Automate
Data Entry
Manual data entry creates delay and hidden checking work across finance and operations. We build a controlled pipeline that extracts the fields, validates them against business rules and sends uncertain cases to the right person.
Read the input
Check the fields
Update the system
Clean data reaches the right system.
Measured
ACCURACY ON YOUR DOCUMENTS
6 Apr 2026
HMRC MTD FOR INCOME TAX PHASE 1
One input type
THROUGH TO THE TARGET SYSTEM
Handling documents that vary
A supplier changes an invoice layout, a customer sends a photograph, or an order arrives in an email. Each variation can add checking work before the information reaches your system.
We test extraction against those variations. Existing automation platforms may already support document processing, so the review starts with the tools you have.
The pilot measures which fields can be extracted reliably, which checks help and how much human review remains.
INPUTS TO TEST
- Different supplier layouts
- Changed columns and field labels
- Handwritten notes and poor scans
- Documents with missing pages
- Conflicting totals and dates
AI EXTRACTION
- Tested against layout and wording changes
- Works from content, not pixel positions
- Tests scans, photos and clear handwriting against your samples
- Corrections feed prompts, rules and tests
- Validation and review rules per field
How reliable data entry automation works
Invoices, orders, receipts and claim forms need different validation rules. They can share intake, review and posting components.
Intake
We assess the inboxes, shared drives and portals documents arrive through, then agree which channels to connect and who can submit files.
Read
Parsing layer first (Reducto, Google Document AI or Amazon Textract, depending on volume and document type), then an LLM that pulls the structured fields you care about.
Validate
Check totals, match suppliers and detect duplicate documents. Where appropriate, verify VAT numbers through HMRC. Failed checks hold the document for review.
Human gate
Documents that fail checks or exceed agreed limits enter a review queue. Reviewers can inspect the source, correct fields and approve posting.
Post
Post approved records through supported integrations with your finance, CRM or ERP system. We check API access and write permissions during scoping.
Documents and forms we automate
If a person on your team is typing it in today, we can probably automate it. These are common starting points.
Supplier invoices
PDF, scan or photo. Line items, VAT, PO match, supplier lookup. Posted into Xero, Sage, QuickBooks or NetSuite with a trail.
Sales orders
The orders customers email you as PDFs or in the body of an email. Read, validated against your catalogue, dropped into your ERP.
Expense receipts
Photographed on a phone in a taxi. Date, supplier, VAT, category. Right currency, right project, right approver.
KYC / onboarding
Passports, utility bills, certificates of incorporation, bank statements. Extracted, screened, filed under the right entity.
Delivery notes
Three-way match against PO and invoice. Shortages flagged, dates captured, photos kept against the record.
Insurance & claim forms
First-notice-of-loss, repair quotes, supporting photos. Pulled into your claims system with the right policy attached.
Inbound email triage
A shared inbox where every message becomes a ticket, a CRM update, a calendar event or a reply. Read, classified, routed.
Referral & intake forms
For clinics, agencies, advisers. The forms you get from clients or partners that someone re-keys into your system. Read in the format you got them.
How we take it into live use
Audit, build, hand back. Fixed-scope phases, one document type first, your team trained on the review queue before we leave.
We don't sell you a platform. We build it on the tools that fit your volume, your stack and your budget, and you own the code at the end.
BOOK A DATA ENTRY AUDITData entry audit
We review representative documents and watch how your team processes them. The proposal identifies a first document type, the checks required, likely running costs and the effort that could be saved.
Pilot on one document type
We pick the highest-volume document and build the full pipeline for it. Intake, read, validate, gate, post. It runs on a small slice of real traffic so you can compare it to the person doing it today.
Ramp and evaluate
We run the pilot alongside your team and measure extraction errors, review time and posting failures. You approve the rollout against agreed acceptance criteria.
Add the next document type
The plumbing's done. Adding sales orders after invoices, or claim forms after KYC, reuses the same intake, review and posting pattern. You roll on at the pace you can absorb.
How we handle uncertain fields
Extraction can produce plausible but incorrect values. Business rules, source comparisons and review reduce that risk, but cannot guarantee every error will be caught.
Confidence per field
Where confidence scores are available, we test how well they predict errors on your documents. An uncertain required field holds the whole record for review before posting.
