This week CWT Solutions Group announced it was expanding its "Successful Outsourcing Offer". It didn't offer specifics about how it was expanding it or why it was successful other than there being a "positive reception from its first 26 clients across a variety of industries".
CWT's announcement coincided with California's state legislature passing a bill which would re-define some workers, including Uber and Lyft drivers, as employees. These erstwhile "gig workers" will qualify in future for a minimum wage and unemployment benefits.
It's not surprising that Lyft and Uber have been at the forefront of the objectors. Uber's balance sheet is far from healthy. It has never in its history made a profit and managed to lose £5 billion in the past quarter alone. Its initial offer price was $45 — its share value immediately before the legislation passed was already down a third.
In California there's a new definition of what might comprise employment but, as CWT has discovered, companies' staff requirements also are changing.
"CWT Solutions Group can provide clients with Travel Managers, OBT Setup & Adoption Managers, Change & Communication Managers, OBT Implementation Managers, TMC Implementation Managers, Operational Travel Manager Support, and Strategic Outsourcing staff. The offer is also available to companies working with other TMCs."
Readers can be forgiven for thinking this makes CWT sound more like a temp agency for professionals than a travel management company or a B2B4E platform as it prefers to identify itself these days.
Many industry conversations have been had about what travel managers will want of their TMCs in the future. CWT's initiative probably stems from a recognition that what organisations want from their travel managers is also changing. Just as TMCs are no longer expected only to book and fulfil, TMs are expected to do much more than enable appropriate arrangements for travellers while keeping a lid on costs. There is a greater demand for data analytics and effective internal communication requires more input than posting a travel policy on a company extranet.
The need for specialists is not just a travel buyer issue.
A survey conducted earlier this year by hospitality consultants SSP and SearchWide Globalhas found that "74% of hoteliers want to bring in a senior-level contractor fast and 56% believe they can find them in less than two weeks.
"Findings suggest with the right conditions, the gig economy actually works, with 88% of contractors and 87% of hoteliers satisfied or very satisfied with the senior-level contractors."
Many believe workers such as Lyft and Uber drivers are in the so-called gig economy only as a means for companies to minimise their labour costs. Travel buyers and suppliers no doubt also yearn to manage their employment costs but their evolving skill requirements also mean that some work demands can be very specialised and short-term.
The California state court ruling which forms the basis for the new law says judged that workers are more likely to be considered employees if they perform a function central to a company's business.
For travel specialists beyond Uber and Lyft what is central is not a constant.