It wasn’t so long ago that a travel buyer’s functions covered the pure operational role of cost savings, traveler safety, policy compliance, negotiating contracts, managing budgets and providing on-trip support.
Today, however, that remit has expanded appreciably and travel managers will regularly now oversee meetings, fleet, expense, payment, mobility, technology, data, risk, duty of care, sustainability reporting, supplier strategy and traveler wellbeing.
As Chris Pouney, global head of travel and expense at Japanese-owned pharma company Astellas, explains, “Many travel managers are responsible for multiple adjacent functions, creating a much broader operational and strategic remit.”
Pouney adds, “Travel managers no longer operate in functional silos – we’re expected to manage travel as an end-to-end ecosystem, seeing challenges exactly as travelers experience them and owning delivery across the entire journey.”
Pouney cites employee well-being, retention and company culture as facets that are also playing a much larger role in travel decisions. “As a result, travel managers now operate at the intersection of finance, technology, HR, procurement, security and operations. Their value increasingly lies not just in controlling travel costs, but in connecting all of those priorities to build a program that works for both the business and its travelers.”
Certainly, any effective travel manager today is a strategist, aligning their travel program objectives with company objectives, demonstrating how travel delivers value for the wider business.
“Executive teams want greater visibility into ROI, while travelers expect the same seamless, intuitive experiences they receive as consumers,” says Angelica Aponte, VP global account management, enterprise and key, at Altour. “At the same time, AI, automation and advanced analytics are transforming how programs are managed and giving travel managers new opportunities to drive smarter decisions.”
It’s a trend that has been gaining momentum, according to Greeley Koch, managing director of 490 Consulting. “The best travel managers are becoming intrapreneurs inside their organizations,” Koch says. “People who think and act like entrepreneurs, but drive innovation and change from within the company. They question why things are done a certain way, challenge the status quo and look for better ways to run the travel program.”
That expanded remit requires a different skillset to influence internal stakeholders and earn a seat at the top table. It should be a travel buyer’s top priority says Karen Hutchings, partner at consultancy Kintela Group and former global travel lead at EY. “They have to expand their network, create the opportunity and give themselves a wider web. Don’t let it stop at their direct line report. Suppliers make you feel good and wine and dine you, but your stakeholders are far more important and spending time with them should surpass any supplier meeting.”
Koch concurs. “A travel manager can have a great idea and still fail if the organization isn’t ready to adopt it. That’s why change management is becoming as important as travel management. You need to understand what finance, HR, procurement, IT, security and senior leadership need, build internal alignment and create support for the change. You don’t need authority over every stakeholder, but you do need the ability to influence them. Innovation without organizational buy-in is just a good idea.”
To get there, Jeff Saydah, director of global client solutions at Fox World Travel, advises, “Travel managers should be included in conversations around budgeting, forecasting, cost optimization and resource allocation because they possess data and insights that impact business performance.”
Ready to Step Up
It’s clearly an ambitious vision, but are today’s travel managers up for such an expansive role? Arguably, old-school travel buyers could be out of their depth and struggle in the new more complex world of corporate travel. They have to be data literate, have analytics capabilities, steer the adoption of AI-driven tools, know how to advance sustainability objectives, retain talent and be strategic advisors to the board. Procurement expertise on its own is not enough.
“Historically, travel agency or sourcing expertise alone may have been sufficient. Today, organizations increasingly seek leaders who can convert data into business recommendations and guide enterprise-wide decision-making,” says Pouney. “The role now requires a multidisciplinary skillset that extends well beyond supplier negotiations.”
Moreover, today’s travel professionals need to flex and pivot, points out John Van den Heuvel, president, Corporate Traveler USA. “Continued disruption and uncertainty in the travel market means companies need someone who can respond to challenges and deliver value in real time.”
Travel management companies can share the burden and drive the pace of change, Van den Heuvel adds. ”Even as technology becomes increasingly integrated into business operations, the role of the TMC has become more important because technology alone can’t solve every challenge.”
Corporate travel programs need advanced technology to improve efficiency and provide insights. But Van den Heuvel wisely cautions that expertise, support, and a partner who understands their unique business requirements is also vital to the partnership with the TMC.
“The future of the travel manager is about combining the best of both worlds — intelligent technology that automates routine processes and experienced professionals who can provide guidance when complexity arises. At the end of the day, travel remains a highly personalized experience, and that human connection will continue to be central to the role,” he says.
Selling yourself and influencing others seems to be the requisite skillset required today. It’s something Daniel Cockton, head of group procurement at global engineering firm Wood Group PLC, knows only too well. “When recruiting for a travel manager at my company, I wanted to get in the people skills, the influencing skills and so I brought in an experienced senior sales executive and this has proved very successful,” Cockton says.
“The most important skillset required is the ability to take people along the journey you want to go on. Be it technology changes, TMC changes, finance and payment changes, the principle is the same; you have to get buy-in,” he says.
“Historically you would only need to convince travelers and bookers. Now you need to get support from IT infrastructure, finance, Data Privacy, InfoSec and executive leadership. If I am ever asked for advice on what and where travel managers can develop their skills, it’s learn how to story tell.”
Managing the Narrative
Who would have thought storytelling would trump everything else? And why is all this happening? Simply because the business travel landscape has changed and is still changing fundamentally. The distribution landscape has been overturned over the last few years and now travel managers are challenged with fragmented content.
