China's Ministry of Culture and Tourism released Q1 2025 domestic tourism data. Domestic trips reached 1.794 billion, up 26.4% year over year, with urban residents at 1.318 billion trips (+22.4%) and rural residents at 476 million trips (+39.2%). Total domestic tourism spending reached 1.80 trillion yuan, up 18.6%, with urban spending at 1.48 trillion yuan (+14.8%) and rural spending at 0.32 trillion yuan (+39.6%).
The U.S. Department of State reissued its Level 2 travel advisory for Morocco on April 21, 2025, advising increased caution due to terrorism. The advisory states terrorist groups continue plotting possible attacks, potentially targeting tourist locations, transportation hubs, markets, shopping malls, and local government facilities. It recommends staying alert in tourist spots, avoiding demonstrations and crowds, enrolling in STEP, reviewing the Country Security Report, and purchasing travel insurance.
The U.S. Department of State updated its Level 3 travel advisory for Colombia on April 17, 2025, advising reconsider travel due to crime, terrorism, civil unrest, and kidnapping. Some areas have increased risk, including Arauca, Cauca (excluding Popayán), Norte de Santander departments, and the Colombia-Venezuela border region, which are Level 4 'Do Not Travel.' The advisory notes violent crime is common, and terrorists and criminal organizations may target government facilities, tourist areas, transportation centers, shopping malls, hotels, restaurants, and airports. U.S. government employees are prohibited from traveling to land borders, using motorcycles, or using non-prearranged public…
SAP Concur published an article discussing balancing accuracy and efficiency in accounts payable. Citing the 2024 SAP Concur CFO Insights Report, 63% of finance leaders plan to invest in automation and cutting-edge tech within the year to overcome AP challenges. The article notes fragmented systems and manual processes are major obstacles, and automation can reduce errors, accelerate approvals, and lower fraud risk. It also states companies using an integrated travel and expense platform see policy compliance increase by 26%, processing efficiency double, and annual cost savings of 21%.
SAP Concur published an article on e-receipts in expense management. Citing a GBTA study, nearly half of all paper receipts get lost or discarded before being recorded. E-receipts streamline reporting, improve accuracy, and reduce administrative burden through digital processes. The article states businesses using Concur Expense report a 32% reduction in approval times and save an average of $54,000 annually on administrative costs. ACFE data shows businesses lose up to 5% of revenue to fraud annually, while T&E spending can account for 10-12% of annual budget.
SAP Concur released its 2025 CFO Insights report, surveying 350 finance leaders, 115 HR leaders, and 115 IT leaders. 81% of CFOs believe they are the primary drivers of growth. 48% of finance leaders see attracting and retaining talent as one of the most important factors in driving growth. 83% of HR leaders prioritize improving employee experience, but 38% say they lack appropriate resources. 42% of CHROs want to work more closely with finance leaders on compensation and benefits strategies. 99% of HR leaders have updated travel policies, and 51% enhanced travel safety protocols.
The UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) issued travel advice for Antarctica/British Antarctic Territory, updated on April 10, 2025, and reissued without significant updates after review. The British Antarctic Territory is a British Overseas Territory administered by a commissioner based in London. The FCDO advises travelers to research destinations and obtain appropriate travel insurance covering itinerary, planned activities, and emergency expenses. The FCDO provides travel risk advice to help make informed decisions.
A SAP Concur blog post examines corporate social responsibility (CSR) in business travel and expense management. It cites a Morgan Stanley survey in which more than 80% of companies see financial opportunities aligned with sustainability goals and 79% expect higher revenue. SAP Concur's 6th Annual Global Business Travelers Research Report found 27% of employees would decline a business trip due to environmental impact or inability to choose sustainable options. The article also notes 36% of travel managers struggle to meet sustainable travel expectations without adequate budgets, and about 27% of business travelers say their company cut back on allowing them to pay more for sustainable opti…
A SAP Concur blog post summarizes the Accounts Payable Automation Trends research study it sponsored, conducted by The Institute of Financial Operations and Leadership (IFOL). The report shows 52% of AP professionals now spend fewer than ten hours per week processing invoices, down from 62% a year earlier; manual entry of invoices into ERP or accounting systems dropped to 60%, from 85% in 2023. However, 64% of respondents still cite stress from outdated processes as their biggest hurdle, and 40% point to strained vendor relationships. AI adoption remains limited, with only 7% of respondents using AI for spend management, though 40% are considering adoption within the next year.
