Visa Unveils Industry-Leading Information Management Tools

Visa Information Management represents the industrys most comprehensive suite of Web-based information management tools, including enhanced transaction data and a variety of online reporting options to help governments and businesses of all sizes effectively monitor and control expenditures. The tools are available to be customized and packaged with bank-developed data solutions based on the specific needs of Visa regions and issuers. This, in turn, complements the range of Visas commercial payment products-from Visa Business to Visa Corporate, Visa Purchasing and Visa Distribution. Key Visa Information Management tools include: - Visa Information Source - Uses leading Web-based technology that lets accountants and managers at any size enterprise obtain transaction-level data and summary reports across all of the Visa accounts and product types used by their employees - Visa Travel Account Manager - Allows consolidated management of all travel-related spending - from airline ticketing to rental car and hotel bookings - by offering an enterprise-wide travel account with centralized reconciliation and detailed management reports - Global Data Consolidation and Reporting - Enables Visa transaction data for a large enterprises to be consolidated from multiple sources and then to be delivered in standard and custom formats through Visas Web-based reporting and analytical tools or through a companys proprietary reporting system What brings unsurpassed value to these tools is the growing level of data enhancement. Data enhancement is the ability to expand transaction detail to include information such as tax charges, hotel folio subtotals, and other line item details. Such information is essential for tax reporting and a wide range of accounting and management practices. Automating the collection of these details eliminates paper handling and re-keying of data while enabling better accounting efficiency, employee oversight, and vendor management. Cost savings are significant, as well. For instance, Visas own corporate finance department has automated procurement and travel expense reporting for all employees through the companys ERP system using Visa Purchasing and Visa Corporate cards. The system has cut the companys costs in half, with travel expense report processing down to US$20 from a pre-automation cost of US$57. The scale of Visas abilities to consolidate, enhance, and deliver data are what distinguish Visa Information Management, and are the culmination of major efforts over the past five years. For instance, Visa data enhancement produces line-item detail from transactions with the broadest set of travel industry alliances, extending from airlines and hotels to car rental firms. Visa has also worked closely with enterprise resource planning (ERP) vendors to enable seamless integration of payment data with leading accounting systems. Transaction data can even be downloaded directly to ERP systems through a secure web interface. Moreover, when Visa transactions are delivered on a daily basis, an enterprise can achieve a nearly real-time view of its spending globally.