Top 5 Commercial Card Posts of 2018

Internal fraud, interchange, payment industry realities, and Commercial Card program communications—the most popular blog posts by Recharged Education in 2018 span a wide range of topics. Did you miss valuable content and tips? Offered below are the top five posts and an introductory description of each.

  1. Why Employee Use of Personal Cards is a Gamble

    If your organization still allows employees to use their personal cards for business expenses and then get reimbursed, it is worth another look. This post notes how employees can alter electronic receipts (e.g., emails, PDFs) to receive a higher reimbursement amount.

    Update: Within their emails, Uber now includes a link to download a PDF receipt. Someone recently told me that these PDFs are not editable (making them better than the email version), but I could still edit an Uber PDF from this month.

  2. Get a Clearer View of Interchange

    Educating suppliers about card acceptance can be a daunting task, but it is often necessary when implementing or growing a card program. This post features an article by CardConnect that addresses the interchange portion of card acceptance fees, providing key information that could help in your next discussion with a supplier. 

  3. Internal Fraud Results in Prison Time

    False mileage reports, false expense reimbursement requests, and personal use of the company card comprise the crimes committed by a former Allina Health vice president. Read the post to see what he did and how it was caught more than 10 years after it started, as well as tips to glean from the case.

  4. The Payments Iceberg: Innovation and Realities

    While at the 2018 Cards and Payments on Campus Conference by PDG, I attended sessions about emerging technology that dazzle the mind and represent the tip of the iceberg. Yet, I also encountered—as I do every time I am at an event—challenges that have plagued end-user organizations for decades. It’s the reality that sits solidly under water. As a result, I formed three conclusions, as shared in this post.

  5. Open Up Your Card Program Communication Plan

    What’s left to do after you have perfected your Commercial Card training options? Answer: Maintain the momentum. Training should not be left as isolated events. Supplement those efforts with a broad communication plan that goes beyond email. This post describes eight ways to keep the learning opportunities open. 

Contribute to the Blog

If you are looking for a way to share your payments expertise with the industry, submit a contact form to request more information. Recharged Education welcomes input from end-users and providers.

In 2018, various individuals contributed, including: Karla DeSimone, end-user; Julie Miguel, CPCP, Tension Corporation; Jennifer Hart Barb, CPCP, James Madison University; Angelo Grecco, CardConnect; and Mary Schaeffer, AP Now.

About the Author

Blog post author Lynn Larson, CPCP, is the founder of Recharged Education. With 20 years of Commercial Card experience, her mission is to make industry education readily accessible to all. Learn more…

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Where Do Best Practice P-Card Programs Go Next?

What do you do if your Purchasing Card program has already adopted the full range of best practices? Is it time for autopilot mode? I suppose this is an option, but it would be contrary to the spirit of best-in-class programs and the conscientious professionals who led the way. Instead, take your program to the next level. That’s right. Another level is always possible. It is what makes P-Card program management both challenging and enticing. The necessary foundation for program optimization is there. You just have to go for it. Following are five ways to achieve a new level of greatness.

Beyond Best Practices

1. Conduct a Satisfaction Survey

Your program might look good on paper, but are the participants happy? Is there something you can do to maximize their satisfaction? For example, maybe improving the readability of the policies and procedures manual would be a welcomed change that leads to greater card utilization.

2. Address the Problematic People

P-Card best practices do not necessarily fix people. There will always be challenging cardholders, managers, and/or others (e.g., AP). Perhaps they would benefit from some one-on-one attention. Help them reach peak performance in their card program role. See more on cardholder management.

3. Improve Program Management Efficiency

Besides people, what still drains your time? If, despite following best practices, the majority of your time is spent on program operations (versus program strategy/growth), then something is not quite right. For instance, are you generating and distributing reports each month that are not used for any particular purpose? What can be eliminated, scaled back, changed, or automated? What does not add value?

4. Pursue Expansion Opportunities

This is an obvious option and, chances are, you have already identified the opportunities. Put an action plan into motion. Expansion means more: more cardholders, more card types, more card-accepting suppliers, and/or more allowed purchases—anything that increases spend or transaction volume.

