Accounts Payable Approvals

Service scope

Software add-on or extension: Yes
What software services is the service an extension to: This APA software streamlines financial operations with automated accounts payable approvals, featuring AP approval automation, invoice approval automation, and accounts payable workflow automation. The platform includes automated invoice processing, digital AP approval workflows, electronic invoice approval, AP approval routing software, and automated payment approval processes.
Cloud deployment model: Public cloud
Service constraints: The software is an extension to Microsoft 365, so it requires that users have an existing Microsoft 365 subscription and compatible hardware to run these applications effectively.

As a cloud-based solution, consistent and reliable internet connectivity is crucial for optimal software performance and access to its full functionalities.

To fully benefit from the software’s features, users may require training, especially to customise forms and understand analytical tools, which could involve additional time or resources.
System requirements: Microsoft 365 Subscription for full software functionality and integration

Supports latest versions of Windows and macOS

Latest versions of Chrome, Firefox, Edge, or Safari recommended

Hardware suitable for running Microsoft 365 applications

User support

Email or online ticketing support: Email or online ticketing
Support response times: We will respond within one hour of receiving a request Monday to Friday, excluding English public holidays and weekends. Extended SLAs and weekend support are available for an additional cost.
User can manage status and priority of support tickets: Yes
Online ticketing support accessibility: WCAG 2.1 A
Phone support: Yes
Phone support availability: 9 to 5 (UK time), Monday to Friday
Web chat support: No
Onsite support: Yes, at extra cost
Support levels: Standard support is 0900-1700, Monday to Friday, excluding English public holidays and weekends. We will respond within one hour of receiving a request. Our support team are experienced cloud support engineers. Optional maintenance and support package is priced at 25% of the overall project cost per year with a 1-year minimum commitment.
Support available to third parties: Yes

Onboarding and offboarding

Getting started: Online Training: We provide a series of interactive online training sessions led by our expert trainers. These sessions are designed to help new users understand the fundamentals of the software, ensuring they can start using it effectively right from the start.

User Documentation: User manuals are provided that cover all aspects of the software, from basic operations to advanced functionalities.
Service documentation: Yes
Documentation formats: HTML

PDF
End-of-contract data extraction: Data Location: All data collected and stored by the Incident Management and Reporting Software resides within the client's Microsoft 365 tenancy, it remains under the client’s control throughout the duration of the product’s use. This means that the data is not transferred to external servers and is accessible to the client at any time.

Data Export to SharePoint: Users have the option to export their data directly to SharePoint.

Data Export to Excel: For users who need to analyse data offline or use it for reporting purposes outside of SharePoint, the software provides an option to export data to Excel.

Complete Data Ownership: The data is stored in the client's Microsoft 365 tenancy, clients have full ownership and control over their data. At the end of the contract, there is no need for data migration from OfficeLabs' servers, as the data never leaves the client’s environment.
End-of-contract process: Contract includes a perpetual license of Incident Management and Reporting Software, implementation, documentation, onboarding and training during the implementation phase.

Customisation is available at extra cost. Support is available at 25% of the total implementation cost per year.

Using the service

Web browser interface: Yes
Supported browsers: Microsoft Edge

Firefox

Chrome

Safari

Opera
Application to install: No
Designed for use on mobile devices: Yes
Differences between the mobile and desktop service: Interface scale differences between mobile and desktop views. All content and functionality is the same.
Service interface: No
User support accessibility: WCAG 2.1 A
API: Yes
What users can and can't do using the API: Microsoft 365 Power Apps provides a variety of APIs and connectors by default to extend and enhance applications using both Microsoft services and external sources. Key APIs and connectors include:

Microsoft Dataverse: Manages and stores data used by business applications.
Office 365 Users: Accesses Microsoft 365 user profiles and organisational information.
Office 365 Outlook: Integrates with Outlook for email, contacts, and scheduling.
SharePoint: Interacts with SharePoint Lists and Libraries for data collaboration.
Excel: Reads and writes data to Excel workbooks in cloud storage.
OneDrive for Business: Manages files stored in OneDrive.
Microsoft Teams: Enhances app functionality with Microsoft Teams collaboration tools.
Azure AD: Manages user authentication and authorisation via Azure Active Directory.
SQL Server: Connects to SQL Server databases for robust data operations.
Power BI: Embeds Power BI reports and dashboards for advanced data visualisation.
RESTful and SOAP
API documentation: No
API sandbox or test environment: No
Customisation available: Yes
Description of customisation: Customisation options to adapt to organisational needs and processes. Aspects that can be customised by PowerPlatform developers using Microsoft development tools:

Forms and Fields: incident reporting forms. Adding, modifying, or removing fields to capture the specific data to meet the organisation’s incident management process.
Workflow Automation: Define and customise workflows to automate the routing of incidents to appropriate teams or individuals based on specific criteria, such as incident type, severity, or department.
User Roles and Permissions: Access controls and permissions allows control of view, edit, or manage data and actions.
Notifications and Alerts: Customise the notification system to send alerts through various channels (e.g., email, SMS).
Reports and Dashboards: Reports and dashboards for key metrics and data points critical to your organisation.
Integration with Other Systems: Integration with other business systems like Microsoft 365 applications (e.g., SharePoint, Teams) and HR systems.
Branding and Interface Customisation: Adjust the user interface to match your organisation’s branding, including logos and colour schemes.
Language and Localisation: Customise the language and locale settings to meet the needs of geographically dispersed teams.

