Mr. Tamanaga:

　At the time we started to consider HUE, the maintenance period of the server of the previous system was about to expire in 2020, and we were also thinking about the future of the accounting department. We wanted to shift the weight of input operations, such as bookkeeping, to the analysis of accounting data and management support, which were originally required. To achieve this, we first thought it was necessary to reduce the input work, so we reviewed the system once again. The accounting standards for social welfare corporations have unique standards, and we decided that a system that specialized in these standards would be difficult for a large corporation like ours to operate, and more importantly, would not achieve our goal of "minimizing inputs and maximizing outputs," so we selected HUE, an ERP that would enable us to achieve our goal.

　In the area of expense reimbursement, we looked at expense reimbursement systems other than HUE Expense, but the key point was that HUE Expense not only had a complete set of functions, but could also be used directly connected to our accounting system. Another appealing point was that HUE Expense has a licensing structure that makes it easy to promote business improvement. Many general expense reimbursement systems are licensed based on the number of users, and if the scope of use is expanded over the long term, the cost is likely to increase. However, HUE has a licensing structure based on the size of the corporation, so we felt that we could proceed with business improvement without worry.

Mr. Tamanaga:

　First, HUE Expense started its operation at the four offices that operate in the corporate headquarters building. Most of the staff at the corporate headquarters use HUE Expense for reimbursement of travel and transportation expenses incurred when visiting each facility. Outside of the corporate headquarters, employees of the Senior Citizens Public Service Department, which operates fee-based nursing homes, employees of the Home and Welfare Service Department, which promotes various welfare service businesses, and employees of the offices commissioned by Hamamatsu City to provide consultation services for living independence are using the system to apply for and be reimbursed for travel and out-of-town transportation expenses.

Mr. Tamanaga:

　The HUE Expense system was introduced to systemize expense reimbursement, which had previously been done entirely on paper and in cash. At the corporate headquarters, where HUE Expense has already been introduced, the time required for cash reimbursement by accounting staff has been reduced from 2 hours/day to 10 to 15 minutes/day.

Mr. Atsumi:

　The introduction of HUE Expense has eliminated the need to receive and deliver cash, making the work much easier. The work of counting and reconciling cash that had been performed in the past has also been eliminated, and voucher generation has been automated, saving a great deal of work at the time of reimbursement. The frequency of risky visits to financial institutions has also been reduced, which I feel is a big advantage.

Mr. Yamauchi:

　From the applicant's point of view, the system eliminated the need for stamp relays and the need to go looking for a supervisor, and HUE Expense allows the applicant to select an approver at the time of application, which is convenient because the application can be submitted anytime, by anyone, anywhere, regardless of whether that person is present or not. The approval process has also become much easier to see, as we can check the status of each submitted application to see how far it has been approved.

Mr. Tamanaga:

　Another big advantage is that it has strengthened internal controls within the corporation. Before the introduction of the system, there were many cases where reimbursements were made after the fact, like an after-the-fact report after a business trip. However, with HUE Expense, it is now possible to require the submission of advance applications for business trips, so that appropriate controls can be applied and visualized, such as not allowing business trips unless the details of the trip have been confirmed in advance and the necessary approvals have been obtained. In addition, the introduction of HUE Expense has enabled us to centralize all business office transfers to the corporate headquarters, which has made it possible to eliminate cash-related travel expenses at each business office, thus contributing to a cashless business environment.

　From another point of view, I appreciate the fact that even users who do not have a full-time job of handling the system can change the settings; HUE Expense has a setting screen as a function without knowledge of programming languages, and users close to the field such as myself actually set up the system. Although the burden on the user is greater, the advantages are that we can improve the functionality by changing the settings and can quickly introduce the system to each office that has various operation styles.

Mr. Tamanaga:

　I believe that systemizing operations that were previously conducted on paper is so significant that it can be called a "cultural change. We were also prepared for the inevitable backlash against the introduction of the system, given the mix of staff with different levels of IT literacy and PC skills. However, when we started operating the system, there was surprisingly little opposition. Perhaps it was because the interface of HUE Expense was simple and easy to understand.
　The consultant in charge at Works made careful suggestions on the layout and control of the application screen, and we devised a way to minimize the applicant's input load as much as possible, and to ensure that the application is submitted without omissions. Specifically, for example, we set the items that we wanted applicants to be sure to enter as required fields, so that the application would be completed naturally by entering them in the order from the top of the form. In fact, any staff member, regardless of length of tenure, can use the system, and even those who have some resistance to the system have found it "surprisingly easy to use," which is a big plus.

Reference: Layout setting of HUE Expense

Mr. Tamanaga:

　I did not have much experience in system implementation, so when we first started implementing HUE, it was difficult for me to figure out where to touch to make HUE Expense work the way I wanted and achieve what I wanted. However, even when I had questions, the consultant in charge at Works gave me detailed instructions at regular meetings and responded very quickly to my inquiries on the @SUPPORT web forum, so I was able to quickly resolve the issues and move forward. I believe that the correspondence with the consultant that remains on that @SUPPORT is the best intellectual property of all and will be useful in future operations.
　As a result, in the last few months, I am beginning to understand the configuration of the system myself and am able to set up and try out things I want to do on my own. I am extremely grateful to the consultant in charge of the works for his quick and careful guidance.