Check expense lines against your written policy

Fields

• Expense type the employee chose
• Line description
• Business purpose
• Attendees listed (empty if none)
• Receipt text (from the scanned receipt)

Questions

1. Is the receipt text readable enough to check the expense line against the policy? Yes / No

   Read the receipt text. It comes from a scanned receipt, so some characters may be wrong. Yes: The receipt shows the supplier and what was bought clearly enough to check the line. No: The receipt text is missing, cut off, garbled, or shows only a card slip total with no items.

2. Does the business purpose give a reason for the expense tied to work? Yes / No

   Read the business purpose and the line description. Yes: The purpose ties the expense to a client, project, trip, event or team task. No: The purpose is empty, only repeats the item ("dinner", "taxi"), or describes a personal reason.

3. Does the business purpose name the client, project, trip or event, so it can be checked? Yes / No

   Read the business purpose. Yes: The purpose names a specific client, project, trip or event, such as "visit to the Ghent plant" or "Q3 planning offsite". No: The purpose is general, such as "meeting", "team building" or "client work", with nothing named.

4. Do the receipt and the business purpose fit the expense type the employee chose? Yes / No

   Compare the expense type with the receipt and the business purpose, using the definitions in the policy. A meal with only Harwood staff filed as client entertainment does not fit. Yes: What was bought, and for whom, fits the chosen expense type. No: The receipt or the purpose shows a different expense type, such as a team meal filed as client entertainment, or a hotel bar bill filed as a meal on a trip. A meal the purpose calls a team meal, with no client, prospect or partner named in the purpose or the attendees, is a team meal.

5. Does the expense line include an item the policy does not pay for, such as minibar, spa or alcohol at a team meal? Yes / No

   Read the receipt, the line description and the business purpose against the policy. Count minibar, spa, in-room films, personal shopping, gifts for family, costs for a partner, family member or friend, and alcohol at a meal where the purpose or the attendees show no client, prospect or partner was present. Yes: At least one such item appears. No: No such item appears.

6. For a meal or entertainment, are the attendees named as the policy requires? Choice

   Read the expense type, the receipt, the business purpose and the attendees field.

   • Attendees named The line is a meal or entertainment, and every attendee is named, with their company for anyone outside Harwood.
   • Attendees missing The line is a meal or entertainment, and the attendees are not listed, or some are listed only as "team" or "client".
   • Not a meal or entertainment The line is travel, a hotel room, supplies or another cost that needs no attendees.

7. Does the employee say an exception to the expense policy was agreed in advance? Yes / No

   Read the business purpose and the line description. Yes: The employee says an exception was agreed, or explains why a rule did not apply, such as "approved by R. Maas before the trip". No: No exception or explanation is given.

8. What should happen to this expense line before the approver decides? Choice

   Read every field against the policy in the context as a whole. Choose the suggestion that fits the most serious problem on the line. A person decides every line.

   • Looks within policy The purpose, the receipt, the expense type and the attendees all fit the policy. The line can go to the approver's fast lane.
   • Ask the employee for details The line looks allowed, but something the employee can supply is missing, such as the attendees, a specific purpose or a readable receipt.
   • Show the approver the issue The line includes an item or a use the policy restricts or excludes, such as alcohol at a team meal or an expense type that does not fit, so the approver should look before deciding.
   • Whole line likely outside policy The whole line is something the policy never pays for, such as a personal trip, a family member's costs or a spa visit. The approver decides.

Lens columns

enough_to_judge, enough_to_judge_probability, purpose_is_business, purpose_is_business_probability, purpose_specific, purpose_specific_probability, type_matches_receipt, type_matches_receipt_probability, personal_items, personal_items_probability, attendees_named, attendees_named_probability, policy_exception_claimed, policy_exception_claimed_probability, suggested_handling, suggested_handling_probability