There are plenty of news items about corporate fraud involving supplier kickbacks and dishonest expense report schemes. Most of the examples are concerning because of the depravity, but some are rather funny.
We all got a chuckle a couple weeks ago when we found the story about the reporter who submitted an expense report with line items for various marijuana purchases. The punchline was he was working on a story and this was all for research. ;-) But it begs the question: how does this expense report get approved? How would this be handled at your company?
Then we found another story that might be more applicable for our customers. What happens when a vendor cancels an order at the last minute and you need to scramble to find a replacement?
That’s what happened at the Boonstock Arts and Music Festival in Penticton, British Columbia. (It’s not quite Woodstock – it’s Boonstock!) The event, in its tenth year, is well-established and well-attended with four stages running concurrently across three days. As with any outdoor gathering, security is first and foremost. So imagine the organizers surprise when their security contractor reneged at the 11th hour!
Luckily, the local police department was already providing 40 officers to work the event. So they worked with the organizers to call up additional resources and ensure the 8,000 guests and the artists were safe. However, you can envision the shock when the organizers got the bill for overtime and extra expenses like meals and lodging, plus all the policing items like security tape and prisoner handling supplies…and then the nice-to-haves like ear plugs, sunscreen, and medical kits?! All totaled, the police department charged $252,715 for their security services at the festival.
Gulp. Now we certainly don’t think the Boonstock organizers have elaborate supplier cancelation protocols to follow to make sure they don’t get taken advantage of. But do you?
Here’s a scenario we often hear during expense policy ethics discussions: two business travelers at your company have their luggage lost on a company trip. One traveler goes to Nordstrom’s to replace his clothes and personal items; one traveler goes to Sears. Do you have a policy in place to promote the desired action?
The beauty of the Chrome River business rules engine is that we can help prepare customers for day-to-day standard operating procedures, anomalies and out-of-the ordinary situations, even the complete surprises. We know you want the right eyes looking at expense reports and invoices no matter the situation. We help you define these scenarios and customize your business rules and approval workflows to fit the situation.
Who knew business ethics could be coded into your expense and invoice management solution?
Want to see what we mean? Let’s schedule a demo for your team and we can dive deep into the intelligence of the business rules engine.
If you’d like to read more on this topic, here are some blog posts we recommend:
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