BirchStreet Systems, a leading hospitality operations platform, has officially announced the launch of a survey report, which props up embedded payments as the future of hotel accounts payable processes.
Going by the available details, this particular report was developed in close collaboration with Hotel Management magazine, Hotel AP in 2025. From a practical standpoint, it leveraged feedback from hoteliers to uncover industry’s leading finance and accounting challenges, while simultaneously outlining how technology is transforming accounts payable and instigating greater profitability and streamlined efficiency.
More on that would reveal how the whole exercise particularly took into account the opinion of key hotel finance decision-makers across ownership, operations and C-suite levels.
As for the results, they reveal that rising costs, fraud risks, and a growing number of deadlines are causing hotels to re-evaluate legacy systems and manual processes. Instead, they are now turning to solutions that, on their part, can optimize data accuracy, as well as save time and minimize costs through automation.
Not just that, the new approach is also expected to provide actionable insights for higher profit margins and enhanced productivity.
Talk about the whole report on a slightly deeper level, we begin from the hotel industry’s bid to ensure control. This translates to how 64.5% of AP leaders already keep payments in-house for greater oversight, but having said so, a large chunk of players continue to overlook how embedded solutions can actually strengthen visibility and vendor relationships.
Next up, we must expand upon the focus on cost efficiency, as rebate capture and reduced processing costs were found to be among the top 2025 business goals, with many hoteliers seeking solutions that deliver measurable ROI.
Another detail worth a mention is rooted in the fact that more than 37.5% cited lack of automation as a major challenge with current systems, revealing a clear need for streamlined, digitized processes to boost scalability
Rounding up highlights would be a growing intention to shore up cybersecurity defenses. In fact, due to 65% of B2B fraud occurring via checks, hotels are now prioritizing digital payments to protect sensitive financial and guest data.
Founded in 2002, BirchStreet’s rise up the ranks stems from its suite of P2P applications which includes eProcurement software, accounts payable automation, inventory management, recipe management, supplier payments, and reporting and analytics. The company’s excellence in what it does can also be understood once you consider it is trusted, at present, by the world’s most successful hotels, GPOs, casinos and food management companies.
“Hotel finance leaders are loudly and clearly stating that the traditional way of managing AP is no longer sustainable in an industry where efficiency, cost control and security are absolutely critical,” said Phil Beck, GM Payments at BirchStreet Systems. “This newly published report provides a blueprint for how hotels can modernize payment processes and gain the visibility they are seeking, so they can shift their attention to delivering the best possible guest experiences and ensuring maximum profitability.”
