Expense Reporting Made Easy

Some people have trouble keeping up with the accurate and timely submission of their expense reports.  Nobody is worse at it than a former co-worker of mine, Chad.  I remember one time, a group of us (including Chad) who were traveling to support a trade show were told by our company’s CEO specifically NOT to expense anything on Tuesday night, as a big corporate meal and entertainment were planned and we were all expected to be there.  Not Chad… he took some of his old friends out for drinks and yes, he attempted to submit the expense.  After it was denied (a relatively small amount of $150 or so), he actually faxed it to our customer site where his old buddies worked, and asked THEM to pay for the drinks!  Chad firmly believed that corporations were bottomless pits of resources and he was always out to claim every possible nickel he could for himself, as though it was his “right.”  Regardless of whether he actually incurred the expense, if there was a corporate policy, Chad would exploit it for his own profit.

The problem with people like Chad (besides the fact that God will eventually smite them), is that companies are constantly adjusting their expense policies to make up for their behavior and for what their accountants then perceive as “holes in the system.”  Within our group, we called them “Chad policies” and they frequently interfered with what should be called “reasonable anomalies” that frequently occur with business travel.

Chad’s gone now (thank goodness), and he indirectly taught me some things NOT to do when it comes to good expense reporting.  Here are some tips that I use to keep things regular, predictable, and timely when it comes to managing expenses on the road.

Ken’s top ten tips for expense report management:

1. If you can, get to know the accountant(s) who audit and approve your reports.  Get to know them on a fairly personal level.  Stephanie from our accounting dept. does most of mine and she knows my habits, etc, and rarely ever calls me to clarify anything.  Occasional small gifts from different travel destinations don’t hurt the relationship, either.
2. Early on in your travel adventures, confer with your manager often.  Even if it’s a small thing, the more quickly your manager develops a feel (and an approval rating) for your travel habits, the better off you will be.  For example, my manager knows that I always eat more cheaply if I can spend a bit extra for a nicer hotel, so he always approves what I book.  He also knows that if I stay somewhere for an extra personal day on a weekend that I will pass the savings on the hotel rate back to the company in exchange for a meal or two on a Saturday.  Basically, he trusts me… but I had to earn the trust.
3. Submit your reports on a regular, predictable, timely basis.  For some people, this is extremely difficult, but it’s so important and well worth the effort.  If you return from a trip on a Friday night, your receipts from the previous week should have cleared your credit card by the following Tuesday.  Tuesday night is always “expense report” night for me, without exception.  I know my accountant, manager, etc, all appreciate the regularity.
4. Use ONE credit card for all of your travel expenses and ONLY for travel expenses.  Personally, I use a Northwest Airlines Visa card and when my travel expense reimbursements come in, the balance on that card is zero.  Every time…  If what I want is not expensable, then I don’t use that card.  Simple.
5. Don’t “piece-meal” your reports.  This was one of Chad’s favorite tricks.  Before all of the chips were counted, he would have submitted five or six reports for one trip.  Frequently, the same meals would show up multiple times.  It shouldn’t be the accountant’s job to walk through it all and keep track of your meals.  If you forget to submit an expense, tell your manager immediately and submit a new report as quickly as possible.  Make your best effort to submit one report per trip, and to keep all of the expenses on that report for that specific trip.
6. Keep a copy of your report and a copy of all receipts you collected on the trip, submitted or not, itemized if possible.  When I submit a report, I place all of the receipts and copies into a sealed envelope and I file it for at least two financial quarters.  If I get audited, I have no problem going back in time to fetch a suspicious looking airport parking receipt or something.
7. When you must re-submit a report, don’t change the overall amount in any way other than what the re-submission discrepancy requires.  I remember watching Chad submit a report for $2,390 one time, he had two of his submitted expenses rejected and the new report he submitted was for more than $2,500.  How does that happen?  Accountants aren’t stupid…
8. Don’t sweat the small stuff.  The way I figure it, my company is feeding me and putting me up in a hotel for a week.  I’m saving a lot of money when you compare that to what I would spend living and eating at home.  Therefore, I don’t mind buying my own sodas, cups of coffee, candy bars, toll receipts, etc, out of my own pocket.  Trying to keep track of them all for expense reporting just gives me a headache.
9. If your company requires itemized receipts from restaurants, ask your waiter or waitress to split the bill so that alcohol or other non-reimbursable items are on a different ticket.  Highlighting or circling different items on a long receipt just costs you and your accountant extra time and effort.
10. Gently; police your peers.  I’m not saying that you should become some sort of travel expense mole, but make suggestions to your peers that help the group overall.  The last thing any of you need is more “Chad Policies!”