Business Travel Tips

How does a corporation quickly and easily locate travelers who might be impacted by an event somewhere in the world? And, how does the corporation also ensure that policies related to the maximum number of employees or executives on one flight are followed to avoid worst-case scenarios?

To address these questions, Sabre Travel Network today announced that corporations now can get direct access to near real-time information to allow them to easily and quickly locate employee travelers in seconds and respond quickly in the event of an emergency or travel disruption.

Sabre’s Traveler Security and Data Suite is a web-based solution that provides the ability to quickly locate travelers worldwide and get detailed information such as travel reservation and personal contact information.
Through it, corporations can also identify potential security concerns with planned travel – such as identifying when the number of executives on one flight has been exceeded.

Sabre first launched the Travel Security and Data Suite in mid-2007. The new release now allows corporate agencies that subscribe to the solution to provide direct access to their corporate clients for immediate 24/7 access to the same information, as well as the ability to define and create their own reports.
The access is available through an interactive, easy-to-use web application, available via a secure link.

The Travel Security and Data Suite, supported in six languages, is currently available in North America, Latin America, the United Kingdom and most European markets. For additional information, visit Travel Security and Data Suite page.

According to a survey sponsored by travel specialist Amadeus and the Association of Corporate Travel Executives (ACTE), very few businesses have incorporated new mobile services into their corporate travel programmes.

The study, which polled 100 corporate travel managers and technology experts worldwide on their views of how mobile IT is impacting the sector, shows 80 per cent of businesses are aware of the benefits of the use of mobile IT, from increases in productivity of travelers, to improvements in safety and tracking of staff.

However, despite the businesses believe mobile technology will increase productivity and support corporate policy compliance, they have made little progress in implementing changes to their infrastructure.

According to the report, one of the chief benefits of mobile technology felt by the respondents was tracking and communication of travelers for security purposes. (source)

Despite softness in the economy and rising costs for both domestic and international trips, companies say that travel is a crucial element for their business.
According to the American Express Business Travel’s second annual Strategic Sourcery procurement practices survey, released today, 83 percent of companies expect their travelers to take the same or increase the number of trips this year as compared to last year.

- Companies continuously searching for ways for cost savings

62 percent of companies are looking to procurement activities to produce savings of five to 15 percent this year with another 19 percent expecting even greater savings. Over the past year, 67 percent of the companies surveyed credited procurement activities with creating savings for their travel budgets.

According to the survey data, meetings management continues to be a focus for savings opportunities. Nearly half of the surveyed companies reported the use of procurement practices in meeting planning with a four percentage point increase over last year’s results.

Frank Schnur, Vice President of Consulting for American Express Business Travel’s Advisory Services, says: “Along with the traditional areas of travel spend – air, hotel and car – companies are also scrutinizing their meetings programs for potential new areas for cost savings. Applying many of the same practices and strategies, companies are achieving meeting savings through strategic sourcing and other procurement best practices,”. (source)

American Express Business Travel announced it will be launching its Intelligent Online Marketplace (AXIOM) for travel and related business services in the UK later this year.

This Web-based marketplace, launched in January 2007 in the United States, brings together inventory from more than 135,000 suppliers to provide an industry leading one-stop-shop, where employees can find, purchase and manage both traditional travel, flights, hotel stays and car rentals, and other services, such as airport parking, dining, ground transportation, package shipping and audio conferencing.

AXIOM aims to give companies the control over unmanaged expenses which, according to American Express, can account for 49 percent of all travel and entertainment costs, the other half being from managed expenses such as air, hotel and car. (source)

By aggregating thousands of suppliers in one online shopping environment, AXIOM helps travel managers and procurement managers strategically source secondary corporate services in addition to the traditional sourcing of fares, room nights and rentals.
Business services suppliers through AXIOM will be able to directly offer their services to clients of American Express Business Travel.

According the analysis on business travel cost for 2007 released yesterday by American Express Business Travel, international rates experienced increases while rates in the U.S. remained stable.
Tight global supply and high fuel costs drove continued price growth for international business travel in 2007. However the average airfare for U.S. stabilized in 2007 due to a combination of factors including the expansion of low fare models and the behavior of travelers who book their trips further in advance by taking advantage of lower, advance purchase fares.

Herve Sedky, Vice President and General Manager, Global Advisory Services, American Express Business Travel, says: “Companies can achieve savings in this environment through a well managed, dynamic travel and entertainment program allowing the flexibility to adjust their travel policies in real-time accordance with fast-moving industry changes“.

American Express Business Travel has recently added Change Management as a consulting competency. A practice area that offers best practices for monitoring and influencing traveler behavior to improve compliance to corporate policies and procedures.
Frank Schnur, Vice President, Advisory Services, American Express Business Travel, says incremental cost savings made possible through this new practice area can range between 11 percent and 33 percent of a company’s total air spend.

Below data from American Express Business Travel’s analysis on business travel cost for (more…)