How to Use Bill.com for Expense Approvals: Streamlining Expense Management

Managing expenses can be a real headache for many businesses.

Luckily, solutions like Bill.com make it easy to streamline the entire expense approval process from start to finish.

In this post, we'll explore how Bill.com can help you centralize expense management, configure customizable workflows, integrate seamlessly with accounting systems, and more. You'll learn best practices for setting up the software, routing expenses, and reviewing transactions so your business spends less time on bookkeeping.

Introduction to Bill.com for Expense Approvals

Bill.com provides a cloud-based software solution that can optimize and streamline expense reporting and approvals for businesses. By integrating with accounting systems like QuickBooks and NetSuite, Bill.com automatically syncs transaction details to streamline workflows.

Key features of Bill.com for expense management include:

Integrating Bill.com with Accounting Systems

Seamlessly connect Bill.com to accounting software like QuickBooks Online or NetSuite
Real-time syncing of approved bills and expenses from Bill.com to accounting system
Reduces manual data entry and risk of errors by automating posting of transactions

Centralized Dashboard for Submitting Expenses

User-friendly web and mobile interface for employees to easily submit expenses
Upload receipts, add details, select expense categories
Streamlines expense reporting process across entire organization

Configurable Approval Workflows

Create customized rule-based approval chains for different expense types
Set spending limits that require additional approvals
Ensures expenses follow policies and guidelines before posting transactions

Reviewing Expenses and Receipts

Managers can review expense details and receipts in Bill.com
Add comments, approve or reject expenses to enforce compliance
Full audit trail showing approval chain for each expense report

By leveraging Bill.com's automated workflows and integration with accounting systems, businesses can optimize the entire expense management process - from submission to reconciliation. The platform's centralized dashboard, configurable rules, and detailed analytics provide control, transparency, and valuable insights.

How can expenses be routed for approval?

Sequential Approval is a strategy where expenses are routed to approvers in a predetermined order. For example:

An employee submits an expense report in Bill.com
The expense report is automatically routed to the employee's direct supervisor for approval
Once approved by the supervisor, the expense report moves to the next approver in the hierarchy, like the department manager
After the department manager approves, the expense report goes to the final approver, typically an accounting or finance manager
Once fully approved, the expense report is processed for payment

This creates a clear chain of accountability and ensures expenses go through proper oversight. Key benefits include:

Consistency: Expenses always go to reviewers in the same order
Oversight: Multiple reviewers scrutinize expenses at each level
Efficiency: Reviews happen quickly with automated routing

By setting up rules, businesses can customize sequential approvals to match their hierarchy and policies. This streamlines the review process while still maintaining control and visibility.

Overall, sequential approval routing brings order and efficiency to managing expenses in Bill.com. Automating the multi-step approval chain accelerates reviews while enforcing financial oversight at each level of authority.

Does Bill com do expense management?

Bill.com offers comprehensive expense management features to streamline the entire process. Some key capabilities include:

Expense reporting: Employees can easily submit expenses by snapping photos of receipts right from their phone. Expenses are automatically categorized and routed for approvals.
Approval workflows: Customizable rules can be set up to route expenses to managers based on amount, category, employee, etc. Approvers can review expenses from anywhere and approve/reject them with one click.
Corporate card integration: Transactions from corporate cards automatically flow into Bill.com each day, eliminating manual entry.
Spend visibility: Real-time reporting provides visibility into expense categories, top spenders, policy violations, and more to inform future budget decisions.
Reimbursements: Once approved, reimbursements can be processed as direct deposits, physical checks, or account credits.

So in summary, Bill.com centralizes expense reporting, approvals, analytics, and reimbursements to significantly streamline the end-to-end process. Employees have an easy way to submit expenses, managers can efficiently review and approve them, and finance teams gain visibility and control over spending.

How do approvals work in Bill com?

Approval groups and individual approvers can be set up in Bill.com to manage expense approvals. Here are some key things to know:

Approval groups allow you to designate a group of users who can approve expenses. Once one group member approves, it moves to the next approver or is fully approved if no more approvers are listed.
You can also assign individual users as approvers in a sequence. For example, you may want expenses over $500 to be approved by the manager first, then get final approval from the controller.
Bill.com has rule-based smart approval routing to automatically send expenses to the right people based on things like department, location, vendor, amount, etc.
Approvers will receive email notifications to review and approve/decline expenses in Bill.com or the mobile app. They can see the expense details, attached receipts, and audit trail.
You get visibility into where each expense report is in the approval workflow. The system tracks approvals and will send reminders to keep things moving.
For faster processing, make sure approvers are set up correctly in the system. Test expense submissions to confirm the right routing and notifications. Adjust approval groups and rules as needed.

Setting up an efficient approval process ensures expenses get reviewed properly before being paid without creating bottlenecks. Bill.com's flexible approval options help streamline this for organizations.

How do you streamline an expense report?

Streamlining expense reports can help simplify financial processes and save your business time and money. Here are some tips:

Identify Areas for Improvement

Review past expense reports and look for patterns of missing receipts, incorrect categorization, or redundant approvals. These indicate areas to target for streamlining.
Conduct periodic audits of expense reports. Quantify statistics like approval times, processing costs per report, and frequency of errors. Track metrics over time to measure progress.

