Connect with Jill

Jill Palmer is the CEO of Click Travel, a tech-forward TMC that recently moved its core technology to a microservices architecture and is advancing its NDC connections as well as launching an SaaS model for the small end of the midmarket. You can connect with Jill at:

• LinkedIn
• Clicktravel.com

Striking the perfect balance between cost and comfort is no mean feat for those developing business travel policies, yet creating the ideal policy is not the end of the story. More like the end of chapter one.

Time and time again, I hear from frustrated businesses who cannot understand why the hard work that has gone into developing a comprehensive travel policy hasn¡¯t paid off in terms of a reduction in travel spend.??

I tell them: ¡°Putting a policy in place is one thing. Enforcing it is quite another.¡±

And as anyone who has tried it will testify, changing behaviours in the workplace can be a real challenge and needs to be executed carefully to avoid unwanted negativity.

In my view, to achieve real success, a comprehensive travel policy needs to be supported by the very best technology, and some relatable life lessons.

The Importance of Understanding

If you are certain that the policy itself is correctly tailored to balance the needs of the business and the needs of the travellers, my first tip would be to identify the stages in the booking process that lead to non-compliant bookings.

Speaking generally, colleagues won¡¯t set out to defy a policy intentionally, so a large number of non-compliant bookings might indicate the process is not understood or, more likely, that it is too complicated.

Providing additional explanation of the policy may be useful in some cases, but by far the biggest driver of change is the functionality of the booking platform.

By giving your team the most intuitive, user-friendly tool to make their bookings, you are giving yourself the best chance of success.

Your goal should be to ensure that booking a business travel trip which adheres to company policy is as simple and smooth as booking a consumer trip ¨C even more so if possible!

Leakage can occur if travellers see a booking option at a lower price on a consumer online booking tool. Often though, it¡¯s not a like-for-like comparison ¨C the booking terms may be less flexible, which increases costs in the long-run. There¡¯s also the usual ¡®buyer beware¡¯ factor ¨C if a deal seems incredibly cheap, the provider may not be as reputable.

Also, consider the demographic of your travellers and how they prefer to book. If your team prefers online booking, an intuitive platform is key. And don¡¯t ignore the increasing prevalence of AI assistants ¨C what provision does your current TMC have for them or what are they planning?

Easily Illustrate Compliance

A well-built booking tool can also prove a key part of the education process for staff, with traffic-light-style warning systems highlighting whether or not a trip is compliant as it is being assembled.

A green light reinforces the correct choices, while amber or red warnings could prompt a change of plans or, at the very least, a conversation about why an exception should be granted before a booking is finalised.

Equally, a tool that de-personalises the approval process by auto-approving compliant trips or sharing non-compliant booking requests with the procurement team can make the process less personal, and therefore less painful.??

In addition, the insights that can be provided by an advanced booking tool are powerful and can give invaluable context when it comes to driving behaviour change.?

For example, last minute travel costs quickly escalate so if you discover your entire team delays booking travel out of habit rather than because of late meeting requests, you can nudge them with reminders about the importance of timing when it comes to travel booking.

Around the Clock Support

Finally, don¡¯t be afraid to use real life examples to underline that reducing company spend isn¡¯t the sole reason for your travel policy.

If a reservation hasn¡¯t been made through a central booking tool, a disrupted traveller might be left calling a variety of different companies for support and alternatives ¨C a process which can be time-consuming and expensive, let alone frustrating and exhausting.

With a centralised platform, all updates and amendments can be handled by a single call to a helpful customer service representative who has full oversight of the booking and can make intelligent decisions about next steps.

In other words, if you¡¯ve arrived at a transit airport in an unfamiliar country at 3am and missed your connection, it¡¯s much easier to have one number to call where an expert can help book your next flight and accommodation. Doing it yourself takes much longer, can be confusing and stressful, and is likely to increase costs even more than necessary.

And that¡¯s the real secret to compliance ¨C personal motivation. While saving company money alone may not change everyone¡¯s behaviour, providing an intuitive tool which makes a traveller¡¯s life infinitely easier is hard to argue against!