Five Compelling Facts We Learned About Best-in-Class Companies:

1. They experienced 60% lower expense-processing costs than all other organizations
2. They have achieved a 43% higher rate of business travel spend under management than all other companies.
3. They have experienced a 31% higher rate of corporate policy compliance than all other organizations.
4. They have executed 41% more of their travel and entertainment expenses on or below budget than all other companies.
5. They have successfully audited 52% more of their T&E expenses than all others.

The study showed that top priorities for the companies involved in the research were:

• To improve the expense management process – 58%
• Drive more value out of business travel – 57%
• Enhance visibility into overall travel / expense spending – 55%
• Improve intelligence through analytics / reporting – 42%

The Best-in-Class companies also reported that the success of their expense management solutions were due to:

• Integration between corporate card and expense management systems – 78%
• Expense management analytics linked to corporate forecasting and planning – 57%
• Business traveleer utilization of mobile capabilities for expense management – 42%

We’re offering a free copy of the results (a $399 value) through our sponsorship of this study with the Aberdeen Group. Get your copy today and learn more about what the Best-in-Class companies are doing with their T&E Expense Management Software.  We encourage anybody with questions or is merely interested in learning more about the topic to also contact us.

Software to manage the expense claim, authorization, audit and repayment processes can be obtained from organizations that provide a licensed software, implementation and support service, or alternatively, from Software as a service (SAAS) providers. SAAS providers offer on-demand Web-based applications managed by a third party to improve the productivity of expense management.

Expense management automation has two equally important aspects – the process an employee follows in order to complete an expense claim (for example logging a hotel receipt or submitting mobile phone records) and the activity accounts or finance staff undertake to process the claim within the finance system.

Typically, a manual process will involve an employee completing a paper- or spreadsheet-based expense claim which they then forward, along with the relevant tax invoices (receipts), to their manager for approval. Once the manager has approved the claim, they forward it on to the accounts department for processing. The accounts staff then key each expense item into the company’s finance system before filing the claim and receipts away.

Expense Management automation is the means by which an organization can significantly reduce transaction costs and improve management control when logging, calculating and processing corporate expenses. Independent research evaluating the use of automated expense management systems has confirmed that the cost of processing an expense claim is reduced as the level of automation increases.

As found in an Aberdeen study on expense management automation, there are three main factors that drive an organization to automate their expense management processes:

• Compliance focus: The need to reduce the current risk levels posed by non-compliance with internal policies and external tax/government regulations
• Cost reduction: The competitive pressure to reduce processing and auditing costs associated with expense reports
• Employee productivity: The organizational pressure to improve employee productivity and satisfaction

An automated solution typically provides the ability to code, approve and report on expenses. This will not only decrease the cost of processing expense claims, but can also enable an organization to have greater management control, bring transparency to expense spend and improve adherence to corporate policy.

T & E Management Solution is a service that allows clients to submit expense reports and receipts via web, mobile phone, email, fax, or conventional mail. It’s an automated system that can create expense reports with digital receipt attachment, report submission, approval, and reimbursement. Our software automates and streamlines the entire process. In addition, T&E Expense Management reduces your paper storage while guaranteeing access of your documents at any time.

Chuck Buckner, President & CEO, InterplX Technologies, Inc. stated “We are very pleased to be working with Data Dimensions, the most prominent data management provider in the states. We at InterpLX have positioned ourselves as a national leader as well, in the expense management industry and are looking forward to a long term relationship with Data Dimensions.”

Using a web-based solution, Data Dimensions and InterplX offer automated business expense management for every step of the process: card transaction import, report submission, receipt imaging, policy enforcement, expense auditing, discrepancy resolution, and reimbursement.

“Our collaboration with InterplX is a mutually beneficial strategy that is sure to exceed our customer’s demands. The high degree of expertise that InterplX offers along with our dedication and delivery of innovative automation solutions continues to make Data Dimensions an industry leader.” Said Jon Boumstein, Data Dimensions’ President and CEO.

