Netsuite Vendor Management Review | Features | Best Practices

Managing vendors might initially seem like nothing more than paying a few bills. But as businesses grow, so do the risks. Missed deadlines, lost invoices, payment errors, and strained supplier relationships can quickly follow.

NetSuite Vendor Management offers a smarter way forward. The platform centralizes vendor records, payments, and communication into one platform and helps businesses stay organized, strengthen supplier relationships, and manage cash flow more confidently. We'll also discuss the Wise Business account. The global account that can help your company with all things cross-border.

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Why Manual Vendor Management Falls Short

Before solutions like NetSuite, managing vendors often meant juggling spreadsheets, inboxes, and paper trails. It worked, until it didn’t.

Without a centralized system, businesses commonly faced:

Common Challenges
Duplicate or conflicting vendor records
Outdated contact, payment, and tax information
Missed payment deadline due to manual tracking errors
Limited visibility into vendor performance or spending

Even small mistakes could snowball into delayed shipments, strained supplier relationships, and unnecessary cash flow headaches.

In fact, 63% of CFOs report encountering delays in their companies’ AP functions due to inefficient, manual processes.¹ As businesses grow, manual vendor management becomes much harder to manage.

What Is NetSuite Vendor Management? (And How It Works)

NetSuite Vendor Management is a built-in solution designed to help businesses manage their supplier relationships more efficiently. Rather than juggle spreadsheets, emails, and manual recordkeeping, companies can store everything in one centralized system.

With NetSuite, businesses can handle vendor onboarding, contract management, payment processing, and performance tracking all from within the platform. It ties supplier information directly into key financial workflows like accounts payable, reducing delays and errors that cost time and money.

Some of the key functions include:

Features	Description
Centralized vendor records:	Keep contracts, tax forms, banking information, and key contact details organized in one place.
Performance tracking:	Monitor delivery times, compliance metrics, and vendor reliability over time.
Integrated payments:	Connect vendor invoices directly to AP processes, streamlining approvals, matching, and payments.
Built-in compliance:	Collect required forms, manage audit trails, and reduce the risks that come with manual paperwork.

Compared to basic spreadsheets or siloed systems, NetSuite’s vendor management gives businesses more visibility, control, and flexibility as they scale.

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Key Features of NetSuite Vendor Management

Managing vendors well isn’t just about keeping contact details on file. It’s about building a complete, reliable system that supports better decision-making, faster payments, and fewer risks.

NetSuite Vendor Management helps businesses create that foundation by offering a connected view of every supplier relationship from start to finish.

Here’s a closer look at the core features.

1. Centralized Vendor Records

NetSuite makes it easy to store and manage everything tied to a supplier. Contracts, tax forms, insurance certificates, contact details, and payment terms are kept together in a single digital record. This eliminates the need to track down information across emails, drives, and paper files.

Having one trusted source improves team collaboration, cuts down on manual errors, and supports better financial reporting. It also simplifies audits and compliance checks, giving businesses more confidence that supplier data is accurate and up to date.

2. Performance Tracking & Risk Management

Keeping an eye on vendor performance is critical for maintaining smooth operations. NetSuite allows businesses to track key supplier metrics like delivery times, order accuracy, and contract compliance.

Over time, these insights help businesses identify their most reliable vendors and flag issues before they turn into bigger problems. Having visibility into performance trends also strengthens negotiating power, making it easier to renegotiate terms or pivot to alternative suppliers when needed.

3. Vendor Payments Integration

NetSuite connects vendor records directly to accounts payable, making it easier to manage the full payment lifecycle. Businesses can match invoices to purchase orders and receipts automatically, reducing errors and payment delays.

Payment approvals, batching, and scheduling can all be handled inside the platform, without the need for spreadsheets or manual tracking. Linking vendor payments to a broader AP automation process helps companies improve accuracy, speed up payment cycles, and gain better visibility over cash outflows.

4. Vendor Self-Service Access

Manual back-and-forth with suppliers drains time and causes miscommunications. With NetSuite’s vendor portal, suppliers can log in to view their own purchase orders, invoices, and payment statuses anytime. Vendors can also update important information like banking details, reducing administrative errors.

Giving suppliers more control over their side of the process builds trust and speeds up resolutions when questions arise. It’s a small shift that adds up to better relationships and fewer delays across the board.

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Some key features of Wise Business include:

• Mid-market rate: Get the mid-market exchange rate with no hidden fees on international transfers

• Global Account: Send money to countries and hold balances in multiple currencies, all in one place. You can also get major currency account details for a one-off fee to receive overseas payments like a local

• Access to BatchTransfer: Pay up to 1000 invoices in one click. Save time, money, and stress when you make 1000 payments in one click with BatchTransfer payments. Access to BatchTransfer is free with a Wise Business account

• Auto-conversions: Don't like the current currency exchange rate? Set your desired rate, and Wise sends the transfer the moment the rate is met

• Free invoicing tool: Generate and send professional invoices

• No minimum balance requirements or monthly fees: US-based businesses can open an account for free. Learn more about fees here

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What Is the NetSuite Vendor Portal?