5. Increase Program Visibility

This is a broad avenue to explore. Look further than the best practice of regularly sharing P-Card program metrics. Take the initiative to become aware of internal pain points that P-Cards could address. In my program management days, I was able to help my IT contact resolve a need related to tracking fixed assets. Since P-Cards were used to purchase the assets, the related data came in handy for his purposes. A more structured approach would be to participate on any internal committees or work groups pertaining to procure-to-pay processes.

Final Thoughts

Even if you opt for autopilot over the noted possibilities, someone might come along who messes up your perfectly performing program. Too often, program managers encounter a new executive with old ways of thinking. You find yourself being pushed backward and having to fight to retain the best practices you worked so hard to achieve. In these cases, “same level” can be just as rewarding as “next level.” Perseverance is a good quality to have when managing a card program.

See additional resources on P-Card program management and growth.

Where will you take the card program next?

Where will you take the card program next?

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About the Author

Blog post author Lynn Larson, CPCP, is the founder of Recharged Education. With 20 years of Commercial Card experience, her mission is to make industry education readily accessible to all. Learn more…

Stop Blaming P-Cards

When internal card fraud arises, an unfortunate, but common, response is to blame the product itself and take cards away from employees or severely restrict card usage. However, the problem is not Purchasing Cards; rather, it is end-user organizations that lack effective controls. This point is clearly demonstrated in the fraud case that rocked a public school district in my home state of Minnesota. I first wrote about it in July of 2017, but it made the news again last week because the party in question—former school superintendent Rod Thompson—pleaded guilty to 19 felonies. The 16-month FBI investigation that started with a look into his P-Card usage led to the discovery of other crimes and policy infractions he had committed. See more below, as well as key questions every Commercial Card program manager should answer.  

The Fraud Case

Thompson’s felonies include theft by swindle, embezzling public funds, and possessing stolen property. He admitted to using his P-Card for numerous personal purchases totaling tens of thousands of dollars. I laughed out loud when his attorney said Thompson was remorseful for his actions. Was he sorry after he bought the flat-screen TV for his home? How about after he purchased an Xbox gaming system? Did he ever turn himself in because he was sorry? Was he sorry enough to stop committing internal fraud? No. He was only sorry after getting caught.

A group of taxpayers can be credited for cracking the case. In response to a district announcement about a substantial budget problem, they requested, received, and dug into spend reports, even though some people basically called them paranoid. This tells me the district was simply sitting on the valuable information. Either no one internally ever reviewed Thompson’s spend activity or they chose to ignore it. I’m not sure which is worse.

The eventual FBI investigation also revealed Thompson used his position to gain personal benefits from a construction company. They paid for tickets to various events (e.g., Minnesota Vikings games) and did work on Thompson’s home. In turn, he awarded them lucrative school contracts. The lesson here is, if you find an employee guilty of one thing, there is a good chance they are guilty of more.

Thompson will receive some prison time, as well as pay approximately $75,000 in restitution.

Eliminating Commercial Cards is the wrong way to respond to internal card fraud. Rather, conduct a thorough program risk analysis and close the control gaps that make fraud easy to commit.

Eliminating Commercial Cards is the wrong way to respond to internal card fraud. Rather, conduct a thorough program risk analysis and close the control gaps that make fraud easy to commit.

Six Questions

If you can answer “yes” to the following questions, your organization is in good shape for preventing and detecting internal card fraud. Nevertheless, a full risk analysis will provide a more complete picture.

  1. Does every cardholder have an appropriate-level “manager-approver” who reviews transactions at least monthly?

  2. Are cardholders and manager-approvers required to sign an internal agreement, and complete training and/or a quiz each year?

  3. Are executive-level cardholders held to the same standards/rules as others?

  4. Do you have a separate, robust auditing process (e.g., auditing technology) to identify potential issues and fraud?

  5. Does your organization enforce detailed receipt requirements? Thompson often omitted receipts or only provided vague ones.

  6. Are tips about suspicious activity followed up on, even if they seem far fetched?

Related Resources

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About the Author

Blog post author Lynn Larson, CPCP, is the founder of Recharged Education. With 20 years of Commercial Card experience, her mission is to make industry education readily accessible to all. Learn more…