“The Backbone to Our Expenses” – How Future is Digitally Transforming With SAP Concur Solutions
Established in 1985, Future is no stranger to change. From magazine publisher to global platform business for specialist media, its business model has evolved dramatically and its content now reaches 1 in 3 people in the US and UK.
We recently spoke to Anthony Morris from the Master Data Management Team at Future, to discuss how SAP Concur solutions have facilitated the company’s growth, evolution and diversification.
When Anthony joined Future eight years ago, the specialist publisher faced some major market challenges and needed to review and rethink everything.
They had three main goals at this time: to drive transformation into a globally, digital lead content business; build brands across the channels and innovate digitally to increase audience engagement; and diversify monetisation.
Content, but Not as We Know It
This strategic review of their business led Future to expand into wider content creation, newsletters, affiliate programs, video production, events and new sectors such as price comparison, initiated by their acquisition of Mozo and GoCo Group in 2020 and 2021.
No longer just a magazine publisher and with expansion occurring across the US, Australia and the UK, the list size of new expense types, products and associated tax rules grew rapidly.
Concur Expense proved its worth from the outset. “We initially identified that with a cloud-based solution we could access information anywhere, anytime,” Anthony tells Adam. “As the business grew from around 250 to 1200 employees, it was easy to add people, departments and policies.“
“SAP Concur is the backbone to our expense system. It comes with a service package which allows for case management, enabling us to work hand in hand with the SAP Concur team to develop and adapt as we need to.”
Reacting Quickly to Rapid and Unexpected Change
In March 2020, when everyone was suddenly notified that they had to work from home, Concur Expense was key to staying calm and carrying on.
“Being an online cloud solution saved us a lot of time. People could just log in and access all their information as they had left it, because their online profiles retain that information,“ explains Anthony. “We can work anywhere in the world, with a single sign-on.”
SAP Concur empowered Future to reallocate resources quickly. Changing VAT rules due to government reduced rates for hospitality, for example, could be flagged up on the system easily, as could new expense policies around home working.
“People were able to manage their time better, ensure they were claiming all the expenses they needed, process their purchase requests and gain approval in a timely fashion, because it has the function of being on your mobile device or your laptop.”
Maximising Value at Every Turn
Future draws upon the expertise of the SAP Concur support network to gain maximum value from the solution. This includes adjusting the service package according to whether there has been a recent acquisition or expansion, or adding useful features such as the ability to link credit cards to the system. The company also utilises the delegate functionality, which means the account is not locked to one person if they’re absent or on annual leave.
The company has also seen huge improvements in time management. “Because everything gets time stamped in the system, we can see how long it takes to progress through certain purchases or expenses, so we can actually make sure we're processing things in a timely manner,” says Anthony.
Concur Invoice and Concur Travel Too
When Future acquired another publishing house that was already using Concur Invoice, it made sense to feed that into their spend management platform, particularly with the number of suppliers growing by the day. Concur Invoice exports the data from Purchase Orders all the way to payment in an integrated, end-to-end solution.
Concur Travel has also become invaluable especially now that travel polices are shifting daily enabling Future to put a clear, hard stop on any travel bookings that break policy.
What Lies Ahead?
Looking to the future, diversifying the way SAP Concur solutions are set up so they segregate the different types of suppliers, expense types and products, is another of Anthony’s goals. He is also looking to fully harness key reporting functionalities.
With the transformation of Future far from over, SAP Concur solutions are perfectly positioned to help the business adapt and thrive under testing times, offering visibility and transparency across spend.
“Incorporating SAP Concur was one of the first steps we implemented as part of our new strategy – within the first year of transformation in fact” Anthony says. “It’s testament to it that we are still using it today as our main expense and purchase order system.”