Handling expenses in a business can easily become disorganized. Workers may lose their receipts, bosses may be too slow in reviewing expense reports, and the accounting department may spend hours entering the data into spreadsheets. By adopting new software, these problems can be eliminated.
Nonetheless, not every package will suit every business. Picking the wrong system might lead to burning money on something your employees won’t even use. In order to prevent this, you should inquire about the right matters during your investigation.
Below are several important questions that you should raise before making a purchase.
What options are available in the system to scan and process receipts?
One of the primary reasons for acquiring a tool is to discontinue manual data entry. You must understand the process of your potential product getting data from a receipt and transferring it to your system.
Ask the vendor about its document understanding capabilities. That is how well the software interprets a photograph or PDF of a receipt. Can an employee just snap a picture with a mobile phone, and the software will automatically get the store name, date, tax, and total?
In case the software’s document understanding is a misfit, your workers will still have to input the details manually. Get a program that does this in a flash and with a high degree of accuracy to give your team some breathing room.
Can the software match our approval process?
Every company approves spending in its own unique way. Small teams may only require one manager to check a report. Large organizations often require the expense to move through a line manager, a department head, and then the finance director.
Check whether the system allows you to create custom approval workflows. As an illustration, can you configure a policy that any spending less than 50 dollars is instantly approved while any spending greater than 1,000 dollars is directly sent to the CFO? The software should learn your mode of operation and not the other way around.
Is it compatible with our accounting solutions?
A tool for managing expenses shouldn’t be isolated. When a report of expenses is authorized, the information should be transferred to your main accounting software or ERP system.
Question the supplier about whether their solution is capable of direct, live integration with your particular accounting software. No one wants to be downloading data files to their desktop and then uploading them to the other system manually. A genuinely automated connection keeps your financial records accurate and updated without requiring any additional work.
Is the mobile app user-friendly enough for everyone?
A complex software program will be avoided by your workers. They will procrastinate submitting their reports, and consequently, your finance team will be busy finding the missing receipts.
Request a real-time demonstration of the mobile application in the role of a normal employee. It should be just a matter of a few taps in order to take a photo of the receipt, add some information, and send the claim. The application should be so easy that even the managers can use it to review and approve expenses from their mobile devices.
What are the true and hidden costs?
Software pricing might seem straightforward on a website, but it can get very confusing once you receive the final contract. It is really important to be clear about what you are paying for exactly. Check if the price is determined by the total number of employees registered with the system or only by the ones who actually submit a report each month.
Can you tell me if there are additional fees for system installation, staff training, or getting customer support if something goes wrong? Being aware of the overall cost in advance is the key to managing your budget efficiently.
What are the ways the system helps us to comply with our spending policies?
Most likely, your company will have spending rules for employees on using company money. If payments are done manually, it means the finance team has to look at every single line item to identify mistakes or violations of the policy.
Expense management automation software should act as the enforcer of your spending policies. Check with the vendor how the platform deals with violations of policy.
Is it possible that the system will immediately identify duplicate spending? Does it have the feature of notifying a worker when they exceed the daily meal allowance? An excellent system will prevent unauthorized spending even before the money is withdrawn from the company account, not weeks later.
What kind of help do we get during setup?
Purchasing the software is just the beginning. You will still need to install it, integrate with your bank accounts, and instruct your team on its use.
Check with the vendor about their onboarding procedure. Do you get a personal consultant who will walk you through the technical setup, or do you get only a link to a set of written manuals? Providing thorough training and offering continuous support will enable your company to adopt the new tool in a seamless manner without interrupting your daily operations.
Conclusion
Expense management automation not only improves the efficiency of your finance team but also reduces errors, provides faster reimbursements to employees, and gives you complete insight into your expenses.Â
Paying attention to main functionalities such as document understanding and posing these straightforward questions will help you select a software mainly focused on providing a great team experience.