In the recent release of their MarketScape dedicated to Order-to-Cash, research group IDC positioned Sidetrade as a “major player” among vendors of “Worldwide SaaS and Cloud-Enabled Accounts Receivable Automation Applications”. Two assets in particular enabled Sidetrade to earn this distinction:
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Sidetrade’s international footprint
Sidetrade solutions are already used in eighty countries. Unlike most of their competitors, who concentrate essentially on North America, Sidetrade has shown their capacity to effectively roll out their AI technology in different countries at the same time for complex multinational organizations.
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Sidetrade’s exclusive, highly advanced AI technology
Using self-learning and a database representing €124bn in B2B transactions, Sidetrade’s AI system called Aimie can-
- automate the Order-to-Cash-process
- speed up resolution of customer disputes
- recommend custom actions to follow up on late payment
According to IDC, Sidetrade’s main challenge remains educating the market on their advanced technologies, while many finance directors are still working with old-fashioned spreadsheets. IDC concludes by saying: Consider Sidetrade when you are looking for a software provider that specializes in AI technology and has a global footprint, or when cash collection, dispute resolution and bad debt improvements are primary business focuses.
In a press release referring to the IDC study, brokerage firm Midcap Partners welcomed the fact that IDC’s analysis concurs with their assessment of Sidetrade’s potential, their BUY rating and TP of €151.
Sidetrade appears as a first-rate international and innovative player with a strong positioning in what constitutes the heart of the Order-to-Cash market (cash collection, dispute management, etc.). This reinforces our vision of a group that is extremely well positioned to take advantage of a rapidly developing market. The current crisis has served as a reminder of how essential cash management is. The professionalisation of the financial management of Accounts Receivable is under way and promises many years of growth for the market’s players. – Midcap Partners
Proservartner, an international consulting firm, and Sidetrade, an artificial intelligence specialist on the Order-to-Cash, announce a new partnership.
In these challenging times, the ability to collect debt efficiently and effectively is more important than ever before. We are excited to be working with Sidetrade to transform the Order-to-Cash end to end process, and leverage Aimie -their AI tool that enables prioritisation of debt collection, and automation of collector actions- to drive better outcomes for global multinational businesses.
– Rakesh Sangani, Proservartner founder and Chief Executive
This partnership will allow Proservartner to leverage Sidetrade’s AI technology to expand its footprint on automation, shared services and outsourcing models, and improves processes, systems and data quality
Aimie fits perfectly into our Hyperautomation ecosystem, and with 33 new project wins in the last quarter, we certainly see a demand for finance leaders to drive more automation to improve DSO, quality and cost efficiency.
– Rakesh Sangani, Proservartner founder and Chief Executive
Proservartner is very well positioned to help companies drive further operational efficiencies through their order-to-cash-cycle by working with Sidetrade. Their hyperautomation practice helps organisations understand how best to leverage RPA, Intelligent OCR, Artificial Intelligence and machine learning to generate the right process outcome.
Proservartner has a very complimentary solution stack, one that accelerates the drive to more automation and removal of repetitive, manual time-consuming tasks. Rakesh and his team really understand the benefits of automation, particularly within the Shared Services Center environment, one that they are very active in and already working closely with Sidetrade one to bring greater cash and efficiency to those SSC’s that are looking for the next level of operational improvement.
– Sunil Pandit, partner and alliance lead manager at Sidetrade
The Boss Cat, Order-to-Cash (O2C) transformation consultants, has signed a new partnership with Sidetrade, an artificial intelligence (AI) specialist, to solve business challenges around accounts receivable using their technology. Nigel Fields FCICM, senior consultant for The Boss Cat, said:
I’ve spent many years working with some major corporations with very complex global structures and various revenue streams. In my quest to seek out the best O2C solution that easily integrates with ERP & accounting systems, generally lacking in O2C functionality. I identified Sidetrade as the best O2C platform available today, with its AI assistant Aimie.
This partnership brings together the expertise of The Boss Cat and Sidetrade’s leading AI solutions, and will help companies to better manage their complex order-to-cash processes.
This intelligence ensures the best collection strategies for securing prompt payment along with the functionality for non-payment issues, risk management, dispute & deductions. It delivers faster cash & reduces risk. It also provides real-time reporting that is incredibly important to the CFO and senior board to make good strategic decisions.
