The corporate travel sector is experiencing exponential growth post-pandemic across the world. Companies are catching up with the past way of conducting business and organizing various meetups. This has led to surmounting pressure on the travel managers. Further, the booking bulk is only increasing business travel challenges with each passing day. Hence, travel managers should find innovative solutions for the smooth management of business travel.
Critical business travel challenges and their solutions
1. Getting cost-effective inventories
While there are many flight and hotel options available for corporate travel, getting the affordable ones is a challenge. Travel managers have to ensure that the affordable flights don’t compromise the experience of the employees. Booking at the last moment is not always good option; hence, travel managers should plan the bookings in advance. Further, they should also pay attention to the cancellation policies of the hotels and flights in case of changes in plans. Most flights and hotels have sloppy money-back policies that one should be aware of. Though finding affordable flights remain a top corporate travel management challenge, travel managers can take the help of online travel agencies using effective booking platforms like Paxes.
2. Integrating effective travel policies
Employing well-thought travel policies is key to efficient business travel. The travel policies maintain the rules and regulations on booking flights and hotels and provide safety procedures during emergencies. However, in the absence of travel agencies and corporate travel management platforms, implementing such travel policies is next to impossible. Therefore, travel managers should opt for OTAs using self-booking travel management platforms adhering to travel policies. These platforms also help provide easy and quick solutions for booking flights and hotels.
3. Employing travel safety and support
With increasing travel booking requirements, managing and providing support to each employee becomes a common corporate travel challenge. Travel managers have to maintain the safety of every employee on travel to preserve the duty of care obligations and ensure the employee’s trust in the organization. The lack of travel support also increases the divide between the professionals and the organization. Travel agencies with 24×7 support can help efficiently maintain the safety of the traveling employee while guiding them through the various issues faced on travel.
4. Travel expense fraud
Travel expense fraud is one of the top corporate travel management challenges. Though managers remain vigilant while looking at the invoices submitted by the employees, there always remain the chance of travel expense fraud. Employees can submit edited invoices with fraudulent expenses. It is very important to curtail such costs; hence, one must use efficient travel management platforms to track bigger expenses. Further, travel agencies can act as the regulatory party by constantly being in touch with the employee while on their travel.
5. Cumbersome reimbursement process
It is usual corporate travel challenge for employees to spend on business travel from their pocket. Small expenses such as restaurant bills, stationary charges, and cab fares can’t be predicted. Hence, employees have to conduct the expenditure from their pockets. In such cases, companies generally reimburse the expenses through numerous tiresome processes. This sometimes crops out a rift between the employee and the organization. Travel managers can automate the reimbursement process with easy and quick approvals from the platforms to resolve the issue.
How can you improve business traveler experience?
Here are some of the top ways to improve the travel experience of the employees:
- Provide clear and timely communication
- Streamline the booking process
- Offer personalized experiences
- Provide support during the trip
- Prioritize comfort and convenience
Suggested Read: 11 Business Travel Tips For A Comfortable Corporate Travel
Final words
Overcoming the various business travel challenges that travel managers face is not easy. Even established travel businesses have to deal with the problem. The best way ahead is to carry out a complete refurbishment of the accounting systems and strategies. There are several options available in this domain today. Software developers are working hard to create billing systems that comply with industry demands.
Many dedicated service providers like Paxes help corporates and travel agencies manage invoices, international bookings, and more. Choosing Paxes is the simplest way to eliminate the challenges faced by online travel agencies and corporates. It can automate payment and invoicing while reducing human effort. Further, it helps employees book flights and hotels while being well within travel policies.
Business Travel Challenges FAQs
What are the challenges that travel managers face in business travel?
Several challenges faced by travel managers include the difficulty of making mass bookings for employees at one particular time, as it is difficult to track multiple bookings at once.
How can travel managers reduce costs in corporate travel?
Travel managers help in effectively reducing costs through planning the bookings and inventory beferhand in order to get the best prices and quality travel products for the corporates. Policies such as cancellation is also taken into account from preventing any losses.
Why is travel safety and security important?
Employees who travel for business should be protected and covered from any risks or threats that may occur during the course of their travel. Support services during corporate travel is important as it helps employees stay connect to organization as well as the TMCs during any mishaps and provide solutions for the same.
How can we prevent travel expense fraud?
Corporations as well as TMCs need to be attentive and careful about tracking all the activity of employees when traveling for business. Top corporate TMCs effectively use a travel management platform or application integrated with all the major travel policies in order to track the activity and expenses of corporate travel.
How can TMCs and organizations track expenses?
The organizations need to be vigilant when employees go through the reimbursement process, which might be difficult and confusing to maintain and process such records. Travel management platforms should be integrated to track such expenses for organizations to make the process hassle-free and efficient.
