Travel management goes beyond booking flights and hotels; it’s how a company tracks and reports on all business-relevant travel and expenses. Financial and safety policies of corporate travel are strictly followed.
Your company is growing, so business travel is increasing, too. Corporate travel management software alleviates the process of managing rapidly-changing arrangements for the entire hierarchy of corporate travelers in the company.
Questions about best business practices arise continuously, so we created this guide to equip you with all you need to know about corporate travel management.
How does a travel management company work?
Corporate travel management can be 1) outsourced or 2) handled in-house. Outsourced management is usually handled by a corporate travel agent or agency. In-house travel management is typically handled by a corporate travel manager, an employee at the same company.
Travel management software companies support both travel managers and the travelers themselves with ameliorated business travel.
Travel management companies help businesses:
- Set up corporate travel policies
- Centralize??? all travel booking
- Manage employees’ itineraries
- Track travel expenditures in real-time
- Accurately report on all travel expenses
- Access 24/7 traveler support
Kind of a one-stop-shop for booking, managing and reporting on business travel.
A single booking tool centralizes travel policy guidelines and all employee travel plans so travel managers don’t have to chase down receipts or traveler information.
What does an in-house travel manager do?
- Create and enforce the company’s corporate travel policy
- Book travel and all travel accommodations
- Manage traveler safety
- Oversee the company’s travel budget
- Manage reimbursements for travel expenses.
Corporate travel management gets business travelers where they need to go, while keeping the company’s finances top of mind.
What are the greatest challenges of travel management?
With so many moving employees, corporate travel management can be a tricky discipline to master. Challenges in travel management include:
- Enforcing corporate travel policy. About one in three American business travelers foregos company policy when booking travel for work, citing convenience and priceBUT THEY ARE NOT PAYING ANYWAY? as top reasons for eschewing their corporate travel program’s rules.
- Ensuring the safety of business travelers and making alternative plans for them when flights get cancelled or delayed.
- Striking a balance between traveler comfort and the company’s budget.
The obstacles of corporate travel management are tricky, but not insurmountable.
How can challenges in corporate travel management be addressed?
Dedicated corporate travel managers or travel agents must be on-call around the clock. Corporate travel agencies ensure traveler safety, and help rebook cancelled plans.
A comprehensive corporate travel policy helps combat all of the above-mentioned challenges efficiently.
Currently trending in travel management:
- Convenience over cost – More companies are choosing fares that provide convenience and flexibility, even though the cost is considerably higher.
- Less travel roadblocks – Companies are foregoing pre-booking approval in order to lock in the best rates on flights and accommodations.THIS IS NOT CLEAR TO ME
- Leisure – Business travelers tend to extend work trips, to include time for leisure.UM …WHY?
How is A.I. (Artificial Intelligence) transforming business travel?
Artificial intelligence is improving the lives of business travelers and their corporate travel managers. AI “learns” traveler preferences like hotel locations, and seat choices on flights. Now, travel managers can spend less time booking, allocating more time for strategic business decisions, and enforcing company travel policies.
Where is the foreseeable future of the corporate travel industry?
The future of corporate travel looks bright. By 2023, business travel will be a $1.67 billion industry. That amounts to 4.1% growth in the market year over year.
Group travel is gaining popularity for corporate travelers for things like conferences and retreats, leading to a rise in the use of home-sharing AS IN AIRBNB? for corporate travel. While traditional hotels used to have a monopoly on accommodations for business trips, 700,000 companies now encourage employees to book accommodations through Airbnb for Work. This figure represents three times growth in Airbnb for Work adoption since 2015.
]The popularity of home-sharing has led to a direct increase of managed corporate travel programs.
Recommendations for hiring an effective travel manager:
- Outline your specific policy needs from a corporate travel manager and determine how much you can afford to pay them.
- Write a compelling job description.You want to attract….???
- Network online with reputable job boards, and relevant travel industry associations
- Ask travel program managers of various companies whatever you’d like to know. Compare responses, and learn!
- Best tools for corporate travel managers on the job:
You’ve hired the perfect candidate. Congratulations! Decide upon strategic initiatives and traveler safety, collaboratively.
Empower your employees to book arrangements that align with company policy, and remind your corporate travel manager to track individual traveling behavior responsibly.
Corporate travel management ensures that business travelers get where they need to go safely, while keeping a strategic eye on the company’s spending.