Month: January 2017

Microsoft Maximizes Travel Management Resources By Getting Them From American Express GBT

Jay Campbell

Microsoft has avoided “significant disruptions to stakeholders” since deploying in May 2016 a travel management outsource model that pushes the frontier of process over people. While the client continues to “own” strategy and sourcing, American Express Global Business Travel handles day-to-day travel manager tasks previously assigned mainly to travel department contractors. The setup freed Microsoft’s own travel professionals to focus…

ASTA, The Company Dime Partner To Study Transition From Unmanaged Business Travel

Team Dime

Last week the American Society of Travel Agents and The Company Dime announced a research partnership to learn more about the barriers and opportunities related to converting “unmanaged” business travel to managed travel. Why do businesses large and small implement travel management practices? What role do travel agencies play in that, and what other services…

Evolving Travel Policies Challenge OBTs

David Jonas

Travel suppliers want to provide personalized offers to travelers. Some travel managers want to customize travel policies to better fit individual travelers and the specifics of a trip. The problem is, some online booking tools can’t or don’t easily handle the nuances. OBTs connect with traveler profiles. Those often include basic data like an employee’s level in the organization, loyalty…

Alternatives Sought As CWT Shutters WorldMate Consumer App, Focuses On Corporate

Jay Campbell

Carlson Wagonlit Travel is discontinuing the consumer-facing version of WorldMate, the popular itinerary app it bought in 2012 for reportedly $20 million. A company official said CWT would continue to support WorldMate’s email parsing API, which backs several similar apps and services including Sabre’s TripCase. “CWT is focused on its core business of providing the best end-to-end customer experience for business travelers,” according…

Airline Consolidation, Other Factors Further Squeeze Travel Agency Commissions

Jay Campbell

Once in a while, some in the buyer community are excited by the dollar signs associated with global distribution system incentives paid to travel management companies. Disclosures from the US Airways v. Sabre trial recently offered such an occasion. Testimony indicated this money is significantly smaller than commission revenue from airlines, but a new examination of U.S. government data shows the latter income source…

Security Experts Highlight Concerns About Reservations Data As GDSs React To Vulnerabilities

Jay Campbell

Global distribution system providers this week did not contest the results of an examination by Germany-based tech security experts showing vulnerabilities in reservation systems. Security experts contacted by The Company Dime said the potential for abuse may be greater than the researchers outlined in that such information could be used for crimes including corporate espionage and intellectual property theft. In…

2017 U.S. Corporate Hotel Rates: Small Increases, Some Happy Surprises

David Jonas

[CLARIFICATION, Jan. 4, 2017: An HRS spokesperson explained that while the company promotes independent properties, it does not require sourcing clients to commit to using them. Rather, those clients are asked to funnel “a reasonable” share of total hotel volume through HRS systems. This article has been updated with that information.] U.S. corporate negotiated hotel rates generally are increasing only…

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