How automation is changing expenditure management
In addition to industry, this wave will also shake up all other sectors of the economy. Not only will production processes be impacted by the transformation but financial processes as well. In this case, changes are sometimes discussed using the umbrella term "Finance 4.0". It is being driven by digitalisation and automation, and involves artificial intelligence and blockchain, amongst other things. However, it is not simply a question of procuring more hardware or expanding the in-house software stack by an additional level. What is necessary is growth in breadth and the merging of previously separate systems. Software silos have to be broken open to allow for the inter-company automation of financial transactions and the related documentation processes as well as real time analysis.
The young Swiss fintech company Yokoy has created a cloud-based integration platform serving as the core of a Finance 4.0 solution. It is capable of automating accounting and expenditure management in combination with in-house enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems. Yokoy can be adjusted to company-specific workflows and is thus able to control the flow of information. The software is prepared for the exchange of information with standard business software. It supports conventional interfaces (e.g., REST-API and others) and the products offered by important providers such as SAP, Sage, MS Dynamics and BMD. The protection of privacy and the security of data are continually assured.
A team of founders is behind Yokoy. They feature know-how from a wide range of disciplines and sectors and practical professional experience in banking, pharmaceuticals and with startups which complement theoretical expertise such as that imparted at the University of St. Gallen or ETH Zurich. Philippe Sahli as CEO, Dr. Devis Lussi (CTO), Thomas Inhelder (CFO), Lars Mangelsdorf (CCO) and Melanie Gabriel (CMO) soon gained the support of prominent Swiss companies.
A short time ago active marketing of the Yokoy solution also began in Austria. The software is adjusted to the particular characteristics of the Austrian market. Catchwords in this regard include daily allowances or accommodation expenses. "Austria has extensive potential for further digitalisation", says Stephan Hebenstreit, who heads the Austrian Yokoy subsidiary in Vienna. Hebenstreit is an expert in the fields of digitalisation, innovation and automation. He gained in-depth specialist expertise as a self-employed entrepreneur or working as a consultant for PwC in its "Innovation & Digital" business area, and also built up a widespread network of contacts. BDO Austria is among the first customers he is serving. The office in Vienna is Yokoy's very first foreign branch office and the beginning of an international success story.
More information on Yokoy at www.yokoy.at
