Why expense management automation is a secret weapon in the business world
Expense management is a superb way to boost business Return On Investment (ROI) and bottom-line profitability but for many companies, it seems to be left out in the cold.
Often companies can be focused on making big changes to massive systems that may take up a lot of resources yet have a questionable ROI.
Implementing an expense management tool can actually provide an amazing return for the effort required and the great news is that it doesn’t take a huge amount of resources.
So sit back, grab a martini – shaken, not stirred – and let us tell you why this particular weapon should be in your arsenal.
The elements of ROI
So the first thing to say is that Return on Investment is made up of a variety of different elements but in our experience, many clients focus on just one or two of these.
Often people will look just at the cost of the system. This is natural because of course, this is the first thing that you need to know if you want to implement a new expense management solution.
But you also need to add in any extra costs of set up. So although a system might seem cheap, often we find that there are lots of extra add-ons that suddenly start to make it very expensive.
For on-premise, installed solutions you may need extra server space and your connections in and out might need to be enhanced. You’ll also need to think about connectivity with your other systems (often this will need different modules) and you may need to buy different licences depending upon who is using the system.
If you go for a SaaS system then you often find that the initial price sounds cheap, but as you add functionalities the price creeps up.
With Rydoo the price you see is the price you pay. You get a complete automated expense management solution, with all the functionalities you need.
Of course, if your company needs some extra help with external auditing or more robust insights on expenses, Rydoo has add-on modules available.
But compared to other tools, Rydoo won’t surprise you with extra fees when you try to add a new branch or an extra control level during implementation.
You may also find that there are extra costs in terms of training your workforce. Don’t underestimate this, because people don’t know how to use the new system or tool, they won’t, or not correctly. You may well need to dedicate internal resources to help with implementation and configuration as well.
The other side of the equation is how much money you can make, or in the case of expense management, save, as a result of implementing a new system.
Low costs plus high benefits equal a great ROI.
Fast implementation = low-cost
The longer it takes to get a solution up and running the more expensive it is going to be. You’ll need more internal resources to help and you’ll probably be charged more for consultancy fees by the provider.
Plus, if it takes forever to get your system in then you have a long delay before you can start realising the benefits.
That was one of the things that attracted NTT disruption to Rydoo. The result was an implementation process that, with the assistance of a dedicated Customer Success Manager (CSM) from the Rydoo Team, took a grand total of just three weeks!
As Ignacio Diaz – Innovation Lead explains “we were looking for an easy, hassle-free setup. Rydoo made the setup easy, we got the ball rolling in no time.”
Getting finance tech tools in place as quickly as you can improves your project ROI.
Reduced manual processing = cost savings
Most of our customers migrate to Rydoo from Excel or paper-based systems.
They know that the more manual work you do the more it costs. They are looking for a system that will reduce manual inputs and remove the need to double key data.
Throwing more hours at an issue also means that your people can’t get involved in more value-add activities, in other words, there is an opportunity cost of manual processing.
This was one of the issues that prompted Chris Walker, Expense manager at medical equipment supplier Arjo to look for a new solution. As he explains “Employees are happy they can use the mobile app and the email feature as it allows them to get back to the day-to-day tasks in their roles more quickly.”
While the business was happy that people weren’t having to spend time filling in paper forms, the employees were happy that they could claim expenses quickly and easily. As Chris goes on to say “People actually came to me and said, ‘Rydoo is one of the best things we’ve implemented in this business’ “.
So where an expense management solution wins is that it removes the need for double keying, it reduces manual processing and it automates many of the processes such as authorising claims that managers otherwise will need to do.
Reduced costs and a great ROI - why wouldn’t you look at expense management?
We fully admit that we are biased but we think that companies looking to upgrade their finance technology stack should always start by looking for quick wins and Rydoo is certainly one of these.
Reducing your costs by rapidly implementing an easy-to-use expense management solution is a great way to please your people and gives you a sound platform to kick off other implementations later on.
The time to implement coupled with a low training burden means that you can start saving money quicker than ever and your people can be freed up to look at other areas of the business that can be improved.
Published By
- Rydoo