Top Five Expense Resolutions For 2016

The best way to make sure that you don’t stick to a New Year resolution, is to make it something impossibly ambitious.

An Australian study in 2014 found that setting unrealistic goals was the number one reason for failed resolutions, the reason given by a third of respondents.

So while it’s great to be ambitious, maybe it’s not so wise to be targeting a gold medal in the Olympics as one of your goals for 2016.

The same is true for setting business goals. The targets you’re most likely to hit are those which are simple, practical and realistic.

So here are five easily achievable resolutions you can make for smarter expenses in 2016:

Move to digital expense management

If your organisation still uses old paper-based methods to handle its expenses - now is the time for change. Like all the best resolutions, it’s a simple step which offers a permanent benefit - a faster, more efficient and cost effective way to handle expenses.

The move to an automated system unlocks more powerful ways to manage and monitor expenses. The reduced processing time also allows your finance team to focus on properly maintaining your expenses policy.

Using an expenses app

To get the maximum benefit from a digital system such as webexpenses, you need to make sure your employees are using the mobile app. This allows printed receipts to be instantly converted into digital form by snapping them with the camera of a smartphone.

It’s less hassle for employees and significantly more efficient in terms of expenses management. So it’s worth setting a target for the numbers of employees using the smartphone app.

Manage petty cash

Petty cash is one area of expense management which catches many organisations out. While the individual costs may be small, they can add up to a big drain on resources if not properly managed and controlled.

So it’s really worth making sure you're on top of your organisation’s petty cash expenses. If you’re using a digital system they can be easily integrated with regular expenses to provide a complete overview of costs.

Pump up your expense policy

Creating an expenses policy is the easy bit - the real challenge is to properly manage and maintain it over time. So a simple target to set yourself is to review your policy, to make sure it’s fit for purpose.

That means making sure it has been adapted to meet any new legislation, as well as appropriate changes made to allowances and spending limits.

Make your mileage tracking miles better

If you want to tighten up your expenses in 2016 then business travel costs is a key area to target. It has traditionally been one of the toughest areas to control with employees providing ‘guesstimates’ of mileage.

A quick and easy way to take control is to use the journey tracking abilities of a digital expenses system. With webexpenses, an employee can use their smartphone app to accurately track and record the exact time, route and distance of each car journey.

You can find a full selections of guides providing expert tips on how to regain control of your expenses in our resources area.