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Enron Mail |
At Enron, we=01,re good at a lot of things: making markets, commoditizing=
=20 products, managing risk, offering innovative energy solutions to customers = =01)=20 the list goes on and on. However, one of the things we could do a lot bett= er=20 is watching our expenses. We=01,re all shareholders in this company, and w= e=20 need to spend our company=01,s dollars as wisely as we spend our own. There are some simple, yet significant measures each of us can take to make= =20 sure we=01,re careful with Enron=01,s money. The Policy Committee has appr= oved and=20 recommended the following: ? Professional Services =01) This is our largest area of discretionary spen= ding,=20 at more than $600 million last year. =01&Professional Services=018 includes= our=20 contracts with outside law and accounting firms, contractors and other=20 consulting groups. To make sure that we are negotiating the best rates and= =20 terms of service for the company across business units, we are requiring al= l=20 future professional service contracts and those up for renewal to be=20 negotiated through or in consultation with Global Strategic Sourcing (GSS),= =20 effective July 1. In addition, contracts for more than $5,000 must be=20 pre-approved by the business unit senior executive or their designee and=20 GSS. For more information, see http://ibuyit.enron.com. ? On-line expense reporting tool XMS =01) XMS, our online expense reporting= =20 tool, enables us to expedite, monitor and report expenses. Effective July = 1,=20 all employees on domestic U.S. payroll will be required to use XMS for=20 reimbursement of business-related expenses. To access XMS, go to=20 http://xms.enron.com/. =20 ? Enterprise wide portal =01) We currently have 122 internal web sites acro= ss=20 the company. The amount of technology work, marketing collateral, and othe= r=20 related costs required to develop and support so many portals is sizeable. = =20 It makes sense to have one Enron portal so you can efficiently access conte= nt=20 and services through a single, personalized channel that will make it easie= r=20 for you to find information and perform basic tasks online. This new=20 company-wide portal, under the leadership of Tony Mends, will be launched i= n=20 several phases beginning this fall. =20 Another significant area where we can be more diligent in our spending is= =20 travel and entertainment. Enron has long had travel policies in place. As= =20 we have grown, we have not done as well as we should have in communicating= =20 those policies to new employees and reminding all employees to take advanta= ge=20 of the discounts we have negotiated. The availability of discounts and=20 booking services online should make it easy to save money for the company= =20 without sacrificing the comfort of employees who travel. The following are= =20 common sense recommendations that we should all adhere to when traveling fo= r=20 business. Any regular deviations from these travel policy recommendations= =20 will be reviewed by each business unit leader. ? Air travel =01) Employees are requested to use either Travel Agency in th= e=20 Park (TAP) or the GSS-approved preferred travel agency for your location -= =20 all of which have access to the significant airfare discounts negotiated by= =20 GSS - or http://clicktrip.enron.com/enron, the new online travel booking=20 service that allows employees to book their own travel with the same=20 negotiated discounts. Employees who fly in the United States should book= =20 non-refundable coach tickets, which are typically 65 percent less than=20 refundable tickets and can usually be changed by simply paying a $100 fee. = =20 For this reason, we strongly encourage all employees to purchase=20 non-refundable domestic coach tickets when possible. ? Lodging =01) GSS has also negotiated preferred rates at a number of hotel= =20 chains in many cities worldwide to accommodate each business unit=01,s=20 individual hotel policy. We recommend that you use Enron=01,s list of pref= erred=20 hotels to select accommodations that are in line with your business unit=01= ,s=20 policies. You can view the list at http://travel.enron.com. ? Car rental services =01) When renting a car for business travel, employee= s=20 should use our preferred car rental agencies =01) National (U.S. and Canada= ) and=20 Alamo (U.S.)- since the agreements we have negotiated are intended to prote= ct=20 you and Enron through the insurance coverage in our contract. Visit=20 http://travel.enron.com for details and updates to services available outsi= de=20 the U.S. ? Off-site meetings =01) All domestic-U.S. off-site meetings and events wit= h=20 more than 10 people should be coordinated through GSS, which will negotiate= =20 preferred rates for Enron. They can be reached at (713) 646-8311. Because there are differences between business units and offices, each=20 business unit leader will follow up this memo with a communication further= =20 elaborating on these policies as they apply to their business unit. Each of us has a responsibility to make sure we do our part to ensure Enron= =20 retains its competitive edge. These recommendations are some basic, sensib= le=20 actions we can take company-wide, but it is up to every employee to look fo= r=20 cost saving measures and do what makes sense in your daily activities. If= =20 you have an idea or a suggestion you would like to share with us, please=20 e-mail us at recommendationsforcostsavings@enron.com. A list of questions= =20 and answers about these policies is posted on=20 http://ibuyit.enron.com/gss/ibuyit/csfaq.doc. If you have additional=20 questions, Policy Committee member Kevin Hannon will host an eSpeak on=20 Tuesday, June 19 at 10 a.m. Houston time to discuss these cost saving=20 recommendations.
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