VCRs and spiral perms might have been ‘acceptable in the eighties’, but one other relic of that era continues to be commonplace in the world of receivables finance. Despite the technological advances of the past 40 years, the humble spreadsheet remains ubiquitous. Yet surely it’s time to embrace a smarter approach to portfolio management and due diligence?
Indeed, many of the leading names in receivables finance have already replaced those spreadsheets with Lenvi Riskfactor technology, significantly enhancing their risk management at a time when many of their customers are under intense financial pressure. And now we are extending the scope of Lenvi Riskfactor with a Due Diligence module that makes customer audits a much more efficient and reliable process.
Essential as audits are, we appreciate how time-consuming and labour-intensive they can be – usually involving on-site visits at least once a year, plus significant preparation and post-audit actions.
Lenvi Riskfactor Due Diligence changes all that. Firstly, by drawing on existing Lenvi Riskfactor data, we’re able to show our clients where to focus their efforts. In many cases, a lot of their customers don’t need to be audited – the Lenvi Riskfactor data gives a green light to customers who are so low risk that the cost of the audit isn’t justified. It then flags up some customers as ‘amber’, allowing the client to decide whether an on-site visit or a desktop audit is required. And then of course some customers will trigger key risk indicators that show up as a red light, meaning that a full audit is a priority.
But the value of the module doesn’t stop there. We're also making the overall process more efficient by using Lenvi Riskfactor data to pre-populate a workbook that the auditor can use on site, guiding them on what to look out for. This not only cuts out a lot of unnecessary pre-audit preparation time, but makes the audit itself more streamlined and focused. Furthermore, with clients often using a range of different auditors to carry out the visits, the workbook template ensures far greater consistency by creating a control framework for everyone to follow. This in turn enhances due diligence and boosts internal risk assurance.
At the same time, the system is bespoke – human intervention points can be placed throughout the process, if and when required. And it’s not just our clients that benefit from the technology – Lenvi Riskfactor Due Diligence will also make the auditing process less intrusive for their customers, and mean that many of them don’t need to be audited at all.
So for clients, Lenvi Riskfactor Due Diligence brings cost and time savings, better risk management, greater consistency and less hassle. For their customers, it offers a better auditing experience. And for spreadsheets? They will be with us for some time yet but, ultimately, they are surely heading the same way as power suits and leg warmers.
- The newly updated Lenvi Riskfactor Due Diligence module will be available to the market in 2023.
