How does an expenses app boost employee productivity?

The use of an expense tracker app doesn’t just speed up the claims process - it fundamentally transforms it.

The traditional paper-based approach makes submitting claims an unavoidably slow and tedious chore, with details from bundles of paper bills and receipts having to be manually entered into a spreadsheet or form.

Our 2019 ‘Pointless Processes’ global study found that on average employees spend approximately 24 minutes completing their expenses, with US employees taking the longest at 40 minutes. Multiply this by the number of claims over a year and that’s a lot of valuable time wasted.

With an expenses app, claim information is collected in a matter of seconds. The smartphone is used to scan a paper receipt with all of the required details being automatically extracted in a digital format.

It’s a fast, simple and user-friendly way to handle employee expenses. But what are the practical benefits for a business? Here’s a look at some ways that a mobile-friendly approach can improve employee productivity:

Streamlining the claims process

A smartphone app allows information to be instantly collected whenever and wherever an expense is incurred. Mileage claims for business travel are managed through point-to-point locations, bringing accuracy and a reduction in ‘rounding up’ mileage fraud. A quick check is all that’s required before a claimant is ready to submit a report.

Traditionally, this task has been done at the end of each month with employees having to manually collate weeks’ worth of costs. By streamlining the process, it significantly reduces time waste

Reducing the administrative burden

The benefits of using expenses apps are not just for those submitting claims. The removal of paper from the process allows the management of employee expenses to be automated.

Data is tracked and logged in real-time with notifications and alerts used to identify any costs that breach policy limits. It allows finance teams to spend their time properly managing costs and not on needless paperwork tasks.

Creating a happier workplace

Providing employees with fast, fair and user-friendly ways to manage their costs helps to remove the workplace toxicity that can be caused by ineffective management.

With a digital process and accurate data, it helps to remove the uncertainties that have allowed errors, fraud and disruptive disputes over the legitimacy of claims to grow.

Improving your business brand

Whether a company uses an expenses app or not is unlikely to be the deciding factor for any job seeker. But the tools provided to employees do say a lot about an employer and the direction of a business.

Removing the need for employees to carry out tedious admin tasks doesn’t just save time, it creates the kind of digitally connected workplace that people want to work in. It provides the reassuring signs of a business that’s forward-looking and cares about its employees.

The positive impact of business expense apps

The obvious benefits of switching to an expenses app are that it’s a faster and simpler way for employees to submit their claims. What’s not so obvious are the various ways that a paperless process will deliver benefits throughout a business - from reduced admin to a happier and more productive workplace.