Now I Get It ...
Dec. 17th, 2008 08:18 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
fauxkloreMy company has implemented new travel accounting software. We have had to use this since about the beginning of the month. Actually providing some training or even a usable help file has not occurred to them. (My secretary, Susie, got about a half day of training, given by people who work neither for the software vendor who provided the product nor our corporate travel group. Some of what they told her turned out to be incorrect.)
My first experience with this software was this week, trying to do my expense report from last week. It was frustrating at best. There was a form our admin staff (i.e. one of the other secretaries) had made up, but it didn't include some critical things, like lines for entering hotel or car rental expenses. So I went over to my corporate office and had Susie enter things as I pulled out receipts for her. When it came to actually submitting the report, however, it got more complicated. First it was asking me to enter personal travel information, though I had no personal travel associated with that trip. Susie fixed that by unchecking a box the trainer had told her she always had to check, even when she specifically questioned whether it made sense. When I hit the "submit" link, it took me to a page showing the approval flow. It took me three tries to figure out I had to hit "submit" again on this page for it to actually get the report to the next level.
My boss has now approved it and it all looks fine, but it was majorly annoying. Allegedly, we are going to get training in March, which is late to need at best.
But I have now figured out exactly how this software will save the company money. It's so annoying that people will avoid traveling to avoid having to use it.
My first experience with this software was this week, trying to do my expense report from last week. It was frustrating at best. There was a form our admin staff (i.e. one of the other secretaries) had made up, but it didn't include some critical things, like lines for entering hotel or car rental expenses. So I went over to my corporate office and had Susie enter things as I pulled out receipts for her. When it came to actually submitting the report, however, it got more complicated. First it was asking me to enter personal travel information, though I had no personal travel associated with that trip. Susie fixed that by unchecking a box the trainer had told her she always had to check, even when she specifically questioned whether it made sense. When I hit the "submit" link, it took me to a page showing the approval flow. It took me three tries to figure out I had to hit "submit" again on this page for it to actually get the report to the next level.
My boss has now approved it and it all looks fine, but it was majorly annoying. Allegedly, we are going to get training in March, which is late to need at best.
But I have now figured out exactly how this software will save the company money. It's so annoying that people will avoid traveling to avoid having to use it.
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no subject
Date: 2008-12-18 02:33 am (UTC)secretariesoffice professionals do.no subject
Date: 2008-12-18 03:06 am (UTC)I think this has something to do with somebody who used to be in my management train who was notorious for volunteering us to be guinea pigs for new admin horrors.