Major Card Cos. Continue To Invest In Online Tools

<B>Major Card Cos. Continue To Invest In Online Tools</B>

By Jay Campbell

Though some are slightly disappointed with the adoption of their Web-based services for program administrators and cardholders, major payment systems executives said their anticipation of high usage and cost savings in the long term means they will continue to invest in this area.

Even more so than, say, electronic airline ticketing, Web-based reporting and account administration for many is a no-brainer. But behavior modification, as always, lags the new technology.

Consider New York-based American Express, which in a press statement to be released this week described the movement of 24 percent of card management transactions to the Web in a little more than a year as "rapid adoption." Though 24 percent may seem to be a small number, its application to American Express' huge customer base is producing results.

According to April telephone interviews with 15 high-volume American Express @ Work users, Amex said, the average company saves 71 days per year per person or about 70 percent in time spent on routine changes that previously were made via fax, phone or mail.

American Express said the online program management function of American Express @ Work--which affords corporate card administrators greater speed and accuracy in approving or canceling cards, updating contact information and adjusting spending limits--cuts administrator training by an average of 76 percent.

American Express also claimed it has saved more than 600 trees by cutting paper used for monthly summary card reports down to 1 million pages, from 7 million. Online Information Services, the reporting element of American Express @ Work, offers nearly all corporate card and corporate purchasing card reports. Users can find data 73 percent faster online than in paper. American Express @ Work also has reduced "data accuracy issues" by 78 percent, compared with the phone or fax.

Going forward, Amex expects American Express @ Work to represent as much as 80 percent of servicing volume within two to three years.

Though developing Web-based tools now is the "biggest area of our focus," Stamford, Conn.-based GE Capital Financial Inc. president Jeff Dye said he "wouldn't describe it as an explosion" of customer demand. "We're fully deploying functionality and emphasizing ease of use for both levels, the program administrators and cardholders," he said. "It's something GE is spending a lot of time and money on."

Dye said all clients are using the Web-based reporting tools, while usage by cardholders "is ramping up more slowly, so about half of the population now is accessing data that way. Some clients prefer that their cardholders do not access information online, depending on their culture and capability."

Discussing his company's Care suite of products that includes Web-based reporting and administration (BTN, Nov. 6), Robert Abele, president of U.S. Bank Corporate Payment Systems, said, "We're in the throes of continuing to enhance the product. It's not a slam dunk, though, like the desktop software where all you need is a tutorial. For example, you have speed issues with the Net."

Based in Minneapolis, U.S. Bank is developing the system to meet the demands of the federal government, but it also is making Care available to corporate clients.

"A couple dozen" such customers are piloting the system in a given department or division. "Some people are ready to take it and some aren't," said Abele. "Some potential users might not have the right PCs or browser or firewall. Not every installation of Care is customized; they all take a little work."

For the corporate card-issuing subsidiary of New York's J.P. Morgan Chase, newly acquired from Paymentech, client use of the PaymentNet Internet suite is "why they're with us," said David Cramer, a vice president in the commercial payments solutions division. "Ninety nine-plus percent are on the Internet system. The product is not only online but it's also real time. You can cancel a card and challenge the user to use it downstairs in the lobby. You can see where a cardholder had lunch five minutes after they eat."

Version 2.5 of PaymentNet was released last month, with enhanced security features and reporting that now includes the ability to auto-schedule reports to run in the background.

One plus for many of these vendors is the opportunity to bring together applications for both purchasing and T&E cards. "We're convinced that we've got a winner not only because it's helping to sell commercial cards, but also because we have a consistent platform for card maintenance on all types of cards," said American Express' Jud Linville, president of U.S. and Canada corporate services. "It should look and feel the same on any kind of card."

American Express named EDS Procurement, user of the Amex corporate purchasing card, as one of many early adopters of American Express @ Work.

For traveler and purchasing agent cardholders, American Express on May 1 also made available online bill payment.

"Business travelers are looking for ways to simplify their lives and streamline their expense reporting," said Linville in a press statement. "The Check Your Bill and Pay by PC services allow them to monitor their account, fill out expense reports and settle their account while they are on the road.