WAKING UP TO A
NEW ERA OF
BUSINESS TRAVEL
Post-pandemic
predictions for 2024
WORK HAS
EVOLVED.
That means big changes for business travel.
Corporate travel is undergoing a massive transformation right now.
What’s driving it? Big societal shifts. Remote working is here to stay, offering employees greater well-being and more work-life balance. Meanwhile, organizations are dealing with an ever-changing financial landscape and new environmental pressures. And at the same time, consumer trends are bleeding more and more into corporate ones. Combined, this means a whole lot of new expectations and friction to manage when it comes to business travel.
Travelport is shining a light on some of the ways our customers have quickly adapted to a changing landscape. Having acquired Deem earlier this year, we’re doubling down on our efforts to modernize business travel. And that starts by finding out what today’s business travelers care about most, and then using these insights to further support the modern retailing efforts of travel management companies (TMCs).
We’ve identified six key trends for the year ahead, using our own research, third-party industry sources, and through the collective brainpower of our customers. We’ve crafted examples of how they have modernized their approach to corporate travel to keep all stakeholders happy. So read on, as we bring you the very latest on the evolution of business travel.
CORPORATE TRAVEL IS BACK IN BUSINESS.
BUT WHAT’S CHANGED?
Since the pandemic ended, there’s been lots of speculation about the future of traveling for work. But in 2022, according to GBTA, global business travel expenditure increased by 47%, topping over one trillion US dollars. And that growth shows no signs of stopping. Spending is predicted to recover to pre-pandemic levels by the end of 2024 — faster than the previously projected mid-2026 forecast.
Why? First and foremost, because business travel is a logistical necessity for many people, like sales reps, client service managers, consultants, conferences and events staff, construction workers, circus folk etc. For these folks, being on the road is part and parcel of their role, and it’s budgeted for even more in the most uncertain of economic climates.Because nothing beats being face-to-face time with customers. And the others? They travel because their organizations want them to, remaining steadfast in the belief that meeting in person drives performance and growth. What might surprise you is to hear that almost nine out of ten (87%) of business travelers agree with them.
of employees think business travel is important to company growth
Source: Uber and GBTA report
Nonetheless, many companies are still struggling to get employees moving, and that’s because many are still working from home. In fact, by 2025 it’s projected that 32.6 million US employees will be remote workers. Since that changes the very nature of what ‘work’ looks like, there are also knock-on consequences for business travel, too.
Balancing what everyone wants and needs is a delicate act, and many companies are turning to TMCs to help them do it. So here are six key findings to take into 2024.
6 BUSINESS TRAVEL TRENDS FOR 2024
(AND HOW TO MANAGE THEM)
Research shows remote working offers employees a much better quality of life. So now, when they’re asked to hit the road, it’s important to remember people are giving up relatively much more than they were a few years ago. Business travel post-pandemic feels like a different (and bigger) ask. That doesn’t mean people don’t want to go, but when they do, they expect the same kind of freedom, flexibility, and personal time they enjoy in their daily lives.
of business travelers say their biggest priority is having options that support well-being, productivity, and aid recovery
Source: Travelport research 2022
To meet that need, our customers understand what ‘well-being’ truly means to people. For some, it means paying special attention to comfort, convenience, reward, and recovery time. For others, it means handier flight times, meeting times, or more R&R time. Overall, the goal is to create a feeling where work trips better reflect a normal day, causing less of an upheaval to one’s personal life. In 2024, employees will expect organizations to be flexible and look after their well-being — and this is even becoming as important as pay to many. This was one of the key takeaways from GBTA 2023 — mirroring the findings from Travelport’s third-party research study earlier this year.
OFFERING CHOICE, CUSTOMIZATION, AND RECOVERY TIME BUILDS GOOD WILL
In this strong employment market, well-being is a consideration when asking employees to travel. Research shows that if well-being suffers, people won’t stick around. Leavers create hassle for companies, as empty roles, recruitment costs, and training time all hit the bottom line either as costs or lost revenue.
of workers would consider leaving a company that does not focus on their well-being
Source: Gympass
Just like travel managers and TMCs, Travelport and Deem also believe the customer should always be at the center of any travel experience. After all, well-being isn’t just about healthcare benefits, lunchtime yoga, or hybrid working, it’s about all aspects of work life. But every individual has a specific definition of well-being — just like every business has a specific set of needs to be successful. So why do travel policies sometimes take a one-size-fits-all approach?
The most successful travel programs balance cost savings with traveler satisfaction. So we offer users a modern UI, robust content, and omnichannel support – and partnering with our customers to develop policies that prioritize wellness and productivity.
