Business Travel Executive, March 2020

Most ground transportation companies get lumped together in an RFP and the reality is there are distinct differences 12 Business Travel Executive askBTE com March 2020 The availability of multiple options is important for travel buyers to consider when formalizing policies Guadagnoli says But it can be tricky to understand costs especially when dealing with price per trip and in different areas and municipalities For example emerging local legislation across the country requires TNCs to pay per trip taxes In Chicago a recently instituted tax on rideshare services in the downtown area is aimed at reducing congestion Such measures potentially increase the cost for travelers and their companies so they should be considered in looking at overall trip costs Joey Phelps Sr executive vice president at EmpireCLS thinks theres a widespread misunderstanding of the costs associated with supplying ground transportation Procurement teams and financial analysts have a responsibility to negotiate competitive rates but there is a breaking point Phelps says Most ground transportation companies get lumped together in an RFP and the reality is there are distinct differences that should be considered when awarding a contract He says when you think about the risks involved with transportation in general its imperative to thoroughly understand your options Of course employee safety is an ongoing concern The growing number of safety risks for business travelers and the responsibility of companies to update travel risk mitigation and duty of care policies to better protect customers is receiving increased awareness Guadagnoli says He notes Enterprise works closely with travel managers and stresses the importance of travel tourism and hospitality suppliers to provide resources and education to leisure and business travelers In addition the company looks for its own suppliers to have the technology communication and process in place to provide duty of care throughout the traveler experience The need for corporate travel managers to get travelers where they need to be while keeping them safe requires open sharing of relevant policies and practices says Liz Carisone CEO of GroundLink In an increasingly globalized world companies are sending employees all over the world sometimes in unfamiliar environments she says We recommend that corporate travel managers ask transportation partners to share their duty of care policies and develop their own duty of care travel risk management policies for their companies On the most basic level this should include confirming that transportation providers offer a variety of ways for passengers to connect such as phone messaging online and app In the case of a natural disaster or even a change of plans multiple lines of communication are essential Carisone says Preparing for the Future In a transitional era what are the best practices with ground transportation Guadagnoli advises staying informed on all the options If your supplier isnt helping to educate you and providing you updated information you need to ask Travel managers typically focus on air hotel and car rental in that order of priority he says But the many changes that are rapidly occurring in ground transportation mean that while this space is becoming increasingly consumer friendly overall it is also becoming much more complex for those who must write and formalize travel policies In dealing with providers Phelps suggests requiring detailed information such as insurance documents listing the actual vehicles each company owns and revenue generated in specific markets of interest outside of owned locations Considering Every Alternative Business travelers rely on a mix of ground transportation options depending on their needs Ground transportation is not a one size fits all scenario for business travelers says Don Moore senior vice president of global business rental for Enterprise Holdings Employees are selecting and corporate travel policies are allowing for multiple modes of transportation in a single trip and car rental continues to play an important role in that mix Source National Car Rental State of Business Travel Survey 78 choose rental cars for getting around the city 72 choose rental cars for going to business meetings 68 choose ridesharing to get to restaurants and bars 70 choose taxis and rideshares equally to and from the airport SR SPECIAL REPORT