AP Services Built for Governance,
Compliance & Scale
Eight specialized service areas — each designed to identify risk, restore data integrity, enforce internal controls, and build the operational foundation your AP function needs to thrive.
AP Governance, Controls & Compliance
The operational foundation of every high-performing finance function is a governance structure that anticipates risk before it materializes. RAS AP Consulting conducts controls-first assessments that identify vulnerabilities across your accounts payable environment — from invoice receipt through payment execution — and delivers a prioritized remediation roadmap aligned to your risk tolerance and regulatory obligations.
Our frameworks are built on decades of hands-on AP leadership inside Fortune 500 organizations, giving us a practitioner's understanding of where controls fail in practice — not just in theory.
We do not deliver templates. We deliver transformation. Every engagement is SME-led, every recommendation is operationally grounded, and every deliverable is built to withstand scrutiny from auditors, regulators, and executive leadership alike.
Deliverables
- AP Controls Gap Assessment & Risk Register
- Internal Controls Framework Design
- OFAC Screening Protocol & Vendor Risk Matrix
- Duplicate Payment Prevention Framework
- Three-Way Match & Invoice Approval Workflow Evaluation
- Segregation of Duties Analysis
- Audit Readiness Review & Remediation Roadmap
Who This Is For: Finance leaders preparing for an audit, integration, or compliance review. Organizations experiencing duplicate payments, unauthorized disbursements, or unresolved vendor disputes. AP teams operating without documented, enforced controls.
Vendor Master File & Data Quality
A corrupted or incomplete vendor master file is not a data problem — it is a governance crisis. Duplicate vendor records, missing TINs, stale banking information, and unverified entity classifications create cascading risk across your entire AP lifecycle: from 1099 reporting failures to OFAC exposure to fraudulent payments. RAS AP Consulting remediates vendor master data with the precision and discipline your audit exposure demands.
Through our technical enablement partnership with Onix — a Google Cloud Premier Partner — RAS brings AI-powered data cleansing capabilities into every vendor master engagement. Onix's intelligent tooling runs automated deduplication analysis, applies configurable survivorship rules that your team owns and can maintain, and enforces merge strategy logic that is transparent, documented, and defensible in an audit. The result is a clean, unified, governance-ready vendor master file — not a one-time cleanup, but a sustainable data quality discipline.
Deliverables
- AI-Driven Vendor Master Data Cleansing (Onix-Powered)
- Duplicate Detection & Automated Deduplication Analysis
- Survivorship Rules Design & Configuration
- Merge Strategy Documentation & Execution
- W-9, TIN, & Banking Data Validation
- Vendor Risk Classification & OFAC Screening Integration
- Ongoing Vendor Master Governance Framework
- Post-Remediation Data Quality Scorecard
Who This Is For: Organizations preparing for an ERP migration, system implementation, or major audit. Finance teams with high duplicate payment rates or TIN mismatch penalties. Any organization that has grown through M&A and has never consolidated its vendor master.
Onix — Technical Enablement Partner
1099, 1042-S, 592-B & IRS IRIS Reporting
Tax reporting compliance is not a year-end project — it is a year-round operational discipline. A single misclassified vendor, missing TIN, or threshold error can trigger IRS penalties, reputational risk, and regulatory scrutiny that no finance team wants to defend. RAS AP Consulting delivers end-to-end 1099 and information return compliance services, powered by the Morado AI-driven reporting platform. Our founder, Rosemarie Smith, serves as the 1099 Subject Matter Expert behind Morado's intellectual property — making RAS the most credentialed 1099 advisor your organization can engage. From W-9 data remediation and payment classification through IRIS portal filing and backup withholding compliance, we cover the full reporting lifecycle with precision, transparency, and accountability.
Deliverables
- 1099-MISC, 1099-NEC, 1099-INT & 1099-DIV Preparation & Filing
- 1042-S Foreign Person Withholding Reporting
- 592-B California Nonresident Withholding
- IRS IRIS Portal Setup, Validation & E-Filing
- Backup Withholding Assessment & Remediation
- TIN Matching & B-Notice Management
- Year-Round 1099 Readiness Program
Who This Is For: Organizations filing 250+ information returns. Finance teams with vendor data quality issues that flow into year-end reporting. Companies recently penalized by the IRS for TIN mismatch or late filing.
Morado — AI-Powered 1099 Platform
AP Automation Readiness & Remediation
Automation is only as powerful as the processes and data it operates on. Organizations that deploy AP automation platforms on top of broken workflows, incomplete vendor data, and undocumented controls do not eliminate their problems — they accelerate them. RAS AP Consulting's AP Automation Readiness service ensures your environment is clean, controlled, and operationally sound before any platform goes live.
We assess your current-state AP workflows, identify remediation priorities, document and standardize your processes, validate your vendor master data, and build the foundational governance layer that transforms automation from a technology project into a business transformation. Engagements are platform-agnostic — we prepare organizations for Esker, Coupa, SAP Concur, Basware, and any other enterprise AP automation solution.