Direct Travel
Corporate travel managers and TMCs know it’s critical to provide transparency and give the traveler all the choices they need to make sure their needs are met, even if it’s limited somewhat by business policy. This may mean making exceptions and granting managers permission to override a rule, like adding extra legroom or access to a gym. It may mean building in extra recovery time, so they feel rested and ready for work on their return. And it means making sure employees don’t end up out-of-pocket by forking out for small comforts, like a convenient flight time.
Choosing travel technology that presents transparent, rich, and intelligent content and offers, while letting you set different permissions for different individuals makes this easy.
During the pandemic, many people were hired in locations far away from their designated offices. Others moved away from big cities, while being a ‘digital nomad’ became a career option. Companies meanwhile, got more freedom to hire talent from anywhere, including places where it costs them less. Fast-forward three years, and there’s now a new ask from these employees: to come to the office from time to time. So while ‘business travel’ may not have previously been a part of their job, now their ‘commute’ to a physical office might mean taking a flight instead of hopping in their car.
Visiting other offices isn’t something new, but the purpose, format, and frequency of visits is changing. Plus, it’s not just happening domestically anymore, but internationally, too. The EU, for example is taking steps to allow workers to move more freely between offices, albeit for a limited number of days per year, enabling them to fully immerse themselves in another way of life.
This trend has been dubbed ‘super commuting’ by some outlets, but unlike a regular, short-hop train or car journey, there’s more grounds for a business to pay for the trip. According to a Deloitte survey, relocated employees are now taking more trips to the company headquarters, most of which (70%) are either completely or partially paid for by the company. And that means there’s a new — or at least, an accelerated — type of business travel to account for in corporate travel policies.
Because the format of these visiting trips can vary quite a lot compared to typical business travel, e.g. to a conference, sales meeting, and so on. Visiting trips are infrequent and tend to be for longer. They’re usually designed to improve connectivity, morale, and retention, so may incorporate more leisure time and activities.
But the challenge with this (besides the income tax implications) is that many companies still rely on old travel policies that were written pre-pandemic, when this concept didn’t really exist, or at least, was an anomaly.
CORPORATE TRAVEL POLICIES ARE RIPE FOR MODERNIZATION
The many new types of working arrangements mean there’s a huge opportunity for travel managers, and many of them have already started to rethink corporate travel policies for these new and nuanced needs. For example, maybe you work for a big tech firm who takes out a long-term lease on corporate apartments for visiting staff, so your main challenge is finding suitable flights or car rental instead of accommodation. Or maybe your company no longer has a physical office, so your travel budget has been reallocated to get people together every so often. By refreshing your corporate travel policy, you can rise to these new challenges, and better balance the needs of travelers and the business.
Corporate travel policies exist to keep a lid on costs, and hitting budgets is sometimes a key measure of success when sending people on the road. But post-pandemic, business travel is about more than just cost containment. There are new metrics that travel managers and TMCs can help organizations improve, like well-being, retention, or productivity.
of business travelers want full transparency into what they are buying
Source: Travelport research
As consumers, we are all now much closer to the planning, booking, and servicing side of a trip than ever before. Plus, in our professional lives many people now enjoy more freedom working remotely, so it no longer feels natural for travel to be any different. All this means business travelers expect to see a wide variety of options, they expect more control over their trips, and they expect to be trusted to make responsible decisions.
That doesn’t mean don’t need or want the support of a TMC (more on this below) — it means more transparency and flexibility is needed from any modern corporate travel policy. To ensure employees do not bend the rules and find opportunities to poke holes in the process.
FIND CREATIVE WAYS TO MAKE CORPORATE POLICIES WORK FOR EVERYONE
There’s a huge opportunity to look to travel managers who are leading the change right now. Imagine if, instead of just having a set of rules, corporate travel policies were more agile? Yes, we still need rules, but business travel itineraries could certainly be more personalized and a little less one-size-fits-all.
Maybe there’s a preferable hotel a little farther from the client that’s a little cheaper. Maybe a traveler would trade a less comfortable flight for a more comfortable bed. Maybe they’re a foodie and they want to spend less on transport and more for a nice restaurant. It’s about empowering people to make choices and prioritize what’s most important to them, while not exploding costs.
Business travelers today want flexibility and personalization. So we’re giving them more choice, the ability to choose their own flights, hotels, and transportation, and creating custom itineraries to fit their individual needs and preferences.
