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intermediateProfessional Services2 weeks

AI Expense Management for Consulting Firm

11-50 employees

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The Problem

A 25-person consulting firm was spending 15 hours weekly processing employee expense reports. Manual receipt review, policy compliance checking, and reimbursement processing created delays and errors. Employees waited 2-3 weeks for reimbursement.

The Solution

Deployed AI-powered expense management system that automatically extracts data from receipt photos, categorizes expenses, checks policy compliance, flags anomalies, and routes for approval. Employees submit expenses via mobile app, and reimbursements are processed within 48 hours.

Implementation Guide
Step-by-step process and timeline

Selected and implemented cloud-based AI expense platform. Configured company expense policies and approval workflows. Integrated with accounting software (QuickBooks) and payroll system. Trained employees on mobile app usage. Migrated from spreadsheet-based process to automated system over 2 weeks.

Results & ROI
Quantified business impact
roi
420% in first year
time Saved
13 hours per week (finance team)
processing Time
Reduced from 2-3 weeks to 48 hours
compliance Improvement
Policy violations detected increased from 12% to 94%
employee Satisfaction
Employee satisfaction with expense process increased 58%
Lessons Learned
Key insights from the implementation

The AI was remarkably accurate at reading receipts, even handwritten ones and receipts in poor condition. Employees loved the mobile app - they could submit expenses immediately instead of saving receipts. The system caught policy violations (unapproved expenses, excessive spending) that were previously missed, saving approximately $8,000 in the first year.

Pitfalls Avoided
Common mistakes and how to prevent them

We initially planned to keep the old spreadsheet process as a backup, which would have undermined adoption. Instead, we went all-in on the new system, which forced everyone to learn it quickly. We also learned to set up approval workflows carefully - our first attempt created bottlenecks with too many approval layers.

Cost Breakdown
setup$1,800 one-time
monthly$15 per user ($375 total)
training$600
total$2,400 initial + $375/month
Tools & Technologies
  • Expensify
  • QuickBooks
  • ADP Payroll
Quick Stats
Industry
Professional Services
Company Size
11-50 employees
Timeline
2 weeks
Difficulty
intermediate

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