This busy team is charged with auditing and processing expense reports to ensure compliance with MIT policies and sponsor guidelines. The team is focused on providing first-rate customer service, and strives to process expenses within 24 hours of receiving a report. If the team discovers any issues with a report, they offer advice on how to adjust or correct it so that it meets MIT policies and can be paid.
The volume of travel and related expenses at MIT has grown considerably in the past 10 years since the days of manually processing paper reports and mailing paper checks. Today, Travel and Card Services manages a daily queue of 200–250 incoming expense reports, all delivered electronically through the Concur reporting tool, and pays nearly all via direct deposit.
In addition, they issue and maintain MIT’s credit cards and work with cardholders and card companies to address stolen, expired, or declined cards, or cards with fraudulent charges. They respond to these issues quickly in order to reduce disruptions to MIT’s travelers or those trying to make purchases. They also work with individuals or groups to find creative solutions to unusual travel situations.
The Travel and Card Services team offers training in many formats, including online training for ProCard holders and verifiers, weekly drop-in sessions, and one-on-one training on an ad hoc basis. They help the community to understand the finer points of complex travel policies set by sponsors, including compliance with the Fly America Act, which requires travelers using federal grants to use US carriers.
The MIT community is on the move, 52 weeks a year. The team has staff and systems in place to stay ahead of the incoming reports and realize efficiencies in processing the ever-increasing volume of activity, all in support of everyone who travels for MIT.