Business Travel Executive, June 2018

SPECIAL REPORT Tools of the Trade ers and the company incorporates those rates into the offering We can also offer them a comparative display for spot deals that can be transitionally better than their own Lau Keng Lun says Small to medium sized companies can find negotiating on their own behalf to be less cost effective In that case TMC volume negotiated rates can really bring costs down and increase compliance A Clients Influence While the travel management company buys the tool to fit client needs the clients strategy certainly carries weight in the decision making process Although TMCs can recommend ultimately its a clients choice to implement Thats why Rizzi says its the job of the travel management company to truly understand the corporate culture and appetite for innovation to put the right change management plan in place Our position on travel tech is to act as a guardian of their travel program by being a technology integrator that vets the best suppliers of specific use cases he says For example Travel Leaders Simple Meetings Optimizer is one tool that gives companies more control and effectiveness in hosting and executing simple meetings which represent over 80 percent of the meetings spend for companies Any TMC that doesnt listen to their clients will find themselves swiftly out of business Rizzi says What we find is that our clients are very sophisticated in their industries but many dont understand the complexities of business travel What they want is a business travel expert to guide them Theyre not necessarily concerned with what the tool is but how it helps them The TMC has reseller agreements with booking tools However this is not a must and Strauss believes the travel manager needs to take back control We have a financial institution that completely took back control and purchased their own individual tailor made booking tool where they can create their own rules by themselves No need for them to schedule a meeting and vote for a feature he says If they want a feature they can simply order it They get pure unfiltered data They can react within hours They have all they need to negotiate with their suppliers This close relationship between seller and buyer enables them to know first hand if a provider leaves a certain channel Driven to Compliance When Rizzi hears about travelers who arent in compliance he says they generally fall into two categories Those who dont know how to use the tools available to them and those who just dont want to In the first category education is a must but also looking at your business travel tools to see if they are just not what your travelers need he says For those who dont want to its helpful to offer ways to keep them in compliance Neveu explains One of the challenges for any business traveler is there are a lot of different ways that content providers are trying to connect with the traveler Airlines hotels and rental cars all have their own mobile apps The challenge as a tech provider is we have to make sure we have as frictionless a transaction as possible We need to provide solutions to TMCs who can augment them Egencia believes that compliance should happen naturally and without mandates When you focus on solving for the business traveler provide them ample choice guide them to efficient decisions and stand by them when they need help then compliance becomes a simple thing Lau Keng Lun says What you should do is eliminate friction everywhere you can If you need to drive compliance then it is probable that you are dealing with a clunky system Moreover he says when one communicates strongly about travel risk management most travelers are aware that when they book in system their travel manager will know how to reach them in case of need something that would be harder to do if they booked outside the system A travel policy is the backbone of a companys travel and expense management program and a gateway to greater cost efficiency safety and productivity for employees who go away on business But unless employees comply with its restrictions and parameters its more like a GPS that drivers choose to ignore at their own and their companys peril Thats why Holmes has three suggestions to ensure compliance know your policy know your traveler and balance savings and satisfaction To ensure compliance clarity and awareness are key Without clear well known guidelines your employees are likely to follow their own behavioral patterns rather than your travel policy and replace official procedures with personal preferences he says Before you can improve the travel experience you need to get a clear read on what employee expectations likes and dislikes are when it comes to business travel Use a free online survey tool like Survey Monkey to gather employee input or assemble employee focus groups where travelers can dialogue about experience and preferences in person he advises Solicit feedback on the policy itself too As his third point Holmes notes while important cost savings shouldnt come at the expense of traveler satisfaction or efficiency A travel policy that enshrines cost savings as the sole priority cheapens the companys relationship with the traveling employee BTE Business Travel Executive JUNE 2018 28