Lights, Camera, Efficiency: Streamlining Invoice Processing Across Geographies
The customer is a prominent global entertainment conglomerate renowned for its extensive portfolio of films, television series, and streaming content. With a presence in over 160 countries, the company operates approximately 170 networks, reaching more than 700 million subscribers worldwide. Its flagship streaming service offers a vast library of content, including original productions, live sports, and a diverse range of entertainment genres. The company is also recognized for its expertise in advertising, global markets, and consumer products, solidifying its position as a leader in the media and entertainment industry.
As the company expanded its global footprint, it encountered significant challenges in its back-office operations. The increasing volume and complexity of transactions, coupled with the need to manage diverse regional compliance requirements, strained existing financial processes. These operational hurdles highlighted the necessity for a more streamlined and efficient approach to maintain the company’s commitment to delivering seamless entertainment experiences worldwide.
As the company’s operations grew, maintaining strong governance and compliance in accounts payable became a pressing business need. The absence of a centralized, integrated system made it difficult to enforce consistent audit controls, adhere to internal policies, and meet regulatory requirements across multiple business units. Finance teams lacked real-time visibility into invoice status, exceptions, and approvals, which limited their ability to make timely, data-driven decisions and increased the risk of compliance lapses.
Operational inefficiencies further compounded these challenges. Invoices arrived in
multiple languages and formats—PDFs, emails, and physical copies—requiring manual handling and approval processes that slowed processing, increased errors, and created bottlenecks. Exceptions and disputes consumed significant time, diverting staff from strategic activities such as vendor management and financial planning. From a business perspective, the company needed a centralized, automated, and integrated solution that could manage multi-language, multi-format invoices, strengthen governance, ensure compliance, and provide full visibility—enabling operational efficiency and scalable business growth.
To address these challenges, accounts payable operations were modernized through the implementation of Cherrywork Accounts Payable Automation, enabling a streamlined, centralized, and automated workflow across the organization. The solution unified invoice processing across all business units, enforced consistent audit controls, ensured adherence to internal policies, and supported regulatory compliance. With real-time visibility into invoice status, approvals, and exceptions, finance teams were empowered to make timely, informed decisions and maintain complete oversight of accounts payable operations.
The solution also tackled operational inefficiencies head-on. Multi-language and
multi-format invoices were automatically captured, validated, and routed for approvals, significantly reducing manual intervention and processing errors. Rule-based workflows and a robust exception-handling mechanism ensured that discrepancies were quickly addressed, while touchless processing for high-volume vendors freed staff to focus on strategic activities. By combining governance, compliance, and automation in a scalable framework, the company transformed accounts payable from a fragmented, reactive function into a centralized, efficient, and insight-driven process—enabling faster invoice cycles, enhanced operational control, and sustainable business growth.
Through the implementation of the company’s accounts payable operations were transformed into a centralized, efficient, and well-governed function. Manual interventions and email-based approvals were reduced by approximately 80%, enabling finance teams to redirect their focus toward strategic priorities such as vendor management, financial planning, and compliance oversight. Invoice processing cycles, which had previously extended over several days, were reduced by 65%, resulting in faster approvals, improved cash flow management, and timely decision-making.
By automating multi-language and multi-format invoice handling and integrating seamlessly with existing ERP systems, the company achieved end-to-end visibility into invoice status, exceptions, and approvals. Governance and compliance were strengthened through consistent audit trails and rule-based workflows, significantly reducing errors and operational risks. Daily invoice throughput increased threefold, demonstrating a scalable, streamlined, and insight-driven accounts payable process. Overall, the solution enabled the organization to maintain operational excellence, enhance transparency, and support sustainable business growth while ensuring regulatory compliance and financial control.
