GE Survey: Paper Passing Prevails Over Computers
<B> GE Survey: Paper Passing Prevails Over Computers</B>
By Mary Ann McNulty
<I>Chicago</I> - While more than three-fourths of corporate card program administrators in a recent survey said they're still receiving paper reports, an overwhelming four in five said they would prefer to get the data online and manipulate it themselves.
Surveying more than 600 managers of its travel and entertainment, purchasing and fleet card products, GE Capital Financial and MasterCard found that the consolidation of business functions is having far-reaching effects within Corporate America. Among these are a greater need for consolidated data and program management, a broad penetration of secure Web technology, and efficiencies driven by links to other corporate systems, including accounting, ERP and procurement.
At a forum for financial executives jointly sponsored by GE and Necho Systems, GE Capital marketing manager Michael O'Malley reported that respondents to the survey said loud and clear that the point is not the technology itself, but its "impact on the bottom line."
The financial partners hired a research firm to study the current and future technology needs of their clientele.
In just the past few years, program administrators have become much more sophisticated in their use of, and access to, various technologies, O'Malley said. Among respondents, 90 percent have access to the Internet, a dramatic increase from three years ago, and three-quarters have Pentium II processors. More than 40 percent said they were familiar with sophisticated database programs like Microsoft Access and Crystal Reports. About one-fourth rated themselves as very skilled or expert technology users.
Still, while 60 percent are filling out expense reports on their computers, only 7 percent are using a third-party expense reporting system or service, O'Malley said, with the majority likely using spreadsheets or internally developed systems.
<b><CENTER>Cost Justification Not Found</CENTER></b>
In focus groups with 30 chief financial and chief information officers to validate some of the research, the CIOs said they want to develop expense reporting systems, but can't justify the cost.
In terms of their reporting needs, respondents prioritized 11 common reports, including total transaction, category analysis, transactions over 30 days, a summary by employee and delinquencies.
They also offered some insight into how they're using reports. Forty percent are distributing the reports to their organizations as they receive them, while 49 percent are tweaking them before passing them along and 19 percent are reworking everything before turning them over to other departments and/or senior management.
Only 9 percent of the respondents are delivering the data to other managers within their organizations electronically, with 47 percent offering a blend of paper and electronics, and the remaining 45 percent pushing paper. "I was surprised by the preponderance of paper within corporations," noted O'Malley.
The study also revealed that corporations still are reluctant to mandate card use. Only 40 percent said they mandate, with the remaining 60 percent allowing employees to use personal cards for T&E expenses. Nonetheless, respondents said an average of 75 percent of their travel spend is showing up on corporate cards.
Why would they consider changing card issuers? To save money, was the main response, followed by maximizing rebates or discounts, gaining greater card acceptance, more control over potential employee fraud or misuse, better access to information and reporting, better pricing and fees, individual versus corporate liability and frequency programs.
Analyzing the scope of responsibilities the 600 respondents have, O'Malley said, showed that the corporate travel managers spend more than 60 percent of their time on responsibilities other than travel, while purchasing managers spend just 40 percent outside of purchasing, and fleet managers spend less than 30 percent of their time on anything else.