The Changing Landscape of Employee Expense Management

Due to the current economy – limited available credit and layoffs – we are noticing changes to the processing and management of employee expenses. Traditional methods are under fire as staff members are increasingly uncomfortable with fronting cash for their employers. Shrinking access to consumer credit is causing weariness among employees about using their personal cards for corporate purchases. Instead, employees have started asking for cash advances. Employers are now having to rethink their positions on:

• Providing cash advances. A manual process that, depending upon the amount, could even entail a trip to the bank.
• Issuing a corporate check for advances. Also manual and requires days of advanced notice….not possible for those sudden trips.
• Issuing corporate credit cards. Perhaps even expanding the corporate card program beyond the comfort level of owners and executives.

The expense reimbursement system businesses have relied upon for so long is being challenged, and the process now requires some thought and adjustment. Our corporate reloadable prepaid debit card is a perfect solution! Now, employers can provide cards to employees that do not qualify for the corporate credit card program. Online tools make tracking spending easy and we eliminate the risk and safety issues of providing cash. You can manage spending closely by setting merchant and spend limits per employee, or for trusted employees, let them track their own card balance using our cardholder website. Funding cards is easy and can be done quickly using our online tool. While it is difficult to accept that things are changing all around us, we, as business owners, need to embrace new ideas to help us grow our business.