This SAP Concur article compares its solutions with Zoho Expense, highlighting five considerations: AI-powered automation, advanced integrations, seamless user experience, industry reviews, and innovation. SAP Concur beats Zoho Expense across all G2 user satisfaction categories and ranks #1 in market share. The article also mentions that integrated platforms can increase policy compliance by 26% and double processing efficiency.
A SAP Concur blog post summarizes business travel trends and challenges. Research shows 42% of travel managers anticipated company directives to cut travel costs within the year; 88% of travelers reported significant travel disruptions and 74% felt unsafe on a trip; 61% of businesses without integrated travel and expense solutions are likely to move to a connected system within two years; and 34% of travel managers need better training to benefit from AI-powered tools. The article also notes 44% of travelers would refuse a trip over safety concerns, and 95% of travelers are open to using AI-fueled technology for business travel booking.
A SAP Concur blog post for IT leaders outlines strategies including using AI for operational efficiency, strengthening cybersecurity through cross-functional collaboration, and optimizing IT policies for vendor management and data privacy. Citing the 2025 CFO Insights global survey, it says IT leaders' main observed AI benefits include increased operational efficiency (46%), better data insights and analytics (42%), and improved decision-making (38%). On cybersecurity, 71% of IT leaders feel 'somewhat prepared' to respond to increased cyberattack risk, while only 26% say they are 'very prepared'; 43% rank phishing and social engineering attacks as a top-three vulnerability.
This SAP Concur blog post discusses leadership skills and a growth mindset for professional success. Citing Cathy Logue of Stanton Chase, it notes that 90% of senior finance leaders agree their key task is to prepare their business for the unexpected. For travel managers, it references the SAP Concur 6th Annual Global Travel Managers Research Report, finding that 99% report a disconnect between expected tasks and tools, support, and budget, and 33% are asked to take on a more strategic role without additional training. The article offers tips for developing leadership, including training, collaboration, communication, tech savvy, and networking.
The UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) updated its travel advice for Pitcairn Island on 27 March 2025, reissued after review with no significant updates. Pitcairn Island is a British Overseas Territory with no British Embassy; the local government will support travellers if needed. The FCDO advises travellers to research destinations and obtain appropriate travel insurance covering itinerary, planned activities and emergency expenses.
Tongcheng Travel Holdings reported 2024 results: revenue up 45.8% YoY to RMB17,340.7 million, adjusted net profit up 26.7% to RMB2,785.4 million, GMV up 5.9% to RMB255.7 billion. Core OTA revenue rose 22.1% to RMB14,199.4 million, with international air ticket volume up over 130% and international room nights up over 110%. Annual paying users reached 238.3 million, MPUs 43.1 million. The company launched Chengxin AI system, integrated DeepSeek, and fully operates HOPEGOO international platform.
SAP Concur released a guide on managing allowable business expenses, defining allowable expenses (e.g., business travel, business meals, client entertainment) versus non-reimbursable expenses (personal costs, excessive spending). The guide notes ACFE estimates 5% of annual revenues lost to fraud in a typical organization, most commonly asset misappropriation such as padding travel and expense claims. Automated T&E solutions can compare every line item against policies to flag non-compliance or potential fraud. SAP Concur research shows integrated T&E solutions can increase policy compliance by 26% and save 20% in invoice processing.
SAP Concur released its third CFO Insights report, based on a survey of 350 CFOs and senior finance leaders across eight countries from December 2024 to January 2025. 69% of finance leaders cite optimizing costs and efficiency as the top goal for growth, with 58% turning to automation and AI. 94% say AI has helped improve decision-making, and 73% say AI has positively impacted cost and risk reduction. Top external challenges cited are worsening economic conditions (41%), geopolitical tensions (37%), and supply chain constraints (32%).
