The ultimate guide to corporate travel management

Business travel is an essential part of the operations of today’s multinational corporations. While technological advancements such as virtual meetings and digital document transmission are beneficial to today’s travel industry, many firms still rely on face-to-face meetings and worldwide networking.

As organizations deal with financial constraints, increased travel expenses, and limited availability in major business destinations, managing employees’ corporate travel plans has become an increasingly essential concern.

What is corporate travel management?

Corporate travel management or CTM is known for the way a firm organizes, records, and reports on business travel and costs. Corporate travel management does not only entail booking flights and accommodations. It also covers the logistical, financial, and security aspects of business travel.

What is a corporate travel manager?

All elements of corporate travel are the responsibility of the travel manager. They assist in the creation of a company’s travel policy, the management of travel plans, the organization and monitoring of travel costs, and the health and safety of business travelers.

A travel manager is responsible for evaluating data after the trip and applying it to simplify and enhance future business travel. They must have a diverse range of skills, including strong communication and organizational abilities, as well as the ability to think strategically.

What do corporate managers do?

Setting a business travel policy is one of the most important roles of a travel manager. This includes all potential trip expenditures and established rules and procedures for staff to follow when planning a trip. Information regarding the following aspects of the company’s business travel activities should be included in the policy as well. Their responsibilities include:

• Booking trips and accommodation for travelers
• Booking and organizing group trips
• Looking out for the wellbeing of business travelers, pre, during and post-trip
• Keeping track of the company’s travel budget and making sure travel spend stays under budget
• Choosing and managing travel vendors
• Evaluating or delivering travel spend reports to the finance team for analysis

How to manage corporate travel?

Companies have the choice to manage corporate travel in-house or to outsource it.

Outsourcing means that a corporate travel agent or agency is in charge. Whereas when travel management is handled in-house, it means that it’s done through a corporate travel manager.

However, this does not imply that a corporate travel manager must manage all travel on their own. Companies that provide travel management software provide platforms to assist both travel managers and travelers with all aspects of corporate travel.

Businesses benefit from the services of travel management companies in the following ways:

• Create travel policies for the company.
• Centralize all travel booking.
• Organize the schedules of your staff.
• Real-time tracking of travel expenses.
• Report all trip costs accurately.
• Get access to traveler assistance 24/7.

How to manage travel expenses in corporate?

Managing travel expenses in corporate is a part of a bigger persistent issue within companies and that is how they handle their expenses.

Companies have long focused on cost control and compliance but now, the focus has shifted to decreasing the time spent on expense submission, approval, and reimbursement. In other words, simplifying the process for employees and reducing these time-consuming tasks for higher productivity.

Hence the rising interest in travel and expense management software in general. These tools provide a platform for users to plan, purchase, and track travel costs. Companies use this software to make purchasing selections easier, to keep track of employee travel expenses in one place, and to control corporate travel budgets. Users may arrange and automatically record their trip purchases with the help of travel management systems. This program also allows accountants and managers to run reports and pay employees, improving visibility between managers and employees about business travel. It also guarantees that employee travel for business is compliant with corporate rules.

Expensya provides a simple solution to track and organize business expenditures in general. And thanks to its partnerships with major actors in the business travel industry, such as Travel Perk and Egencia, Expensya allows its users to centralize the whole business travel experience from booking to accounting- all done on the go. Find out more about features to simplify your business trips.

Why are corporations moving towards in-house travel management?

Corporations are becoming more and more aware of the importance of having in-house travel management rather than outsourcing it.

In fact, when corporate travel management is handled in-house, your firm is dealing with a trusted employee that they have picked and who best fits the profile of the candidate they are looking for.

Additionally, having someone close by makes planning easier and enhances your level of comfort while arranging work trip arrangements. Travel records are easy to get as a result of this. Efficiency is also a big advantage of in-house CTM. A corporate Travel Management team will focus on cost savings and better reporting. They’re also in charge of making sure that colleagues travel safely and that all applicable travel regulations are followed.

A business travel manager will also keep track of how much money is spent transporting personnel to and from their destination in the most cost-effective manner feasible. They realize, though, that an employee should be comfortable when traveling, so it’s not always about finding the cheapest tickets or lodging. However, because they provide bulk bookings, they can negotiate the best pricing with the travel source. A skilled travel manager can save money on travel that considerably outweighs their compensation. Having someone looking out for the bottom line pays off hugely.

Read more about Travel Manager roles and responsibilities.