CASE STUDY: KPN
KPN AND BASWARE: A CATALYST FOR E-INVOICING IN THE NETHERLANDS
KPN IS ONE OF THE NETHERLANDS’ BIGGEST ICT SUPPLIERS, GENERATING AN ASTONISHING 100 MILLION INVOICES EACH YEAR. KPN IS A PIONEER WHEN IT COMES TO NEW SERVICES THAT SAVE TIME AND MONEY. SO, IT IS NO SURPRISE THAT THEY HAVE CUSTOMER: DEPLOYED E-INVOICING FOR THEIR BUSINESS-TO- BUSINESS (B2B) AND BUSINESS-TO-GOVERNMENT (B2G) INVOICES. HANS HODES, BUSINESS CONSULTANT AT KPN EXPLAINS: “EVENTUALLY WE WANT TO MOVE AWAY FROM PAPER INVOICES ALTOGETHER.” INDUSTRY: KPN - THE NETHERLANDS’ MASSIVE INVOICE Telecommunications LEADING TELECOMS VOLUMES AS KEY DRIVER COMPANY FOR E-INVOICING LOCATION: KPN is the Netherlands’ leading “KPN generates an astonishing 100 Netherlands telecommunications company. Their million invoices per year. This is services include fixed and mobile more than eight million per month. BASWARE SOLUTION: telephone, and internet access. We are, with the exception of the Tax Administration, the biggest Basware e-Invoice for sending KPN serves both the consumer and paper factory in the Netherlands.” business (including B2G) markets. explains Hans Hodes, Business Their customers include over 60% Consultant at KPN. Customers of the 1 million businesses in the receive invoices with cost Netherlands. By ‘business’ KPN means summaries each month, or every all those with either a CoC-number or other month. With these volumes, government identification number – so it was clear that e-Invoicing could businesses and government entities. bring big benefits.
KPN’s reliable network and strong THE MOVE TO SENDING brand are key reasons why they E-INVOICES are able to maintain the leadership position in the highly-competitive KPN’s move to e-Invoicing began in telecoms space. the late 90’s with a customer who “THE DECISION WAS EASY: THE INVESTMENT IN THE PROJECT AS EARNED BACK WITHIN EIGHT MONTHS” insisted on receiving e-Invoices: chain. In my opinion, this could have “In 1997 KPN started sending EDI been done better.” invoices. The main reason was our customer Albert Heijn – they were one of the first companies to force “I EXPLAINED OUR suppliers to move to electronic SITUATION TO BASWARE more obvious that paper needed invoicing. They insisted that EMPHASIZING THAT invoicing must be done ‘in EDI’. So to be phased out. Due to our status EVERYTHING HAD TO BE the choices were to move to EDI or as a leading telecommunications COMPLETED WITHIN TWO lose a valued client,” explains Hodes. company, KPN was obliged to lead MONTHS. I SAID ‘IF YOU the way and to let the innovation “In the late nineties the economy SOLVE THIS CHALLENGE spread through all areas of was flourishing, so this was not FOR ME, WE ARE IN the organization. Not offering a problem. Everyone wanted to BUSINESS.’ WITHIN TWO electronic data exchange would maintain the financial freedom MONTHS, EVERYTHING have compromise our credibility,” offered by a client such as Ahold WAS IMPLEMENTED explains Hodes. (the parent company of Albert AND THE PROJECT WAS NEED FOR QUICK SWITCH Heijn). We initiated this project DELIVERED. NONE OF OF E-INVOICING PROVIDER in collaboration with an external OUR CUSTOMERS – THOSE party. Seven years later, the Dutch RECEIVING PAPER OR - CHOSE BASWARE economy experienced a crisis, ELECTRONIC INVOICES “Hans Hodes met with Basware first which also placed KPN in the line in 2011. KPN’s e-Invoicing provider of fire, and these activities were - EVER NOTICED THIS SWITCH. THE PROJECT was shutting down, and they needed outsourced. KPN outsourced it to an a new one – and fast. organization in Germany.” WAS COMPLETED WITHOUT A HITCH.” IMPLEMENT FULL THE INCREASING SOLUTION FOR 60% COST POPULARITY OF Hans Hodes, SAVINGS E-INVOICING Business Consultant, KPN After a successful first project, Over the years, electronic invoices Hodes and Basware looked for became more common and KPN PHASING OUT PAPER further improvements. experienced a higher demand AS INVOICE VOLUME for this service. KPN’s German “We discussed my desire to e-Invoicing service provider handled INCREASE minimize the number of links within these requests. Hodes explains: “Over a period of ten years we grew the chain which would, among “When customers called us, they from a mere 1,000 customers with others, lead to a better price per were serviced by our German a few monthly invoices to 5,000 to invoice. Basware suggested a service provider after various 8,000 invoices per month. During transformation project that would detours and connections in the this time, it became more and last approximately five months and