Executive Travel
This is just one example of how we could rethink corporate policies and rule-setting. Letting business travelers have a say on what’s important to them sweetens the idea of business travel, as well as their affinity for where they work. But thinking this way means looking at business travel in terms of a total package, rather than overseeing each distinct element. But done right, it helps the traveler have a more satisfying trip, without negatively impacting the bottom line.
While companies need employees to travel for business, and they have to navigate new needs and operate efficiently, they’re also under mounting pressure to meet sustainability goals. In the U.S., for example, carbon accounting is set to become an SEC reporting requirement, so public companies at least will be required to reduce their carbon footprint and report on their impact.
And these companies aren’t just facing pressure from governments and environmental bodies. Climate change is a burgeoning topic with consumers too, and their concerns don’t go away just because they’re at work. Increasingly, business travelers — particularly younger ones, who are socially conscious — want more transparency on the environmental impact of their trips. On this point, businesses and employees do agree. So it’s not surprising that 63% of companies are investing more in sustainable travel, and 80% of business travelers want more sustainable options.
Nearly a quarter of business travelers would decline a trip based on sustainability concerns
Concur Study
SEEK OUT INSIGHTS ON TRAVEL CHOICES THAT MAKE A REAL DIFFERENCE
When we talk about the importance of choice, we don’t just mean flight times, bag options, and a choice of chicken or salmon. It’s about giving people more information and helping them make informed decisions. When it comes to sustainability, we believe, and the data support, corporate travel managers will play a huge role in driving things forward, as they have the budget and power to make a real difference. But to do that, customers need more than just a leaf icon in their workflow, they need real insight into what a ‘sustainable choice’ actually reflects.
One option is, instead of focusing on carbon offsetting, look at the carbon generating characteristics of every flight. Booking tools need to give customers and their TMC reliable numbers, so they can be factored into flight choices based on their rule set. That way, the reporting will be more accurate, and you’ll know how you’re really tracking against your carbon goals — something for which government and regulators are increasingly calling.
Finally, it’s worth highlighting one approach that companies are trying to reduce their environmental impact, which is sending employees on longer trips instead of multiple short ones. They arrange more meetings in the same city over a longer time, or a multi-city tour, saving on the total number of take-offs and landings. The downside to this is that longer, more demanding trips hit employee well-being, and we know where that leads, right? Not necessarily, if done right, as we’ll see in the next section.
Fewer but longer trips with more meetings is a good way to help the planet, but what does it mean for Susan who has to spend six days away from home, family, friends, and her expensive gym membership? In order to coax people out of cozy home offices and, business travelers are asking companies to make the prospect as appealing and as purposeful as possible.
It’s interesting to see a disconnect between what businesses and travel managers think matters vs. what employees actually want. According to research, travel managers think it’s about late-start days after travel (74%) or letting the traveler book with an airline/hotel they have a loyalty membership with (68%). But business travelers say they want more, like paid-for premium experiences (45%), or additional paid time-off (42%). In 2022/2023, roughly half of business travelers (47%) included additional time for leisure/personal time while (on at least some) of their trips. A further 61% would like their corporate travel policy to allow for some leisure time, plus the freedom to let partners or families join them at the employee’s expense.
We all missed out on trips during the pandemic, right? Less time in the office means time spent somewhere new and exciting. This is particularly relevant for younger employees, who typically want to travel more and view it as a work perk.
BLENDED TRAVEL EXPERIENCES DRIVE EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT
In the past, business trips often meant giving up 24 hours of your day, for a few days or more. But today’s focus on well-being means business travel needs to feel more like a normal day with time built in for R&R. So blended travel may be nothing new, but — as Amex GBT points out — remote working and the associated lifestyle expectations have accelerated the demand for it.
This doesn’t mean creating a vacation for employees, though some travel agencies are already starting to offer this service while some employers are looking at that as an option.. More broadly, this is about making sure your people have the flexibility to enjoy a blended travel experience. And even, helping them do it, through the TMC or corporate booking/expense tool.
of business travelers want recommendations for their trip. 85% want agencies to make them.
Source: 2023 Travelport research
Sometimes that only requires a rule set allowing the employee to use their own credit card for extras through the expense platform and the booking tool. Even with things the company would normally pay for (like hotels or meals), you can simply let the employee pay the difference for an upgrade. Or make it part of a rewards program — there are lots of routes to consider. Or you can allow the traveler to book some extras on the same itinerary. Or let them extend trips over a weekend to visit friends nearby or explore the destination. After all, Frankfurt may not be top of your places-to-visit list, but if work is sending you there, why not make the most of it?
