With the world beginning to open up again, you may find that you are traveling more often than you did before. This includes not only personal travel but business travel as well. It is important for you to think carefully about how you manage these expenses. Otherwise, you may have a difficult time putting your company in a position to be successful. The world of T&E management can be complicated, so what are a few of the most common mistakes companies make? If you are able to avoid these mistakes, you may be able to stay one step ahead of the competition.
- Not Having a Company Policy at All
One of the most common mistakes that companies make when it comes to travel and expense management and not having a company policy at all. Too often, there are companies that simply do not have any policies and procedures in place related to company travel. The end result is that a lot of information will fall through the cracks, as people do not know who is responsible for booking flights and hotel rooms. This means that the company ultimately ends up paying more money, and it makes it easier for people to siphon some money for other purposes. If you want to optimize your travel and expense management, you need to make sure you have a firm policy or procedure in place.
- Not Having Expense Visibility
If you want to keep an eye on your money, you need to increase transparency. This means that you need to have the right tools in place to increase visibility. For example, you may want to have a team that is dedicated to keeping an eye on all travel expenses. That way, they can reconcile all of the bills that come in with the trips they are assigned to. This makes it much harder for something to fall through the cracks, and you reduce the chances of someone taking money on the side. If you can increase your transparency, you can get the most out of every dollar. Then, you may have additional resources you can spend elsewhere.
- Not Reimbursing Employees Quickly
It is not exactly a secret that a lot of companies are having a difficult time encouraging their employees to stick around. One of the reasons why this might be the case is that you are not reimbursing your employees very quickly. If you want to encourage your employees to stay, you need to have a policy in place to reimburse them immediately. Too often, people end up hearing that it is going to be reflected on the next paycheck or statement. This is not good enough if you want them to stick around. Make sure you have an accounting team in place that can immediately reimburse employees if they do not spend money on the company card and have to use their personal money instead.
- Having Redundant Steps in Place
Next, a lot of companies have redundant steps in place. What this means is that the same thing is being reviewed by multiple people. Even though you need to make sure that nothing is being overlooked, you must make sure that your processes are as efficient as possible. If there are a lot of inefficiencies involved, you will end up behind the eight-ball, as you will end up booking flights at the last minute. The end result is that you will need to spend more money than you otherwise would have to.
- Not Keeping Your Employees Comfortable
Even though you are probably looking for ways to save money, you still need to make sure that all of your employees are comfortable. There is nothing wrong with booking a coach seat, but there might be situations where you may want to book something a bit nicer. This is particularly true if you are sending someone overseas. If you keep your employees comfortable on the plane and in the hotel room, they will be more productive when they arrive wherever they are going. Make sure you keep them comfortable.
Manage Your Travel Expenses Well
Clearly, there are a lot of mistakes that companies make when it comes to expense management related to travel. Even though travel can be expensive, there are ways for you to save money. For example, if you are able to book all of your trips ahead of time, you may have an easier time getting a good deal. Then, make sure you keep an eye on the amount of money your employees spend. If there is something that doesn’t make sense, you need to ask questions. That way, you can improve your ability to keep an eye on your company treasury, which is critical if you want to position your company for success in the current environment.