Scaling

Independence of resources: The software is hosted on Microsoft 365 cloud platform that provides scalable resources to meet varying demand levels.

This flexibility ensures that additional computing resources (such as processing power and memory) will be dynamically allocated to maintain optimal performance as user demand increases.

Analytics

Service usage metrics: Yes
Metrics types: 1. Incident Volume
Description: Tracks the total number of incidents reported within a specific time frame.

2. Incident Types
Description: Categorises incidents into types based on their nature.

3. Resolution Time
Description: Measures the time taken from the reporting of an incident to its resolution.

4. Incident Outcomes
Description: Details the outcomes of incidents, including successful resolutions, ongoing issues, or escalations.

5. Compliance Metrics
Description: Monitors and reports on incidents related to compliance with internal policies and external regulations.

Reporting and Analysis Tools
The software includes reporting and analysis tools that allow for the creation of custom reports and dashboards.
Reporting types: Real-time dashboards

Resellers

Supplier type: Not a reseller

Staff security

Staff security clearance: Other security clearance
Government security clearance: Up to Developed Vetting (DV)

Asset protection

Knowledge of data storage and processing locations: Yes
Data storage and processing locations: United Kingdom
User control over data storage and processing locations: Yes
Datacentre security standards: Complies with a recognised standard (for example CSA CCM version 3.0)
Penetration testing frequency: At least once a year
Penetration testing approach: ‘IT Health Check’ performed by a CHECK service provider
Protecting data at rest: Physical access control, complying with CSA CCM v3.0

Physical access control, complying with SSAE-16 / ISAE 3402
Data sanitisation process: Yes
Data sanitisation type: Deleted data can’t be directly accessed
Equipment disposal approach: Complying with a recognised standard, for example CSA CCM v.30, CAS (Sanitisation) or ISO/IEC 27001

Data importing and exporting

Data export approach: Users can select and copy data or the system administrator can export data using SharePoint functionality.
Data export formats: CSV
Data import formats: CSV

Data-in-transit protection

Data protection between buyer and supplier networks: TLS (version 1.2 or above)
Data protection within supplier network: TLS (version 1.2 or above)

Availability and resilience

Guaranteed availability: Microsoft 365 SLAs usually promise 99.9% uptime. This means that Microsoft commits to having its services operational and available to users for at least 99.9% of the time each month.
Approach to resilience: Given the complex nature of cloud computing, Microsoft is mindful that it's not a case of if things will go wrong, but rather when. We design our cloud services to maximize reliability and minimize the negative effects on customers when things do go wrong. We have moved beyond the traditional strategy of relying on complex physical infrastructure, and we have built redundancy directly into our cloud services. We use a combination of less complex physical infrastructure and more intelligent software that builds data resiliency into our services and delivers high availability to our customers.

https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/compliance/assurance/assurance-data-resiliency-overview
Outage reporting: Public Dashboard: Microsoft provides a Service Health Dashboard within the Microsoft 365 admin center. This dashboard is accessible to all users with administrative privileges and displays real-time information about the status of various services within the Microsoft 365 suite. It details any ongoing issues, past incidents, and advisories, providing a comprehensive view of service health.

API: Microsoft offers the Microsoft 365 Service Communications API as part of Microsoft Graph. This API allows administrators to programmatically access the service health information and integrate this data into custom applications or dashboards.

Email Alerts: Microsoft 365 administrators can set up email notifications to be alerted about service incidents and advisories directly. These alerts can be configured within the Microsoft 365 admin center to notify relevant personnel promptly when an issue is detected, allowing for swift action to mitigate any impact.

