About

The University of Guelph, under the joint sponsorship of Dave Hargreaves (Interim AVP, Finance & Administration) and Dave Whittle (AVP/Chief Information Officer), has identified the need to embark on a journey to simplify its manual, paper-based expense claim process by replacing our legacy Expense Claim System (ECS) with a new platform.

The current system, in operation for the past 10 years, has served U of G well from a transactional and process-supporting perspective. However, replacing our aging and limited system with a modern and user-friendly solution will have broad impact across campus, from system end-users, to departmental and college administrators, to faculty and staff.  

By adopting a proven product as the solution (SAP Concur), we can streamline our expense claim process and leverage the new automated features modern tools provide. This will help us reach our goal of providing a better user experience, access to mobile functionality, as well as improve the overall reimbursement process at U of G. 

The benefits of the ECS replacement will be significant: 

  • Transformation of expense-claim-related processes from those that are largely manually-driven to more automated and efficient processes; 
  • Reducing expense claim processing time by automatically populating some expense claim transactions; 
  • Ensuring that claims are easier to review and approve; and 
  • Delivering real-time data for visibility into employee spend. 

The implementation of a modern and integrated system will begin over the next few months and involve many campus partners and significant stakeholder consultation.

Vision  

Enhanced expense claim process for U of G faculty, staff, and students that will improve the user experience and support the strategic vision of the University through efficiency and productivity improvements.  

Objectives  

  • Create a better user experience. 
  • Enhance services and increase efficiency and effectiveness. 
  • Provide accurate data for analytics and reporting, improving the quality of business decisions that are transparent and accountable. 
  • Provide opportunities for future integration with other systems used by the campus community.

Guiding Principles 

  1. Enhance employee experience: optimize our technology solution and processes to ensure the best possible employee experience. 
  2. Comprehensive stakeholder engagement: work together toward solutions that address our stakeholders' business needs. 
  3. Think outside the box: look at old ideas in new ways with the intention of making things better. 
  4. Efficiency and simplicity: improve the efficiency of administrative operations and end costly, inefficient, and ineffective processes. 
  5. Access to data: ensure reliable, integrated, and accessible data that enables strategic business decision making. 

Governance & Advisory Committee 

Reporting into the Information Technology Governance Council (ITGC), the Advisory Committee will be responsible for the following throughout all project phases:  

  • Champion the project; 
  • Provide strategic advice and feedback; 
  • Provide input on priorities, resourcing, and changes in timelines; 
  • Support stakeholder communication; and
  • Drive organizational change. 

Advisory Committee Members 

  • Dave Hargreaves - Associate Vice-President, Finance & Administration (Executive Sponsor and Co-Chair) 
  • Dave Whittle - Associate Vice-President and Chief Information Officer (Executive Sponsor and Co-Chair) 
  • Brad Minaker - Associate Vice-President, Institutional Research and Planning 
  • Laurie Arnott - Assistant Vice-President, Faculty and Academic Staff Relations 
  • Martha Harley - AVP and Chief Human Resources Officer