Cabinet role available for the Pcard

Here’s a quick promise from the Spend Management Guru: We’ll stop talking politics … starting with our next entry!

All the recent talk about political coalitions has got us thinking. When it comes to procurement, there are many technologies that appear to compete with each other … when they can actually work well together.

Take Pcards (payment cards) for instance. Five years ago, Pcards were seen by some as the paper-free alternative to purchase orders, offering speed and convenience.

But the arrival of Electronic invoicing (e-invoicing) has exposed some of the weaknesses of the Pcard:

• Pcards aren’t immune from ‘maverick’ spending on off-contract items
• There’s no ‘commitment’ from the spending showing up in finance systems (just later on the Pcard statement)
• Transaction charges are hidden
• Supplier information appears on card statements – not in the finance system.
• Details have to be re-keyed across to the finance system, adding an admin overhead.

In short, what’s saved on the swings is lost on the roundabouts.

But before anyone feels tempted to tear up their Pcard, along comes an alliance possibility.

When teamed with the right procurement system and e-invoicing tools, suddenly the Pcard becomes a very effective tool in specific circumstances.

For one-off items or purchases like travel tickets, it’s a winner. Purchases can be tracked and accounted for in the system. And it’s possible to set limits on where and when a Pcard is used, avoiding trigger-happy spending.

So, in our P2P Coalition comparison, Pcards don’t lead from the front, like Prime Minister or Chancellor. But they’d make a valuable contribution as Transport Secretary.