At SAP Concur Fusion 2025, SAP showcased AI-driven travel and expense management innovations and announced an expanded partnership with American Express. SAP is embedding its generative AI copilot Joule into Concur Expense and Concur Travel solutions, with Joule in Concur Expense expected to be generally available in Q2 2025. SAP Concur and Amex are launching a real-time authorization data capability where Amex Corporate Card purchases automatically generate and categorize expenses, starting with meal expenses. Amex GBT has integrated over 2 million hotel properties into the new Concur Travel platform.
SAP announced at SAP Concur Fusion 2025 that it is embedding generative AI copilot Joule into Concur Expense and Concur Travel solutions. Joule in Concur Expense is expected to be generally available in Q2 2025, helping employees prepare expense reports. Joule in Concur Travel is currently in the SAP Early Adopter Care program and can assist with planning offsite meeting locations and providing flight and hotel cost estimates. SAP also announced an expanded partnership with American Express featuring a real-time authorization data capability where Amex Corporate Card purchases automatically generate expense entries. SAP Concur holds 49.6% 2023 market share as the leader in worldwide T&E man…
SAP Concur published a change management guide for healthcare T&E implementation, addressing unique challenges including budget constraints, staffing limitations, patient priorities, and complex workflows. The article introduces the ADKAR change management model applied to healthcare T&E implementation, covering awareness, desire, knowledge, ability, and reinforcement. The guide also discusses HIPAA compliance, research grant tracking, and Continuing Medical Education (CME) expense management as healthcare-specific compliance requirements, and how automation can streamline compliance and audit trails.
SAP Concur published a Seattle travel guide for Fusion 2025 attendees, with over 3,000 attendees from around the world expected. The guide covers transportation from Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (about 15 miles from downtown) via Link Light Rail, downtown walking and public transit options, and recommended restaurants and attractions. The article cites SAP Concur booking data showing nearly a quarter of all business expenses are for meals, and over 30 million flights were booked in Concur Travel in the past year, with business travel bookings up 3% for domestic and 6% for international flights.
The U.S. Department of State issued a travel advisory for Georgia at Level 1 (Exercise Normal Precautions), with some areas at increased risk. South Ossetia and Abkhazia are designated Level 4 (Do Not Travel) due to crime, civil unrest, and landmine risks. Russian troops and border guards occupy both regions, and the precise locations of administrative boundary lines are difficult to identify; entering these areas could lead to arrest, imprisonment, or fines. U.S. government employees are prohibited from traveling to these areas, and the U.S. government cannot provide emergency services there.
SAP Concur announced the 2025 Innovation Award winners at Fusion 2025, including L'Oréal Groupe, Weatherford, UST, Coca-Cola, E.ON, and Mayekawa. L'Oréal Groupe automated user provisioning between HR and expense systems using SAP BTP, reducing data integration time from 48 hours to 4 hours. Weatherford increased monthly expense reports from 1,300 to over 4,500, saving more than $17 per report and reducing T&E operation costs by 26%. Mayekawa reduced its finance team's annual workload by over 12,000 hours. Amex GBT became the first TMC to offer content through the Hotel Connector on the new Concur Travel platform.
SAP Concur announced multiple product innovations at Fusion 2025, including embedding generative AI copilot Joule into Concur Travel and Concur Expense. Joule in Concur Expense is expected to be generally available in Q2 2025, helping employees prepare expense reports and answer questions. Joule in Concur Travel is currently in the Early Adopter Care program and can assist with planning offsite meeting locations. SAP Concur expanded its partnership with American Express with a real-time authorization data capability where Amex Corporate Card purchases automatically generate expense entries, starting with meals. One-third of SAP Concur customers use the Amex corporate card.
The U.S. Department of State issued a travel advisory for Djibouti at Level 2 (Exercise Increased Caution) due to terrorism risk. Terrorists may attack with little or no warning, targeting tourist locations, transportation centers (airports), government buildings, markets and shopping malls, hotels, clubs and restaurants, places of worship and schools, parks and public areas, major sporting and cultural events, and hospitals. The advisory also states that travel to areas bordering Eritrea should be reconsidered due to border tensions.
