Shared services standardisation in the Middle East

Business challenges

When HSA began its shared services journey, vendor invoice processing across the region was entirely manual.

HSA’s primary objective was to centralise Accounts Payable into a shared services centre, standardise processes across entities, and improve visibility, control, and efficiency, without disrupting existing ERP systems.

Key challenges included:

• No standardised or harmonised AP processes across companies
• Heavy reliance on paper invoices, including handwritten Arabic documents
• Manual indexing and posting into SAP, requiring multiple systems and screens
• Limited visibility and analytics across invoice status, exceptions, and KPIs
• Previous failed automation initiatives due to poor Arabic language and handwriting support
• Scepticism from local teams due to operational and market realities

While an initial document workflow helped decrease paper, it became clear that true shared services optimisation required end-to-end automation, deep SAP integration, and data-driven insight.

Why SpendConsole was chosen

HSA evaluated multiple solutions before selecting SpendConsole.

The primary differentiator was SpendConsole’s AI capability to accurately process handwritten Arabic invoices, including vendor names, descriptions, formats, and numeric values, a critical requirement in the Middle East where many suppliers still issue handwritten documents.

Equally important was the platform’s ability to deliver real-time analytics and operational visibility, enabling HSA to track invoice performance, bottlenecks, and vendor behaviour across all companies.

Additional factors included:

• Native SAP integration enabling true end-to-end automation
• No-touch invoice processing for clean invoices
• Flexible workflows for PO, non-PO, and exception invoices
• A learning AI engine that continuously improves accuracy
• A collaborative implementation approach aligned to regional complexity

SpendConsole provided a complete, integrated platform capable of supporting shared services at scale.

The solution

SpendConsole was implemented as the core platform supporting HSA’s shared services centralisation strategy, enabling end-to-end invoice automation, standardised workflows, and AI-driven processing across 14 companies.

The solution delivers:

• AI-powered invoice capture and indexing, including handwritten Arabic invoices
• Automated workflows for PO, non-PO, and exception handling
• End-to-end SAP integration from invoice receipt to posting
• Centralised dashboards and analytics across all entities
• Fully paperless AP operations for shared services teams

Clean invoices are processed end-to-end with minimal human intervention, while exceptions are automatically routed with full auditability and traceability.

Results

Since go-live, HSA has realised measurable improvements across efficiency, visibility, and control:

• Invoice processing time reduced from three days to near real-time
• Over 70% productivity improvement in day-to-day AP operations
• Significant reduction in manual errors through automation
• Full visibility into invoice status, exceptions, and KPIs
• Elimination of paper handling for accounting and shared services teams
• Improved vendor management and accountability

Finance teams now operate from a single platform with SAP and workflow fully aligned.