Supporting Hokkaido Shimbun's Expense Reimbursement DX

Needs Well Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo; President and CEO: Gen Matsuoka) has supported the promotion of digital transformation (DX) in expense reimbursement and invoice management operations for The Hokkaido Shimbun Press (Headquarters: Sapporo, Hokkaido; President and CEO: Tomoji Horii; hereinafter referred to as "Hokkaido Shimbun") by implementing SAP® Concur®, a cloud-based travel and expense management solution, and the Invoice PA automated invoice registration solution, both provided by Concur Technologies, Inc. (Headquarters: Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo; President and CEO: Ryosei Hashimoto; hereinafter referred to as "Concur"). The digitalization of business processes has led to increased visibility of application details, approval status, and expense data, resulting in improved operational transparency, enhanced efficiency, and strengthened internal controls.

1. Background of Implementation

Hokkaido Shimbun is a company engaged in information dissemination activities centered on newspaper publishing. With over 1,000 employees, its back-office departments support various operations related to editing, production, and business management.

Previously, expense reimbursement operations utilized a paper-based workflow, placing a significant burden on both the field staff and the accounting department throughout the entire process, from application and approval to accounting treatment. In particular, the increase in man-hours due to manual tasks, such as checking slips and input content, and correcting input errors, was a challenge.

Against this backdrop, the company decided to review its entire business process and promote digitalization through system implementation to achieve both efficiency in expense reimbursement operations and strengthening of internal controls.

2. Deciding Factors for Implementation

Ms. Hirama, in charge of accounting at Hokkaido Shimbun, stated that the deciding factors for implementing SAP Concur and Invoice PA were the functions that directly reduce workload and the reliable support system.

Traditionally, it was difficult for field staff to determine input details and expense categories, increasing the checking workload for the accounting department. However, by enabling assistance and control at the input stage through rule settings, it was expected to reduce the workload for both field and accounting staff and decrease checking man-hours.

Furthermore, the Invoice PA, which automatically registers invoice data read by AI-OCR into SAP Concur, was expected to streamline invoice processing during busy periods and promote digitalization by eliminating manual data entry.

Additionally, as the system would be used by a wide range of departments and job types, post-implementation user adoption support was a crucial factor. The continuous support system provided by our company also contributed to the decision to implement.

3. Implementation Effects

In conjunction with the system implementation, the company began using corporate cards, and the process of creating expense reimbursement slips, previously handled by the general affairs department, was transitioned to individual employees in the field. This resolved the concentration of work in the general affairs department and allowed each employee to directly input reimbursement details.

As a result, the communication for confirmation by the general affairs department, which previously occurred, has been reduced, and the lead time from application to approval has been shortened, leading to overall efficiency improvements in business processes.

Moreover, with many paper-based workflows transitioning to digital, overall operational visibility and efficiency have improved, leading to the following effects:

▪ Reduction in filing and storage operations ▪ Reduction in warehouse storage and annual disposal work ▪ Reduction in paper and printing costs

4. Changes in the Field

In expense reimbursement operations, after system implementation, application details can be confirmed on a browser screen, making approval work more efficient.

Additionally, the use of audit rules and automatic input via AI-OCR has reduced the effort required for input and confirmation, creating an environment where individual employees can comfortably handle tasks that were previously dependent on the general affairs department.

Feedback from the field, such as "the application workflow has become smoother," indicates that employees are experiencing improved convenience in application and approval processes.

5. Future Outlook

Hokkaido Shimbun aims not only for efficiency in expense reimbursement operations but also for the advancement of accounting functions through data utilization and enhanced information provision to support management decisions. This system implementation is positioned as the first step in building a foundation for visualizing and utilizing operational data.

We will continue to support Hokkaido Shimbun's efforts to further enhance accounting operations and increase corporate value through ongoing user adoption, deeper feature utilization, AI utilization, and continuous business improvement support.

6. Company Overview

【Company Overview】

Company Name: Needs Well Co., Ltd.

Location: 13F, New Otani Garden Court, 4-1 Kioicho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo

Representative: Gen Matsuoka, President and CEO

Established: October 1986

URL: https://www.needswell.com/

Business Activities: Software development, operation, and maintenance; solution product development, sales, operation, and maintenance; research and development of related technologies and solutions (e.g., AI-driven development)

【Press Materials】

IR News https://www.needswell.com/ir/news

Other Announcements https://www.needswell.com/news/index

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