
Every business operates with customers and suppliers. When a customer places an order, this is typically entered into an order management system or an enterprise resource planning (ERP) system. Similarly, when a business buys goods or services from a vendor, a purchase order is created so that the vendor can be paid.

These processes involve several manual steps. For example, extracting information from a PDF, validating it and entering it into a system. With the power of large language models and AI, businesses should consider automating these tasks using virtual employees like Aide.

## How virtual employees work

Virtual employees are designed to work alongside your business' employees. They support your team in daily tasks like processing orders or invoices. They help reduce the burden on your team and increase operational metrics like working capital or the accuracy of book keeping.

Virtual employees have access to email and common business systems like your ERP or accounting software. At Aide, virtual employees can be customised to your business. For example, you can request that your virtual employee request approval from a Finance Manager for all invoices that exceed $100k. Aide's virtual employees are designed to reach out to your team only when their input is really required. They can be designed to reach out via email or using messaging services like Teams or Slack.

## Handling accounts payable

Consider the accounts receivable process. When an invoice is received, your virtual employee will scan the contents of the email and any attachments. It will extract information from these documents. At this stage, the virtual employee will check that all required fields have been found. If not, it will automatically respond to the vendor and ask them to provide the missing information. Once all information has been gathered, the virtual employee will attempt to matcht he invoice to a purchase order. The final step is approval from your team. With this workflow, the virtual employee saves precious time, avoids errors and flags discrepancies as soon as possible.

## What else can virtual employees do

Virtual employees can take care of any process that you believe is repititive. They offer a substantial benefit over traditional automation methods like robotic process automation (RPA). This is because virtual employees bring a layer of intelligence using the power of AI. When data is received in a slightly different format, automations with RPA typically break. With virtual employees, they can be programmed to ask your team for help and course correct as needed.

Virtual employees can be applied to workflows like taking orders over email, responding to customer service questions and much more. At present, we are focussed on 3 virtual employees at Aide. First, our accounts payable agent helps ensure invoices are paid accurately. Second, our accounts receivable agent ensures that customers pay you on time, improving your working capital. And finally, our order processing agent takes orders over email and posts them directly to your ERP.

## Virtual employees are the future

Given the rapid pace of AI, we expect to see virtual employees everywhere. This can be daunting for many businesses as it's perceived as a direct threat to employment. At Aide, we strongly believe that virtual employees will be managed by actual employees. Our mission is ensure people can do more meaningful work rather than replace work altogether. Get in touch to learn more.


Blog

Virtual employees for Financial Operations