The University of Pittsburgh manages a massive $1.2 billion in research and other externally sponsored activities annually, comprising nearly 40% of Pitt’s total operating revenues and sustaining impactful increases of ~$350 million per year since 2018. Ensuring prompt and accurate payment of post-award research expenses from our external sponsors is a critical task handled by the Office of Sponsored Projects Accounting (SPA). Partnering with Pitt IT, SPA has embarked on an ambitious project to automate the invoicing process, transforming a labor-intensive manual process into a streamlined, automated system.

Carrying the Burden

SPA meticulously orchestrates the complex process of invoicing sponsors for every cost-reimbursable agreement within the University’s vast portfolio of grants and contracts, with the help of many Department Administrators across campus. SPA Director David Laffey and Systems Manager Kellie Sellers describe receiving a 2,000-page PDF each month that needed to be split into individual invoices. SPA Accountants needed to find their documents for the projects they manage, print them to individual files, manually email them to sponsors, track their activity to 100% submission, and monitor each invoice’s status to ensure timely payment. It was a process that was not only time-consuming, but also fraught with the risk of error or oversight.

“Staffing was lean and with plans of a new financial system delayed, manually processing approximately 1,200 invoices each month was becoming unmanageable in the current environment. Delays were costly. Many grants require that invoices be sent within a specified timeline, so if something fell through the cracks, that money could be permanently lost,” Laffey explains.

Reaching Out to Pitt IT for Help

The push for automation gained momentum during the pandemic, when the existing process became untenable with a limited on-campus presence. SPA reached out to Pitt IT, and with the help of Heather Lego, senior business analyst, and Nalyn Siripong, senior data scientist, they began the process of developing an automated solution.

“Initially, we were just looking to find a way to automate the process of splitting the 2,000-page document into individual invoices,” Sellers describes. “That hadn’t been feasible when we first transitioned to digital files back in 2012.”

Lego and Siripong were happy to find a solution to that cumbersome process, but they wanted to go further. “We knew by understanding the entire invoicing lifecycle and leveraging tools like Alteryx and Tableau, we could reimagine the entire process,” Lego explains. “Our goal was to eliminate tedious manual touchpoints, to allow SPA staff to use their expertise in more strategic areas.”

Utilizing Technology to Implement a Solution

Alteryx, a self-service data preparation, analytics, and automation platform, emerged as the linchpin technology that enabled SPA to revolutionize their invoicing process. Alteryx's ability to connect, cleanse, and join data from disparate sources allowed SPA to pioneer automated workflows that transformed the entire process — from data preparation and assigning invoices to the appropriate accountant, to emailing invoices to sponsors and tracking submission and collection status. Alteryx integrated seamlessly with Tableau to provide dynamic, real-time analytics dashboards across their operations.

Melding Pitt IT’s technical acumen with SPA’s deep-seated expertise in research accounting enabled the team to map out the invoicing process and identify multiple automation opportunities. Simple changes made a big difference. “Something as basic as capturing sponsor email addresses makes it possible to generate and send invoices at the press of button, while the dashboard lets us see which grants don’t have an email contact, so we can reach out and get it. It just eliminates a tremendous amount of manual work,” Laffey explains.

The team tracked the impact along the way, and the results were impressive. “We’ve seen each accountant save about 16 hours monthly,” Sellers highlights. This has allowed SPA to focus more time on critical tasks, such as establishing projects and investigating non-payments. Moreover, automation ensures the digital records for each grant are standardized and complete, enabling the department to respond to staffing changes more agilely.

Quantifying the Results and Planning for the Future

The impact of this project has been game-changing, yielding remarkable fiscal benefits and operational efficiencies:

• Improved Accounts Receivable turnover, accelerating cash settlements by ~$10M monthly
• Saved $80,000 by preemptively reducing potential bad debt
• Reduced annual staffing costs by nearly $87,000
• Significantly accelerated new awards activation time from 96 hours to 51 hours, while reducing staff time spent on invoicing tasks

“Anything that allows researchers to get started on their work and get their funds faster supports the important research mission of the University,” Sellers says.

While the current system has been a success, SPA isn't resting on its laurels. Plans are underway to integrate new pre-award data attributes to proactively address vulnerabilities, as well as automate the delinquent notice process.

Innovation Sparks Further Ingenuity

SPA and Pitt IT's partnership has created a ripple effect, setting a precedent for other departments considering technological advancement. Sellers and Laffey encourage persistence, advising “Even if you have hit roadblocks in the past, ask again. What was once impossible may now be within reach.”

Embracing innovation and partnership can lead to transformative improvements in efficiency, cost savings, and staff morale. Pitt IT is committed to adapting the tech landscape to meet evolving University priorities. With the right tools, like Alteryx, Pitt’s faculty, researchers, and staff can deliver exceptional results in the face of a challenging and ever-changing environment.

-- By Karen Beaudway, Pitt IT Content Specialist