Here’s an example: you’ve sent a salesperson to a meeting in Chicago on Friday, but they’ve also got to be in Cincinnati on Monday. Rather than flying home on Friday night, and back out on Monday, doesn’t it feel more rewarding to just connect the two trips and give them a little extra daily allowance for a ball game or a nice restaurant? It’s still cost savings, and the employee gets a better trip and feels more valued. The company benefits, too, because they’re proving they can be flexible, and that they value people’s well-being and personal time. Plus, they hit their sustainability goals. Win, win, win — as long as everyone’s needs are balanced fairly and satisfactorily.
These days, you really have to expect the unexpected. Whether that’s due to extreme weather events, political instability, strikes, or even, dare we say it, bed bugs — there are a lot of external factors that can cause unexpected changes to any kind of travel. According to Egencia, 69% of frequent business travelers now view disruption as normal. But the good news is, that doesn’t deter 94% of people from doing it.
The not-so-good news is that often business travelers don’t feel like they get much support when they need it. Fortune reports that less than a third of employees say they receive practical advice while traveling, including who to contact in an emergency or what to do in the event of an incident. And only a small majority of business travelers believe their company can help with an emergency or personal crisis while traveling abroad. One thing is for sure, that uncertainty is not great for well-being.
Our customers are telling us: travel is more prone to change than ever now, so we need more support on the road. To keep everyone moving, we’re using modern retailing technology to better manage itinerary changes, self-services, and communicating with customers
Altour
Increasingly, business travelers (and especially younger ones) are turning to new technology for help managing disruption too. No, that doesn’t mean they’re going to ask ChatGPT for advice if an earthquake happens. It means they’re using it to get things like real time updates, timesaving tips, view activity heat maps in destinations, and make arrangements if circumstances change unexpectedly.
USE RETAILING TECHNOLOGY TO HANDLE THESE DEMANDS
All areas of the travel industry have faced serious short-staffing challenges over the past three years. Coupled with more demands for more support (especially urgent ones) this is a big strain on TMCs. To tackle this, TMCs and agencies benefit from technology that offers richer insights for the traveler, with the right range of choices available in the corporate booking tool. Individuals have different needs and concerns, and functionality that takes that into account is so important — particularly for female safety and LGBTQI+ people. This also allows our customers to deliver greater duty of care, by considering crime levels and traveler safety without the traveler having to scramble for research.
While 77% of respondents have used chatbots, roughly the same amount want the option of live chatting with a human.
Source: 2023 Travelport research
Automation and AI can help companies and TMCs support travelers more proactively, so they don’t need to do it themselves. When something goes wrong, customers need tools to communicate directly with travelers in advance and give them choices to help plan for all eventualities. Many want self-service capabilities, so they feel in control of their trip when the world around them isn’t. These days, people expect a range of contact options and things like live chat, so problems get resolved immediately, without having to wait for a callback. And as always, the human touch is critical: many want a real-life agent always standing by to help if plans change. Surprisingly, this is even more important for younger travelers.
CAN HELP YOU GET PEOPLE MOVING
Travelport and Deem believe the customer should always be at the center of both the travel experience and the corporate travel policy. After all, happy travelers make the best ambassadors a company can hope to have representing them out in the world.
Over the past few years, we’ve been innovating and investing in the corporate travel space, because this is a sector we believe in. To that end, we’re focused on modernizing the customer experience and making business travelers happy. And hey, many people really enjoy traveling for work (we sure do). But it’s important to keep in mind what they’re now giving up to do so, especially compared to five years ago.
Now is the time many innovative customers are modernizing business travel policy to put people first, and make the process easy, efficient, and comfortable. If you’re a corporation, that means harmonizing employee needs with your own. If you’re a TMC, you’ll be used to harmonizing everyone’s needs, but now, there are new things to consider.
Yes, that means thinking about things differently. Like measuring success not only by cost containment, but by well-being, retention, productivity, and meeting sustainability goals. But you’ll soon reap the benefits. Employees will be happier. TMCs will play a more invaluable role. Travel managers will find it easier to keep people within policy, cut costs, reduce leakage, and deliver on duty of care. And organizations will slash recruitment costs too.
But to do all that, customers need flexible technology that offers transparency, rich, intelligent content, offers, and the ability to set different permissions at the individual level. It’s our job to help you. We can offer the maximum choice in travel content, enable more flexibility in delivering compliant offers, and supply the data that helps measure results.
We aim to provide all the right choices. We aim to help customers find the right trip.
We aim to deliver a modern, easy-to-use platform that makes booking and servicing, simple.