Chrome River CURRENTS

The CFO’s role is dramatically changing at many organizations, with duties going beyond the traditional tasks of overseeing the finance, accounts payable management, treasury and risk management functions. As organizations call upon CFOs to play larger roles in business strategy and organizational leadership, analytics tools will be vital for connecting strategy to finance and accounting, according to an article on CFO.com.

In a humorous take on manual invoice processing, a post on the Business 2 Community blog highlights the “paper addiction” problem prevalent in some offices and prescribes a 12-step recovery plan.

Consider the business books of yesteryear: Many of the titles will make you wince — if you remember them at all. In general, management gurus’ trendy concepts and buzzwords don’t age well, according to EPM Channel, a website focused on enterprise performance management news and insights. Even in accounts payable management, fads come and go. As more organizations jump on the “big data” bandwagon, are analytics initiatives just another example of management hype?

What if your organization could cut business travel expenses in half just by implementing expense management software? That’s what a new survey suggests, according to BusinessTravelNews.com.

At the launch for a new technology initiative, the project team is often riding a “sugar high,” and executives have vaguely grand things to say. With any long-term project, whether it’s a “big data” initiative or implementing AP automation, the initial rush of enthusiasm eventually fades while the rewards seem far off. How can your organization keep up the momentum with worthwhile projects that take a while to reach maturity?

Mixing business and pleasure is tempting, but you’ll be better off approaching business travel like it’s your job, instead of a mini-vacation. In fact, by focusing on efficiency, productivity and professionalism, you’ll probably enjoy smoother travel and receive better treatment than an infrequent traveler on vacation.

Traveling on business next year? Expect to pay up to 6 percent more for your hotel rooms, according to travel expense management experts. With a stronger economy and higher occupancy rates, hotels aren’t as eager to haggle, reports a new study by the Tisch Center for Hospitality at New York University.

Perhaps you’ve been at a restaurant or a nightclub and overheard someone at the next table say, “Don’t worry about it — it’s on my expense account.” You glance over at the group and wonder, “That’s a business function?”

The habits of young business travelers differ from those of more seasoned employees, according to a new survey. That’s especially true when it comes to travel expense management and posting online reviews, The Los Angeles Times reports.

The rules that govern which travel expense claims are deductible are always changing. On October 1, new per diem rates set by the IRS took effect, requiring most US businesses to make adjustments in how they report travel expenses. Keeping up with these ever-evolving regulations is a major challenge in travel expense management. An automated expense policy is the starting point for managing these challenges more effectively.