Editorial
A subcommittee of The Company Dime‘s Buyers Council, the Editorial Board is charged with reviewing ideas and Op Ed columns submitted for consideration by outside contributors, suggesting topics and collaboratively writing viewpoints of its own. Current members are Suzanne Boyan, Pedro Ceron, Kelly Christner, Nicole Del Sesto, Steven Mandelbaum and Brad Seitz.
Editorial: Content, Clarity, Calm And A Little Respect Top Travel Manager Wish List
Here’s a compilation of thoughts from members of The Company Dime‘s Editorial Board of six travel buyers. The last three years put everyone to the test. It’s not that we don’t enjoy challenges; we thrive on them. But it’s time to focus on the future and do what we do best. Enough firefighting and bickering. …
Op Ed
In their Op Eds, industry leaders contribute commentary for publication to the business travel audience outside our paywall. We task these contributors to focus on opinion, analysis and education rather than marketing. We do not accept payment for submissions. Since starting this program in 2018, we’ve published more than 100 Op Eds by dozens of guest authors. You are encouraged to contribute to the dialogue by commenting on posts. Want to go a step further and become a contributor? Email us for more details. There is no charge for participation, but it does come with some requirements. Thanks to all our authors!
Op Ed: Tony D’Astolfo On NDC And Dominus Vobiscum
Following his intimate involvement in an award-winning NDC corporate travel program, Tony D’Astolfo of Serko, in his unique way, spotlights one of the unsolved issues: the economics. Many have debated whether airline distribution evolution is mainly about the technology or the money. Both matter. They say you should never talk politics or religion. These days…
Op Ed: Claire Langford On How Expanded Risk Offers Opportunities To Improve Duty Of Care
One of the pandemic’s silver linings has been greater awareness of and attention to corporate duty of care. According to Claire Langford, a veteran travel buyer and former TMC program manager now with CoreTrust Purchasing Group, organizations taking a broader view of employee wellbeing can not only mitigate risk, but also improve recruiting and retention….
Op Ed: CWT’s Pauline Robin On The Pitfalls Of Chainwide Hotel Deals
Pauline Robin of CWT RoomIt shares data that prompts questions about whether travel managers achieve their goals using chainwide hotel deals. Chainwide deals represent an integral part of a company’s hotel program. They supplement uniquely negotiated, core hotels as corporations aim to get the best possible savings and coverage while delivering sufficient breadth to support…
Op Ed: Legaroo’s Alex Thompson On Considerations For The Corporate Digital Nomad
Alex Thompson, founder and CEO of legal support provider Legaroo, thinks the digital nomad lifestyle is “wonderful.” He’s also got some words of caution. _________ The growing, geographically free lifestyle of digital nomads challenges companies to update their recruiting, legal and risk procedures. The trend is part of business travel’s evolution since these employees work…
Op Ed: Tony D’Astolfo On Getting Business Travelers Resigned To The Great Resignation
Serko’s Tony D’Astolfo is always ready to serve his two cents with a smile. There’s been a lot of talk about the Great Resignation. And while we could debate why it’s happening, something not up for debate is how hard the travel industry has been hit by it. Hospitality executives lament the difficulty of replacing…
Op Ed: Norm Rose On Attacking Corporate Travel Pain Points With Web3 And Smart Contracts
Travel technology consulting veteran Norm Rose urges a push for smart contracts to improve the efficacy of negotiated corporate travel agreements. Emerging as the next generation of the internet, Web3 has a broad definition. It includes virtual reality in the metaverse, blockchain, token-based economics and decentralization of technology. For the corporate travel industry, the focus…
Op Ed: CWT’s Nick Vournakis On How It’s Time For TMCs ‘To Step Up And Improve’
Travel manager Brad Seitz touched a nerve in his June 22 Op Ed cautioning travel suppliers not to blame corporate clients for failing to precisely project when and to what degree booking volumes would recover. In his response below, CWT chief customer officer Nick Vournakis doesn’t make excuses for insufficient TMC service. He knows providers…
Op Ed: Brad Seitz On The Travel Implosion Right Before Our Eyes
Everyone is swamped and emotions are running high in travel. Industry veteran Brad Seitz, now head of travel, facilities and sustainability for workforce management firm Pro Unlimited, is not alone in accusing travel suppliers, particularly travel management companies, of playing a blame game in laying responsibility for some service woes at the feet of their…
Op Ed: Mark McSpadden On What’s Needed To Build Technology For Sustainable Travel
American Express Global Business Travel VP for global product and user experience Mark McSpadden issues a call to action to advance sustainable travel. As the travel industry emerges from the pandemic, we have never experienced a stronger push to transform travel into a catalyst for environmental progress. After seeing the negative impact of zero travel,…