Issue: At a major international oil services company, the new requirements of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (“FCPA”) created a non-compliance issue with the payment to its shipping agents.

Any payments pertaining to the import of goods was subject to intense scrutiny to ensure compliance with the FCPA requirements. The penalties for non-compliance were severe, including cessation of their business.

Business Implication: The current accounts payable processes were inadequate to cope with the tighter reporting requirements of the FCPA and still pay the relevant suppliers by the required timeframe. This led to the company falling behind in its payments to these suppliers and eventually, these key suppliers threatened to stop providing mission-critical services.

Phi Solution: The entire process was examined and new procedures were designed and implemented using Excel as a key tool. The new process was able to ensure that the invoices adhered to both the FCPA requirements and was able to cut the supplier payment approval process to days instead of months.