POD → Invoice (Same Day)
Goal
Send accurate invoices the same day POD is stored—median ≤ 4 hours; P90 ≤ 8 hours—to accelerate cash, reduce disputes, and eliminate manual prep delays.
Success metrics
- POD→Invoice time (median) ≤ 4 hours
- POD→Invoice time (P90) ≤ 8 hours
- Same-day invoice rate ≥ 95%
- Invoice error rate ≤ 2%
- Delivery confirmation rate ≥ 99%
Prerequisites
POD/BOL capture and matching system operational with quality validation.
Payer routing rules; EDI 210/JSON formats; delivery confirmation tracking.
Standardized extraction for base rate, fuel surcharge, accessorials (detention, lumper, etc.).
Codes for missing POD, document mismatch, portal/API downtime, validation failures, duplicates.
Credentials and endpoints for GL export and/or factoring submission (if applicable).
Baseline measurement
Measure current performance over the last 30 days before implementation:
| KPI | Current | Target | Data source |
|---|---|---|---|
| POD→Invoice time (min, median) | [fill] | ≤ 240 | Invoicing logs |
| POD→Invoice time (min, P90) | [fill] | ≤ 480 | Invoicing logs |
| Same-day invoice rate (%) | [fill] | ≥ 95% | Daily calc |
| Invoice error rate (%) | [fill] | ≤ 2% | Ticketing system |
| Delivery confirmation rate (%) | [fill] | ≥ 99% | Portal/API/email logs |
Step-by-step SOP
Load status = Delivered and POD matched to the correct load.
Compile line items from the rate confirmation + verified accessorial events (detention, lumper, FSC).
Confirm required docs present; run duplicate guard (idempotency key); check payer-format rules and reference fields (PO/PRO/SCAC, etc.).
Generate PDF invoice + JSON/EDI 210 with required references.
Submit via payer channel (portal/API/email) per routing rules; capture submission receipt (portal ID or 2xx/API or mailbox acceptance).
Set invoice status Sent; write immutable audit event with timestamp, actor, payload hash, and delivery confirmation.
Queue failed submissions with reason codes; auto-retry with backoff; notify the designated owner for manual intervention if retries exhaust.
Ingest remittance to mark invoices Paid/Short-paid; track variances and link to dispute workflow.
Artifacts to prepare
billing_validation_checklist.csvRequired fields and document validation rulespayer_routing_sheet.csvPayer-specific endpoints, formats, contact paths, and SLA notes- Sample invoice templatesPDF + JSON/EDI 210 examples
exception_codes_list.csvStandardized failure reason codes and resolution procedures
Common failure modes & fixes
| Symptom | Likely cause | Quick fix | Prevention |
|---|---|---|---|
| Missing accessorials | Event not captured | Manual add + reprocess | Driver/app prompts; event audits |
| Portal rejections | Format mismatch | Validate against spec; resubmit | Template tests; schema checks CI |
| Duplicate invoices | Guard failure | Void + regenerate | Stronger idempotency key + pre-send lookup |
| Late sends | Queue backlog or outage | Prioritize queue; confirm portal recovery | Health checks; autoscaling; outage logging |
| Rate errors | RC parse issues | Manual correction | RC field standardization; vendor QA |
Audit & evidence
Retention requirements
- Invoice records & attachments: 7+ years (finance/tax policy)
- Processing logs (create/edit/send): ≥ 12 months
- Delivery confirmations: ≥ 3 years
- Exception reports: ≥ 90 days
Keep idempotency keys, submission receipts, and outage windows for all exceptions.
Done-when criteria
30 consecutive days with all targets met:
- • POD→Invoice (median) ≤ 4 hours
- • POD→Invoice (P90) ≤ 8 hours
- • Same-day invoice rate ≥ 95%
- • Invoice error rate ≤ 2%
- • Delivery confirmation rate ≥ 99%