The NetSuite Vendor Portal is a self-service tool that gives suppliers more visibility and control over their interactions with your business.

Instead of sending emails to check on payment status or asking for copies of purchase orders, vendors can simply log in and access the information themselves.

Through the portal, vendors can:

• View purchase orders
• Submit invoices
• Check payment statuses
• Update contact and banking information

For businesses, the vendor portal reduces the volume of manual inquiries that slow down finance and procurement teams. It also improves data accuracy by letting vendors update their own information, cutting down on outdated details and administrative errors.

For suppliers, the benefits are just as clear. Faster updates and better transparency all help strengthen the relationship and encourage vendors to prioritize your business.

The NetSuite Vendor Portal helps remove friction from the vendor management process by giving both sides a clearer, faster way to communicate.

How NetSuite Simplifies Vendor Payments

As mentioned, managing vendor payments manually is one of the fastest ways to create hiccups. 48% of invoices are still received manually, slowing down payment cycles and increasing the risk of mistakes.²

NetSuite makes the payment process more predictable by connecting vendor management directly to accounts payable automation. This helps businesses manage bills, approvals, and payments from a single platform with no manual uploads or disconnected systems.

Here’s how NetSuite streamlines it.

Invoice Matching

NetSuite automatically matches incoming invoices to corresponding purchase orders and receipts, helping reduce human error and flagging discrepancies early. That way, businesses aren’t stuck chasing missing paperwork at the last minute.

And that’s important: according to Ardent Partners’ 2023 report, invoice exception rates remain stubbornly high at around 22.5%, even among businesses that have started using AP automation.³

Approval Workflows

Businesses can set custom approval chains based on supplier type, invoice amount, or other factors. Once an invoice matches and is approved, it can move straight into the payment queue without unnecessary delays.

Setting up automated workflows also strengthens internal controls. Every invoice gets routed through the correct checks automatically, with no reliance on ad-hoc sign-offs or buried email threads. Even as payment volumes grow, fraud risk decreases, audit readiness improves, and processing times speed up.

Faster, Cleaner Payments

NetSuite makes it simple to schedule, batch, and track payments directly inside the system. Once invoices are approved, payments can be sent automatically based on internal schedules without the need for manual uploads.

The platform also reduces vendor follow-ups. Through the NetSuite Vendor Portal, suppliers can check their own payment statuses anytime. It’s a small shift that saves hours of admin work and keeps vendor relationships smooth even as payment volumes increase.

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Better Cash Flow Visibility

When vendor payments are disconnected from financial reporting, businesses lose sight of real-time obligations. NetSuite ties everything together—bills, approvals, payments—giving finance teams instant access to upcoming outflows.

That level of visibility makes it easier to forecast cash needs, avoid late fees, and spot payment bottlenecks before they cause trouble.

With a clear view of what’s coming, businesses can plan vendor payouts strategically, protecting both cash flow and supplier trust without scrambling at the end of the month.

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Wise Business Could Help You Save on Cross-Border Transfers

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Best Practices for Using NetSuite Vendor Management

Setting up NetSuite Vendor Management is only half the battle. To really get the most value, businesses need to treat it as a living system, one that gets reviewed, updated, and fine-tuned over time.

Here are a few smart habits to build early.

1. Keep Vendor Records Current

Old tax forms, outdated addresses, and incorrect banking details can cause payment failures and compliance headaches. Regularly audit and update vendor records to make sure you always have the right information on file.

2. Set Up Approval Workflows Early

Waiting until issues pop up to define approval chains slows everything down. Build clear, scalable workflows from the start based on invoice amounts, departments, or vendor types. This keeps payments moving without unnecessary back-and-forth.

3. Train Vendors to Use the Portal

The NetSuite Vendor Portal only reduces manual work if suppliers actually use it. During onboarding, take time to show vendors how to check payment statuses, submit invoices, and update their own information. A little education upfront saves dozens of emails later.

4. Track Supplier Performance Proactively

Don’t wait for a major delivery failure to evaluate vendor reliability. Set up scorecards inside NetSuite to monitor things like delivery timeliness, invoice accuracy, and contract compliance. The earlier you spot issues, the easier they are to fix.

5. Review AP Reports Monthly

Small payment delays can add up fast. Make a habit of checking accounts payable reports monthly to catch workflow issues, missed discounts, or recurring errors before they start impacting cash flow.

Consistent attention to these areas keeps vendor management running smoothly and makes it much easier for businesses to scale without introducing new risks.

Final Thoughts

Strong vendor management is a foundation for better cash flow, fewer disruptions, and stronger supplier relationships.

NetSuite Vendor Management gives businesses a way to move beyond scattered spreadsheets and disconnected systems, offering a single place to manage vendors, track performance, and automate payments.

So, set up the right processes early, educate suppliers, and keep vendor records current, and your business can unlock more value from your ERP. Make vendor management a driver of growth, not just another task to keep up with.

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Sources:

1. How, Why, and Where Automation Optimizes B2B Payments | PYMNTS
2. Accounts Payable Metrics That Matter in 2023 | Tradeshift
3. Accounts Payable Metrics That Matter in 2023 | Tradeshift