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www.glasgowchamberofcommerce.com
In times of austerity or tight budgets, people travelling for business might not receive the
levels of comfort and luxury they have enjoyed in the past, but you’ll want your people to arrive at their destination refreshed and ready to perform at their best”
Different needs The bottom line is that travelling is expensive. And the needs of business travellers are not the same as those who are travelling for leisure. For example, there is often the need to operate to a specific timetable. It may be necessary for the person involved to work while they are travelling and they may need to be in regular contact with head office while they are away. There are lots of elements that
have to be smoothly integrated. Arrangements have to be right for the person taking the trip, they have to be fiscally responsible, and above all, they have to be safe.
It might seem simple enough
to use online tools to check airline prices, then pair a flight with a hotel that’s close to the business meeting you or your colleagues are attending. But that can sometimes be more convoluted than it sounds – one thing to remember is that travel search sites can have time limited offers and the deal you spot might not be available after the travel has been authorised. Accordingly, leaving individuals to decide their own travel plans could not only be costly but could land the person involved with a logistical and organisational headache. If your firm handles its own travel
arrangements, it’s more than likely you’ll have to nominate someone to oversee each trip, making sure
KEY FACTORS
The Global Business Travel European Business Travel Barometer for 2018 revealed that the key factors determining the setting up of travel and expense policies remain: • the safety and security of travellers • effectiveness and productivity of travelling employees • control of direct and indirect costs • employee satisfaction.
it meets the company’s needs and any policies you have in place. That can be hard for a finance manager, who’s often given the task but whose expertise, understandably, doesn’t lie in the world of ticketing, timetables and train fares. If this responsibility is tacked onto their role there’s every chance they will end up depending on travel providers for help. However, if you appoint a travel management company you’ll find their knowledge of the industry working for you. You’ll benefit from savings gained through negotiated rates for airfares, hotel and car hire costs, and so on. A good agency will provide you with a tailor-made 24/7 service, and help with issues such as changes and cancellations, travel analysis, discount negotiation, tracking of spending, advanced warning of severe weather that might affect travel plans, and so on. They will make sure your policies
are followed, bringing consistency to your approach. You’ll find that you hand responsibility to people who understand the sector and can deliver what’s needed effectively. Basic oversight processes are handled by a firm that has the right expertise, experience and industry connections. And individual employees will
praise the Lord that they don’t have to figure out their own complicated reservations and travel plans. When you want to assess
performance it’s easier to measure one single company through a service level agreement (SLA), than by using a series of matrices across a range of firms. The SLA helps you make sure the quality of service you expect is met. It can include options such as specific periods when a report will be produced for review.
Consideration As with any business service, hiring a travel management company can come with drawbacks.
For one, it can be difficult to
review the quality of the service provided by a travel management firm unless you set up a process where your staff can give regular feedback. If you have a strong corporate culture, any outside company you commission must recognise and observe your goals and values, especially when they are acting on your behalf. And, if you operate multiple sites, it could be that some of your people are reluctant to take suggestions or directions from an outside firm. Of course, there’s no guarantee
you will realise financial savings by outsourcing, but at the least you should be looking at similar yearly costs. Furthermore, it makes sense to remember that a travel management company with expert industry insight will be able to negotiate better rates with vendors than a company that doesn’t have that sector knowledge. In times of austerity or tight budgets, people travelling for business might not receive the levels of comfort and luxury that they have enjoyed in the past. However, if they are your people you’ll want them to arrive at their destination refreshed and ready to perform at their best, having been able to carry out any necessary work on the way. You’ll want them to stay in a comfortable location that has the resources and amenities they need, and transport on the ground that gets them where they need to be, when they need to be there. Stevenson knew a thing or two about wandering the globe and he also said: “We are all travellers in the wilderness of this world, and the best we can find in our travels is an honest friend.” Choose your travel management company wisely and you’ll benefit from having your own honest friend.
*THE EVP 2018 EUROPEAN Business Travel Barometer was produced by American Express with market research carried out by the BVA Group.
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