay competitive. If you're interested in learning more about the future of financial services and how technology can transform your business payments, we invite you to explore the solutions offered by Holly Wally, the world's first wallet-as-a-service platform. Visit Holly Wally's website to find out how they can help you build your mobile wallets, increase revenue, and reduce time to market. Remember, the future is full of opportunities, and embracing innovation is the key to success in the ever-changing business landscape.

The sales team needs a new SaaS product for cold calling, but the approval is due. It has been weeks, and neither the finance nor the legal team has reverted. The sales team keeps following up, and the procurement team is stuck in the loop of approvals, only to spend some more weeks negotiating with the right vendor later.

This is a common scenario in most companies where teams follow a fixed standard operating procedure, and procuring basic items takes months. All this, combined with multiple tools, complicates procurement further. One tool to raise requests, one for approvals, one to manage vendors, and so on. 

In this blog post, we will discuss how to automate purchase orders and simplify the procurement process. Instead of relying on hundreds of procurement automation software, we will look at how you can automate with minimal effort. 

What is Purchase Order Automation?

Purchase order automation is the process of automating and removing all the manual tasks associated with creating purchase orders. 

This is what the traditional procurement process looks like in most companies:

• Employees fill out forms to raise purchase requests, but have a long wait before they receive a response.
• The procurement team struggles to manage hundreds of purchase requests and seek approvals from different departments.
• The finance team is disliked by both employees and the procurement team because they focus on cost-saving and resource optimization.

As a result, there is continuous internal resentment. 

Automating parts of this process lifts the weight off of each of them. Instead of relying on forms and different task management tools, you invest in centralized software to manage requests, set approval workflows, and maintain vendor databases.

How to Automate Purchase Orders

Here is a simple four-step method to automate your purchase orders: 

1. Find the Right Automation Software

We have explored the top procurement automation software previously, which will help you evaluate the alternatives available. To pick the right one, look for the following features: 

• Ease of use- To simplify adoption and reduce training time
• Flexible workflows- To adapt to complex organizational hierarchies
• Integration- To connect and sync with existing accounting systems and ERPs
• Reporting- To support data-driven decision-making and enhanced transparency
• Real-time visibility- To track expenses and identify thefts and fraud
• Scalability- To accommodate increased transactions and users without performance issues

2. Integrate With Your Accounting Software and ERPs

Connect your existing accounting software and ERPs to procurement automation software to sync vendors and transactions across multiple software platforms. 

As a result, it becomes easier to maintain vendor databases and reconcile accounts. You can streamline purchase orders and eliminate chances of errors. You get real-time visibility into the status of orders, ensuring that relevant stakeholders are informed at every stage.

3. Set Up Policy and Approval Workflow

Create and enforce guidelines, rules, and approval hierarchies for purchase orders that align with organizational policies. This includes the following steps:

• Outlining the approval workflow to follow the organizational hierarchy
• Setting spending limits to control the amounts allocated in a single purchase order
• Syncing and defining the preferred vendor's list
• Specifying user permissions, access levels, and actions based on roles within the procurement process
• Activating alerts for relevant stakeholders about the status of purchase orders, pending approvals, or other critical updates

This step will enhance security, communication, and transparency throughout the procurement workflow.

4. Implement Automation

Finally, once you complete the setup, you will be able to automate the following parts of purchase orders:

a. Approval Workflows

You can set up trigger-based approval workflows without requiring any technical expertise. From approving purchase requests to clearing payments, you can set up a proper hierarchy with all the required stakeholders. 

So whether a purchase demands approval from three managers or three departments, you can accommodate the complexities without any delays.  

b. Vendor Database

Instead of importing/exporting or manually maintaining vendor data in your procurement software, you can integrate the software into your existing accounting system and ERPs for a convenient two-way sync.

You can also create a list of items for each vendor, making two-way and three-way matching easier. 

c. Receipts

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Be it from email or WhatsApp, you no longer need to upload receipts and information in your system manually. The software captures the receipts and other key details via OCR, eliminating redundant record-keeping. 

Additionally, you can bulk upload the invoices to add all the information in a centralized platform and sync across accounting systems. This simplifies reconciliation and provides complete visibility into each expense. 

d. Expense Categorization

You no longer need to manually add tax and general ledger (GL) codes to any expense. Based on the key information extracted via OCR, the software categorizes the expenses. Plus, this syncs across platforms, accelerating reconciliation. 

e. Goods Received Note (GRN) Matching

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With OCR and receipt information retrieval, two-way and three-way matching becomes easy. The stakeholders can side-by-side compare the purchase order, invoice, and items listed. This significantly reduces the time spent on GRN matching and consolidates all the information on a unified platform. 

f. Audit Trails

You get away with the need to maintain thousands of receipts and documents and get all the key information on a unified platform. From purchase requests to stakeholders involved and order status, you get complete visibility into each order. 

This audit trail becomes a blessing during the audit season when you only need 30 seconds to retrieve a specific receipt or document.  

How Automating Purchase Orders Makes Procurement Easier

While automation comes with multiple benefits, one reason to try it out would be gaining control and visibility. 

You go from not knowing what the teams need, where the money is going, which department spends the most, or why these reports don’t make any sense to getting clarity on every aspect of procurement, not just purchase orders. 

Here are five more benefits of automating purchase orders: 

1. Reduce Error and Manual Tasks

You minimize the risk of human errors that come from manual data entry. For instance, a manual typo in the quantity ordered leads to complications and delays. Similarly, a mistake in categorization can cause legal issues. Automation ensures accuracy by eliminating such human errors.

2. Faster Reconciliation

You get real-time data synced across your accounting systems, easing the reconciliation process. The finance team can quickly match records, such as invoices and receipts, without delays and discrepancies. Further, this eases the process of GRN matching, helping you close books much faster with accuracy.

3. Streamlined Approvals

You accelerate the approval process for purchase orders even with complex hierarchies. Instead of waiting for physical signatures or manual confirmations, you get trigger-based approval workflows. As a result, you can set up a proper notification system to send purchase order requests to designated approvers, speeding up the entire approval chain.

4. Compliance Support

You can enhance compliance with organizational policies and regulatory standards. For instance, the system can flag a purchase order exceeding predefined spending limits, ensuring compliance with budget constraints. This helps prevent unauthorized purchases or deviations from established guidelines.

5. Scalable

You can scale procurement easily to meet the evolving needs of the business. As the organization grows, the automated system handles increased transaction volumes without affecting or increasing the manual effort.

Your Search for a Purchase Order Automation Tool Ends Here

Stop looking for different automation tools for each step in your procurement process. You don’t need an individual solution for purchase requests, purchase orders, and processing payments. You can automate it all on a single platform and ensure accuracy and consistency among your accounting systems. 

At Pluto, our main aim is to stop the chaos and make procurement easier for three core stakeholders—spenders (employees), savers (finance teams), and sourcers (procurement teams). We streamline the entire process on a centralized platform and give you more visibility and control at each stage. And whether you want to automate one step or digitize your entire procurement process, Pluto gives you the flexibility to meet your needs. 

Refer to our dedicated post on procurement automation to understand how a single procurement platform can sync with your accounting systems and automate the procurement process on a centralized platform.