Prepare and release payments
Separate payment selection, release authority and confirmed settlement.
5 stages · 2 approvals
Roles and responsibilities
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Step 1Select due bills
VendorBill NumberBill DateDue Date
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Step 2Review terms and cash needs
VendorBillDiscount AmountDiscount Window Start
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Step 3Approve the proposal
Run NumberRun DateScheduled Pay DateItem Count
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Step 4Release and transmit
Run NumberRun DateScheduled Pay DateBank Account
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Step 5Confirm or handle returns
Payment NumberVendorBillAmount
Process steps
Follow the process from start to finish. Select a step to see who acts and what changes.
Select due bills
AP Clerk prepares PaymentRunItems for approved due bills in a draft run. Check the outstanding amount and any existing selection. Hold disputed items and explain exclusions so urgency does not override the bill approval requirement.
Review terms and cash needs
AP Manager checks methods, destination references, authorized one-off payees and any eligible early-pay discount. Keep gross amount, discount and net amount visible. A potential discount is not taken merely because its opportunity appears in a report.
Approval required
Approve the proposal
AP Manager approves the prepared run for release review. PaymentApprovalSteps retains the actor and outcome. Held or changed items remain distinguishable from those actually approved, and a changed proposal needs the affected review refreshed.
Approval required
Release and transmit
Controller / CFO authorizes the run for bank-facing processing. PaymentBatches retains the file or instruction and transmission result. A technical connector cannot replace the Controller decision, and a generated file cannot be treated as cleared funds.
Confirm or handle returns
Bank evidence updates the relevant payment outcome and the bill balance. Partial payments leave the remainder open. A returned item retains its trace, restores only the failed effect and links any replacement attempt; repeated callbacks must not settle the same amount twice.
Approvals and exception handling
2 approvals required in this process
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Approve the proposal
AP Manager signs · release and transmit waits
PaymentRuns, PaymentApprovalSteps -
Release and transmit
Controller / CFO signs · confirm or handle returns waits
PaymentRuns, PaymentBatches, Payments
When the process needs attention
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hold
Select due bills
Hold disputed items and explain exclusions so urgency does not override the bill approval requirement.
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reject
Confirm or handle returns
A returned item retains its trace, restores only the failed effect and links any replacement attempt; repeated callbacks must not settle the same amount twice.
Records and postings
| Stage | Records | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| 1 Select due bills | PaymentRunsPaymentRunItemsBills | Build a payment proposal |
| 2 Review terms and cash needs | PaymentRunItemsEarlyPayDiscountsOneOffPayees | Review proposed cash requirements |
| 3 Approve the proposal | PaymentRunsPaymentApprovalSteps | Authorize the proposal for final release review |
| 4 Release and transmit | PaymentRunsPaymentBatchesPayments | Record authorized release and actual transmission |
| 5 Confirm or handle returns | PaymentsBills | Reconcile the actual bank outcome |
Process reports
All reportsAP Aging
Open Bills bucketed 0–30 / 31–60 / 61–90 / 90+ days past due, by Vendor, with cumulative AmountOutstanding per bucket and the running total. The AP Manager's daily landing report and the Controller's cash-need forecast input. Drills from Vendor to individual Bill to BillLines.
Top Vendors by Spend
Trailing-12-months total Cleared Payments per Vendor, ranked, with month-over- month delta and concentration metric (top-10 share of total AP spend). The strategic-sourcing input. Drills into per- Vendor Bills and into BillLines by GLAccount.
Discount Capture
Per period: total EarlyPayDiscounts Available, total Taken, total Skipped / Expired, capture rate percent, dollars captured, and weighted-average EffectiveAPR. The CFO's "are we leaving money on the table" report.
Payment Run Summary
Per PaymentRun: ItemCount, TotalAmount, TotalDiscountTaken, breakdown by PaymentMethod (ACH / Check / Wire), Funded / Posted timing. Drills into per-Bill PaymentRunItems and into per-Vendor Payments.
Cash Disbursement Forecast
Forward- looking 4-week forecast of cash out: Approved Bills bucketed by DueDate (current week / next week / wk+2 / wk+3), net of available EarlyPayDiscounts and held PaymentRunItems. The Treasury / Controller cash-planning report.
Run by an agent
Agent support
An agent cannot supply an independent human bank confirmation, approve beyond the acting identity's authority or report an external payment as cleared without bank evidence. Respect the same supplier and field scopes as every other client. Keep unresolved extraction and matching questions visible.
# Example after configuration
$ curl -fsSL https://www.erp.ai/skill.md | paste into your agent
› prepare and release payments · select due bills on PaymentRuns, PaymentRunItems, Bills
✓ AP Clerk prepares PaymentRunItems for approved due bills in a draft run.
› prepare and release payments · review terms and cash needs on PaymentRunItems, EarlyPayDiscounts, OneOffPayees
✓ AP Manager checks methods, destination references, authorized one-off payees and any eligible early-pay discount.
› prepare and release payments · approve the proposal on PaymentRuns, PaymentApprovalSteps
⏸ approval · waiting for the ap manager
# 2 more stages after approval: release and transmit, confirm or handle returns
Other processes
3 moreOnboard a supplier
Confirm supplier identity and payment instructions before normal invoice processing.
5 stages · 1 approval
Invoice to approval
Connect the invoice, receipt evidence and decision before the bill becomes eligible for payment.
5 stages · 1 approval
Prepare year-end reporting
Review reportable payments and missing documents before the filing-partner handoff.
5 stages · 1 approval