Promis - Bill Payment Automation

Our team at the NAB hackathon in March
Promis Dashboard
Expanded Bill Details
Rules created on the fly with a single click and based on user behaviour
User roles

Inspiration

"Whatever can be automated - will be." I have been using Xero for the past 7 years and love all the benefits of automation and real-time data. The one frustration was getting supplier bills in and paying them. I still had to do that manually. So our goal with Promis was to eliminate that last frontier of a truly integrated financial web. In the first iteration, we pulled native supplier invoices into our network (directly from Xero and other accounting packages) and coded them into Xero. During this hackathon period we improved on this:

Integrating payments straight from your bank account without the need for any data entry or even logging into the bank portal
Automation rules that automatically learn what you do. They allow to code and pay bills from trusted suppliers without any human input
User roles where some users are only able to authorise bills and others are able to pay
We also released our iOS app to provide even more mobility

What it does

The core functionality of Promis is the direct connection to the supplier accounting system. It pulls any relevant invoices without the supplier needing to change any of their current processes. We have just completed the first integration with a more sophisticated ERP system (Microsoft Dynamics GP) and also integrate with the Australian e-invoicing interoperability framework for maximum reach. That gives us 100% data accuracy. All lines items are imported into Xero, GST is automatically booked after an automated check that the supplier is registered.

Payments from bank account Bill payments with credit cards were possible for a while. However, the merchant fees for large bills are just not an affordable option. So it was essential for us to integrate payments straight from your bank account to avoid those large fees.

Automation rules While using Promis, we noticed that many users just approve and pay bills without much review. It made sense to automate the handling of invoices from trusted suppliers. Our rules allow to set limits, so if my trusted supplier suddenly sends an unusually large invoice, it will not be paid automatically, but shown to me for review.

User roles Many business owners work with bookkeepers or admin support to prepare bills. And then the business owner pays the bill. To replicate that, we introduced roles that limit some users to preparation and bill approval (pushing it into Xero) without the ability to pay.

iOS app As part of the iOS release, we also updated our Android app. Both have notifications now that let you know when a bill becomes due to be paid, so that you never get late fees again. It can be actioned with a single click while seeing your current bank balance, so you know you have the funds to pay.

How we built it

Planning - coding - testing - testing - testing - user feedback - recoding - testing - testing - testing - user feedback - etc.

Challenges we ran into

The biggest challenge around payments from bank accounts were regulatory. We actually had a technical solution for this over a year ago, but realised that our solution did not comply. So in this new iteration, we built a solution with a partner to provide full regulatory compliance.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

It is always more exciting to build new features and get them in the hands of users. But with an accounting and payment app, a reliable service is absolutely essential. So we have spent a lot of time on our automated tests that we run to ensure our service keeps operating as intended.

What we learned

Getting real users creates the best feedback. There is always a trade-off between wanting to make the app just that little bit better, to just add one more feature and getting real user feedback. We have certainly learned that nothing beats real users. And we thank all our early adopters for their patience with fulfilling their requirements and fixing unexpected behaviour.

What's next for Promis

We are in discussion with the NPP (New Payment Platform) to allow instant payments from bank accounts. We are also working on our international versions, so that a bill in any currency can be processed and paid. And our API is almost ready for public release. It will make it possible to integrate our services directly into accounting systems and other expense or bill management platforms. And thanks to a grant from the Queensland government, we are kicking off a project on the Sunshine Coast. It will save the business community thousands of hours of unproductive data entry.