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Cathedral Catholic High School is a private Catholic high school serving approximately 1,700 students in San Diego, California. With a large campus, extensive academic and athletic programs, and strong ties to local suppliers, the school manages a high volume of financial activity throughout the year. Many of its suppliers are local, family-owned businesses, reflecting Cathedral Catholic’s commitment to stewardship and community partnership.
Lindsey Walliser, Accounts Payable Manager, has been with Cathedral Catholic High School for more than eighteen years. During her tenure, she has played a central role in helping the finance office evolve its processes to support growth, transparency, and operational resilience while remaining aligned with the school’s mission.
When Paper-Based Processes Reached Their Limits
For many years, Cathedral Catholic High School relied on paper-based accounts payable workflows that had worked well during earlier stages of the school’s growth. Invoices arrived by mail, were physically routed for approval, and required multiple handoffs before payment. Requisitions were completed on paper, attached to invoices, and passed between offices across a large, multi-building campus.
As the school expanded, these manual processes became increasingly difficult to manage at scale. Invoices could be delayed or misplaced during routing, approvals slowed when administrators were traveling or off campus, and weekly check runs required careful coordination. Costs associated with printing checks, purchasing envelopes, postage, and maintaining printers continued to rise.
Importantly, the finance team maintained strong internal controls and a high standard of accuracy. With strict eight-hour workdays and limited flexibility during audits and holidays, paper-based workflows added friction during peak periods, despite experienced staff and disciplined processes. The challenge was not performance, but the growing strain placed on manual systems.
A Digital Shift That Delivered Visibility and Control
A change in school leadership created an opportunity to rethink how financial operations could better support the school’s mission. A new president sought greater visibility into spending and the ability to review and approve payments remotely, particularly given frequent travel and the size of the campus.
At the same time, Walliser recognized that continuing to rely on paper would limit the school’s ability to operate efficiently and adapt to future needs. She evaluated several accounts payable automation platforms, building a business case focused on improving visibility for leadership, reducing manual work and associated costs, and strengthening controls without adding headcount.
AvidXchange emerged as the solution best suited to Cathedral Catholic High School’s needs, supporting the full accounts payable lifecycle while fitting within existing systems and approval structures.
With AvidXchange’s end-to-end automation solution in one place, invoices are now captured electronically and routed automatically for approval. Requisitions and purchase orders are tracked in a centralized, single platform, giving both the finance office and leadership real-time visibility into invoice status. Approvers can review and approve invoices online from anywhere, reducing delays tied to physical routing or scheduling conflicts.
Payments are issued electronically based on supplier preference, significantly reducing reliance on paper checks. Invoice histories, approval records, and supporting documentation are stored in the cloud and can be accessed online instantly, simplifying audits and compliance reviews. Even when suppliers submit paper invoices, documents are digitized immediately, eliminating the risk of lost paperwork.
From Manual to Manageable, With Measurable Outcomes
With AvidXchange in place, Cathedral Catholic High School began seeing immediate operational improvements. Accounts payable processing time dropped by as much as 60%, allowing the finance office to spend less time on manual tasks and more time on supporting families, students, and long-term financial planning. Invoice processing that once took several minutes per document was reduced to seconds.
The school realized approximately $30,000 in annual savings by reducing costs associated with paper checks, postage, envelopes, and printing supplies. Invoice accuracy improved to 97%, reducing errors, rework, and supplier inquiries. Automated controls and digital payments also lowered exposure to check fraud and payment disputes.
Audit preparation, once a time-consuming effort involving physical files and storage boxes, became far more straightforward with centralized digital records. Collaboration across departments improved as invoices could be routed efficiently to the right approvers with clear accountability.
Beyond efficiency and cost savings, AP automation strengthened operational resilience. The school can now process payments during holidays, school breaks, and remote work periods without disruption.
As Walliser explains, “Before automation, invoices were getting lost and approvals stalled because everything was on paper. With AvidXchange, I have clear visibility into every invoice, approvals move quickly, and our risk around missed payments and fraud is significantly lower.”
This flexibility has reduced audit and processing delays while improving oversight and reducing risk. while improving oversight and reducing risk. With centralized records and real-time visibility, Cathedral Catholic High School has strengthened audit readiness and ensured suppliers are paid on time, regardless of schedule disruptions.
For Cathedral Catholic High School, modernizing accounts payable was not simply a technology upgrade. It was a way to reinforce responsible stewardship, transparency, and trust across the organization. By removing unnecessary friction from financial workflows, the school has positioned its finance operations to support continued growth, serve community partners more effectively, and operate with confidence well into the future.
“Before automation, invoices were getting lost and approvals stalled because everything was on paper. With AvidXchange, I have clear visibility into every invoice, approvals move quickly, and our risk around missed payments and fraud is significantly lower.”