Deliverables
- AP Process & Workflow Current-State Assessment
- Automation Gap Analysis & Remediation Roadmap
- Vendor Master Data Readiness Validation
- Invoice-to-Pay Workflow Documentation & Standardization
- Control Framework Alignment for Automation Readiness
- ERP Integration Readiness Assessment
- Change Management & User Adoption Planning
Who This Is For: Finance teams planning to deploy or recently deployed an AP automation platform. Organizations that have already implemented automation but are not achieving expected ROI. CFOs evaluating platform options who need independent advisory before committing.
Esker Platform — Authorized Reseller & Implementation Advisory
As an Authorized Esker On Demand Reseller, RAS AP Consulting occupies a unique position in the market: we are the only Esker reseller that also brings 30+ years of AP SME depth to every engagement. That distinction matters. Most resellers can configure a platform. We can assess your AP environment, remediate your processes and data, align your controls framework, and then guide your Esker implementation — so the platform goes live on a foundation that actually works.
RAS provides independent platform evaluation, Esker readiness assessments, implementation advisory, post-go-live governance review, and ongoing SME support. We serve as your advocate inside the implementation — ensuring the platform is configured to your operating model, not the other way around.
Deliverables
- Esker Platform Evaluation & Business Case Development
- AP Readiness Assessment Aligned to Esker Requirements
- Implementation Advisory & Go-Live Support
- Process Design for Esker Invoice Capture, AP Automation & Payments
- Configuration Review & Controls Alignment
- Post-Go-Live Governance Review
- Ongoing Esker SME Advisory & Support
Who This Is For: Organizations evaluating or purchasing the Esker On Demand platform. Finance teams already live on Esker who are not fully utilizing its capabilities. Procurement teams seeking an independent, SME-led reseller partner.
Esker — Authorized Reseller
AP Digital Transformation Management
Digital transformation in accounts payable is not a technology deployment — it is an organizational change initiative that happens to involve technology. The firms that fail treat it as an IT project. The firms that succeed treat it as a governance and operations program with technology as the enabler. RAS AP Consulting manages AP digital transformation engagements with the strategic discipline and operational credibility that complex programs demand.
Our approach integrates automated workflow design, custom reporting architecture, and real-time dashboard development — enabling your AP function to move from reactive transaction processing to proactive operational intelligence. Through our Onix technical enablement partnership, we bring Google Cloud-powered infrastructure to support scalable data pipelines, custom AP dashboards built on Looker, and automated workflow engines that reduce manual intervention across the invoice-to-pay cycle. Every transformation engagement is anchored in your current-state reality, governed by a structured methodology, and measured against outcomes — not outputs.
Deliverables
- AP Digital Transformation Roadmap & Business Case
- Automated Workflow Design & Configuration (Onix-Powered)
- Custom Reports Design — AP Aging, Exception Management, Vendor Performance
- Real-Time AP Dashboards (Onix/Google Cloud Infrastructure)
- Change Management & Stakeholder Alignment
- KPI Framework & Operational Metrics Design
- Post-Transformation Governance Model
Who This Is For: CFOs and VPs of Finance leading enterprise-wide transformation initiatives. AP Directors seeking to modernize operations without losing control. Organizations that have started digital transformation and stalled.
Onix — Technical Enablement Partner
Payment Strategy, Controls & Risk
Payment is where AP risk becomes financial loss. A single control failure — an unauthorized ACH, an unverified vendor banking change, a missed OFAC hit — can result in consequences that no audit report can fully recover. RAS AP Consulting builds and validates the payment governance frameworks that protect your organization before a disbursement event occurs. As an Approved Corpay Partner, we support organizations in designing and implementing payment strategies that balance operational efficiency with the controls rigor that regulators and auditors expect. Our engagements cover Nacha/ACH compliance, positive pay controls, vendor banking verification protocols, payment run validation frameworks, and the full OFAC/SDN screening lifecycle.
Deliverables
- Payment Controls Framework Design & Gap Assessment
- Nacha/ACH Phase 2 Compliance Readiness
- OFAC/SDN Screening Integration & Protocol Design
- Vendor Banking Change Verification Protocol
- Positive Pay & Duplicate Payment Prevention
- Corpay Payment Strategy & Implementation Advisory
- Payment Fraud Risk Assessment & Mitigation Plan
Who This Is For: Treasury and AP teams approaching Nacha ACH compliance deadlines. Organizations that have experienced or narrowly avoided payment fraud. Finance leaders responsible for payment governance who lack a documented controls framework.
Corpay — Approved Partner
Training, Education & AP SME Support
The most sophisticated controls framework will fail if your team does not understand it, enforce it, or believe in it. RAS AP Consulting delivers expert-led training programs designed for AP professionals, finance operations teams, and the managers who lead them.
Our educational content is drawn from 30+ years of real-world AP leadership — not classroom theory. We deliver practical, immediately applicable knowledge across AP governance, 1099 compliance, vendor master management, automation readiness, payment controls, and internal audit preparation. As an Approved IFOL Partner, RAS also provides subject matter expert advisory services for organizations evaluating or optimizing their AP technology ecosystem.
