Case Study

The Missing “E” in T&E: Concur Expense Success Story

How a Global Investment Firm Completed Its Operational Equation with SAP Concur

Industry: Financial Services (Private Equity & Credit Investments)

Size: Mid-Market Enterprise

Geographic Presence: Eight Countries

Core Business: Secondary market investments in private asset

Implementation Period: 2024–2025

Half the Process, Twice the Problem

In mathematics, an incomplete equation cannot be solved. In business operations, the same principle applies. A global investment firm specializing in secondary markets discovered this truth when it implemented only half of the natural T&E pairing — successfully adopting SAP Concur’s Travel module without the corresponding Concur Expense solution.

As the firm expanded across multiple countries, this operational imbalance created increasingly visible friction. The company had streamlined how its professionals booked travel, but employees continued to manage expenses through disconnected, outdated systems that created friction, redundancy, and frustration.

T + ? = Operational Excellence: The Missing Variable

By 2024, the firm recognized that its T&E system was incomplete. The previous Concur Travel implementation proved to be a success, yet the firm lacked the same efficiency in its expense management. This half-implemented solution generated four distinct business problems:

The Broken Circuit: Travel data entered the system smoothly but could not flow through to expense reporting, creating a disjointed process with duplicated effort

The Data Divide: Leadership had visibility into global travel bookings but could only access expense data in fragmented silos, blocking holistic spend analysis

Employee Experience Gap: Employees experienced a modern, streamlined interface when booking travel, but were met with outdated, clunky tools when submitting related expenses

The solution was clear: complete the equation by implementing the missing “E.” Only by integrating Concur Expense could the firm create the unified T&E ecosystem required to support its international scale.

Solving for “E”: Finding the Right Partner

Understanding that adding Concur Expense to its successful Concur Travel implementation required more than plug-and-play technology, the firm sought an implementation partner who met three strict criteria:

Strategic advisory capabilities beyond technical configuration

A proven methodology for current-state assessment and process optimization

Deep SAP Concur expertise and global deployment experience

After careful evaluation, the firm selected Acquis Consulting Group — the first SAP Concur Certified Implementation Partner — to lead this mission-critical initiative.

Laying the Groundwork: Defining the Expense Solution

Acquis began with a rigorous discovery process focused on identifying the knowns, diagnosing the unknowns, and defining the problem space before attempting to solve it.

This strategic assessment phase included:

Policy Mapping across eight markets to identify inconsistencies and compliance gaps

Process Diagnosis to uncover inefficiencies, bottlenecks, and manual workarounds

Technology Evaluation to assess integration points and system readiness

Best Practice Benchmarking to align with industry leaders

Acquis’ analysis resulted in a tailored roadmap balancing global standardization with necessary local variations — a formula calibrated for success in multinational environments.

Executing the Formula: Building the Solution

With a solid equation in hand, Acquis moved into implementation, building the Concur Expense component with precision and user-focused intent. Key priorities included:

Seamless Integration of the new Concur Expense module with the existing Concur Travel platform

Process Optimization to eliminate manual tasks and reinforce best-practice workflows

User-Centric Design to ensure intuitive, accessible interfaces that encouraged adoption

Throughout the project, Acquis stayed closely aligned with the firm’s business goals — treating the implementation not as a tech deployment, but as a lever for operational transformation.

Proof of Concept: The Value of a Complete T&E Solution

The completed T&E system delivered measurable value across multiple vectors:

Operational Excellence

100% integration of Travel & Expense across eight countries

Elimination of paper-based processes and manual reconciliations

Standardized approval workflows supporting governance and efficiency

Enhanced Decision Support

Real-time visibility into T&E spend globally

Consolidated, accurate reporting across all markets

Improved financial forecasting with reliable data

User Adoption & Satisfaction

Streamlined mobile submission process

Faster reimbursement cycles

Consistent user experience

Compliance & Control

Automated policy enforcement

Strengthened audit trail

Fewer exceptions and policy violations

Lessons in Operational Algebra

By partnering with Acquis, this global investment firm connected its modern Concur Travel module with a complimentary Concur Expense solution, creating a unified, future-ready platform that completed its operational equation and unlocked new strategic advantages.

Acquis is the first SAP Concur Certified Implementation Partner, specializing in transformative T&E solutions for global organizations. Learn more