ACTE, GBT look ahead to business travel's future

The Association of Corporate Travel Executives (ACTE) has launched The Evolution of Travel Policy: A Global View on the Future, detailing how corporations currently address a range of traveller considerations, while looking ahead to the changes that companies around the globe will be making to their managed travel programmes over the next two years.

Created in partnership with American Express Global Business Travel (GBT), the report surveyed over 350 corporate travel managers around the world to explore the future of travel policy including a snap shot of how CTMs around the world are responding to the continuing shift in the balance between savings and service.

The main findings of the report include:

• Managed travel is at a turning point as corporate travel managers and buyers shift focus from negotiating supplier savings and concentrate on traveller behaviour. Eighty-four per cent of research respondents say savings will be achieved through demand management and compliance over the next one to two years.
• Improved traveller service will play a critical role in driving compliance, according to travel managers. The report looks at the technology tools – both in use and under consideration – that organizations are deploying to enhance the traveller experience including pre-trip messaging, mobile booking and mobile apps for in-trip changes.
• Metrics are becoming more traveller-centric as organizations seek to manage the impact of business travel on their travellers and ask travel departments to justify spend on service.  A small cohort of pioneering travel managers is exploring measures around traveller stress reduction and work-life balance
• Total Cost of Travel tops the travel manager’s policy wish-list with over half wishing that they were able to give their organization a complete ROI for every business trip within two years.

To download a copy of the report, visit https://www.amexglobalbusinesstravel.com/acte.