Receivables Management - Payables Management

In this article, Microsoft Dynamics GP technical support engineers Rhonda Sutliff and Kelly Dettmann share tips for using Microsoft Dynamics GP Payables Management, a module for managing expenses, and Microsoft Dynamics GP Receivables Management, a module for managing accounts receivable information and transactions.

Payables Management

We'll examine best practices for maximizing the benefits of the popular Payables Management module first. In this section, you’ll get tips on creating check batches and maintaining files.

Creating check batches

"When we receive calls about batches held, we offer very specific advice," says Rhonda Sutliff. "If your check batch is hanging, it can become damaged, so it will be better to simply delete the batch and create a new one."

To create a batch on the fly and save valuable time, perform these steps:

Note: Payables Management is date sensitive, except when you’re viewing Amounts Since Last Close in the Vendor Yearly Summary window. "If you did not close your year prior to posting transactions to the new year, those amounts will be included with the previous year," Sutliff cautions. Bear in mind that if you use the YTD or Last Year fields in SmartList (or on any reports, such as the Vendor Summary report), those fields will pull from the Amounts Since Last Close view.

Maintaining files

"It's a good idea to run Check Links on all files periodically," Sutliff says. "Depending on the size of the company, we recommend running monthly maintenance." The Check Links feature examines the file, checks corresponding information in related files, and if needed, repairs any damaged data to match the corresponding data in an undamaged file.

For new users to Payables Management, Sutliff has one more tip: Make liberal use of the F1 key. "If there’s a window or a field in a window that you’re unsure of, hitting F1 will bring up the Help information for the window and the fields," she says.

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Receivables Management

In this section, we’ll examine best practices for getting the most from the popular Receivables Management module, including tips on retaining transaction history, managing commissions, and accurately assessing finance charges.

Retaining transaction history

Users should be aware of the Print Historical Aged Trial Balance option, available within the Receivables Management Setup window. "If you want to print trial balances for transactions that have been fully paid and transferred to history, mark the box," says Kelly Dettmann. With this option selected, transaction history is automatically maintained for all customers and Historical Aged Trial Balances can be printed from the sales reports. This ensures that valuable customer data doesn’t fall through the cracks and does remain accessible to appropriate divisions.

Managing commissions

You can use the Transfer Sales Commissions window to group together all the commissions that are payable. You’ll just need to mark those commissions as paid and assign an audit control code that can be used for reprinting posting journals, Dettmann says. Commissions can be transferred in Detail or Summary; upon completion, the posting journal will show that the commissions have been paid.

Using the Transfer Sales Commissions window, you can also prevent double payment of commissions. "Basically, the window can be used to group together all the commissions that are payable," Dettmann says. "Then it marks them as paid and assigns an audit control code that can be used for reprinting posting journals."

Assessing finance charges accurately

Using Receivables Management, you can ensure that finance charges are timely and accurate. For example, by selecting Open Item customers, individual transactions are saved and detailed on customer statements until you run the Paid Transaction Removal process. Accounts are aged before assessing finance charges; this can be performed at any time of the month. With the Balance Forward feature, on the other hand, transactions are retained only for the current period and are consolidated and brought forward at the beginning of each subsequent period.

Trish Saunders is a contributing writer to Insights, the Microsoft newsletter for midsize businesses in the United States. She writes about business and technology issues from Seattle. This article was originally published in Insights.

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