Gavin Smith, director at travel technology firm Element, outlines which pieces of technology will be the most important for TMCs to invest in as business travel returns
We are all being urged to get back to work, get the economy
going again, start networking and meeting up. Even though Zoom has been a
lifeline for many, the demand for face-to-face business meetings will return,
and when it does TMCs need to be ready.
Budgets are tight for every travel business and many are
rethinking their technology spending plans in preparation for when people start
travelling again. Others are being more cautious. They know they need to adopt
new technologies but they’re holding back.
Agents are looking to improve the services they provide and
for many this starts with the way they manage their budgets. Businesses want to
track staff expenses more efficiently. According to the Aberdeen Group, which
collects and analyses data on buyer behaviour, up to 70 per cent of companies
want to find new ways to manage their travel-related corporate expenses.
In 2019 The New York Business Journal reported that
companies were spending 10 per cent or more of their annual expenditure on
employee travel expenses. According to Travelex, staff want to explore when
they travel on business. Three in five people like to visit local attractions
while just under half make a point of exploring the local cuisine. Many take
clients with them and pay for their expenses on the company’s corporate credit
card.
Agents are buying solutions that optimise expense reporting
processes and budget monitoring so that businesses can easily control their
expenses and ensure compliance measures are in place when their staff start
travelling again.
While this pandemic has forced a scaling back of efforts in
certain areas, many TMCs are prioritising their tech needs. There is an
increased demand to self-manage the commercials, suppliers, back-office and
management information while corporates are able to configure the travel
policies, approvals and reporting. TMCs are looking for systems that provide
New Distribution Capability (NDC) with direct airline connects and hotel
consolidators and aggregators. These platforms give TMCs, travel agencies and
consolidators an option to generate bookings outside of many global
distribution system processes and related fees.
Trust and duty of care
Unique travel restrictions imposed by each country and the subsequent effect on
business travel have placed an even greater emphasis on duty of care within
TMCs. Roles and responsibilities have changed for travel managers in businesses
and agents. Managers now have to review all trips, conduct risk assessments and
create internal guidelines and policies on travel. New platforms such as the
Egencia Covid-19 travel reporting hub help them mitigate the financial impact
to their business by providing downloadable data for air and hotel bookings.
Travel consultants need to be fully compliant with these new
procedures. Correct information is difficult to access and usually found by
searching through lengthy online resources. Fact checking and dependency on
human interpretation increases financial and reputational risks for the TMC and
many are investing in technology that gives them access to trusted information.
TMCs are installing the latest permission-based applications such as Travel
Radar that enable them to configure and manage their client’s policies and
ensure that the travel consultant can access the correct information and
booking capability.
TMCs spending on technology that configures the policy for
each client around the allowed countries, cities, airlines and hotels. These
new applications close the entire loop of sufficient information and immediate
decision making and will drive the next duty of care level for TMCs when the
“return to travel” policies and processes are in place.
Technology is playing a critical role in the recovery of the
travel industry and this year we are seeing new deals being struck and
partnerships happening. Recently, Flight Centre Travel Group acquired tech
company WhereTo for its AI platform that recommends hotels, flights and
transportation to employees. Sabre integrated Mindsay technology to enable
automated customer service for TMCs and airlines. At Element we partnered with
tech company Zenmer to provide its booking solutions for TMCs.
Similarly, businesses are sharing complementary data to
better understand their clients’ travel needs, concerns and behaviour in order
to provide greater client personalisation.
The industry is getting ready for when travel is high on the
agenda and it points toward innovation and technology. TMCs are investing in
tech to improve or change the way they do business and helping people stay
safe. Those that offer improved processes and greater duty of care will stand
out. Don’t get left behind.