Latest news about Bitcoin and all cryptocurrencies. Your daily crypto news habit.
Thereâs no greater truth than âexpense reporting sucksâ in office life. Perhaps tracking vacations/time off/remote work is equally, if not more, damaged, but weâll get to that later. In this post, I will try and get to some hard facts about why we all hate expense reports. I will also take a stab at understanding why the tech world, so good at orchestrating such glorious symphonies of human computer interactions, has still not been able to crack this seemingly simple problem.
Obfuscated by design
body[data-twttr-rendered="true"] {background-color: transparent;}.twitter-tweet {margin: auto !important;}
@fiorine What about when the design is intentionally obfuscated? I.e. make expense reporting as miserable as possible.
âââ@dbkahn
function notifyResize(height) {height = height ? height : document.documentElement.offsetHeight; var resized = false; if (window.donkey && donkey.resize) {donkey.resize(height); resized = true;}if (parent && parent._resizeIframe) {var obj = {iframe: window.frameElement, height: height}; parent._resizeIframe(obj); resized = true;}if (window.location && window.location.hash === "#amp=1" && window.parent && window.parent.postMessage) {window.parent.postMessage({sentinel: "amp", type: "embed-size", height: height}, "*");}if (window.webkit && window.webkit.messageHandlers && window.webkit.messageHandlers.resize) {window.webkit.messageHandlers.resize.postMessage(height); resized = true;}return resized;}twttr.events.bind('rendered', function (event) {notifyResize();}); twttr.events.bind('resize', function (event) {notifyResize();});if (parent && parent._resizeIframe) {var maxWidth = parseInt(window.frameElement.getAttribute("width")); if ( 500 < maxWidth) {window.frameElement.setAttribute("width", "500");}}
Speaking to the CFO of a well-funded, 500 people company, I almost fell off the chair when he said he prefers to keep the expensing process semi broken. After all, if it was so good, wouldnât everyone expense everything they should?
Take a pause, and think over it. Companies use bad expense management system to save on costs.
The âIâll get to it laterâ conundrum
body[data-twttr-rendered="true"] {background-color: transparent;}.twitter-tweet {margin: auto !important;}
Just spent 4 hours on an #expense report. Either the software sucks, or I drink too many cocktails with customers. #sales #happyhour #đž
âââ@heidisdrama
function notifyResize(height) {height = height ? height : document.documentElement.offsetHeight; var resized = false; if (window.donkey && donkey.resize) {donkey.resize(height); resized = true;}if (parent && parent._resizeIframe) {var obj = {iframe: window.frameElement, height: height}; parent._resizeIframe(obj); resized = true;}if (window.location && window.location.hash === "#amp=1" && window.parent && window.parent.postMessage) {window.parent.postMessage({sentinel: "amp", type: "embed-size", height: height}, "*");}if (window.webkit && window.webkit.messageHandlers && window.webkit.messageHandlers.resize) {window.webkit.messageHandlers.resize.postMessage(height); resized = true;}return resized;}twttr.events.bind('rendered', function (event) {notifyResize();}); twttr.events.bind('resize', function (event) {notifyResize();});if (parent && parent._resizeIframe) {var maxWidth = parseInt(window.frameElement.getAttribute("width")); if ( 500 < maxWidth) {window.frameElement.setAttribute("width", "500");}}
All bad systems are amazingly effective at leading you towards procrastination. Doing taxes, paying bills, filing documents⊠I can go on, but I guess you get the drift. These actions require an absurd amount of energy and will power that it is nearly impossible to not punt on it till the very end. The reason is partly bad software and partly the fact that humans hate the act of organising stuff. Finding bills, filling out forms with the correct expense codes, recalling the purpose of each expense and heaven forbid if youâre still doing this on paper, in which case printing out your expense reports, is all one big murky enterprise. Itâs fine. The whole thing makes it easy for you to just forgive yourself and say âIâll get to it when I get to itâ.
Trips or tricks
body[data-twttr-rendered="true"] {background-color: transparent;}.twitter-tweet {margin: auto !important;}
Three work trips in May. My expense report is going to be more annoying than normal.
âââ@FunnelFiasco
function notifyResize(height) {height = height ? height : document.documentElement.offsetHeight; var resized = false; if (window.donkey && donkey.resize) {donkey.resize(height); resized = true;}if (parent && parent._resizeIframe) {var obj = {iframe: window.frameElement, height: height}; parent._resizeIframe(obj); resized = true;}if (window.location && window.location.hash === "#amp=1" && window.parent && window.parent.postMessage) {window.parent.postMessage({sentinel: "amp", type: "embed-size", height: height}, "*");}if (window.webkit && window.webkit.messageHandlers && window.webkit.messageHandlers.resize) {window.webkit.messageHandlers.resize.postMessage(height); resized = true;}return resized;}twttr.events.bind('rendered', function (event) {notifyResize();}); twttr.events.bind('resize', function (event) {notifyResize();});if (parent && parent._resizeIframe) {var maxWidth = parseInt(window.frameElement.getAttribute("width")); if ( 500 < maxWidth) {window.frameElement.setAttribute("width", "500");}}
So you take field trips, incur expenses and then get back to base dreading the sheer act of sitting down and filing your expenses reports for your trips. It is made complicated by the fact that official trips are swift, packed with meetings and leave very little time for one to get organised. If we divide the general population of expense report haterz in the order of their hatred, people that undertake trips would be the among the top 2.