02/ www.basware.com offer us 60% greater cost savings.” Hans Hodes wants to increase we are aware of one another’s e-Invoicing adoption. “Together challenges. Of course, there is DEVELOPING THE B2B with Basware, we want to develop always room for improvement E-INVOICE MARKET the market. For this, we prepared – for example, we spent a lot of Of the 100 million invoices KPN an onboarding program. During the time and energy in the contract sends out annually, approximately past few years, several companies negotiations in 2014, when we 8 million are sent to business and encouraged one another to move merged three Basware contracts government customers. And of to e-Invoicing and to connect to the into one. these commercial invoices, 1% Basware network. (80,000 invoices) are currently GOALS: MORE THAN sent in XML format via Basware – as CO-OPERATION IS NEEDED DOUBLE E-INVOICING ‘true e-Invoices’. Hodes explains: TO GET E-INVOICING TO & INCREASE “The percentage of ‘true’ e-Invoices TAKE OFF TRANSPARENCY sent is currently on the low side. Getting e-Invoicing to take off in a Partially with the help of the But, it is not too surprising because market requires cooperation among onboarding plan, Hodes wants to for small companies an email with the multiple e-Invoicing service increase the number of e-Invoices a pdf invoice will suffice. For small providers. The service providers from 8,000 to 20,000 invoices companies it is not always easy need to create a stable environment per month by the end of this to move over to ‘true’ e-Invoicing. for customers, so that customers year. He explains: “This requires Larger companies have an easier will dare to make the switch to ‘true’ strong growth. Everything that time.” e-Invoicing. If the e-Invoicing service is still happening on paper, must providers don’t work together, disappear. “Another of Hodes’ E-INVOICING REQUIRES companies in the Netherlands goals is to make e-Invoicing in CHANGE will stick to invoicing via direct the Netherlands transparent: “So “Though e-Invoicing adoption connections or an e-mail with PDF.” that I know which company is on numbers may seem low, you must which platform to enable smooth In the Netherlands, the e-Invoicing keep in mind the major impact of communication. Our collaboration market has been stagnant for a e-Invoicing on receivers. They need with Basware to open this market, few years. For that reason, KPN is to adjust their business processes. must serve as a catalyst to working with Basware to encourage In a paper-based process, a paper achieving this goal. invoice is received, the first page cooperation throughout the entire is typed into an AP system and, industry. Once there is greater eventually, the invoice becomes transparency as to which company payable.” is connected to which community and information can be exchanged, “When you receive your invoices e-Invoicing can be stimulated. electronically, however, though the typing into the AP system step GOOD COOPERATION WITH may be skipped, the subsequent BASWARE steps are likely to require changes. For example, the approval Hans Hodes has been working with process,” explains Hodes. “Change Basware for several years and is sometimes difficult to accept. has been very satisfied: “I am very The transitioning phase is often happy with the collaboration. a bottleneck for organizations. Basware is client and solution E-Invoicing is more than a technical oriented. Since we have opportunity: the processing side been working together forms the actual challenge.” for a few years,
03/ MOVING FROM REACTIVE asked for it, we provided it. But from About KPN: TO PROACTIVE now on, our Account Managers APPROACH for Large Enterprise & Corporate KPN is the largest telecom customers will proactively offer and IT service provider in the Today, one percent of all e-invoicing with contract renewals Netherlands. Our network is commercial invoices are sent in or updates. This is a group of 500 Dutch to the core. We have a clear XML format. Hodes concludes: mission – to help the Netherlands to 3,000 companies who jointly “Within 1 year, I would like to see move forward through that represent 10,000 – 100,000 this increase to three percent, and network. We believe in a society invoices. This is the type of within three years to ten percent. in which communication development that will get the ball technology makes life richer, easier and fuller. KPN wants to Until now, we have offered rolling to reach our goals. And all this with Basware.” be the unifier of that society, e-Invoicing reactively: when a client for people and companies. At home, at work and on the move. We have the resources, and the technology and the reliable fixed and mobile networks.
We use our knowledge and experience to make our services and products accessible for everyone, anytime, anywhere. We fulfill people’s expectations, but we also achieve the unexpected. KPN believes in technology, in the power of communication and in the power of connection. We are the network that enables the Netherlands to move forward.
ABOUT BASWARE: Basware is the global leader in providing purchase-to-pay solutions, e-Invoicing and innovative financing services. Basware’s commerce and financing network connects businesses around the globe. As the largest open business network in the world, Basware provides scale and reach for organisations of all sizes, enabling them to grow their business and unlock value across their operations by simplifying and streamlining financial processes. Small and large companies around the world achieve significant cost savings, more flexible payment terms, greater efficiencies and closer relationships with their suppliers. ©Basware 2019
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