Why you should get your reimbursements right

They say what goes around come around — and if business owners aren’t reimbursing their employees in a timely manner, they can expect low staff morale and increased staff turnover.

A recent survey from Concur shows 54% of respondents have to wait more than a week for their reimbursements and 11% reportedly have to wait up to one month. There are a number of reasons why reimbursements might take longer than they should, a key reason being that business owners are using outdated expense management processes and leaving staff feeling frustrated and anxious about meeting personal expenses.

So with that being said, how can business owners reimburse their employees more effectively?

First and foremost, look at improving efficiency by replacing outdated or paper-based systems with mobile and cloud-based tools like Concur or Xero, which allow expenses to be managed on-the-go.

Once you’ve got the right system in place, set a time frame for when you will reimburse your employees and stick to it. In turn, you’ll also build trust with your employees, as they know when they can expect to be reimbursed to meet their personal expenses.

Lastly, automation is everything. A system that helps business owners or their finance team to quickly calculate profit and cash flow will also provide better oversight on outgoings. Consequently, this will also help business owners and managers make smarter decisions.

If your business is stuck in a reimbursement rut, get in touch with the team at SWAG Bookkeeping.