How to maximise the value of your travel management partnership

The value of professional travel management services has moved far beyond traditional booking transactions. Long gone are the days of paying an agent to simply book your flights, hotels, and car rental. Today’s travel management companies (TMCs) must present value to their clients through an extensive array of strategic and often complex ancillary travel services that surround the core components of a travel booking, including strategic supplier negotiations, traveller safety and well-being, sustainability, data security, and booking behaviour optimisation, to name a few.

To capitalise on the benefits of a TMC’s expertise and services, organisations should recognise them as partners in the development, delivery, and performance management of their travel programme, rather than as a traditional service provider.

This blog explores best practices for maximise the value of your travel management through your TMC partnership. It also provides tips to maximise your travel programme’s ROI through best-practice procurement strategies.

Understanding the travel landscape

If there was ever a time to understand the value a TMC can bring to your business, it is now. The travel industry is defining new norms of operating processes and travel experience. Some changes will be temporary and some are here to stay. Travel management stakeholders are navigating the “old versus new” mechanics of travel management at a time when a wave of new professionals are joining the travel industry, both within the supplier and TMC space and within the companies utilising their travel services. With this comes an appetite for education, collaboration, and idea-sharing, as businesses rebuild their in-house travel teams and apply a new focus on travel programme performance, policies, compliance, and budget.

CTM’s 2023 Global Customer Survey revealed a strong demand among Travel Programme Managers, Travel Arrangers, and business travellers to enhance their knowledge across various aspects of the corporate travel landscape. Specifically, they expressed a need to learn more about air, hotel, and car rental pricing, understand the factors that drive changes in supplier pricing, explore the current landscape of supplier offerings and points of differentiation, and grasp the concept of NDC.

Those organisations that invest in educating and upskilling their travel teams and the stakeholders responsible for the travel programme’s performance will be best placed to effectively navigate the new corporate travel landscape, giving them a competitive edge. They will be able to respond quickly to changing conditions, make informed decisions about travel policy and travel supplier selection, and offer better support and services to their employees to maximise the overall value of their business travel investment.

Best practices for maximising the value of your TMC

Managing a company’s travel programme can be a challenging task, particularly in today’s fast-paced and ever-changing travel environment. To maximise the value of travel management and your TMC partnership, consider the following:

Establishing clear objectives and goal

CTM’s 2023 Global Customer Survey found the top priorities in the coming year for those responsible for managing the travel programme are cost reduction, followed by customer service and policy compliance. Discuss your business goals and travel programme objectives, as well as employee engagement and retention strategies with your TMC partner to ensure all objectives are considered as part of the travel policy. Creating a traveller-centric programme that balances cost control with traveller experience, wellness, and policy compliance is critical to policy adoption, compliance, and programme performance.

Training and education

Provide comprehensive training and education to all travel stakeholders to ensure a thorough understanding of travel policies and their alignment with business goals and personal performance objectives. Partner with a TMC that can provide the right blend of education and training, through a range of channels to suit your travel programme stakeholders’ communication needs and channels, such as online content, webinars, virtual and in-person training, research papers, product training videos, to ensure maximum knowledge and engagement.

Monitor and analyse travel data

Travel data tells a powerful story and, when used effectively, can lead to strategic decision-making that can significantly and proactively influence the value of your travel programme. The use of complex data can be overwhelming unless presented in intuitive, easy to digest dashboards with customisable segmentation to uncover actionable insights.

The reporting expertise and tools provided by your TMC are instrumental in leveraging the full potential of your travel data.

Embrace automation and technology

Many businesses are operating in a high-tech, blended workplace where digital connectivity and automation underpin the majority of business interactions and operations. Travel management should be no different. To fully leverage the capabilities of your TMC, it is crucial to stay informed about the range of technologies and services they offer, as well as their roadmap for developing new solutions and leveraging the latest technologies to continually elevate the efficiency, accessibility, and autonomy of your team. For example, utilising self-service online booking tools (OBTs) and promoting online adoption among travellers and Travel Bookers can significantly streamline the travel booking process, delivering greater efficiency, empowerment, and cost savings. Additionally, mobile apps can provide excellent support for travellers, allowing for easy itinerary management while on the road.

Aligning with your company culture

It is equally important to align your travel programme and choice of TMC partner with your company’s culture and values. For example, if your company places a high value on sustainability, the travel programme should prioritise sustainable travel services and travel policies that promote traveller well-being.

A shared culture also helps to establish trust and improve communication, which can lead to a more productive and successful partnership.

The value of a TMC in travel programme procurement

The procuring of travel services can be a complex process, with numerous variables and considerations that can be challenging to understand without professional support.

These procurement considerations include negotiating competitive corporate rates with suppliers based on travel volumes, key routes, destinations, booking class, and flexibility requirements, monitoring booking compliance and measuring programme leakage, providing comprehensive reporting and analysis on travel expenditure, and incorporating group travel, meetings, and events spend.

High volume and frequency

Corporate travel can often involve a high volume and frequency of travel arrangements, including flights, accommodation, ground transportation, group travel, and meetings and events. The resources and the time needed to coordinate travel could far outweigh the cost of the travel itself, which is why there is a significant benefit in utilising the services of a TMC to quickly and efficiently manage large amounts of bookings and data.

Working with a large TMC with a significant client portfolio can also present value by comparing your travel buying behaviours and supplier deals compared to “like” companies, and ensuring that cost savings strategies are realised and implemented.

Fluctuation of rates, fares, and travel spend

Travel supplier rates and fares are driven by local and global market conditions and of course the basics of supply and demand. Comparing travel spend and its associated triggers from one year to the next is not straightforward.

A sharp rise or decrease in travel spend could be due to changes in the travel suppliers booked, how far in advance travel bookings are made, length of stay, airfare class, days or time of day traveled, supplier occupancy or capacity, room types, car rental types, and special project travel to name a few.

Your TMC should be able to capture and review all your booking data, identify changes to booking trends and behaviours, and highlight the reasons for any significant changes, allowing you to make more informed decisions around policy changes to optimise supplier contracting.

Global networks and partnerships

For organisations with global travel requirements, partnering with a TMC that offers comprehensive global solutions is invaluable.

One of the key advantages of working with a TMC with global capabilities is its ability to leverage its supplier partnerships and global buying power. This enables them to secure competitive pricing, discounts, and favorable terms with travel suppliers worldwide. By tapping into these resources, organisations can benefit from cost savings and optimised travel budgets, making the most of their travel expenditure.

In addition to cost savings, TMCs with global solutions can elevate traveller safety and well-being within the travel programme. They may offer a range of risk management services including travel alerts, 24/7 emergency travel assistance, traveller tracking, and “follow the sun” servicing to support global travellers. These provisions ensure that travellers receive prompt support and assistance in case of emergencies or unexpected situations. TMCs also assist with visa and passport requirements to support business travellers moving between countries.

Key takeaways

Partnering with a TMC is essential to navigating the new and evolving travel landscape and for managing your company’s travel programme strategically to deliver an improved ROI.

Businesses need to view their TMC as a true business partner and invest time and energy into regular communication, collaboration, and education for their travellers and Travel Bookers.

It is crucial to establish clear objectives and goals while considering the application of automation and technology to improve efficiency and autonomy. Training, data analysis, and culture alignment are some best practices you can adopt to maximise the value of your TMC partnership.