Seven training tips to ensure employees understand corporate credit card policy

Commercial credit cards are an amazing time saver. Corporate travel cards and p-cards provide organizations and employees with an easier and more convenient way of handling business travel, making business purchases, and tracking business expenses. To maintain these wonderful benefits, card programs can’t just issue the cards and forget about them. Card managers need to maintain the integrity of the card program by looking out for fraud and preventing misuse of credit cards. To do this, organizations establish internal controls such as a policy or best practices around the card program. However, simply having a policy in place is not enough. It is equally important to ensure that employees understand and abide by it. To help you achieve this, here are seven popular corporate credit card policy training tips to ensure your employees understand your organization’s credit card policy.

1. Clearly communicate the policy

Start by providing a comprehensive document detailing the credit card policy. This document will make for a valuable reference, especially when a cardholder has a specific question about acceptable or prohibited purchases. Ensure it is easily accessible to all employees, either through an internal portal or by distributing hard copies. Clearly outline the guidelines, such as spending limits, eligible expenses, and documentation requirements. In the training, highlight any common issues the cardholders may regularly experience or forget to do. Also, repeat information throughout the training course to make it more memorable.

2. Conduct regular training sessions

Organize regular training sessions to educate employees about the credit card policy. In-person training can help first-time cardholders to receive further explanation of any policies and procedures. These sessions should cover all aspects of the policy, including proper card usage, reporting procedures, and consequences for non-compliance. During in-person training, encourage employees to ask questions and seek clarification during these sessions. For ongoing support of training efforts, offer all cardholders, those new and familiar to the policy, access to online resources and online training.

3. Use scenarios as examples for better understanding policy

To make the policy more relatable for real life situations, use scenario-based learning to illustrate both correct and incorrect usage of corporate credit cards. For example, when a cardholder pays for an item, but then realizes they went over the transaction limit, what should they do? Presenting similar scenarios will have cardholders realize that it could happen to them, where it could happen, and aid them in finding the next best course of action. By bringing context to when a credit card should or should not be used, your cardholders can be better equipped for when these situations arise. By sharing real-life stories of possible situations, the scenario can also highlight the impact of non-compliance on the organization’s reputation and finances, as well as possible consequences to the cardholder. This will help employees understand the importance of adhering to the policy.

4. Provide feedback and ongoing support

Feedback can come in all sorts of shapes and sizes. To help an employee to track their understanding of the policy, include non-graded quizzes as part of an online training course. By taking the pressure off of the cardholder to quickly arrive at the right answers of course material, the employee now has an opportunity to make mistakes, re-take the quizzes, or refer back to course material before continuing the lesson.

Another way to offer immediate feedback during training is to gamify the lesson. Instead of having a leaderboard to rank who’s doing best overall, provide a matching or sorting game in the training that gives an immediate response on how well they did. Offer further explanations or hints if needed when answered incorrectly.

For continued support after the training, establish a dedicated point of contact, such as a finance or card administrator, who can answer any questions or concerns related to the credit card policy. Add the contact information to the training course and encourage employees to reach out for guidance whenever needed.

5. Foster a culture of accountability

Emphasize the importance of individual responsibility when it comes to using corporate credit cards. Encourage employees to take ownership of their card usage and to report any suspicious or unauthorized transactions immediately. If your card provider offers a phone number to reach them in case of possible fraudulent card activity, make the card number readily available in the online training or create a page on the company intranet dedicated to how to handle questionable transactions. Recognize and reward employees who consistently adhere to the policy, creating a culture of accountability and trust. Often, the noncompliance gets the most attention. To promote cardholders who exhibit a positive purchasing culture, try building reward and recognition into your card program with these approaches:

• A special hand-written note or personalized email from a department head thanking everyone who remained compliant and for their continued positive purchasing behavior,
• Provide a printable certificate at the end of a training course,
• Ask compliant cardholders to offer a tip or story to communicate to other cardholders or make a short video to add to training and help someone else adhere to policy.

6. Provide reminders and updates to corporate credit card policy training

Credit card policies can change, making training on the most up-to-date information even more important to address. Regularly review the policy and make updates to the training as necessary to address any emerging issues or changes in regulations. Remind employees of the credit card policy through various communication channels, such as email newsletters, internal memos, or bulletin boards. Additionally, keep employees informed about any updates or changes to the policy to ensure they are always up-to-date.

7. Highlight audits conducted

Make sure cardholders are aware that regular audits take place. Emphasize the audit in the training material to draw importance to compliance. Communicate the results of these audits to employees, reinforcing the importance of following the policy.

By following these training tips, you can ensure that your employees have a clear understanding of your corporate credit card policy. This will not only minimize the risk of financial mismanagement but also foster a culture of transparency and accountability within your organization.