If your VIM setup costs more time than it saves, something is off. And when VIM incidents keep adding to your workload the setup needs a closer look.
For Beaulieu, that maintenance load had become a visible part of the week. A steady stream of tickets, recurring issues and small fixes that kept the system stable, but didn’t move it forward.
At the same time, Beaulieu’s AP reality is anything but small. With operations across multiple countries and a high volume of incoming invoices, their VIM setup needs to handle a wide variety of document types, from standard invoices to transport-heavy documents , while also keeping up with different legal requirements in each region.
In an environment like that, efficiency and stability aren’t “nice to have”. Every delay, mismatch or extra manual step scales quickly.
Choosing a SAP VIM partner who could combine clarity with experience
With maintenance taking up so much time, Beaulieu needed a team that genuinely knows VIM. People who quickly understand what’s going on, can translate it into a workable solution, and handle both the functional and technical steps in one flow. Based on experience of other companies, benchmark to Beaulieu is a necessity.
Another strength we relied on was their openness about what they seeatother customers. When we had doubts ordidn’tknow the cleanest way forward, they shared how otherorganisationssolved similarissues withoutany hidden agenda.
Turning daily challenges into practical improvements
Once the collaboration started, the focus quickly shifted to the things that slowed teams down in day-to-day work.
For Beaulieu, transport invoices were one of those recurring pain points. Large files, missing data and inconsistent layouts meant users still had to step in manually. Together, we looked at why certain fields weren’t recognised and adjusted the setup in the simplest way possible, small changes that removed friction without adding new complexity. And because the functional and technical work happened in the same flow, nothing had to be handed off or delayed.
The cost side of the landscape became just as relevant. VIM, OCR and DRC are licensed separately, which means invoice volume has a direct financial impact, especially at this scale. With e-invoicing feeding data directly into VIM, the OCR component was no longer used.
“Because Sollitics works with VIM every day, they immediately saw that e-invoicing bypasses OCR entirely, something we had overlooked. That insight has a direct impact on our licencecost.” Paul THooft, SAP Finance team lead
And when something critical surfaced, the approach stayed the same: understand it quickly, fix what matters. In the US, a recognition issue blocked invoice posting and put early-payment discounts at risk. We resolved it within hours, and the financial impact was avoided.
Even upgrades, traditionally one of the heavier parts of VIM, followed the same approach: thorough testing, clear communication and no surprises at go-live. In earlier upgrades, unexpected issues had caused downtime, but with this way of working the process remained stable and predictable for the accounting teams.
And the improvement list keeps on growing. Beaulieu for example also identified areas where different entities could benefit from more alignment. Approval flows, tax determination in the purchase order, tolerances and purchase organisations aren’t fully consistent yet. Together we’re working towards targeted improvements that simplify the setup step by step.
A more predictable and efficient AP process with SAP VIM
Rather than large transformations, the work became a steady rhythm of removing friction, avoiding unnecessary cost and improving consistency in a way that kept the system predictable for everyone using it.
For Beaulieu, that predictability is the real impact. Not one big milestone, but the way the AP process feels today: fewer recurring issues, clearer decisions and less follow-up work. What used to take several days a week in maintenance and ticket handling has become a manageable, stable flow.
With a better understanding of how their VIM landscape behaves across countries, Beaulieu can now make more informed choices about what they keep, what they streamline and what they no longer need. Improvements happen in small, steady iterations, and when something urgent appears, it’s resolved quickly enough to avoid operational or financial impact.
In a global AP landscape, that stability and efficient way of working is what matters most.
If you want the same steady, practical improvements, let’s map out what an improvement track would look like for your organisation.