Implement Expense Management Software

Choose a software solution that centralizes expense reporting with tools for submission, approval workflow, and reporting. Popular options include Concur, Expensify, and Certify.
Automate repetitive tasks like receipt capture, report creation, notifications, approvals, and GL code assignment to remove manual work.
Use software analytics to spot trends, create benchmarks, and track ROI over time. Dive into data like most expensed categories, common overspend areas, and sources of delay.

Refine Expense Policies

Evaluate expense guidelines to identify vague, outdated, or redundant policies that complicate reports.
Consult with finance leaders and employees to understand pain points. Revise policies to simplify frequent problem areas.
Clearly communicate updated travel and expense policies to prevent confusion and ensure consistent expense treatment.

Key Benefits of Bill.com for Expense Management

Using Bill.com can make business expense reporting and approvals quicker, more transparent and efficient.

Saves Time and Costs

Bill.com automates manual tasks like data entry and document handling to process expenses faster. By reducing time spent on paperwork, staff can focus on core responsibilities. Features like automated data capture from receipts and integration with accounting systems streamline workflows. This saves both time and overhead costs associated with manual expense processing.

Estimates indicate using Bill.com can cut expense processing times by over 50% compared to paper-based approval workflows. The platform handles routing, approvals, and reporting in real-time. This enables faster reimbursements as well as time savings for both finance teams and employees submitting expenses.

Enhanced Visibility and Control

Bill.com provides real-time reporting and analytics on spending across the organization. This gives finance leaders more visibility into expenses, budget vs actuals, and cash flow.

Configurable approval rules and policy enforcement also enable businesses to maintain control over expenditures. Managers can set spending limits, require secondary approvals, and customize automated alerts for large purchases or budget overages.

By centralizing expenses and enabling transparency into transactions, Bill.com helps businesses gain more coordinated oversight into costs.

Integrates Seamlessly

Bill.com integrates with over 300 common accounting systems including QuickBooks, NetSuite, Sage Intacct, and Xero. This allows for automated syncing of approved expenses into the company's existing financial data stack.

The platform also offers web and mobile apps accessible across devices. This provides employees an easy way to submit expenses from anywhere via smartphone camera or desktop. The unified interface connects people, processes, and systems for streamlined end-to-end expense management.

With open APIs, Bill.com integrates with a wide range of everyday business tools for a more connected expense management experience. This saves manual work from data entry, offers real-time visibility over spending, and centralizes approvals - key benefits for expense reporting efficiency.

Best Practices for Expense Approvals in Bill.com

Follow these tips to optimize expense reporting workflows leveraging Bill.com's capabilities.

Set Clear Expense Guidelines

Provide clear guidelines to employees on what expenses can be submitted, spending limits per expense type, required receipts, expense report submission deadlines, etc. This ensures compliance and streamlines the approval process by setting consistent expectations upfront. Consider categorizing expenses as reimbursable, partially reimbursable, or non-reimbursable.

Some best practices on setting guidelines:

Outline expense eligibility criteria in an employee handbook
Communicate policies on allowances for travel, meals, and other common expenses
Set per diem rates if applicable to simplify approvals
Define acceptable proof of purchase such as itemized receipts

Configure Approval Chains

Leverage Bill.com's flexible approval routing capabilities to set up automated chains based on:

Expense types - Route meal expenses over $50 for additional verification
Departments - Marketing expenses routed to CMO
Employees - Approve manager for each employee's expenses
Spend thresholds - Additional approval needed for expenses above $500

Configure conditional rules to route expenses to the right approvers. This avoids expense report bottlenecks and ensures proper oversight.

Regularly Review Transactions

Run expense analytics reports regularly to identify patterns, anomalies and opportunities to tighten approval policies. Some best practices:

Review high-value and most frequent expenses for optimization
Check for duplicate expense submissions
Flag employees with monthly expenses exceeding allowances
Take action on unauthorized or excessive spend

Periodic analysis of expenses enables ongoing policy improvement for efficiency. Custom reports in Bill.com provide actionable insights.

Conclusion

Implementing Bill.com for expense approvals can provide several key benefits for businesses:

Increased visibility and control over spending: With all expenses flowing through one centralized platform, finance teams gain real-time insight into employee spending. Configurable approval workflows and reporting enforce spending policies.
Streamlined processes: Automated approval routing eliminates manual paperwork and email approvals. Integrations with accounting software reduce duplicate data entry. Employees can submit expenses easily from their phone.
Cost savings: By consolidating expense management, businesses can eliminate costs associated with expense reporting software, paper processing, and employee reimbursement cycles.
Time savings: Automation and mobile capabilities save significant time for both finance teams and employees. Finance can focus on value-add analysis rather than data entry.

To maximize these benefits, be sure to properly configure approval rules, integrate accounting software, and train employees on policy compliant spend practices. Over time, the platform's analytics can highlight additional ways to tighten policies and yield cost savings. With the right implementation approach, Bill.com can transform cumbersome legacy expense workflows into a simple, automated process.

How to Use Bill.com for Expense Approvals: Streamlining Expense Management

Introduction to Bill.com for Expense Approvals

Integrating Bill.com with Accounting Systems