Invoice Approval and Payment Follow-Up Workflow

What does this workflow record at each stage of the invoice lifecycle?

The record's timeline captures the manager's decision and comments, any corrections made by the office, the payment status and amount received, and the outcome of any follow-up call. It also tracks the invoice status as it moves through stages such as Review, Correcting, Invoice Sent, Overdue, Paid, Payment Arranged, or Disputed. Dispute resolution notes entered by the manager are saved to the record as well, giving a full history of what happened and when.

Who is involved in reviewing and approving an invoice?

A manager reviews the submitted invoice and records a decision along with comments. If the manager requests changes, the task routes to office staff, who update the work completed, invoice amount, and payment instructions before the invoice returns to the manager for re-review. This loop can repeat until the manager approves the invoice.

Who handles payment tracking and overdue follow-up?

Accounts team members record whether an invoice was paid in full and the amount received, which the workflow uses to calculate any amount outstanding. If payment is not received, accounts also carries out a follow-up call after a 7-day wait and records the call outcome, which determines whether the invoice is marked paid, payment arranged, or disputed.

What happens if a customer disputes an invoice?

When the follow-up call outcome is recorded as disputed, the invoice status is set to Disputed and a task is assigned to the manager to investigate. The manager records a dispute resolution, which is saved to the record, giving visibility into how and when the dispute was addressed.

How do we change this workflow if our approval or follow-up process differs?

A workflow can be adjusted by describing the desired change in plain English or by editing individual steps directly in the workflow editor. Earlier versions are kept, so a workspace can review or revert changes if needed. This makes it straightforward to adapt the approval routing, reminder timing, or task assignments as internal processes evolve.

Does the customer need an account to receive or respond to invoices?

No account is required. Customers receive the invoice, payment reminders, and thank-you messages by email, plus SMS reminders for overdue invoices, and interact with the process through forms emailed to them where relevant.

How are overdue invoices followed up before a call is made?

Once an invoice is marked Overdue, the workflow emails the customer a payment reminder showing the amount outstanding and sends a short SMS reminder. It then waits 7 days before assigning accounts a task to call the customer, so reminders are given time to take effect before a call is scheduled.

What determines whether a corrected invoice needs another manager review?

After office staff update the work completed, invoice amount, or payment instructions based on manager comments, the workflow automatically returns the invoice to the manager review step. This means every correction is re-checked by the manager before the invoice can proceed to being emailed to the customer.

Can the workspace send invoice-related emails and texts through its own accounts?

Yes, a workspace can optionally route the built-in email and SMS messages through its own AWS SES, AWS SNS, or Twilio account. This applies to messages such as the invoice email, payment reminders, and thank-you notes generated by this workflow.