– Nigel Fields FCICM, The Boss Cat
The customer experience will also get a revamp, by providing greater visibility and enhancing query management through configurable automations and workflows, which enable companies to improve revenue, productivity and customer satisfaction. Sidetrade feature’s an AI assistant, Aimie, in its O2C platform dedicated to accelerating company revenue and cashflow.
Sidetrade’s platform allows for teams to easily work remotely or from home ensuring that the workflow continues, and customers are properly serviced without disruption. It’s is a system fit for 2021 and beyond. Sidetrade continues to invest in their product for the benefit of all their clients and this is observed with their long-term relationships and increasing market share.
– Nigel Fields FCICM, The Boss Cat
Sunil Pandit, partner and alliance lead at Sidetrade said: Digitalization and AI technology is transforming business. We all see the likes of Amazon, Microsoft, and Apple giving a great customer experience using automation and predictive analytics. We all want to better address our customer’s needs, improve their experience and maximize the cash for our own businesses. Our partnership with The Boss Cat will make a lasting impact for businesses who step ahead with AI for order-to-cash.
World leader in the manufacturing and decoration of high-end glass bottles for the wine and spirits industry, Saverglass, is renowned for their advanced technology and superior quality of service. Working capital management therefore plays a major part in their business model.
With a revenue in 2019 of €500m, and exports to over 100 countries, Saverglass decided to digitalize customer risk management and accounts receivables as early as 2011. They launched an international RFP, won by Sidetrade.
In just two years with Sidetrade, Saverglass sliced six days off their payment delays. Based on this success achieved on a limited perimeter, Saverglass decided to implement Sidetrade technology in all of their subsidiaries in France, and then also in Mexico. Six users are now connected to process a portfolio of 10,675 customers in their aging balance1.
Sidetrade AI: steady at the helm in turbulent times
Saverglass has built their company culture on the craft of French glassmaking and have a worldwide reputation for excellence in innovation. It was logical then, that in January 2020, they turned to Aimie, Sidetrade’s Artificial Intelligence assistant.
When Sidetrade explained to us that they had developed a unique AI assistant, capable of making collection strategy recommendations in real time, we realized this was a chance to leap ahead in terms of efficiency and customer relations management, said Sandrine Laroque Cressent, Credit Manager at Saverglass. We had no idea how much the events to come would prove us right!
Trained on more than 313 million inter-company transactions (totaling €953 billion in invoices), Sidetrade’s AI uses machine learning algorithms to develop collection scenarios and recommend the best action. From the outset, Saverglass boldly chose to entrust Aimie with a wide scope: 58 accounts, mainly export customers in high-stakes territories, such as Italy or the United Kingdom. To genuinely test Aimie’s performance, credit controllers were asked to fully carry out her recommendations. This decision proved very wise.
During lockdown, when WCM became crucial, our teleworking teams were faced with an extremely complex situation, with payment behavior jolted by the crisis and unreachable contact people. After a preliminary learning phase, Aimie rapidly took stock of the situation, made recommendations accordingly, and executed several follow-up actions. During the period, Aimie’s actions proved to be up to 10% more effective than those taken via conventional systems, explained Ms Laroque Cressent. Aimie made a considerable contribution in getting us through this unprecedented period. With business picking up again, Aimie continues to provide our teams with precious support.
In the last 8 months, Aimie has recommended and/or directly carried out many more follow-up actions, with an efficiency rate of 68% versus 56% for standard workflows, resulting in payment just seven days after the action. Saverglass is now planning to extend it’s use of Sidetrade’s technology to new accounts, and to other parts of the world, including the United States.
[1] : as of October 15, 2020
Reading Sidetrade’s press release ‘AI firm Sidetrade appoints Rob Harvey as new chief product officer’, Business Trends interviewed Rob Harvey.
The article has been published in November 2020.
The interview is focusing on:
- How has Sidetrade evolved in recent years and what would you say the company is most known for today?
- What is the company’s value proposition and competitive advantage?
What is your biggest goal and challenge of the new CPO in this new position? - Business Trends is a bi-monthly, English-language publication that features in-depth reports on trends, strategy and technological developments in the global business community.
The editorial staff of English language business magazine Business Trends covers a diverse range of international industries. It has a circulation of 10,000. Our publication covers sustainability, financial, business, technology and life sciences issues from a strategic perspective for busy professionals around the world. You can see a selection of articles published in previous issues here: https://business-trends.nl/