Accounts Payable Narrative

Accounts Payable Narrative The Accounts Payable process consists of the following sub-processes:   

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Vendor Master File Maintenance Initiation and Authorization Recording & Processing o Receipt of Goods o Invoice Processing and Payment Reporting

Vendor Master File Maintenance: New Vendor Setup/Changes to Vendor: To create a new vendor or change any existing vendor, the requestor completes a Vendor Request Form (VRF). Once the approval is obtained, the VRF is sent to the Vendor Master Clerk for processing. The Vendor Master Clerk contacts the vendor to obtain the necessary information and add the vendor to the ERP Vendor Master File. Initiation and Authorization: The stores’ department sends a material requisition form to the purchase department for procuring goods/services. A purchase requisition is created by the purchase requisition clerk and approved based on the local procurement policy. If the amount is greater than thresholds limits, as per the local procurement policy, the centralized procurement policy is used to obtain the proper level of approval. As per the procurement policy, quotations are sought from the approved vendors and product/service is confirmed based on terms and procedure mentioned in the policy. Upon approval of the price and product specification, a purchase order is created in the system. Once the purchase order (PO) is generated, it is sent to the respective vendor. The system is configured to prohibit POs from being generated for unauthorized vendors. Recording and Processing: Receipt of Goods When goods are received at the warehouse, they are recorded in the system by the warehouse clerk creating a Good Receipt Note (GRN) against the respective purchase order. Once the goods have been recorded in the system, the system books the journal entry recording liability for the receipt of goods in GR/IR. The system is configured to allow a specific percentage quantity variance when entering goods receipts into the system. When this percentage difference exceeds the threshold, the receipt of goods is blocked and investigated. If the management decides to deny receipt of the goods, the goods are returned back to the vendors. Inventory returned to suppliers is separately logged (R_INV_23) (C_INV_14). Inventory that is separately logged is kept separately in the warehouse. The Warehouse Manager ensures that these goods are not taken into account during the Monthly Inventory Count. Note: This document is an illustrative example and is for information and education purposes only. It is not a substitute for professional advice, services, nor an entity’s own internal control procedures and should not be used or relied on as such.

Invoice Processing and Payment Invoices are sent directly from the vendor to the accounts payable department. Upon receipt of the invoice, the accounts payable (AP) Clerk enters the invoice details into the ERP. The ERP system is configured to perform a 3-way match for goods purchased. The invoice, PO, and GRN for the good received are matched within the system prior to payment (R_CAS_5) (R_INV_4) (C_PAO1_3). Payments are blocked when there is a difference (outside the allowable tolerances) between the price and/or quantity amongst the PO, GRN, and / or invoice. Blocked invoices are sent to the AP Manager for review via workflow. The AP manager has the ability to unblock the invoice. For invoices received related to services, a two-way match is performed by the AP Clerk comparing the invoice and PO within the system. The AP Clerk also obtains necessary approval form the respective department on behalf of whom the expenses were incurred. The two-way match is approved by the AP Manager within the ERP system prior to payment. When the AP department processes an invoice related to goods/services received against a PO, ERP automatically debits GR/IR account and credit A/P Trade. Accounts payable and operating expenses are recorded by ERP System upon match (R_PAO1_1) (C_PAO1_1) (i.e., liability recorded in GR/IR is transferred to vendor Account). The system is also configured to prevent duplicate invoices from being processed through the check invoice option for all vendors.

Reporting: On a monthly basis, a reconciliation between the A/P sub-ledger and the general ledger is prepared by AP Clerk and reviewed by AP Manager (R_PAO1_2) (C_PAO1_2). The AP Clerk maintains a spreadsheet which classifies each payable amount by vendor. AP Manager generates a payables aging report listing all payables and reviews the report for unusual payment terms and errors. The AP Manager also reviews the payables sub-ledger for unusual balance activity from prior months (R_PDI_17) (C_PDI_10).

IPE:   

PAO1_IPE_1 — Purchase Requisition PAO1_IPE_2 — Goods Received Note PAO1_IPE_3— Accounts Payable Aging Report

Notes: 1. Risk # R_PAO1_3 has not been mapped in this process as it is already covered in the Operating Expenses process. 2.

Risk # R_CAS_6 has not been mapped in this process as it is already covered in the Cash process.

3. Risk # R_INV_1 & R_INV_22 has not been mapped in this process as it is already covered in the Inventory process. Note: This document is an illustrative example and is for information and education purposes only. It is not a substitute for professional advice, services, nor an entity’s own internal control procedures and should not be used or relied on as such.

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