There has been intense focus on the supposed negative effects of business travel in recent years so it is refreshing to see a survey that appears to show a different view.
CWT's Connected Traveller Survey is the result of a poll of 1,900 frequent business travellers carried out in March and April this year and covering EMEA, APAC and the Americas.
The survey found that 86% of business travellers said travel helped them build new knowledge and perspective, while 80% said business travel boosted their productivity. Additionally, more than 9 in 10 (93%) said that travel positives outweighed negatives when it comes to building and maintaining relationships at work, while nearly 8 in 10 (77%) said the same about their home lives.
Simon Nowroz, chief marketing officer, Carlson Wagonlit Travel, said, "The business traveller can be so much more productive than even five years ago thanks to technology. Think about the advances where a business traveller used to have so much down time between a flight, taxi and hotel. Now, they can login and work while on the plane or wherever they happen to be. With the continued emergence of the tablet, as well as numerous apps, travellers don't feel out of touch as they carry out business."
However many travellers still reported some negative effects from regular business travel. Our chart this week shows the regional differences in the effect of business travel on personal relationships and travellers' social lives.
These figures show that there is still some considerable way to go to reduce the "friction" caused by business trips.
