How ELCA modernized AP operations to move funds faster 

When disaster strikes, nonprofits need to move funds fast. The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) manages payments and grants to communities worldwide, with major efforts in hunger relief and disaster response. But moving funds quickly meant nothing if outdated banking data caused payment failures. 

ELCA needed nonprofit AP automation that could simplify operations without sacrificing control — especially critical when urgent needs arise and every minute counts. 

From reactive to proactive payment operations 

After five years of partnership with OneSource Virtual for 1099 reporting, ELCA took a measured approach to expanding their nonprofit AP automation capabilities. They started with Invoice Pay, outsourcing supplier payment optimization while maintaining full control over approvals and visibility within Workday Financial Management. 

The result: a meaningful transformation in how ELCA manages payment processing. OSV's bank validation process caught outdated records before payments failed, eliminating the scramble to fix rejected transactions when organizations urgently needed funds. 

"It's making us proactive," says Stephanie Ulba, Controller at ELCA. "If we have bad banking data, we're going back to get that before we make a payment and have it rejected." 

Find out how OSV helped ELCA: 

• Move payments proactively with bank validation that catches errors before payments fail — a critical measure when disaster relief needs to reach communities globally
• Maintain complete control with full approval authority and real-time visibility while outsourcing payment execution in Workday
• Generate revenue through rebates with virtual card payments that transform AP from cost center to value driver
• Implement with zero IT burden through uninterrupted Workday integration that required no middleware or organization-wide change management
• Build mission-ready agility with clean supplier data and streamlined processes that enable rapid global fund movement when urgent needs arise