New system to improve travel and expense processing
May 15, 2014
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By Craig Leroux, Senior Communications Officer
Benefits of the new system include:
- the partial return to per diems for non-Ontario government funded research travel
- the ability to access the cloud-based system on the web, or via a mobile device while travelling
- the capability to automatically import data directly from a paper receipt
- automated calculation of items like mileage, HST rebates, and currency conversion
- faster processing and the ability to see exactly where a claim sits in the process
A new, automated travel and expense system, to be launched in early 2015, will make the claims process easier, faster and more transparent for faculty and staff. It will also allow for the partial return to per diems for non-Ontario government funded research travel.
“The move to an automated system will make the travel and expense claims process easier and faster for faculty and staff,” says Caroline Davis, Vice-Principal (Finance and Administration). “The current paper-based system can be cumbersome and time-consuming, and automating the process will reduce the burden of managing those claims across the university.”
Queen’s recently completed a request for proposals (RFP) process for a travel and expense system vendor. The RFP’s evaluation committee unanimously selected Concur, a leading provider with more than 20,000 clients and 25 million users world-wide. A number of Canadian universities, including the universities of Saskatchewan, Manitoba and British Columbia, as well as Memorial University, already use Concur’s system, and others have recently signed on.
Carlos Escobedo, Assistant Professor in the Department of Chemical Engineering, was a member of the RFP evaluation committee and says that he was impressed with the capabilities and ease of use of Concur’s system. “Concur offers an excellent service and has a lot of experience in the higher education sector,” says Dr. Escobedo. “The system will streamline the entire expense claim process and ultimately save time.”
The implementation of the new system will happen over a number of months. Faculty and staff across the university should be able to start using it for travel and expense claims in early 2015. The project is partially funded by an Ontario Productivity and Innovation Fund grant.