Executing an acquisition or merger can be tricky, and there have been several in the corporate travel space recently. Katharine Farrell of the Dots & Lines consultancy looks back at previous examples of brand consolidation in the industry and contemplates the pros and cons. May was an interesting month for the corporate travel industry. The…
The planned acquisition by American Express Global Business Travel of Egencia has multiple implications depending on the party in question. For GBT, it’s about scale, particularly in the online midmarket. GBT has long coveted this segment, which has a fresh batch of well-funded competition. The deal will avail GBT’s big corporate accounts of more attractive…
Buying Ovation Travel Group boosts American Express Global Business Travel’s high-touch service. Ovation made a name for itself in that area and sometimes provides travel and related services to executives at companies that use other TMCs for the rank and file. In the current environment, higher levels of agency support could help more people get…
American Express Global Business Travel has a new “contact fee.” It applies when agents communicate by phone or email with employees of clients that pay GBT on a transaction basis but no transaction occurs. The program is rolling out worldwide and began in the United States at $25 per call or email. The discussion about…
A handful of travel management companies is looking closely at four-year-old PSNGR1, a booking tool for both travelers and advisors. Generally designed for smaller and midsize clients, the system offers connections to NDC-compliant channels, a Next Generation Storefront display and a fresh interface with new collaborative travel planning and chatting components. Executives with the TMCs…
“Green shoots” are nice but transaction counts for most travel management companies as of last week remained between 3 percent and 15 percent of last year’s levels. Emotionally, that is a million times better than cancellations outstripping bookings. TMCs are seeing gains every week. More than a dozen of their executives speaking with The Company…
CCRA’s Dic Marxen sees corporate travel agent salaries rising by double-digit percentages because of the profession’s aging workforce and dearth of new labor. He wasn’t surprised to see Travel Leaders Group this month create a scholarship program for military veterans. Marxen had a similar idea three years ago that died at the feet of federal bureaucracy,…
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