Q for financial people who deal with invoices

potbellypig

I just got told by the financial person at my work that I need to make sure that my signature on invoices in "more consistent". I sign 30 invoices when I have them to sign (once a week), so yes, by the end my signature is way messier. I'm also signing off on scripts all day, so my signature is not a nicely handwritten version of my name. It's a quick and dirty abbreviation, in which you can clearly see the first letter of my first and last letter name, as well as the two "t"s.  I'm the only one who has authority to sign invoices for my department. Is this a legit issues for invoice processing? Or are they nit picking? I'm willing to change it if it's a legit issue, but I'm super annoyed by this request. Context on WHY it even matters would be great.

potbellypig

K3am said:

I'm assuming you're talking about your company is invoicing another rather than you're signing off on an invoice for payment. I may be way off base.. 

 If your company is leveraging your A/R to collateralize a loan, it could be an issue. If they're doing that, depending on what type of loan facility you have, there's a chance that they're submitting the invoice package to their lender, who's confirming the invoice - ensuring it has all proper sign off, supporting documentation, and verification that the invoice is valid, per terms of any underlying contract or PO, and the company intends to pay. (Seriously, even ONE variation from what's contracted could give the customer legal grounds to dispute the invoice. That doesn't mean they would WIN the dispute, but it could mean a lot of time and legal bills). If your signature is inconsistent, it may be difficult to confirm who actually signed it, which could require additional work on their end to validate it.

But TBH, I'm about 98% sure my staff is not comparing signature to signature or even asking who's authorized to sign on an invoice on behalf of the company. 

If it's an invoice that you've received and you're authorizing for payment, I wouldn't be surprised, either. Our A/P department is a nightmare of rules and procedures. I have two specimen signatures on file, and I'm constantly getting push back when my signature doesn't match - even if I've subsequently scanned and emailed A/P from my own email, giving them a double verification that it came from me. 

I'm signing to confirm that I've received it so that our department (government) can pay the company from which we purchased product. not sure if that makes a difference.

I guess I'll just suck up my b!tchin' and just sign more nicely. TGIF.

potbellypig

I totally should get a stamp.