How Covetrus Unified AP Across Three ERP Systems and a Growing Global Business

Key Results:

Key Stats:

Industry: Animal health technology and services
Client since: 2016 (originally through Henry Schein Animal Health)
ERP environments: Microsoft Dynamics 365, NetSuite, System21
Solution scope: ERP Integration, Automated Workflow, Initial Routing, Invoice Processing Machine™, AutoVouch™, Single Sign On (SSO), Vendor Inquiry Portal, Vendor Set-up/Maintenance, EDI, Direct/Drop Ship

Executive Summary

Covetrus is a global technology-enabled company that provides veterinary practices with a combination of software, services, and products to improve operational efficiency and patient care. When Covetrus formed in 2019, it inherited a problem that most enterprise AP teams would recognize: multiple ERP systems, disconnected workflows, and an invoice process that depended heavily on manual effort to hold together. Across Dynamics 365, NetSuite, and System21, AP teams were routing, matching, and tracking invoices by hand, a process that slowed decisions, created inconsistency, and couldn’t scale with the business.

The relationship with DataServ had started in 2016, when Henry Schein Animal Health implemented the platform for invoice capture. As Covetrus grew, that engagement grew with it, expanding from a capture tool into a full AP automation strategy built to support an organization operating at global scale.

Outcomes

Standardized Processes Across Multiple ERP Systems
VDataServ unified Covetrus’s AP workflows across Dynamics 365, NetSuite, and System21, replacing disconnected processes with a consistent structure and improved visibility across all invoice activity.

Reduced Manual Work Through Exception-Based Processing
AutoVouch™, automated workflow routing, and non-PO automation eliminated the bulk of routine manual handling, freeing AP teams to focus on exceptions and higher-value work.

Improved Visibility Into Workflow Activity
Centralized invoice capture and workflow management gave Covetrus real-time insight into invoice status, approvals, and bottlenecks, shifting the team from reactive reconciliation to proactive financial management.

Expanded Automation Capabilities Over Times
What began as a capture-only engagement now includes automated workflow, AutoVouch™, vendor inquiry functionality, vendor setup and maintenance, EDI processing, and Direct Ship automation.

Business Impact

Before DataServ’s expanded role, Covetrus’s AP function was reactive by necessity. Invoice activity was difficult to track across systems, approvals moved slowly, and as transaction volume increased, the gap between what the team could handle manually and what the business required kept widening.

The Invoice Processing Machine™ and AutoVouch™ closed that gap. Routine invoices now move from receipt through payment scheduling with minimal human intervention. Non-PO invoices average five days to complete; PO invoices average three, with most finishing in one touch. AP teams spend less time on data entry and status chasing, and more time on the exceptions.

Visibility improved just as significantly. Covetrus moved from manual reconciliation across disconnected systems to centralized, real-time insight into invoice status, approval activity, and outstanding liabilities. Finance leadership can now identify bottlenecks before they escalate, monitor performance trends, and make decisions based on current data rather than end-of-period reports.

The infrastructure built with DataServ is positioned to support continued organizational growth, additional business units, and increasing transactional complexity well into the future.

Thoughts from Covetrus

“What’s been valuable about the partnership with DataServ is that the solution has continued to scale alongside us. We’ve been able to create more consistency in our processes, reduce manual work, and improve visibility into what’s happening across AP without disrupting the business as we’ve grown.”

Al Diaz, Shared Services Leader, Covetrus