Accounts Payable: Accounting and Management Best Practices Training

Learning Outcomes

• Apply the principles of the accounts payable cycle, including invoice verification, approval, and payment processing.
• Analyze internal control measures to prevent fraud and errors in the accounts payable process.
• Evaluate and implement best practices for managing vendor accounts and reconciling statements.
• Implement efficient payment processing methods, including electronic payments and cash management.
• Demonstrate the ability to prepare and analyze accounts payable reports for management decision-making.
• Design and implement a robust accounts payable process that ensures compliance with relevant legislation and organizational policies.

Target Audience

This course is designed for accounts payable clerks, finance administrators, bookkeepers, and supervisors who are responsible for the accounts payable function. It is also suitable for small business owners and managers who want to strengthen their financial processes.

Prerequisites

None — open enrollment

Course Outline

Practicals

Overview

The practicals are integral to this course, allowing learners to apply accounts payable principles in realistic scenarios. Through hands-on exercises, learners will process invoices, perform three-way matches, reconcile statements, and use accounting software, thereby developing essential skills for the workplace.

Practical Activities

• Practical 1: Invoice Processing and Three-Way Match — Learners process a set of sample invoices, matching them to purchase orders and goods receipt notes, and identify discrepancies for resolution. (4h)
• Practical 2: Supplier Statement Reconciliation — Learners reconcile supplier statements against the accounts payable ledger, identifying and correcting variances such as missing invoices, incorrect amounts, and unallocated payments. (4h)
• Practical 3: Month-End Closing and Reporting — Learners perform month-end closing procedures, including accruals, cut-off testing, and generation of accounts payable reports for management. (4h)
• Practical 4: Internal Controls and Fraud Detection — Learners evaluate a simulated accounts payable environment, identify control weaknesses, and use data analytics to detect potential duplicate payments or fictitious suppliers. (4h)

Summatives

Each delegate is assessed continuously throughout the course via daily exercises, scored practical assignments, and a final summative test at the end.

Practical Assignments — 30%

Practical assignments are observed and scored against a rubric during the practical sessions. Each delegate's practical mark is averaged into a single 100% score and contributes 30% to the final total.

Daily Exercises — 20%

Every training day ends with a multiple-choice exercise scored out of 100%. The scores from each daily exercise are averaged across the duration of the course to produce a Daily Average mark, which contributes 20% to the final total.

Final Test — 50%

On the last day a final summative test is written. It is a multiple-choice paper with multiple-answer questions: each question may have more than one correct option, and a single wrong selection on a question marks the entire question wrong — no partial credit. The final test is scored out of 100% and contributes 50% to the overall mark.

Final Total

Component	Out of	Weight
Practical Assignments (rubric-scored)	100%	30%
Daily Average (multiple choice)	100%	20%
Final Test (multi-answer multiple choice)	100%	50%
Final Total	—	100%

All marks are recorded on the AATICD LMS and visible to each learner under their account.

Certificate

How it works

• Certificates are auto-generated on the AATICD LMS as soon as the marks pass the 50% threshold.
• Each certificate is a branded PDF with the delegate's name, the course title, the unit standard ID, NQF level, credits, and the date of issue.
• You can download or print your certificate from your LMS dashboard at any time after issue — there's no reissue fee and no expiry date.
• If you scored under 50% you can sit the final test again at the next scheduled session at no extra cost.

Where to find it

Sign in to the LMS, open your dashboard, and your certificates appear under My Certificates. Each entry has a View / Download button and a print option.

Training Discounts

Group discounts apply automatically — the more delegates you enrol, the greater the saving. Discounts are calculated at 3% per 5 delegates, scaling up to 40% off for 100+ delegates.

Delegates	Discount
5	3% off
10	6% off
15	9% off
20	12% off
25	15% off
30	18% off
50	30% off
75	35% off
100	40% off

3% discount per 5 delegates, up to 40% off for 100+ delegates. Contact us for a custom group quote.