The Expense Reporting Road to Recovery: An SAP Concur Podcast Conversation with TCG Consulting

The pause placed on business travel during the pandemic, along with the shift in the way employees work, has created vast opportunities for organizations to revamp their expensing systems. Deciding how and where to allocate and categorize expenses so they align with an organization’s overall strategy has become central to decision-making. While no one has a crystal ball to see what tomorrow will bring, lessons learned from past disruptions can be used to establish systems that meet current employee expectations and reduce risk in the days ahead.

Jason Grunin, Senior Value Consultant in the Value Experience Group at SAP Concur, spoke about preparing for financial recovery and being equipped for the future with Edward Curtis, Associate Director at TCG Consulting, and Jim Coufal, Senior Principal and Advisor for TCG Consulting.

You can listen to this episode on Apple | Amazon | Spotify | Listen Notes | Acast | Google or read the transcript.

A murky mashup: Miscellaneous expenses

Aligning expense types with the way employees travel and spend can be tricky, and there’s not always a perfect solution. “If a traveler can’t find the expense, they’ll book it into the miscellaneous,” Coufal says. If there isn’t a miscellaneous category, however, the expense could get misclassified. The key to better classification? Coufal suggests having enough expense types that make sense for an organization’s needs, while striving for simplicity.

“The challenge is to really find that balance.”

When gift cards are used, Starbucks cards might turn into meals, or Best Buy cards could be applied to office equipment. Reviewing past purchases can help you spot trends and establish criteria for future purchases.  

Another area that can get muddy: the mashup of business and personal travel. Airfare during peak holiday seasons, for instance, might be worth reviewing. “Is that really business, or is there potentially some personal travel mixed in?” Coufal asks. Besides airline tickets, evaluate accommodations over the weekends, rental cars on holidays, and personal mileage data.

Review policies and audit data to update a spend management solution.

Proactive vs reactive Expense reporting

During the pandemic, mailing in receipts and expense reports became increasingly burdensome. As Curtis says, “Not having a centralized system or automation caused major issues for companies as everyone shifted to remote environments.”

A system that lets all levels of personnel tap in from anywhere, regardless of the device they use, can be a game changer. “Business will continue to run as usual,” Curtis explains, “and it’ll allow your company to be more proactive rather than reactive.”

“Manual processes aren’t sustainable in the future work environment.”

Next time, we’ll be ready

Prior to Covid, events like 9/11 or a volcano erupting over the North Atlantic brought travel to a temporary standstill. In a similar sense, while the pandemic may pass, other disruptions will eventually be at the horizon.  

When considering control, compliance, and the employee experience going forward, Coufal says, “There isn’t a wrong or right answer. It’s what works for your organization.” Accounting for culture, the employees you’re servicing, and the industry in which you operate will all help shape policies that work for your organization.

The ultimate recipe for success? “A balance between expense types [and] policy,” says Coufal, “which really helps you drive toward a strong employee experience as well as being able to maintain those controls and compliance.”

Find out more about how you can leverage the partnership between SAP Concur and TCG Consulting to help your organization set the right path for travel and the future of work.