Get Started with CPM (Company Policy Manager)

Reduce time spent across the entire organization – whether it concerns employees, approvers, or Finance. With the CPM module, the Finance Department can automate manual processes and free up valuable resources.

ℹ️ Note: CPM (Company Policy Manager) is an add-on module for Acubiz. If the module is not activated in your solution, the features will not be visible. Please contact Acubiz for more information about activation.

What is CPM?

The basic principle of CPM is to eliminate unnecessary manual checks in Finance. Once the employee has settled the expense and the manager has approved it, the transactions are automatically sent directly for posting. As a rule, Finance does not have to approve anything – unless a transaction triggers a defined control policy.

You can set up control conditions in Finance based on the following criteria:

• General random checks: Specify a percentage (e.g., 10%, 25%, or 50%) of the total transactions to be selected for review over a month.
• Specific account rules:
  • All transactions on a specific expense account (regardless of amount).
  • Transactions exceeding a defined amount maximum.
  • Transactions made in specific countries.
• Employee control: Targeted checks of specific individuals.

Prioritization of Control Policies (Rule Sets)

CPM policies operate based on a fixed hierarchy that determines which rule takes precedence if multiple apply. The ranking is as follows:

1. General random checks (Exception: If set to 100%, it has the highest priority)
2. Employee-specific control (Exception: If set to 100%, it has the highest priority)
3. Account control (Based on amount or country)

Example of logic: If the general random check is set to 25%, a specific account rule will always weigh more heavily. Account control also overrides employee-specific control.

Examples of Practical Setup

1. General Random Checks

With this model, for example, 50% of all approved transactions are randomly selected for Finance review before being released for final posting.

• Setting up general random checks >>

2. Control of Specific Accounts

You can choose that selected accounts are always reviewed. For example, if you select the account "Hotel," all transactions on this account will always be held for Finance review before posting – regardless of the general random check percentage.

• Setting up an account for control >>

3. Control of Specific Employees

If an employee is new or frequently makes errors in expense reports, they can be set for 100% control. The employee will then be consistently reviewed, regardless of the general random checks and account rules.

• How to set up a specific random check on an employee >> 

Based on the features and logic described for CPM, here are three strategic suggestions for concrete setups, which can also be used in combination. They aim to balance trust/automation with risk management, so Finance only spends time on what truly requires attention.

Setup 1: "Focus on VAT" (Audit-proof)

Certain expense types have tax-complex rules (e.g., deductions for representation vs. staff leasing). This setup ensures that the Tax Authority does not come after you.

• General random checks: Set low (e.g., 20%).
• Account control (Specific accounts): 100% control on accounts such as "Representation", "Gifts", and "Hotel".
• Why it works: Hotel and representation receipts often contain specific VAT codes or require participant information. By locking these specific accounts to always hit Finance, you ensure 100% compliance in areas where external auditors and the Tax Authority typically focus most.

Setup 2: "The Clean Slate" (For the mature and confident organization)

This setup maximizes time savings and trusts manager approval but keeps a finger on the pulse with a low random check rate.

• General random checks: Set to 10% or 15%.
• Account control: No specific accounts are locked to 100% control unless legally sensitive (e.g., representation or domestic hotel – see Setup 1).
• Why it works: 85-90% of all transactions flow uninterrupted directly to posting once approved by the manager. Finance only checks a smaller, random selection to ensure the overall level is correct.

Setup 3: "Onboarding & Training" (Focus on the employee)

This model protects data quality when new employees start or when an employee struggles to code expenses correctly.

• General random checks: Kept at the standard (e.g., 25%).
• Employee control: 100% control on specific individuals (e.g., new hires in their first 3 months, or employees with a history of many errors).
• Why it works: Since employee control set to 100% has the highest priority, you ensure that the new employee’s receipts are caught every time. Finance can catch errors during the training phase before they reach posting, without disrupting the rest of the company’s workflow.

A good tip to start with: Begin with Setup 1 or 3. This gives Finance confidence that the "risky" or expensive receipts are still manually checked, while you can safely reduce the general random check percentage and feel the time savings on everyday receipts.