Deliverables
- AP Governance & Controls Fundamentals Training
- 1099 Compliance & IRIS Readiness Workshop
- Vendor Master Data Quality & Governance Training
- AP Automation Readiness Coaching
- Fraud Awareness & Payment Controls Education
- IFOL AP Technology Advisory (Partner-Delivered)
- SME-Led Lunch & Learn Sessions & Team Workshops
Who This Is For: AP managers building team capability and compliance awareness. Organizations onboarding new AP staff or rebuilding after turnover. Finance leaders who want their teams trained by practitioners — not vendors.
Technical Enablement, Powered by Onix
RAS AP Consulting has formalized a Technical Enablement Partnership with Onix, a Google Cloud Premier Partner — bringing enterprise-grade data intelligence and automation infrastructure to our AP Governance practice.
AI-Driven Vendor Data Cleansing
Automated AI analysis identifies data quality gaps, standardizes vendor records, and flags anomalies that manual review would miss.
Duplicate Detection
Intelligent deduplication logic surfaces hidden duplicates across vendor records, TINs, addresses, and banking data — at scale.
Survivorship Rules
Configurable survivorship logic determines which record wins when conflicts are resolved — fully documented and audit-defensible.
Merge Strategy Design
Structured merge execution that consolidates vendor records without data loss — traceable, repeatable, and governed.
Automated Workflow Design
End-to-end AP workflow automation design using Google Cloud infrastructure — reducing manual touchpoints and exception rates.
Custom Reports & Dashboards
Real-time AP dashboards and custom reports built on Looker/BigQuery — giving finance leaders operational visibility they have never had before.
Onix is a Google Cloud Premier Partner. Through this partnership, RAS AP Consulting clients gain access to BigQuery data architecture, Vertex AI, and enterprise-grade automation infrastructure — embedded within a Managed AP Governance engagement.
Onix — Technical Enablement Partner
Our Ecosystem Partners
Every service RAS AP Consulting delivers is anchored in a carefully curated partner ecosystem — each selected for their domain leadership and alignment with our Managed AP Governance™ practice.
Esker
Authorized ResellerAP digital transformation platform — invoice capture, AP automation, payments, and analytics. RAS is the only Esker reseller that combines platform expertise with 30+ years of AP SME depth.
Corpay
Approved PartnerPayment strategy, controls, and risk reduction. Corpay powers RAS's Payment Strategy practice — bringing institutional-grade payment infrastructure to mid-market and enterprise clients.
IFOL
Approved PartnerAP technology advisory and education. IFOL reinforces RAS's role as a trusted SME-led partner for organizations evaluating, implementing, and optimizing AP and finance technology.
Morado
Proprietary PlatformAI-powered 1099 reporting platform. RAS's founder serves as the 1099 Subject Matter Expert behind Morado's intellectual property — making this the most credentialed 1099 advisory relationship available.
Onix
Technical Enablement PartnerGoogle Cloud Premier Partner. Onix provides the AI, data engineering, and workflow automation infrastructure behind RAS's Vendor Master and Digital Transformation service lines — bringing Google Cloud-grade capability to AP Governance.
Frequently Asked Questions
Managed AP Governance™ is RAS AP Consulting's proprietary practice category — a structured, SME-led approach to accounts payable that treats governance, controls, and data integrity as prerequisites to automation, not afterthoughts. Unlike traditional AP consulting, which often focuses narrowly on process mapping or platform configuration, Managed AP Governance™ addresses the full operational and compliance lifecycle of your AP function.
RAS is not a staffing firm, and we are not a generalist consulting firm that happens to staff AP projects. We are a specialist AP advisory firm led by a practitioner with 30+ years of direct, hands-on AP leadership inside Fortune 500 organizations. Every engagement is SME-led — not delegated to junior consultants or offshore teams.
Through our Onix Technical Enablement Partnership, RAS clients gain access to AI-driven vendor data cleansing, automated duplicate detection, configurable survivorship rules, merge strategy design and execution, automated workflow tooling, and custom reporting/dashboard capabilities built on Google Cloud infrastructure. These capabilities are embedded within our Vendor Master and Digital Transformation service lines.
No. While RAS is an Authorized Esker Reseller, most of our service areas are fully platform-agnostic. Our AP Governance, Vendor Master, Tax Reporting, Payment Strategy, and Training services apply regardless of your current or future technology stack.
Engagement length varies by scope. A focused AP Controls Assessment typically takes 3–6 weeks. A full Vendor Master Remediation engagement ranges from 6–12 weeks depending on data volume and complexity. Digital Transformation and Automation Readiness programs are typically structured as 90–180 day engagements. We scope every engagement transparently before any contract is signed.
Yes. RAS frequently engages mid-implementation to rescue stalled programs, correct control framework gaps, or validate that the platform configuration aligns to your operational model. We serve as an independent advocate for your organization — not the vendor.
Ready to Strengthen Your AP Governance?
Every engagement begins with a conversation. Tell us where you are, where you need to be, and we will build the path — with the precision, transparency, and operational credibility your organization deserves.