Supplier identification

To process an invoice, the supplier number must be identified first in M3. Because invoices do not contain the M3 supplier number, this solution uses this multi-step search process to find a match automatically:

  • Exact Match Search (High Priority): The system searches for a unique and exact match using the most reliable data extracted from the invoice, such as VAT registration number and Bank Account Number.
  • AI-Based Search (Fuzzy Match): If no exact supplier match is found, the system uses AI to identify the supplier based on less structured information to determine a single, confident match. This information includes supplier name, address, phone number, and email address.

If the process cannot identify a unique supplier, the system automatically sends the invoice to the Review Center for manual selection.

This table outlines the order in which data is searched, along with the corresponding fields and programs in M3.

Sequence Data M3 program M3 field name Comment
1 VAT registration number CRS620 VRNO Exact match is required.
2 Bank account field 2 CRS692 BAF2 Exact match is required.
3 IBAN number CRS692 IBAN Exact match is required.
4 Organization number 1 CRS620 CORG Exact match is required.
5 Tax ID number for supplier CRS624 TINO Exact match is required.
6
  • Supplier name (Mandatory)
  • Address fields (All addresses)
  • Supplier email
  • Phone number
 Data Lake N/A Any combination of these fields that matches to a certain percentage, which is configurable at the time of implementation.

Handling of multiple supplier matches

In certain scenarios, the supplier identification process may return multiple matching supplier records based on extracted invoice data, such as the supplier name, VAT number, or bank details. To ensure accurate identification, this logic is applied:

  • The first matching supplier is not automatically selected.
  • Instead, each matching supplier record is evaluated sequentially.
  • Each candidate is validated against downstream processing criteria based on the priority sequence listed in the table.
  • If only one valid supplier is identified after this evaluation, invoice processing continues as usual.