How Ramp Helped REVA Air Ambulance save time, improve visibility, and gain peace of mind

REVA’s spend management process was highly manual and time-intensive. “Whenever an employee had to create an expense report, they had to list each charge, upload the receipt, and submit the expense report with multiple items,” explains REVA Controller, Seth Miller. Because REVA’s legacy provider limited the number of expense reports an employee could submit each month, employees waited until month-end to submit their expenses. “Finance would have no exposure to what was actually spent until the end of the month, so everything was in arrears,” says Seth. “If employees didn’t have a receipt, they couldn’t upload the expense report, so things could get delayed even longer.” 

This system meant that the finance team was constantly chasing staff for receipts and scrambling to close the books more quickly. “We were unable to close our books at the end of the month until the credit card statements were reconciled,” says Seth. This highly manual process kept finance in the dark, extended month-end close times, and caused reimbursement to take anywhere from one to six weeks. 

In short, the legacy system was “a nightmare,” says Seth. “It was very labor intensive, and we were always a month behind.”

When REVA transitioned their ERP to Sage Intacct, it took the opportunity to search for a new expense management solution. “We set up a demo with Ramp, and by the end of the call it was a solution I could not say no to,” says Seth.

With Ramp, each REVA department is now empowered with virtual cards that produce simplified bill pay. “We were able to mold Ramp to our company to set it up as needed within departments,” says Seth. “But the biggest selling feature to us was the automatic, real-time integration with Sage.” Thanks to this integration, the finance team has real-time insight into corporate spend and better visibility over the financial health of the business. “That was a no brainer,” says Seth. “Setting up and using the software is as simple as saying the alphabet—if not easier.”

Now, all of REVA’s approximately 250 employees use Ramp for expense management. “Every single person on the road—from salespeople to medical to anyone on the staff—now has the ability to upload their receipts easily,” says Seth. “We don’t have to chase them for information anymore.”

On the Accounts Payable side, REVA has switched many vendors to virtual cards, which has expedited processing times. “They charge on their virtual card. We receive the information. We confirm it, we upload it, and we’re done,” says Seth. “That’s made it really, really easy for us to manage our cash flow and expense spending.”

The original catalyst for exploring Ramp—that is, the transition to Sage—has yielded material benefits for the company. “Sage and Ramp work so well together,” says Seth. “There hasn’t been a single issue with the data sync once it was set up. Now, everything is syncing 24/7, so if something is charged anywhere in the world, I’m aware of it within a moment’s notice.”

That increased visibility has been a hallmark of REVA’s relationship with Ramp. “Ramp has allowed me to easily review every transaction, so now there are no surprises,” says Seth. “It allows me to review our spend by department, and it also allows me to see what vendors are charging and how pricing has changed.”

The visibility gained and time saved ultimately gives Seth more time to analyze internal spend. “It allows me to work on other projects I would have either had to delay or give to another staff member,” says Seth. “I’m able to spend more time on my financial analysis and find more ways to save money because I have the tool working for me—I’m not working for the tool.”

Automating REVA’s previously highly manual expense and AP processes has resulted in significant time savings, which fuels this newfound analysis. “Reimbursement used to take one to six weeks,” says Seth. “Now, employees snap receipts on their cell phones as soon as they make the charge, and the receipt is uploaded and matched to the transaction immediately. Reimbursement now happens within one day.”

Ramp Bill Pay has similarly streamlined REVA’s AP process, enabling the team to simply drag and drop invoices directly into the platform, then code them automatically. “There’s never been an issue with payment,” says Seth. “It’s 100% perfection.” 

Before Ramp, the AP process took 15-20 minutes per invoice. With Ramp Bill Pay, it takes under 3 minutes. For a company processing 2500 invoices a month, that amounts to significant time savings.

Ramp has also expedited a month-end close process that used to take two and a half weeks. “With Ramp, we reconcile every couple of days,” says Seth. “By the fourth or fifth of the month, Ramp is reconciled and closed.”

These time savings are due, in part, to Ramp’s extreme user friendliness. “Everyone in the staff has returned positive feedback when it comes to Ramp credit cards,” says Seth. Employees cite the ability to track their own spending, the ease of uploading receipts, and the ability to problem solve quickly and effectively as benefits of the platform. “If they have an issue on the road—they’re in another country and their card has hit its limit, for example—within one click I can increase their spend limit. If there’s a fraud issue, I can lock their card with one click and create a new card immediately.” Prior to partnering with Ramp, dealing with fraud had been incredibly disruptive. “I would have to call the bank, stop the card, wait to receive a new plastic card via snail mail within 10-15 days or pay for overnight express mail to get a card quicker,” says Seth. “Meanwhile, I’ve got a person in another country with no credit card.”

Those benefits don’t just save time and reduce headaches for the finance team—they also give peace of mind to REVA’s staff. “Ramp makes you feel like you have a blanket around the company,” says Seth. “I don’t have to worry about somebody being stranded, because I know their card is going to work. And if their card were not to work, I have alternatives at my fingertips to resolve the problem. It’s just given us all peace of mind—it’s one less thing for anybody to worry about.”

The combination of time savings, greater visibility, and peace of mind has made Seth a Ramp acolyte. “I’ve never had a situation where Ramp hasn’t worked in two years, and that’s amazing to me,” he says. “I can’t speak highly enough of the company. You guys are great.”

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