Your AR team is spending 5-10 hours every week doing something that could be completely automated—and you’re probably paying for the solution already without knowing it.
Look, nobody got into accounting because they love opening envelopes and typing numbers all day. But if you’re still manually processing checks in Dynamics GP, that’s exactly what your team is doing. There’s a better way, and chances are, you already own it.
What Manual Check Processing Actually Costs You
When you receive a check, you open the envelope, record the payment, and take the check to the bank to deposit. Then you get a statement from the bank telling you what was deposited, from what invoices, and from what customer. And then you manually enter a cash receipt into Dynamics GP. The same process applies to wire transfers.
This sounds easy enough until your company grows and this starts consuming more and more of your time.
The hidden costs of manual payment processing:
- Your AR team wastes 5-10 hours per week on manual check processing
- Payment application delays hurt cash flow visibility and forecasting
- Bank trips consume valuable time (and gas money)
- Manual entry errors create reconciliation nightmares that cascade through month-end
- Processing physical checks doesn’t work for remote or hybrid teams
- Manual processes create bottlenecks when key staff are out
- Delays in payment visibility impact your ability to make informed business decisions
When you add up these inefficiencies, you’re not just losing hours—you’re losing money, accuracy, and agility. Companies typically see 15-20 data entry errors per month from manual check processing, each one requiring time to investigate and correct.
Here’s the Best Part: You Already Own the Solution
Lock Box Processing is included with standard Dynamics GP licensing—meaning this automation costs you nothing but a few hours of setup time. It’s been a standard feature in Dynamics GP for years, and most users already have access to it without realizing it.
With Microsoft extending Dynamics GP support through 2029 and continuing to release updates like GP 18.7 (October 2024) with enhanced stability and security features, Lock Box Processing remains a reliable, long-term automation solution. While new GP sales are winding down, existing customers have years of supported functionality ahead—making now the perfect time to maximize the features you already own.
Don’t take on manual processes when you don’t have to.
How Lock Box Processing Transforms Payment Processing
When you work with your bank and set up a lockbox, your clients are instructed to send payments to a PO Box. Then the bank “picks up” the payments, makes the deposit, and sends you a file that shows the payment details. This document from the bank can be easily imported into Dynamics GP using Lock Box Processing, and payments are automatically matched with invoices.
With Lock Box Processing you can automatically import and apply customer payment information from a lockbox transaction file provided by your bank. Lock Box Processing provides:
- Reliable receivables information– Every payment is accurately recorded and matched
- Faster availability of funds– No delays waiting for manual processing
- Greater fraud protection– Your bank handles physical check security
- Reduced payment posting time by 80-90%– What took hours now takes minutes
- Improved cash application accuracy to 99%+– Eliminate manual entry errors
- 5-10 hours of freed-up AR staff time weekly– Redirect to high-value activities
Read Also: Fields you must map when you set up a bank lockbox file in Microsoft Dynamics GP
Real-World Example: From All Day to Overnight
A mid-sized distributor we work with was processing 200+ checks per week manually. Their AR staff spent an entire day—sometimes more—just on data entry, opening envelopes, recording payments, and making bank runs. The process was exhausting, error-prone, and meant that payment information was always at least a day behind.
After implementing Lock Box Processing with CAL, that same work happens automatically overnight. Their bank processes the checks, sends the file, and by the time the AR team arrives in the morning, payments are already matched and applied in Dynamics GP.
They’ve redirected those hours to customer relationship management and collections—activities that actually grow the business. More importantly, their cash flow visibility improved dramatically. Instead of wondering what came in yesterday, they know their exact cash position every morning.
The AR manager told us, “I honestly can’t believe we did this manually for so long. It feels like we gained an extra team member, except this one never takes a day off and never makes a mistake.”
Getting Started Is Simpler Than You Think
Setting up Lock Box Processing typically takes just a few days, not weeks. Here’s the straightforward path to automation:
- Contact your bank to establish a lockbox service
Most major banks offer lockbox services and can provide you with the file format specifications. This usually takes 2-3 business days to set up on their end. - Work with CAL to map the bank’s file format to Dynamics GP
We’ll configure Dynamics GP to read your bank’s specific file format and establish the matching rules for automatic payment application. This is typically a 2-4 hour process. - Run a test batch to ensure proper payment matching
We’ll process a test file with sample payments to verify everything maps correctly and payments apply as expected. Better to catch any issues here than after going live. - Go live and start reclaiming your team’s time
Once testing is complete, you’re ready to process real payments automatically. Most clients process their first live batch within a week of starting the setup process.
Most of our clients have their first automated batch running within a week, not because it’s complicated, but because coordinating with the bank takes a few business days. The actual Dynamics GP configuration is straightforward and quick.
If you need some assistance, we can help—just contact our support team of experts and they can get you going.
The Bottom Line
Let’s face it: opening envelopes, typing in payment information, and making bank runs isn’t what you hired your AR team to do. It’s repetitive, time-consuming, and takes them away from activities that actually move your business forward—like managing customer relationships, handling collections, and providing strategic financial insights.
Lock Box Processing is one of those features that quietly makes a huge difference for the right use cases. It’s not flashy, it’s not marketed heavily, and you might not even know it exists. But for organizations processing checks regularly, it’s incredibly valuable.
The question isn’t whether Lock Box Processing could help your organization. If you’re manually processing more than a handful of checks each week, it almost certainly can. The real question is whether you’re ready to stop doing things the hard way and discover what it feels like to have payments process themselves while you focus on growing your business.
Your future self and your AR team will thank you for taking the time to explore this hidden gem in your Dynamics GP system. Sometimes the best productivity improvements are the ones that have been sitting right there, waiting for you to notice them.
Ready to Stop Opening Envelopes?
Let’s talk about getting Lock Box Processing set up in your Dynamics GP system. Most clients are up and running within a week and wonder why they waited so long.
Contact CAL Business Solutions at 860-485-0910 x4 or sales@calszone.com to start automating your payment processing today.
Transform your most tedious AR process into something that happens automatically while you sleep. Your team will thank you.
