Review Exchange Summit 2016, Barcelona

The 12th edition of the Exchange Summit took place in Barcelona on October 10 and 11, 2016. Over 200 experts and practitioners in the field of E-Invoicing and P2P Automation from all over the world came together and shared their knowledge and got new insights. Whereas E-Invoicing was in main focus, also related topics such as Supply Chain Finance, Procure to Pay, Blockchain, Robotic Process Automation have been closely looked at.

The several presentations from different regions of the world gave a clear picture of the current developments in the field of E-Invoicing and E-Procurement. In Australia for example the E-Invoicing programme has been in operation since 12 months and is moving into an early adopter stage. Businesses start adopting the new standard that very closely aligns to the PEPPOL standard, as Michael Ross from the Digital Business Council pointed out.

Blockchain Technology and its new opportunities for businesses was a highly discussed topic. Enrico Camerinelli from Aite Group presented the latest insights how Blockchain will impact Purchase-to-Pay and Supply Chain Finance. One major benefit of the Blockchain Technology is the chance to step over the hurdles of current accounting systems. With many trading partners involved in the process, e.g. intermediaries, certifying organizations and other companies who worked with the supplier before, the quality of information will be more valid, robust and trustworthy than it is today.

Martin Weis, Robotic Process Automation leader at Ernst & Young, explained how
Robotic Process Automation (RPA) will disrupt work in finance. Amongst others, Martin Weis pointed out that RPA will open up new opportunities for those working in these departments enabling them to get engaged in more creative and challenging tasks. These new opportunities will easily overcompensate possible fears related to any automation: RPA tools help to improve processes in a quicker, cheaper and better way. Employees then will be freed up to focus on interpretation, judgement and communication with each other - tasks machines are unable to do properly.

The Exchange Summit also made room for several round table discussions with lots of opportunities to share different views, discuss current projects, future trends and find answers to important and pressing questions.

The very positive feedback from all parties involved showed once more that the Exchange Summit is the leading platform where all relevant topics are being covered. With the industry facing a more homogenous legislation and reliable political agenda, and willing to quickly adopt new and promising technologies in order to offer even better methods and commercial models, we will continue to support networking and information exchange in this fast-evolving market.