The 2024 honorees feature six innovative accounts payable professionals who are driving transformative change in the industry
CHARLOTTE, N.C., Oct. 23, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- AvidXchange, Inc. ( AVDX), a leading provider of accounts payable (AP) automation software and payment solutions for middle market businesses and their suppliers, today announced the winners of the inaugural Change Maker Awards, recognizing individuals who have driven innovative and transformative change in the AP industry.
Change Makers:
For this award program, AvidXchange honors those who embodied being a “change maker,” or someone who facilitates or brings about change in their AP department through innovative processes, automated procedures or other creative solutions.
- Alexis Bates, Director of Construction and Development Accounting, Robert High Development: In response to the demand for faster, more secure subcontractor payments, Alexis spearheaded the implementation of AvidXchange’s end-to-end AP automation solution built for construction. The payment process is now more streamlined, saving her company over $100,000 annually in hard costs like check stock and postage and eliminating the need to hire additional staff due to increased efficiency. Additionally, with a more robust approval process, her team has experienced fewer errors and implemented a stronger system for checks and balances.
- Ella Hu, Corporate Accountant, HH Red Stone: Ella played a key role in implementing AvidXchange’s payment automation solution, replacing manual processes that were prone to errors and delays. The adoption of a more efficient process resulted in annual savings of $45,000 and reduced payment processing time from 14 days to just 5. Ella’s efforts also led to a 30% increase in supplier satisfaction, as suppliers now receive more timely payments with clearer status updates.
- Farzana Sarpas, Staff Accountant – Development Accounting, Rancho Mission Viejo: Farzana led the implementation of AvidXchange’s end-to-end AP automation solution built for construction. She played a key role in integrating an innovative system that utilizes a newly created company portal designed to automatically import, code, and route invoices to AvidXchange, fully automating the AP process and saving approximately 40 hours each week. In addition to eliminating a variety of time-consuming tasks, Farzana created personalized virtual trainings and user guide manuals for her company and suppliers, ensuring a seamless transition to the new AP software.
- Ja’Net Penn, Accounting Manager, Peak Property Management: Under Ja’Net’s innovative leadership, Peak Property successfully transitioned to a fully automated, paperless AP process with AvidXchange. This shift reduced invoice approval times by 30% and improved customer retention, allowing the company to focus on stable revenue streams rather than new client acquisition costs. Ja’Net also introduced a key KPI to track unapproved invoices, increasing accountability in the approval process and improving relationships with suppliers and property owners, with on-time payments reaching 95%.
- Kelly Brummer, Controller AVP, Premier Bank: Kelly’s efforts to modernize the accounts payable and expense reimbursement processes with AvidXchange had a transformative impact on Premier Bank, resulting in annual savings of approximately $79,000. Administrative tasks for all employees were reduced from 40 hours per week to just 10, freeing up valuable time for the finance team to focus on more strategic work. Her CFO praised her for driving a more efficient and delivering a seamless experience for the team.
- Shannon Powers, Manager of HRIS & AP, Energo: Shannon implemented enhanced workflows within AvidXchange’s invoice automation solution, reducing invoice approval time to under 24 hours. The streamlined process has also improved accuracy, with error rates now nearly “non-existent”. Reporting now takes just 15 minutes, down from an hour, increasing operational efficiency and saving on payroll costs. Shannon implemented enhanced workflows within AvidXchange’s invoice automation solution, reducing invoice approval time to under 24 hours. The streamlined process has also improved accuracy, with error rates now nearly “non-existent.” Reporting now takes just 15 minutes, down from an hour, increasing operational efficiency and saving on payroll costs.
“Innovation in accounts payable goes beyond improving processes—it’s about making change that has a lasting impact on both financial and operational success," said Michael Praeger, Co-Founder, Chairman, and Chief Executive Officer of AvidXchange. "Our inaugural class of Change Makers embodies this forward-thinking mindset, and we are proud to honor these individuals whose bold contributions will continue to shape the future of our industry.”
In recognition of their outstanding contributions to the accounts payable industry, each winner will be showcased on the iconic Nasdaq Tower, as well as have $1,000 donated to the charity of their choice on behalf of AvidXchange.
Nominations for the 2025 Change Maker Awards will open in August 2025.
To learn more, visit avidxchange.com/awards.
About AvidXchange
AvidXchange is a leading provider of accounts payable (“AP”) automation software and payment solutions for middle market businesses and their suppliers. AvidXchange’s software-as-a-service-based, end-to-end software and payment platform digitizes and automates the AP workflows for more than 8,000 businesses and it has made payments to more than 1.2 million supplier customers of its buyers over the past five years. To learn more about how AvidXchange is transforming the way companies pay their bills, visit avidxchange.com.
Contact:
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