Business Travel Year

Travel Management: 2011 Review and 2012 Preview

What were the big stories in travel management in 2011? What will be the major issues in 2012? Experts of our global travel network, BCD Travel,  summarize the challenges and breakthroughs that dominated the last 12 months and polish their crystal balls to preview the year ahead. 

2011: The Year in Review

What was the greatest challenge this year for business travel/travel management?

Higher prices
Managing increased airfares and hotel rates: Airlines have remained disciplined in their desire to reduce capacity, helping them to regain some of their pricing power, while higher hotel occupancy percentages have pushed up average daily hotel rates, too.  
Rose Stratford, Senior Vice President, Global Supplier Relations

Asian event shocks
There have been numerous natural disasters, including Japan, Australia and, most recently, Thailand. We’ve also contended with crises caused by the financial woes of Indian airlines and the Qantas strike in Australia. All of these events mean that we must remain vigilant and flexible, and constantly plan for the unknown.
Greg O’Neil, President, Asia-Pacific region

The new normal
Steering travel programs successfully through the new normal of major incidents like the Arab Spring and Japanese earthquake and tsunami means being ready for more — and more frequent — interaction with potentially affected travelers. 
Torsten Kriedt, Vice President, Product Planning & Intelligence

Lack of technology investment
Uncertainty inhibited innovations in technology because companies are still tapping the brakes on investment, even though this is an ideal time to leapfrog competitors as they cut costs.
Miriam Moscovici, Senior Director, Emerging Technologies

What was the biggest breakthrough or most important development?

 APAC in the driver’s seat
Asia-Pacific is becoming a driver market in global bids. In 2011, BCD Travel saw a sharp jump in bids being generated from within APAC. In more developed markets, like Singapore, Malaysia and the Philippines, customers are asking for stronger centralization of services. Business intelligence, profile management and travel risk management are in demand across the region.
Greg O’Neil, President, Asia-Pacific region

Understanding the value of travel
Buyers have reassessed the value of what travel brings to their company through key performance indicators such as travel spend against sales. I have also seen a genuine integration of meetings and travel management, sometimes consolidating to a single P&L or charging methodology.
Chris Crowley, Senior Vice President, Global Client Management and President, Association of Corporate Travel Executives

2012: The Year Ahead

Name an important issue travel managers have to watch out for next year.

Airline headaches
Airlines are cautiously optimistic about the year ahead; however, they have begun cutting capacity again.  This will continue to drive higher fares unless demand slows. U.S. buyers, especially, should keep an eye on the outcome of the disputes between American Airlines and global distribution systems, which may be determined by court rulings. Airline credit card surcharges will continue to proliferate as carriers have been successful in introducing them in Europe in 2011.
Rose Stratford, Senior Vice President, Global Supplier Relations

  What one thing would you really like to happen next year (even if you think it is unlikely to happen) that would improve business travel/travel management?

A healthier business environment
Economic growth and financial stability top my wish list. There is still a lot of uncertainty, particularly in Europe and the United States. In the year ahead, we need a healthy economy to build consumer and business confidence, which will stimulate more travel demand. 
Rose Stratford, Senior Vice President, Global Supplier Relations

Better IT connectivity
Open APIs (application programming interfaces) to help inter-connect all systems in the travel planning, booking, payment, expense and tax process so companies and travelers can decide for themselves how and with whom to share which data, and enjoy the fruits of emerging innovations.
Torsten Kriedt, Vice President, Product Planning & Intelligence

Source: BCD Travel in Motion

Contact the Business Services Travel team or call us at 804-747-7077 or 888-747-7077 with any questions.