The U.S. Department of State updated its Djibouti travel advisory, removing the crime indicator and adding a Level 3 Reconsider Travel advisory for the border area with Eritrea. Djibouti overall is at Level 2 (Exercise Increased Caution) due to terrorism risk. Terrorists may attack with little or no warning, targeting tourist locations, airports, government buildings, markets, hotels, restaurants, places of worship, schools, parks, and hospitals. U.S. citizens should reconsider travel within 10 miles of the Eritrea border, and U.S. government employees are prohibited from traveling after dark in that region.
The U.S. REAL ID federal compliance deadline is May 7, 2025. Congress passed the REAL ID Act in 2005 to implement the 9/11 Commission recommendation to set minimum security standards for identification such as driver's licenses; state-issued IDs from non-compliant states will no longer be accepted by federal agencies such as TSA. Compliant IDs are generally marked with a star, and travelers can verify their state's status via the Department of Homeland Security's REAL ID page. Travelers without a REAL ID can still fly domestically using other acceptable identification, including a U.S. passport, passport card, DHS trusted traveler cards such as Global Entry, permanent resident card, or an e…
The annual AP trends and predictions report from Ardent Partners, sponsored by SAP Concur, shows that 74% of AP departments planned to use artificial intelligence in some way by the end of 2024, a record-high adoption rate. AI and AP automation are improving invoice processing, fraud detection, forecasting, and cash flow management while freeing AP staff to focus on exceptions. The report also notes that AI risks must be addressed through governance and security controls, and that geopolitical conflicts and tariffs could raise prices and inflation, increase global invoicing complexity, and disrupt supply chains. It predicts that 80% of routine tasks will be handled by AP automation within t…
The article outlines the basic framework of business budget categories: operating expenses (OpEx) versus capital expenses (CapEx), and fixed versus variable costs. OpEx covers payroll and benefits, facilities, materials and supplies, sales and marketing, administrative costs, travel and representation, professional services, and technology, and directly affects net income; CapEx is capitalized on the balance sheet and depreciated over time. The article notes that categorized budgeting improves financial transparency and control, helps surface overspending and inefficiencies, and supports forecasting and resource allocation. It also describes how SAP Concur solutions can automatically import…
The article covers types of business expenses and management practices. Expenses fall into fixed, variable, and periodic categories, with a distinction between operating expenses (OpEx) and capital expenditures (CapEx): OpEx is accounted for in the year it occurs and deducted from gross profit, while CapEx is depreciated over years as a long-term asset. Effective expense management supports cash flow management, profitability, tax compliance, and decision-making. The article offers six best practices: implement an expense tracking system, categorize and prioritize expenses, conduct regular expense audits, set a budget, embrace automation, and encourage employee accountability. It notes that…
The article notes that CFO and operations manager roles are changing and blurring, with both more deeply involved in overall business strategy. Survey data shows 52% of CFOs see a risk that costs can rise quickly and 41% say cost controls become more technically challenging as companies grow; 57% of CFOs are investing heavily in growth strategies despite economic concerns, 63% say investing in cutting-edge technologies is critical to success, yet only 4% say they have strong knowledge of AI. The article says CFOs need strategic communication, technological fluency, change management, and cross-functional leadership, while operations managers need technology-driven process optimization, stra…
A recent SAP Concur survey shows that if given an extra hour a day, finance professionals would most likely invest in career growth, strengthen leadership skills, and keep up with AI and finance technology. 60% would take an online professional development course, 17% would build relationships with peers outside finance, 16% would take on a stretch project, and 7% would seek mentorship and feedback. On leadership, 45% want to use tech to boost employee engagement and retention, 34% want best practices for managing hybrid teams, 34% want new ways to motivate their team, and 25% want to use tech to support duty of care. On AI, 50% want to learn how AI is used in finance, 39% would attend a we…
The article covers the definition and management of paid receipts. A paid receipt is the record confirming payment for goods or services, and an itemized receipt typically includes the date and time of purchase, specific items, quantities and amounts, unit price and total costs, taxes paid, total amounts paid, and payment method. Receipts fall into four categories: paper, digital, emailed, and point-of-sale. Paid receipts are critical for tax compliance, budgeting and financial planning, dispute resolution, and business reporting. Manual management faces challenges including high receipt volume, lack of standardization, lost or damaged paper receipts, and time consumption. Best practices in…
The U.S. Department of State reissued its Portugal travel advisory after a periodic review, maintaining it at Level 1, which advises exercising normal precautions in Portugal. Recommendations include enrolling in the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP) to receive travel alerts and make it easier to be located in an emergency; preparing a backup plan for emergency situations; reviewing the Traveler's Checklist; visiting the CDC page for the latest travel health information; and strongly recommending buying insurance before travel and checking with the travel insurance provider about evacuation assistance, medical insurance, and trip cancellation coverage.
