In each issue of Business Travel Executive, the members of our Buyer Think Tank offer their individual thoughts on what’s hot, what’s cool and what’s coming next in managed travel.
The Think Tank is a team of nine veteran travel managers from programs that run the gamut in size and complexity – but each member contributes a unique viewpoint. Travel Buyer’s POV brings fresh perspectives and ideas to inspire innovation and thought leadership in the corporate travel industry.
The coronavirus battle continues, but as the fog of war begins to clear, the shape of travel in a post-pandemic panic world is starting to emerge. The outlook for the long-haul is still an arduous climb back to some semblance of normal. But the strategies these days seem to revolve more around adjusting, adapting, accommodating.
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Peering into my crystal ball – what does the world of business travel look like post-COVID? First, you will need to make sure that the client you are visiting is accepting meetings with outside guests. People are now required to be certain that meeting in person is OK with all parties.
Traveling in the post-COVID world requires downloading the country’s or region’s tracing app. This becomes especially tough in the US as each state is coming up with their own. Since the best defense is a good offense, we will need an effective rapid test, because testing and tracing are so important and will help us to find the new normal for business travel.
– Rosemary E. Maloney
Changes for the Better
How wonderful it has been to be a part of travel and meeting planning – until the 2020 challenges came, that is. Corporate travel has changed, and now I must adjust.
My hope for 2021 is that corporate travel resumes. But the reality is that it’s going to take time and adjustments on everyone’s part. Our systems and processes are going to change, but some of this change needed to happen – think touchless airline tickets and cleaner planes and cars. Hotels are moving more to touchless key – how wonderful is that! It’s hard to admit, but these were needed to move our industry forward. For myself 2021 will be a chance to grow, explore and… keep traveling.
– Gloria Gonzalez
Problem Solvers & Innovators
Post-COVID-19 business travel will look different in a number of ways. First is the lower volume of trips. If your company has had any travel during the pandemic, I’m sure you have seen the increased scrutiny over “is this trip necessary?” With the savings corporations have experienced from little or no travel and success achieved working remotely, I believe fewer trips will be seen as “needed” travel.
From a duty of care perspective fewer travelers on the road lessens risk, but still there should be ZERO leakage outside your managed travel program. I expect more companies will enforce booking only through the company’s travel program.
Since travel managers are naturally problem solvers and innovators, we are currently using this ‘down’ time to create new solutions for travelers when they return. And when those travelers return they will need new training. Air travel, hotel, ground transport and corporate meetings are all in the midst of unprecedented change. Who knows what new procedures will be in place and which vendors will still be in existence?
Business travel will return. For travel pros the question is, what are we going to do regarding how it returns?
– David Smith
One Generation to the Next
Unfortunately, the COVID-19 pandemic has affected travel like no other event in modern history. Although people remain optimistic travel will eventually rebound, it does not seem likely that it will come back to 2019 levels for some time.
There has been an uptick in leisure travel plans for the holidays in late 2020, especially since many summer plans were canceled. However corporate travel remains an unknown as companies don’t want to be at risk for virus exposure to their employees.
Once corporate travel begins to rematerialize, social distancing and masks will become the new norm for the foreseeable future. The new protocols we are seeing today are not going away but will be the new enhanced standard not only for 2021 but for generations to come.
– Chris Brockman
Delivering Value
The corporate travel industry will be forever changed dues to COVID-19. Our suppliers have been hit hard and the landscape of those suppliers will never look the same. It is times like these that we also find hope, and as buyers and suppliers we need to seek out new opportunities to improve our offerings, transform our travel programs and deliver value like never before.
In my organization we are a CTD and we took the time to completely reengineer our process, focusing our time and energy on how we can deliver more value for the organization and our travelers and prepare for the return to travel. I think as things begin to turn around – and they will – managed travel programs post COVID-19 will be leaner, more important than ever, and viewed much more strategically than in the past.
– Jennifer Steinke
A World of Scrutiny
The post-COVID reality we and our travelers will encounter and endure is a world of scrutiny. Every time we travel, we will have to mask up and continually look over our shoulders to see who is not following safety protocols. Vaccine or no, the world has changed again, and this one is not all that different from the last big change. Just like the world after 9/11, this time too we will adapt and either deal with the new processes or find ways around them.
Financials will be drastically different because of reduced airline schedules, tighter evaluation of travel ROI, and old revenue models that just will not work anymore. As travel managers we will have new obligations and budget constraints. Duty of care will be integrated more than ever into our daily operations.
A word of advice: Expand your horizons or cease to be relevant.
– Mark Ziegler
