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Software horror show: SAP Concur

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Re: Software horror show: SAP Concur

#52

Post by hbarka »

I don’t understand the disdain here in Hacker News for enterprise software. Every now and then this type of post would show up, decrying how terrible the user interface is or how awful looking the fonts are and how they can program the same functions in 1000 lines of code and support thousands of users.

These companies have revenue in the billions. They have enabled large companies, since before many of us were born. Your payroll and accrued sick leave and benefits deductions and AP/AR doesn’t miss a beat because of these companies. Apple runs on SAP (and Oracle and Workday), mind you. So does Google.

Are they bad or is it the crowd here?

Re: Software horror show: SAP Concur

#53

Post by Closi »

jzwinck wrote: post #5

Concur is indeed a poor system. I suppose the thinking is that by having each employee of a big organization do a small amount of work, they can avoid hiring a central person who just accepts receipts in envelopes and deals with them. Or maybe that by putting up roadblocks like Concur, some employee expenses will not need to be reimbursed. The problem is that this requires educating every employee on how to use these…

> I suppose the thinking is that by having each employee of a big organization do a small amount of work, they can avoid hiring a central person who just accepts receipts in envelopes and deals with them.

In a big company that person who 'just accepts receipts and deals with them' will have to enter the receipt into an expenses system like Concur anyway.

Personally I find it much easier and faster to input it myself than to put everything in an envelope with enough information in the envelope to allow an admin to correctly expense/bill it (e.g. cost centers, an explanation for why the hotel was over the policy allowance, a bank transaction for that thing I lost the reciept for...).

> When companies need photos of their employees they find a photographer who provides that service. They don't ask each employee to learn about lighting technique and do the post processing according to a written set of standards in hopes the photos will look consistent. But with Concur that's what happens.

IMO the better comparison would be hiring an in-house photo team which has to be used any time anyone in the company wants a photo of something.

It's quicker for me to take a photo of this prototype I made than it is for me to arrange for the in-house photographer to come.

Re: Software horror show: SAP Concur

#55

Post by hef19898 »

rwmj wrote: post #45
contrast wrote: post #39

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I wouldn’t expect it to make things easier for employees to require them to have printed receipts for everything. That’s a roadblock in its own right. I’ve not used Concur but I’ve never met anyone who hasn’t preferred moving on from antiquated paper processes for expenses. Faster to scan receipts on the go, easier to track, less risk of a lost receipt, bulk of expenses are incurred via a digital process anyway.

Concur tip - you can upload a 1x1 png in place of the lost receipt. (For some reason the "I don't have a receipt" option still requires you to upload a receipt.)

Which will be thrown out by finance, as they need either peoper receipts or a signed declaration of the correct amount (receipts indeed do get lost). Why? Taxes. So you 1x1 png hack will only get your expenses reimboursed later, and if accounting doesn't catch the empty png, well, you might have more serious issues.

Re: Software horror show: SAP Concur

#57

Post by namdnay »

rwmj wrote: post #41

My particular annoyance is Concur "punishes" you for having the temerity to disable tracking cookies (which is a legal requirement to be the default, and they're based in Germany so there's no excuse). Every time you select this option, which is every time I do an expense, it sits there for many minutes pretending to update my preferences.

I don’t think the law on tracking cookies applies to your work tools on your work computer

Re: Software horror show: SAP Concur

#59

Post by rwmj »

hef19898 wrote: post #55
rwmj wrote: post #45

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Concur tip - you can upload a 1x1 png in place of the lost receipt. (For some reason the "I don't have a receipt" option still requires you to upload a receipt.)

Which will be thrown out by finance, as they need either peoper receipts or a signed declaration of the correct amount (receipts indeed do get lost). Why? Taxes. So you 1x1 png hack will only get your expenses reimboursed later, and if accounting doesn't catch the empty png, well, you might have more serious issues.

They didn't, and it was like a 1 euro purchase.

Re: Software horror show: SAP Concur

#60

Post by hef19898 »

rwmj wrote: post #59
hef19898 wrote: post #55

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Which will be thrown out by finance, as they need either peoper receipts or a signed declaration of the correct amount (receipts indeed do get lost). Why? Taxes. So you 1x1 png hack will only get your expenses reimboursed later, and if accounting doesn't catch the empty png, well, you might have more serious issues.

They didn't, and it was like a 1 euro purchase.

Depends on country I guess. The rules between Germany and Luxembourg are really different. Ideally so, accounting should have caught it. Again that depends on internal rules...
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