take startling steps to cut costs by slashing the travel budget. Yet travel audits repeatedly indicate that many companies may have cut the wrong type of travel. Learning which kind of travel to cut is half the lesson.” The other half of the lesson, according
to Koch, is learning that effective travel is part of motivated sales. Some companies are still trimming the travel experience as a cost-savings measure, he says. “In the past quarter, it has become more common to require authorisation from a vice-president for certain levels of travel. Companies have restricted business class travel to eight, ten, or even 12 hours in the air. What many firms have yet to learn is that increasing the tension or stress levels on the business traveller can impact profitability, too. Tired travellers, dealing with crashed computers, poor com- munications, or questionable support are at a disadvantage to their competition.” Koch says the emergence of smart data, collected through social media and mobile devices, will go a long way in affirming the relationship between supported travel – designed to assist the traveller in making the sale – and just getting there. Business travel was impacted by the banking crisis of 2008, along with every other sector of industry. But it is, according to the experts, one of the few professional service sectors to report an upswing ahead of the broader economy. The Guild of Travel Management Companies’ CEO Paul Wait believes this is no coincidence. “Business travel has played a key role in recovery. I am very clear that business travel is not a luxury or a side effect of corporate profligacy. Put simply, business travel is an enabler to growth and should never be overlooked – the two are inextricably linked.” One must hope the IMF shares his confidence.
BUYINGBUSINESSTRAVEL.COM THE ADVOCATE
SINCE TAKING OVER AS CHIEF EXECUTIVE of the Guild of Travel Management Companies (GTMC) last year, Paul Wait has been a fierce advocate of business travel’s role in driving the success of UK plc. If he’s not shouting from the rooftops about airport expansion, he is working tirelessly to convince the business community about the significance of investing in travel. “It’s an essential part of any business’s day-to-day operations, let
alone growth,” he affirms. The GTMC’s quarterly transaction report (the number of air, accommodation, and ground transportation bookings made by its members) shows that business travel has been tracking just ahead of UK gross domestic product (GDP). In the last quarter of 2013 transactions grew 7 per cent on the same quarter of the previous year. For the same period GDP increased by 0.7 per cent. Wait insists it demonstrates a very clear link between business travel and corporate profitability. “We have now been tracking trends for 12 months and see a clear link between growth in GDP and increased business travel expenditure,” he says. “To a business travel professional, the signs of economic recovery, particularly at the start of this year, are no surprise. In order to explore new markets, increase sales and attract new customers, a company needs to mobilise its sales efforts. When uplift in air business travel is tracked, it is an early indicator of renewed confidence.” Wait acknowledges business relationships can be aided by technology such as videoconferencing, but insists they can’t be created, nurtured and enhanced without face-to-face contact. “Add to this the fact we’re an island,” he says. “New business opportunities are a journey away.” Wait says many of the emerging economies identified as offering
growth potential for UK are in Africa, Asia and South America, and require travel to forge new relationships and make commitments to understanding new markets and sectors.
BBT MAY/JUNE 2014 53
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