Office Depot Uses Online Invoicing from AVOLENT to Reduce Costs and Offer Unique Customer Service
AVOLENT's BizCast helps Office Depot save over $1 million annually in hard costs, while providing business customers with easy access to invoice data
SAN FRANCISCO — May 11, 2004 — AVOLENT Inc., the leading provider of Financial Relationship Management (FRM) software, today announced that Office Depot (NYSE: ODP), one of the world's largest office products provider, has greatly reduced costs, increased productivity, and improved its online customer experience, by implementing AVOLENT's BizCast™ to streamline its invoice processes. BizCast automates the manual financial processes of invoicing, dispute management, reconciliation, and payment - enabling companies to accelerate cash flow, reduce printing and postage costs, and to provide their customers with self-service access for invoices.
AVOLENT's BizCast: Core Engine for Office Depot's B-to-B Online Network
Office Depot is recognized as an innovator in e-commerce and customer service. Office Depot's BSDnet B-to-B online network enables the company's more than 140,000 business customers to shop, order, and manage shipments and payments online. With over 1.5 million transactions and 110,000 statements per month coming from this online network, Office Depot recognized that there could be significant savings in the printing, mailing and processing of invoices as well as a competitive advantage by offering customers the ability to receive, approve/dispute, and pay invoices online. Office Depot implemented AVOLENT's BizCast, not only because the solution could automate these functions, but also because BizCast could address the specific and complex invoicing needs of their large and small customers.
"Providing fanatical customer service is at the heart of Office Depot's value structure - and this is especially important around invoicing," said Jan Gallagher, Senior Manager of Billing and Payment Systems at Office Depot. "We have large customers with hundreds of departments and ship to locations as well as small customers with little or no back office operations. With BizCast, we're able to parse and consolidate invoices in the different ways our corporate customers need, while providing our small customers with instant access to copies and reports on their purchases. And, our customers and Office Depot are realizing tremendous savings in paper, time and processing costs."
Office Depot Garners Strong ROI with BizCast
Office Depot has achieved significant business results using BizCast, with the total hard savings from the reduced billing costs in excess of $1million annually. Office Depot has improved customer service and reduced costs for billing and distribution of information through online presentment of over four million accounts, 27 million invoices and 120 million invoice details. By enabling customers and internal collectors to download and distribute invoice information, Office Depot has seen substantial cash savings associated with reduced paper "invoice reprint" requests and the process of handling over 1,200 reprint downloads daily.
In addition to the vast cost savings, Office Depot has also reaped strong productivity gains, including increased efficiencies in overall business operations and customer service. With AVOLENT's BizCast solution, customers receive online access to all A/R cash allocation transactions and 36 months of invoice history, providing their customers with self-service options at the click of a key. By providing a complete online view of customer account activity, BizCast has increased productivity for Office Depot's sales reps. Additionally, the company has also increased efficiencies in handling of customer service-related issues, enabling proactive Credit Management, Assessment, and Damage Control. BizCast's integration with Office Depot's back-office Proof-of-Delivery (POD) systems enables customers (and internal collectors, account managers, and sales managers) access to real-time POD Signature documents and information.
As a global company with an increasing number of businesses, Office Depot is now working with AVOLENT to provide a single platform with one central invoicing system tied to the billing systems of subsidiaries. With this approach, Office Depot is able to consolidate billing without the cost of replacing or upgrading legacy systems.
"Enabling our clients to deliver superior customer service, reduce operational costs, and maximize existing IT investments are key priorities for AVOLENT," stated Doug Roberts, CEO of AVOLENT. "Office Depot's significant return on investment represents the vast business improvements and robust capabilities BizCast offers global corporations. It's admirable to see a company that has redefined the industry in distributing paper and other office products, realize the value of electronic invoicing for themselves and their customers."
About Office Depot
With annual sales of more than $12 billion, no one sells more office supplies to more customers in more countries than Office Depot. Founded in 1986 and headquartered in Delray Beach, FL, the company conducts business in 23 countries and employs nearly 50,000 people worldwide. Office Depot is the world's number two online retailer - generating $2.6B in sales for FY'03. In North America, Office Depot has 900 retail stores in addition to a national business-to-business delivery network supported by 22 delivery centers, more than 60 local sales offices and 13 regional call centers. For more information, visit www.officedepot.com.
About AVOLENT
AVOLENT, the leading provider of enterprise application software for eBilling and Cash Flow Optimization, delivers F2000 companies unprecedented insight and control over their inbound cash flow. AVOLENT's award winning BizCast software streamlines all processes in the invoice-to-cash cycle through real-time electronic invoicing and payment, customer self-service, cash management and forecasting. With BizCast, Finance professionals gain insight into cash flow across the enterprise, and can control cash flow through a unique patent-pending ability to dynamically adjust trade terms to meet corporate financial goals. Founded in 1995, AVOLENT's customers and partners include some of the largest companies in the world, including Office Depot, Highmark, Do It Best, and more. For more information call (800) 553-5505 or visit www.avolent.com.
Press Contact:
Sharon Kawaguchi
Director, Marketing Programs
AVOLENT
(415) 553-6903
skawaguchi@AVOLENT.com
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AVOLENT and BizCast are registered trademarks of AVOLENT. All other product and company names are the property of their respective owners and are hereby acknowledged.