Identity and authentication

User authentication needed: Yes
User authentication: 2-factor authentication

Username or password
Access restrictions in management interfaces and support channels: Role based access
Access restriction testing frequency: At least once a year
Management access authentication: 2-factor authentication

Username or password

Audit information for users

Access to user activity audit information: Users have access to real-time audit information
How long user audit data is stored for: User-defined
Access to supplier activity audit information: Users have access to real-time audit information
How long supplier audit data is stored for: User-defined
How long system logs are stored for: User-defined

Standards and certifications

ISO/IEC 27001 certification: No
ISO 28000:2007 certification: No
CSA STAR certification: No
PCI certification: No
Cyber essentials: Yes
Cyber essentials plus: Yes
Other security certifications: No

Security governance

Named board-level person responsible for service security: Yes
Security governance certified: Yes
Security governance standards: ISO/IEC 27001
Information security policies and processes: Policy owners report to the Chief Information Officer who in turn reports to the Business Owner.
Policies are easily accessible.
Policy Owners are audited on a regular basis.
Automation is used where appropriate.
Policies are acknowledged by workers.

Operational security

Configuration and change management standard: Supplier-defined controls
Configuration and change management approach: The ITIL Change Management Continual Process Improvement methodology is used to manage change.

All changes are considered and assessed on business and security impact by the Change Advisory Board before implementation.
Vulnerability management type: Supplier-defined controls
Vulnerability management approach: Potential threats are rated on risk, likelihood of occurrence and potential impact of the threat.
Patches are developed, tested and released as soon as approved.
Threat sources:
https://www.ncsc.gov.uk/
https://protection.office.com/
Protective monitoring type: Supplier-defined controls
Protective monitoring approach: By leveraging Microsoft 365's robust security features alongside OfficeLabs' dedicated security practices, the goal is to ensure a secure and resilient service environment. This integrated approach not only helps in early detection of potential compromises but also enables swift and effective responses, minimising the impact on operations and maintaining trust.

Incident response is within one hour during office hours. Within four hours at any other time.
Incident management type: Supplier-defined controls
Incident management approach: At OfficeLabs, our incident management processes are designed for efficiency and clarity, structured around the following key components:

We maintain standard operating procedures (SOPs) for frequent incidents like data breaches or service outages, enabling quick and effective responses.

Users can report incidents through dedicated email addresses, a secure online form, or our support desk, all monitored continuously.

We keep stakeholders updated throughout the incident resolution process and provide detailed final reports outlining the incident, resolution steps, outcomes, and preventive measures for the future.

Secure development

Approach to secure software development best practice: Conforms to a recognised standard, but self-assessed

Public sector networks

Connection to public sector networks: No

Social Value

Fighting climate change
Covid-19 recovery
Tackling economic inequality
Equal opportunity
Wellbeing

Fighting climate change

OfficeLabs are a Cloud-based IT solutions provider who deliver modern, effective IT solutions that can be accessed from anywhere with a connection to the internet. We provide flexible working solutions for our customers and our people that enable people to reduce their carbon consumption. Many of our people live considerable distances from our Head Office and our customer locations, and our solutions ensure that business can be conducted without the need for travel. Transport accounts for 21% of carbon emissions in the world, with road transport comprising 75% of that total. Covid lockdown restrictions reduced UK carbon emissions from transportation by 19%. Our solutions – as exemplified by our working practices, provide both the mechanism and proof that flexible working IT solutions can make a significant contribution towards fighting climate change by enabling our people and our customers to reduce their need for travel and energy intensive office space.

Covid-19 recovery

OfficeLabs are a Cloud-based IT solutions provider who deliver modern, effective IT solutions that can be accessed from anywhere with a connection to the internet. During Covid-19 lockdown, OfficeLabs saw a steady increase in custom from organisations who needed to implement the remote-working solutions we use and supply. During that period, OfficeLabs increased its permanent workforce by 25% and utilised contractors for workstreams that offered only short-term prospects. Since the end of Covid-19, OfficeLabs has increased its permanent employee numbers by 400%, doubling the workforce in the past 18 months alone. Some of the greatest aspects to our business, is that we have been able to provide permanent employment for three groups of people who are most affected by barriers to employment: those with disabilities and other chronic conditions for whom commuting would have been a barrier to work; those living in rural communities and not served by public transport or good road networks, and parents of school-aged children, for whom child arrangements may be either non-existent or beyond economic viability. OfficeLabs solutions promote the same ethos and capability to our customers so that they may be able to retain or recruit employees who might otherwise have been unduly impacted by Covid-19. OfficeLabs are able to demonstrate the value and efficiency of our work model and technology by using the products and services we supply. Our technology helps UK and international organisations provide viable employment opportunities to those who for whom outdated systems and working practices prevented flexible employment according to their circumstances.