Because it’s fully automated, Data Dimensions’ T & E Expense Management solution, powered by InterplX, is completely customizable to fit your needs. Our service allows you to be compliant, provides faster reimbursements, while freeing up your employees time by eliminating manual processes and human errors. T & E Expense Management takes you from start to finish, from receipt to reimbursement. Data Dimensions is the complete solution.

About Data Dimensions
Our goal of providing excellent customer service through professional staff has remained a priority for over 25 years. We understand that clients have differing business rules and unique needs. Using project management institute (PMI) methodologies, an educated, experienced Project Manager works with you to understand your current processes, build upon those to create a project plan, and create a workflow that allows for your unique needs while giving you guidance to best practices. We customize each solution to meet your specific challenges and unique needs while delivering guaranteed accuracy, quality, and quick turnaround.

About InterplX
At InterplX, we provide business expense management solutions through a unique product/service offering that combines our proprietary ExpenseNet® expense report software and back-office services. In fact, we are the only company that offers the total business expense management solution – from the receipt submission through expense audit, payment processing and expense reimbursement, archiving and discrepancy resolution. InterplX has established itself as a national leader in the employee expense management industry.

Details for each event are below:

IAPP Eastern PA Chapter Meeting
Friday 2/17/2012
9:00 am to 3:00 pm
Host: Wawa
Breakfast Sponsor: InterplX

Wawa Corporate University
1393 West Baltimore Pike Wawa, PA 19063

Agenda:
9:00 – 9:30 Arrival of members/guests
9:30 – 10:00 Welcome/Member Introductions/Chapter Updates
(Presented by Bill Delaney, ADP – PA Chapter President)
10:00 – 10:30 “Welcome to Wawa”
(Presented by Kevin Wiggins, Controller, Wawa)
10:30 – 10:45 Break
10:45 – 11:30 “Maximizing Your VAT Recoveries” (Presented by Faye Adams, CAPP) Faye will discuss how training your travelers to secure a proper receipt will help you maximize VAT recoveries
11:30 – 12:00 “Thank You PA IAPP” (Presented by Donna Bolno, M.Ed., Director of Community Partnerships, Northern Home)
12:00 – 1:00 Lunch
1:00 – 2:00 Round Table Discussion – AP Finance/ERP Systems
We will break into groups & discuss automation in your AP including and systems folks are processing their financials through;
- At 1:30, a member from each table will report back your results
2:00 – 2:30 Open Mike-“What’s Hot, What’s Not!”
Members have the opportunity to ask questions of the group.
2:30 – 2:45 Closing: Next Meeting Date/Location: Tentative: 4/20/12, TBD

IAPP Western PA Chapter Meeting
Friday 2/7/2012
12:00 pm
Host: Atria’s

Atria’s Wexford
12980 Perry Highway Wexford, PA 15090-8316

Agenda:
• Welcome and Introductions
• Topics for future guest speakers in 2012
• Roundtable discussion
• February meeting speaker is Chuck Buckner from InterplX Expense Management

Topic – Travel & Entertainment Reporting
Chuck Buckner is the President and CEO of InterplX Expense Management, a leading provider of outsourced travel expense and purchasing card management solutions. A Computer Science graduate of the University of Minnesota, Chuck has over 30 years experience in the expense management and technology arenas. Prior to joining InterplX, Chuck was President and CEO of KnowHow, Inc. an e-learning company focused on providing on-line training programs to large corporate sales and other client-facing departments. Prior to KnowHow, he spent 24 years in various management capacities with Gelco Information Network. While at Gelco, he lead the development of the industry’s first commercial travel expense management software system which forms the nucleus of the Gelco system today. He then assumed various management roles in sales and marketing before taking over the Expense Management Group as General Manager. At InterplX, Chuck has helped the company move to the forefront of outsourced expense management services by broadening the service suite, increasing distribution and driving double digit growth. Today, working independently or in partnership with software, charge card and other service providers, INTERPLX serves companies large and small including AstraZeneca, Medco Health, Mannington Mills, Hormel, and Moen. With a broad background in both technology and sales, Chuck has had the opportunity to work with hundreds of companies and government organizations in evaluating their expense management system requirements. He is a frequent speaker at financial, travel and technology conferences.