Policy

Policies are a hallmark of managed travel programs. They can address booking channels, supplier selection, allowable purchases, risk management processes and many other areas. Some are guidelines that encourage travelers. Others are requirements that employees must follow.

Game On: AA, Buyers Wield Leverage

Some corporate travel programs are blocking American Airlines now that the carrier has removed many fares from traditional third-party distribution channels. Observations like this one from SAP Concur align with anecdotes from several corporate buyers who are reacting to both the distribution move and AA’s overall de-emphasis of the corporate market. But preventing travelers from…

Buyers Labor Over How To Inform Travelers About American’s Plans

What should travel managers tell company employees about the distribution changes American Airlines is making?  As one communicator who works in the weeds of airline distribution said, it’s clear as mud. But there’s only so much that travelers need to know. A few travel managers offered some ideas, but for the most part, crafting a…

Traxo And Its Ilk Were Made For These Times

Capturing pre-trip data from bookings made directly is one way to deal with American Airlines’ planned distribution fragmentation in April. Some see it as merely a backup plan. It likely requires change management and communications to corporate travelers. A leading player in this area, Traxo, in December got an endorsement from the largest corporate travel…

Swiss Study Offers Thoughts On When To Teams Or Trot (Audio)

Researchers again found virtual communication offers “limited” capacity to replace face-to-face meetings. But with support for predicted reductions of between 20 percent and 30 percent in business travel volume due to trends accelerated by the pandemic, they argued that understanding how businesspeople choose between travel and virtual “has become urgent.” Researchers at the University of…

Single-Carrier Route Mandates Cut Air Spend For Software Firm Finastra

Multinational travel programs typically use at least two of the three major airline partner groupings, and many use all three. U.K.-based financial software firm Finastra in 2019 committed to providing all its business on a lucrative international route to just one. After seeing savings by aggregating that spending, the company is hunting for similar opportunities…

Airline Website Booking For Managed Travel Is One Way To Go

San Diego — Stanford University about two years ago enabled contracted United Airlines rates delivered on the carrier’s website to registered travelers who indicate they’re planning a work trip. Whether a burgeoning model or just another tool in the kit, the program is a work in progress, according to Stanford travel relationship manager Janet Wyer….

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