Tackling economic inequality

OfficeLabs are a Cloud-based IT solutions provider who deliver modern, effective IT solutions that can be accessed from anywhere with a connection to the internet. During Covid-19 lockdown, OfficeLabs saw a steady increase in custom from organisations who needed to implement the remote-working solutions we use and supply. During that period, OfficeLabs increased its permanent workforce by 25% and utilised contractors for workstreams that offered only short-term prospects. Since the end of Covid-19, OfficeLabs has increased its permanent employee numbers by 400%, doubling the workforce in the past 18 months alone. Some of the greatest aspects to our business, is that we have been able to provide permanent employment for three groups of people who are most affected by barriers to employment: those with disabilities and other chronic conditions for whom commuting would have been a barrier to work; those living in rural communities and not served by public transport or good road networks, and parents of school-aged children, for whom child arrangements may be either non-existent or beyond economic viability. OfficeLabs solutions promote the same ethos and capability to our customers so that they may be able to retain or recruit employees who might otherwise have been unduly impacted by Covid-19. OfficeLabs are able to demonstrate the value and efficiency of our work model and technology by using the products and services we supply. Our technology helps UK and international organisations provide viable employment opportunities to those who for whom outdated systems and working practices prevented flexible employment according to their circumstances.

Equal opportunity

OfficeLabs are a Cloud-based IT solutions provider who deliver modern, effective IT solutions that can be accessed from anywhere with a connection to the internet. With our Head Office based in Exeter, Devon, OfficeLabs are acutely aware that it can be difficult recruiting and retaining people whose personal circumstances may provide barriers to employment. Our IT solutions enable us to recruit and retain the people we need because of their capabilities regardless of their (protected) characteristics or personal circumstances. Our recruitment practices are based on capability and potential. We undertake all necessary background checks to ensure our people are not vulnerable to nefarious activities. People who might normally be excluded from employment or face insurmountable barriers to employment and/or progression are provided with flexibility, resources and support that they or their circumstances need to fulfil their potential. Our employment practices and IT remote-work solutions reduce personal, economic, environmental and social costs of working from a fixed location far from home. In 2020, we recruited our first person with multiple disabilities from a demographic that struggle with gaining and retaining employment, and with their input we became a Disability Confident Employer in 2022. Since 2021, OfficeLabs has doubled its workforce and seen it’s proportion of people with disabilities and/or from disadvantaged or minority groups increase to over 37%. Our approach to employee development is one of continual improvement, and we provide all our people with access to an array of training resources, and we fully encourage other developmental opportunities, such as charitable and voluntary work, and involvement in workstreams that complement their role and ambitions within the company. With more than 50% of our employees coming from demographics known to be under-represented in our industry, OfficeLabs is proud to be an equal opportunities employer.

Wellbeing

OfficeLabs are a Cloud-based IT solutions provider who deliver modern, effective IT solutions that can be accessed from anywhere with a connection to the internet. OfficeLabs live and breathe the technology we implement for our customers: our people use the same technology to work from locations and in a manner that is appropriate for them. With our Head Office based in Exeter, Devon, OfficeLabs are acutely aware that recruiting and retaining valued people who live across the UK and work remotely can exacerbate issues such as loneliness and feelings of disconnect for some people. For many years, OfficeLabs have convened regular online meetings with all our people to counteract the reality of home-based work, and we expanded those to twice-weekly in 2022: the first is primarily work-focused, and the second is primarily social – a virtual water/tea/coffee meeting point. The Senior Leadership also conduct regular one-to-one discussions with all staff to ensure their wellbeing is met and provide support whenever needed. In 2021, OfficeLabs launched an annual company gathering that comprised events to involve all our people in developing the strategy and plans, and activities to foster camaraderie and develop healthy inter-personal relationships. We also listened to our people and re-engaged facilities that enabled home-based employees to work from other locations to overcome feelings of isolation when they need. In 2022, OfficeLabs introduced a health package for our people that includes access to emotional and psychological health services, and we introduced a pre-Christmas holiday event that brings our people together in a hearty activity that places non-technical people with technical people in light-hearted competition. In 2024, we launched an events series called “Connected Futures” that demonstrates to other organisations how we and they can implement modern IT solutions in a people-centric manner.

Pricing

Price: £4,995 a licence
Discount for educational organisations: No
Free trial available: No

Features

Benefits

Service documents

Framework

Service ID

Contact

Service scope

User support

Onboarding and offboarding

Using the service

Scaling

Analytics

Resellers

Staff security

Asset protection

Data importing and exporting

Data-in-transit protection

Availability and resilience

Identity and authentication

Audit information for users

Standards and certifications

Security governance

Operational security

Secure development

Public sector networks

Pricing

Service documents

Cookies on Digital Marketplace

Accounts Payable Approvals

Features

Benefits

Pricing

Service documents

Framework

Service ID

Contact

Service scope

User support

Onboarding and offboarding

Using the service

Scaling

Analytics

Resellers

Staff security

Asset protection

Data importing and exporting

Data-in-transit protection

Availability and resilience

Identity and authentication

Audit information for users

Standards and certifications

Security governance

Operational security

Secure development

Public sector networks

Social Value

Pricing

Service documents