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NetSuite

The Hidden Costs of Manual AR and AP in NetSuite

Published on
Legion
Secure AI
Legion’s AI summary
Learn how Legion connects AR and AP data from Salesforce, contracts, and other systems into NetSuite—giving finance teams instant answers and end-to-end context for smarter, faster decisions.
Highlights

See how Legion’s cross-system insights empower NetSuite finance teams to tackle the true costs of manual AR and AP:

  • Surfaces real-time AR and AP data from Salesforce, contracts, email, and more directly within NetSuite
  • Enables instant search and simple, natural language queries for faster finance decisions and accuracy
  • Provides a complete view of invoices, payments, and approvals, reducing errors and improving auditability
  • Boosts cash flow, team productivity, and morale by eliminating blind spots and manual data-gathering

NetSuite is a powerhouse for finance teams, but when it comes to accounts receivable (AR) and accounts payable (AP), manual processes can bog down even the most efficient teams. From chasing down late payments to matching invoices and purchase orders, these repetitive tasks eat up valuable time and resources. That’s where ERP automation comes in, simplifying workflows and reducing repetitive manual work. 

The costs of manual AR and AP go beyond just hours lost. They're hidden in missed early payment discounts, strained vendor relationships, and increased risk of errors. It's a silent drain on your bottom line.

Legion is here to plug those leaks.

By embedding AI directly into NetSuite, Legion automates the most time-consuming aspects of AR and AP, freeing your team to focus on high-impact work that drives the business forward, without adding new tools or complexity.

The Ripple Effect of Manual AR and AP

Picture this: Your AR team spends a quarter of their day chasing down overdue invoices. Meanwhile, your AP team is drowning in paper, manually matching invoices to purchase orders and contracts. Month-end close drags on for days as everyone scrambles to reconcile accounts and update statuses.

While those hours add up, the bigger danger is what you can’t see. Manual AR/AP creates blind spots in your liquidity planning. Cash that’s tied up in unpaid invoices or sitting unprocessed in email threads leaves finance leaders guessing at their true cash position. Without visibility, forecasting suffers—and with it, confidence in strategic decisions.

It's not just inefficient, it's costly:

  • Teams spend up to 10% of their workday chasing unpaid invoices, equivalent to roughly 5 hours per week lost to follow-ups and queries.
  • Manual invoice processing frequently costs between $10–$15 per invoice, covering data entry, verification, and approval steps.
  • Rework and error correction can account for 5–10% of project costs, illustrating how mistakes erode profitability.

The Automation Gap in NetSuite

NetSuite offers some AR automation and AP automation capabilities, but it often falls short on the most manual, time-consuming tasks. What’s missing is cross-system intelligence and automation—a way to connect NetSuite with the surrounding tools your team already uses so tasks like invoice follow-ups, payment matching, and record updates happen seamlessly, without the manual chase.

For many teams, that gap looks like endless toggling: Salesforce for customer record, email for PO, Slack for approvals, and spreadsheets for reconciliations. That “multi-tab reality” wastes time, increases error risk, and frustrates employees.

The result is a patchwork of manual processes that are:

  • Error-prone and time-consuming
  • Siloed from real-time data in other systems
  • Difficult to track and audit
  • Frustrating for team members who could be focusing on higher-value work

It's a problem that cries out for a smarter solution.

Smart AR and AP Automation With Legion’s NetSuite AI

Legion brings the power of AI to your existing NetSuite workflows, so you can automate more, work faster, and stay in control, without overhauling your current setup.

Here's how it works:

  • Conversational AI: Ask questions like "Which invoices are overdue?" and get instant, accurate answers.
  • Intelligent matching: Legion automatically matches invoices to POs, contracts, and payments across all your data sources.
  • Embedded actions: Send payment reminders, request approvals, or update records with just a click, all inside NetSuite.
  • Cross-system context: Legion pulls in data from Salesforce, contracts, and more, so you have a complete view without manual entry.

With Legion, your team can cut manual AR and AP tasks in half, close the books days faster, and say goodbye to the hidden costs of inefficient processes.

Plug the Leaks, Power Your Growth

The time and money lost to manual AR and AP work isn't just an operational annoyance. It's also a strategic threat. Finance teams can't afford to let inefficiency undermine their cash flow and competitiveness.

But there’s also a human cost. Manual chases and spreadsheet wrangling take a toll on morale. Teams describe it as “digital archaeology”—digging through systems for data instead of doing finance work. Burnout rises, engagement drops, and your best people look for higher-value opportunities elsewhere.

Legion gives NetSuite finance teams a smarter way forward. By automating the most painful parts of AR and AP inside your existing workflows, you can boost productivity, strengthen vendor relationships, and keep more cash in the business.

Most importantly, you can unburden your team to focus on the strategic finance work that will power your next stage of growth.

Ready to take the manual work out of AR and AP? Request a demo to see how much further you could go with automation in NetSuite.

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Discover how Legion eliminates manual work, speeds up processes, and boosts cash flow for NetSuite finance teams.