Thresholds you control
You decide which records may post automatically and which require review. Invoice value, new suppliers and changed bank details can trigger stricter checks.
UK GDPR & automated decisions
Where automated decisions could have legal or similarly serious effects for a person, the UK GDPR automated decision-making rules and the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025 matter. We design those paths with human review and a written DPIA.
UK / EU data residency
We default to UK or EU hosting and to model providers with no-train commitments. If your data can't leave the UK, we'll tell you what's possible and what isn't.
Full audit log
Documents, extracted values and human overrides are kept and searchable according to the agreed legal and operational retention schedule. When an auditor or HMRC asks how a number reached the ledger, you can trace it.
Corrections become tests
When your team corrects a value in the review queue, we turn the example into a regression test or extraction rule. The same failure gets checked before the next release.
Choosing the right extraction tool
Tool choice depends on document quality, volume, review needs and where the data must go. We compare extraction accuracy and total running cost on your samples.
PARSE & OCR
For the read layer
Reducto, LlamaParse, Mistral OCR, Unstructured, Azure Document Intelligence, AWS Textract, Google Document AI. We choose per document type and volume.
EXTRACTION LLMs
For the judgement layer
Where a language or vision model helps, we test it against the document types, privacy requirements and cost limits in scope.
ENTERPRISE IDP
When that's the right fit
Established options include ABBYY Vantage, Hyperscience, Rossum and UiPath Document Understanding. We compare their supported documents, integrations, review tools, data terms and cost with a focused custom pipeline.
Leo Associates saves around 45 hours a month
Supplier quotes arrive in different formats. The platform extracts and categorises the data before it enters the project and finance workflow, removing a large manual entry job without replacing the systems around it.
When this is worth discussing
We work best when there is a real operating problem, enough volume to measure and people from the affected teams who can make decisions.
Usually a good fit
- An established UK business, usually with annual revenue above £10m
- A repeated process with a known cost, delay, error rate or capacity problem
- A senior sponsor and a day-to-day owner who understand the work
- Access to the relevant staff, systems, sample records and security requirements
We may point you elsewhere
- A standard product already covers the process well
- The requirement is a one-off small build with no wider operating case
- There is no owner or access to the people and data needed to test the result
- The plan relies on AI making high-impact decisions with nobody responsible for review
Questions before connecting the systems
How accurate is it really?
We measure field accuracy and the rate of incorrect records that pass validation on a representative sample. Scans, photographs and unusual layouts need separate tests. The pilot also measures the work left in the review queue.
Do I have to fire anyone?
The operating model is a leadership decision, not something the software should imply. Before rollout, we record who will handle exceptions, how roles change and whether the expected value comes from capacity, service, accuracy or a staffing plan.
What about hallucinations? Making up numbers?
We recompute totals from line items, match suppliers and apply agreed validation rules before posting. These checks catch some plausible errors, but a balanced invoice can still contain wrong information. Higher-risk records need source review and approval.
Where does our data go?
Default is UK or EU hosting, with provider terms checked before build. If you've got tighter constraints (financial services, healthcare, anything FCA or NHS-touching), we'll design around them and write it down in a DPIA. If nothing can leave your tenancy, we'll tell you which providers can run that way and what it costs.
Would our existing automation platform be enough?
It may be. We first check whether your existing platform supports the extraction, review and posting requirements. A document extraction service can often be added to an existing automation.
How much does it cost?
Audit is a fixed fee. A first pilot pipeline is priced per phase, scoped against how many systems it has to talk to. Running costs scale with document volume and provider choice. We tell you both numbers before you commit.
Will it work with our weird internal system?
We inspect its supported interfaces and permissions first. Direct database writes need a documented, approved integration design. If access is limited, we explain the alternatives and their costs before proposing a build.
What if Making Tax Digital is what's prompting this?
MTD for Income Tax applies from 6 April 2026 to eligible sole traders and landlords with qualifying income over £50,000. The £30,000 threshold follows from 6 April 2027. Automated receipt and invoice intake can help with preparation, while tax records and submissions still need the appropriate checks.
Talk to us about your data entry
Send us representative documents, monthly volumes, error examples and the destination system. We will assess extraction quality, validation rules, exception volume and the likely business case.