On top of that, the far-reaching impact of technology provides rich data for companies to make better people and business decisions. Travel is becoming a far more complex spend category and has caught the attention of the board as a strategic spend and driver of sustainable growth.
“Travel managers are at the center of information that can reveal market opportunities, workforce trends, employee impact and experience and operational efficiency,” sums up Audra Mead, chief culture officer at Fox World Travel.
Being comfortable with the digital world is a given. “Digital enablement, including AI, has moved on from nice-to-have to essential,” says Louise Kilgannon of Festive Road. But she adds an important caveat: “The case for a human in the loop is still very strong, and the real skill is seeing and exploiting what AI can do while understanding when human judgement needs to step in. But the attitude and drive to embrace AI is now non-negotiable.”
If travel managers embrace these changes and skill up, they will earn a seat at the top table, and an improved remuneration package. “It’s not just about securing gold cards for travelers and upgrades,” says Hutchings. “It is around how the program can support the company objectives.”
Altour’s Aponte puts it in perspective: “Today’s travel manager is increasingly expected to contribute to broader business objectives. Travel is no longer viewed solely as an expense category. It is a strategic investment that supports revenue generation, client engagement, talent development, culture and operational effectiveness,” she advises. “The most successful travel managers today help organizations answer a much bigger question: How can travel drive business outcomes?”
Adds Fox World Travel’s Mead: “A modern travel manager should not simply receive budget directives without being given the opportunity to provide valuable insight. They should help shape these directives.”
Travel at the Crossroads
It’s exciting times for those travel managers who are embracing change as their value in many C-suites has been duly recognized.
However, Wood’s Cockton voices a word of caution: “For some organizations there is a lot put on the travel manager who may have to manage this solely or at best with a limited TMC team behind them. The fact that we are now seeing further expansion of this role is a concern.”
The concerns are many, Cockton says, including how the role is viewed within the organization. “It is a strategic role, and I wonder how many companies see it that way,” he says. “But it is up to the role holder to make sure they do.”
Fox World Travel’s Saydah agrees that there is still work to be done. “One of the biggest challenges we hear from travel managers is internal stakeholder alignment. They are responsible for managing a significant corporate investment, yet they’re not always included in the conversations where decisions about travel programs are being made,” Saydah says.
“It’s important to understand the role that an effective travel program plays within a company to enable and drive its success, along with the travel manager’s ability to provide key insights to help shape company decisions,” he continues.
“The reality is that travel managers possess a unique combination of expertise, data and market knowledge that few others in the organization have. When they are brought into discussions early, they can help leaders understand the downstream impact of decisions on cost, traveler experience, compliance, risk and overall program performance. When they’re left out, organizations often miss valuable insights that could improve outcomes.”
Cockton says that savvy corporate travel professionals will position themselves and articulate what resource and investment they need in order to ensure the travel function continues to run in the right way for that organization. Supporting them in their newly expanded role will be smart TMCs, he reckons, who are morphing into technology/fintech suppliers rather than just travel providers.
Koch advises buyers to take a harder line with suppliers. “Travel managers should own the roadmap and suppliers should help them deliver it. Don’t simply ask your TMC or technology provider what is on their roadmap and shape your strategy around what they are building,” he cautions. “Decide where your program needs to go, clearly articulate what you need and challenge your existing suppliers to help you get there. If they can’t, be willing to find suppliers who can.”
Festive Road’s Kilgannon says that “supplier management matters more than ever, particularly the ability to partner rather than simply buy, to drive greater value.” Moreover, she says TMCs should resolve first-level traveler queries so the travel team becomes an escalation point rather than the front line.” “That frees them for the proactive, strategic work that moves the function forward,” she says.
Future State of Managed Travel
Up and coming travel managers are more likely to be recruited from a tech background so they can handle AI and cyber security with ease. Altour’s Aponte has already witnessed this trend. “We’re seeing talent enter the field from a wide range of professional backgrounds, including data analytics, technology and SaaS, procurement, finance, HR, consulting, change management, and customer success or account management. Each of these disciplines brings skills that are becoming increasingly valuable to modern travel programs.”
But Hutchings, who mentors travel managers, says experienced travel buyers are never too old to learn new skills. “Keep re-inventing yourself. Everybody has that ability to learn from the experts internally. Use Claude and Chat GPT,” she advises. “Travel is seen as one of the most disruptive industries so you can’t coast in this day and age. It’s a fast-moving arena now. But don’t forget what a longer-serving travel manager can bring; don’t lose sight of that, in terms of coping with pressure and coping with change.”
Koch concurs: “Deep industry experience remains incredibly valuable, particularly when it is combined with a willingness to embrace change.”
Change will not only continue, it will almost certainly accelerate, and travel managers will undoubtedly step up to the challenge, as they have always done. Wood’s Cockton reminds us not to lose sight of the fact that the expanding role offers an attractive career path, notwithstanding the critical area of influencing stakeholders. “In the right organization, it’s a fabulous career choice which can lead to a life beyond that of managed travel or a long career in a wonderful industry full of opportunity.”
Koch looks to a bright future for travel managers. “Ultimately, I see the travel manager moving beyond being a category manager. The travel manager of the future is a business leader who happens to specialize in travel.”
