How a Major Theme Park Doubled Purchasing Capacity Without Extra Staff
Industry: Leisure & Entertainment
Service: Procure‑to‑Pay Automation
Client Background
Our client is a nationally recognized amusement and theme park that delights guests with a full spectrum of attractions, including campgrounds, thrill rides, on-site lodging, and diverse dining venues. The facilities team procures everything from ride‑maintenance hardware to fresh food supplies, and purchasing volume swings sharply between the park’s off‑season and peak months.
Challenges
- Cash‑flow blind spots: Paper purchase orders and email approvals left finance reacting to spending instead of steering it.
- Seasonal volume spikes: PO traffic jumped from ~100 per month in winter to 200 + in summer, overwhelming the team.
Manual matching & delays: The Accounts Payable team spent days each month pairing invoices with POs, delaying close and straining vendor relationships.
Our Solution
APS replaced spreadsheets and paper forms with a single procure‑to‑pay platform:
- Electronic POs & approval workflow– every request has been routed automatically to the right budget owner.
- Real‑time spend dashboards– finance and department heads see committed and actual spend before an invoice lands.
- Auto‑matching to Bill.com- invoices are synced instantly to their corresponding POs, slashing AP workload.
Catalog ordering– pre‑approved items and pricing let staff buy faster while finance keeps full control.
Results Achieved
Within the first quarter of collaborating with us, the park transformed purchasing from a bottleneck into a cash‑flow command center:
- 75 % faster PO cycle time—approval-to-issue fell from up to 3 days to < 6 hours.
- 100 % electronic PO capture—every order, change, and receipt logged automatically.
- Zero seasonal hiring—handled 2× peak‑season PO volume with existing headcount.
- 99 % first‑pass invoice‑to‑PO match after Bill.com sync, virtually eliminating manual reconciliation.
- 30 % improvement in cash‑flow forecast accuracy, thanks to real‑time spend visibility.
As a result, the finance team:
- Closes books days earlier, with none of the last‑minute AP scrambles.
- Builds proactive budgets aligned to seasonal revenue swings.
- Frees up staff for higher‑value analysis instead of data entry.
- Sustains a seamless guest experience by keeping rides, lodging, and dining fully supplied year‑round.
APS has turned procurement into a strategic advantage, positioning the park to scale operations and the thrills it delivers to every visitor, with confidence.