Contents of CPA Practice Advisor - MAR 2012

Today's Technology for Tomorrow's Firm.

Page 32 of 38

TRAVEL Manage Your Travels Manage Y
and not always rely on the same price search engine. Sometimes, the actual seller's site (as opposed to travel agencies and travel search engines) have packages that may even be cheaper than the rack rates, which makes the extra features a real bonus. T is is oſt en true with hotel chains and airlines — particularly if a package deal suits you and your travel dates are fl exible. T ese promotions can sometimes be hard to believe, prompting you to wonder how air, hotel, car, and meals can possibly be off ered at such a low price. Of course, there are things to watch out
for when you fi nd a deal that seems just too good to be true. Here is a short list: • Package deals may use charter airlines or non-chain hotels.
• Rental cars may not be actually AT the airport. One night, I rode in an old van for 20 minutes in the rain to get to the rental car facility, which was down a dirt road that was under construction.
• Hotels may be undergoing renova- tion — and you get what you pay for.
• Star ratings and neighborhood rankings for hotels may be generous to the hotel operator. Check things out on Google Earth.
• Refunds may be limited. • Rebooking options may be limited. • T e fi ne print may stipulate some unpleasant possible consequences. For example, if your fl ight is can- celled, you may be the last one on the list to be rebooked.
Tracking and Reporting for Business Travel With more than 500,000 apps for the iPhone alone, it is not surprising that there are many choices for travelers. T e few products covered in this section are good examples of the wealth of services currently available in the cloud.
Tour ravels
memberships to Hertz #1 Club Gold and Regus Gold
• Aff ords complimentary access to 1,100 business lounges worldwide
TripIt Pro When your fi rst fl ight arrived late and you were concerned about making your connecting fl ight, if you were like most travelers in the past you raced to the counter to be near the front of the line, which was not an eff ective plan on so many levels. Now, if you are a TripIt Pro user (www.Tripit.com), you simply whip out your handheld device. Within a mat er of seconds, TripIt Pro informs you of the status and gate location of your connecting fl ight as well as other available connections. T is can mean the diff erence between making it to your destination and spending the night in an airport hotel in the connecting city. TripIt Pro is the leading mobile trip
organizer. It is an amazing tool that you can access through the Web or through apps on your smartphone or other handheld devices. If you are a business traveler and have not tried this product, you owe it to yourself to do so. Here are just some of the features of this cloud- based service: • Sends instant alerts about flight delays, cancellations, and gate changes, right to your phone
• Provides alternatives when your fl ight is delayed, including fl ight status and open seats
• Tracks all your points from airlines, hotels, and other travel related vendors
• Stores all your frequent travel account information, balances, and expiration dates in one place (at last!)
• Monitors airfares aſt er booking, and notifi es you of any potential refunds or credits
• Allows you to automatically share all your travel plans with others • Provides complimentary one-year
• Works with the iPhone and iPad as well as Android, BlackBerry, and Windows smartphones
FlightView Elite FlightView Elite (www.FlightView. com) provides real-time information about fl ight schedules, fl ight statuses, weather conditions, and more. For fl ights that are en route, users see an in-air fl ight tracker map with the fl ight path, the aircraſt 's position, and radar weather. You can also choose to receive alerts for fl ight status changes, including delays and cancellations, and gate assignment changes, even when the app on your phone is closed. T e fol- lowing are some of the features of FlightView Elite: • Tracks fl ights by number or route • Allows multiday searches for fl ights yesterday, today, tomorrow, and — in some cases — the next 90 days
• Shows in-air fl ight details, such as fl ight time remaining, duration, and planned gate and baggage claim information
• Has a calendar integration function that allows for the quick insertion of a fl ight into the device calendar
• Sends flight status alerts with immediate notifi cation of fl ight status changes, delays, cancellations, and gate changes
• Includes visually compelling maps (e.g., fl ight tracker map for in-air fl ights and an airport delay map, both with current radar weather)
Concur Breeze Expense Reporting Concur Breeze (www.Concur.com) is an exceptional cloud-based tool for tracking and reporting travel expenses. It is designed for small businesses and provides a simple, cost-effi cient expense management solution that integrates directly with QuickBooks and other small-business accounting solutions. Users of this app no longer need to use a spreadsheet for their expense reports (as long as their employers agree). Users can input and access expense
report information with a Web browser, iPhone, or iPad or with a BlackBerry or Android smartphone. Receipts can be entered using a scanner or the photo capabilities of devices such as iPads and smartphones. T is signifi cantly reduces the drudgery most employees associate with expense reporting, improves the accuracy and timeliness of expense reports and management reports, and saves users time that is usually spent accounting and reporting. We adopted Concur Breeze as our
expense reporting tool earlier this year, and it has signifi cantly improved the expense reporting and tracking process, both for our employees and for the offi ce staff that takes care of accounting and reporting. T e following are some of the functions we fi nd most helpful: • Record expenses with a smartphone (including capturing the receipt image with the built-in camera) and then simply toss the actual receipt.
• Securely import credit card charges that auto-populate an expense report.
• Tag expenses by client, project, or business unit to track where the company money is being spent. With Concur Breeze, our accounting
March 2012 • www.CPAPracticeAdvisor.com 33