SAP Concur recapped its major 2024 updates to travel and expense (T&E) management solutions. User experience updates include integration with SAP Cloud Identity Services, the SAP Fiori horizon theme, a redesigned home page, a refreshed Concur Invoice interface, and expansion of the new Concur Travel standard edition. Process and approval updates include a generative AI-enabled request assistant, quick request, hotel itemization in ExpenseIt, an invoice payment manager with virtual cards, and adding Trainline to the Concur TripLink hub. Security and data insights updates include PGP key replacement, SAP Analytics Cloud data templates, an IBM Cognos 11.2.4 interface upgrade, and new Concur Tr…
In the SAP Concur Conversations podcast, Philippe Dutkiewicz, co-owner of HR Campus, and HR consultant Philipp Brunner talk with Jeanne Dion, Vice President of the Value Experience team at SAP Concur, about collaboration between travel and expense (T&E) management and human resources (HR). HR is responsible for payroll, benefits, duty of care, employee data, and corporate policies, all closely related to T&E. Employees want T&E programs to offer flexibility, ease of expense submission, and peace of mind about following processes. The article recommends simplifying processes, using AI for conversational expense reports, and showing or hiding T&E policy in real time based on user actions. Dut…
The SAP Concur Conversations podcast features Joaquín Buscarons, IT enterprise architect at ESTEVE, an international pharmaceutical company based in Spain, speaking with Jeanne Dion, Vice President of the Value Experience team at SAP Concur, about the strategic role of IT. The discussion covers cloud computing, evolving job descriptions, the importance of pilot projects, and how technology supports business objectives. ESTEVE uses one-to-two-month pilot projects to test new technologies and has begun hiring digital experience specialists.
A SAP Concur blog post notes that industry research shows organizations lose as much as 10% of their annual travel budget on unused tickets. The article analyzes two common scenarios—airline cancellations and business changes—and recommends advance notice requirements, regular travel reviews, detailed change logs, and continuous tracking of ticket expiration dates. It also suggests working with a travel management company (TMC) or using a corporate card program to track unused tickets and refund opportunities, and emphasizes that automation technology can help with refund recovery, compliance, and reducing administrative costs.
A SAP Concur blog post explores the importance of corporate expense classification for financial management and tax compliance. It distinguishes capital expenditures from regular business expenses, fixed versus variable expenses, operational versus administrative expenses, and regular versus extraordinary expenses. The article recommends maintaining detailed and accurate records, training employees on receipt retention, separating business and personal spending, and using automated expense management solutions to optimize classification, reduce errors, detect fraud, and monitor policy compliance.
SAP Concur analyzed domestic and international air travel bookings in Concur Travel from January 1 to December 31, 2024, comparing airfare and travel volume to the same period in 2023. Results show domestic travel volume up nearly 3% year over year and international travel volume up nearly 6%. July saw the largest domestic booking increase at 11%, while December saw the largest international increase at 16%. Average domestic airfare remained elevated compared to 2023, peaking at $597 in March and dropping to $540 in August. International airfare was flat in the first half and accelerated in the second half, rising 11% in December.