Are matching expense reports cause for team celebration?
It is never a good sign when a 100% correct (we're talking receipt-matching and compliant) expense report causes your entire finance team to stop and stare. This alone is a sign you probably need to review your current expense process, and maybe do a few upgrades, especially if you are still using a manual process. With software becoming more affordable and cloud technology easily within reach, there’s really no excuse not to be automated.
Manual processes draw a crowd
Manual processes affect more than just the finance team. Sure, the finance team has to do the bulk of the work – reconciling and processing the expense reports, and submitting reimbursement. But what about the other players? The employee who has to create the expense report has to dig up receipts, manually enter expenses into a spreadsheet and do some kind of an art project to staple, glue or photocopy all those receipts . And don’t forget the approving manager, who also has to go through that mess before signing-off on it.
By the time the expense report is finally put to rest, it has racked up way more costs (in time alone) than what’s just listed on the statement. And any smart finance person knows, extra costs are never good for any budget, forecast or bottom line.
Enter automation, stage left
Advancements in technology make automation not just within reach for organizations of all sizes, but make it business imperative. Small companies and small teams have even less time to spare with the hassles of manual processes and the trials of paper pushing.
How can automation help your business? For starters, it reduces all that time squandered away on expense report creation, review and approval. An automated process also improves accuracy, reducing the time spent by both finance and expense report submitters trying to figure why the columns don’t add up. Finance saves time and aggravation and the employee can skip to the part where she gets reimbursed. Win-win.
Learn more: How effective spend management boosts your performance
Mobility is the star of the show
Now, imagine taking those expense reports on the road. That’s right, a great mobile app means employees can create and update their expense report while they are still traveling. Not only does this alleviate carrying around piles of receipts that could potentially get lost, it decreases errors and misallocated costs.
The good news is the technology is already available. With Concur Expense, employees simply take a picture of a receipt from their phone and the application takes it from there. And by utilizing cloud technology, members of the finance team (and approving managers) have access to the data in real time and can also review and approve on the go.
Between the decrease in error and overall time spent on reports, and increase in transparency, Concur Expense is a win-win for everyone involved.
Get a standing ovation from your employees
Seize the opportunity and make the move from a manual to an automated, mobile and cloud ready expense system. And when you do, don’t be surprised if you get more than a golf clap from your team. Oh, the applause, the applause…!
