Matthew Judge
In today's modern environment — rife with mobile phones, tablets and other smart technology — it is now possible to keep a closer eye on employees travelling overseas than ever before. However, as we begin to increasingly rely on such technology in our travel security plans, and perhaps ironically leave these applications to their own devices, this technological takeover can provide a false sense of security to businesses and, worse still, actually put employees in greater danger.
The origins of tracking
The development of technology systems to support travel risk management has evolved enormously since the early 2000s. The latest tracking systems can now track travellers (through their handheld devices) in real-time, through applications that make use of inbuilt GPS technology. These apps offer an enhanced level of employee monitoring that provides acute visibility of the activated device by displaying its location to within a few metres.
However, many businesses are beginning to think the problem of ensuring travel safety is solved exclusively with use of GPS technology and apps, and that knowing an employees' location at a critical moment in time will be enough to keep them safe. This simply is not the case and, when considering the rise of such applications, it is important to remember that use of these tools should only ever form one part of a wider security strategy.
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Getting it right
GPS technology only becomes truly useful when you look at what is going on around the employee you are tracking as well as where they are going. For instance, are they travelling close to a known trouble hotspot or protest area? Is the road they are driving down subject to car-hijackings or robberies?
Understanding the risk around employees can help a business deal with potential issues in advance — providing the ability to not only respond but to also monitor and take steps to mitigate anticipated risks, resulting in a more rounded approach to ensuring a safe journey for the employee.
The most reliable traveller tracking systems are based on receiving travel itinerary information as soon as the business trip is booked. The systems capture vital trip and traveller contact information, which means that in the event of an incident the employer can immediately identify potentially impacted employees and contact them to ensure their safety and offer support. They can also contact others who are due to travel to the affected area and warn them of possible disruption or danger, so the trip can be postponed or cancelled altogether. In addition, knowing where employees are intending to travel before their trip begins gives the employer time to undertake a risk assessment of the trip and ensure that corporate travel safety policy is being complied with.
As well as providing practical protection measures, the joined-up approach of using mobile applications and incident monitoring also provides travellers with a greater awareness of the threats and risks around them, enabling them to take action themselves to avoid known dangers and disruption.
The use of GPS technology definitely has its place in security policy. Security specialists have long integrated mobile apps into a more comprehensive itinerary tracking solution. This means that in the event a GPS signal is unavailable, perhaps because it has been jammed by the military, or simply that the device has run out of battery power, the employer has still captured all relevant information to make a meaningful response to a major incident. When used correctly, particularly in high risk locations or by high-risk individuals, such as lone female travellers, GPS derived apps do become an essential part of a travel security offering that can both satisfy policy and keep employees safe — but it must be used as part of a wider resolution.
The key thing for corporations is to avoid is a 'laissez faire' attitude. Technology hasn't taken over yet and therefore mobile applications will always need to be used in the correct context and with input from other forms of intelligence, including travel managers.
- Matthew Judge is group managing director of Anvil Group