But you say you have an admin to file just your trip reports? Really! Are you really telling me that you can justify having someone else doing this for you. Well you can if itâs really that much of a time suck but it does not have to be. Keep reading to find out the silver lining.
Company card should make it easy not hard
body[data-twttr-rendered="true"] {background-color: transparent;}.twitter-tweet {margin: auto !important;}
Having a company credit card sucks when you have to do a expense report!
âââ@MrRico305
function notifyResize(height) {height = height ? height : document.documentElement.offsetHeight; var resized = false; if (window.donkey && donkey.resize) {donkey.resize(height); resized = true;}if (parent && parent._resizeIframe) {var obj = {iframe: window.frameElement, height: height}; parent._resizeIframe(obj); resized = true;}if (window.location && window.location.hash === "#amp=1" && window.parent && window.parent.postMessage) {window.parent.postMessage({sentinel: "amp", type: "embed-size", height: height}, "*");}if (window.webkit && window.webkit.messageHandlers && window.webkit.messageHandlers.resize) {window.webkit.messageHandlers.resize.postMessage(height); resized = true;}return resized;}twttr.events.bind('rendered', function (event) {notifyResize();}); twttr.events.bind('resize', function (event) {notifyResize();});if (parent && parent._resizeIframe) {var maxWidth = parseInt(window.frameElement.getAttribute("width")); if ( 500 < maxWidth) {window.frameElement.setAttribute("width", "500");}}
Yes, your expectation was spot on, the company card they gave you, should have made things easy for you and your accounting team. It didnât however because we skipped this minor detail. That we all hate being organised. It makes us humans cringe. Recovering bills and receipts to file it with the expense forms so that another human being, who hates looking at your receipts as much as you do finding them, can sit with the credit card statement and reconcile the items is wishful thinking. The story basically writes itself, doesnât it.
International expense..?
body[data-twttr-rendered="true"] {background-color: transparent;}.twitter-tweet {margin: auto !important;}
When your major achievement of a day is a MASSIVE multi-country multi-currency expense report that involves FAR too much Nandos. https://t.co/qgm90RwkMP
âââ@shanselman
function notifyResize(height) {height = height ? height : document.documentElement.offsetHeight; var resized = false; if (window.donkey && donkey.resize) {donkey.resize(height); resized = true;}if (parent && parent._resizeIframe) {var obj = {iframe: window.frameElement, height: height}; parent._resizeIframe(obj); resized = true;}if (window.location && window.location.hash === "#amp=1" && window.parent && window.parent.postMessage) {window.parent.postMessage({sentinel: "amp", type: "embed-size", height: height}, "*");}if (window.webkit && window.webkit.messageHandlers && window.webkit.messageHandlers.resize) {window.webkit.messageHandlers.resize.postMessage(height); resized = true;}return resized;}twttr.events.bind('rendered', function (event) {notifyResize();}); twttr.events.bind('resize', function (event) {notifyResize();});if (parent && parent._resizeIframe) {var maxWidth = parseInt(window.frameElement.getAttribute("width")); if ( 500 < maxWidth) {window.frameElement.setAttribute("width", "500");}}
Ludicrous. This is the one word that comes to my mind when it comes to filing an expense report that comprises international travel or expense made in a foreign currencies. This particular breed of expenses deserves a special mention as it is a marred with all the problems listed above and in addition to that needs to deal with conversion rates, a factor that makes even the most analytically inclined minds boggle.
Donât make me Fail
body[data-twttr-rendered="true"] {background-color: transparent;}.twitter-tweet {margin: auto !important;}
A budgeting app is proactive, an expense tracking app is reactive.
âââ@hewrin_10
function notifyResize(height) {height = height ? height : document.documentElement.offsetHeight; var resized = false; if (window.donkey && donkey.resize) {donkey.resize(height); resized = true;}if (parent && parent._resizeIframe) {var obj = {iframe: window.frameElement, height: height}; parent._resizeIframe(obj); resized = true;}if (window.location && window.location.hash === "#amp=1" && window.parent && window.parent.postMessage) {window.parent.postMessage({sentinel: "amp", type: "embed-size", height: height}, "*");}if (window.webkit && window.webkit.messageHandlers && window.webkit.messageHandlers.resize) {window.webkit.messageHandlers.resize.postMessage(height); resized = true;}return resized;}twttr.events.bind('rendered', function (event) {notifyResize();}); twttr.events.bind('resize', function (event) {notifyResize();});if (parent && parent._resizeIframe) {var maxWidth = parseInt(window.frameElement.getAttribute("width")); if ( 500 < maxWidth) {window.frameElement.setAttribute("width", "500");}}
When two systems that should ideally work together get separated, both of them become more complicated than they should. Itâs inevitable. Your policies are a function of compliance and financials. Your policies then dictate your expense report rules. If only there was a way for your financials to directly control policies. Ever received a âYour last expense report was Rejectedâ emails at 9pm? Well it would happen a lot less if things were related and spoke with each other.
Iâve also undertaken to understand this problem in a lot more detail and a result of that is www.expensereportingsucks.com a collection of tweets illustrating how bad things are. Do give it a gander!
Expense Reporting Sucks was originally published in Hacker Noon on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.
Disclaimer
The views and opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not reflect the views of Bitcoin Insider. Every investment and trading move involves risk - this is especially true for cryptocurrencies given their volatility. We strongly advise our readers to conduct their own research when making a decision.