Data voids became a major concern for travel managers when the pandemic gripped the travel industry in 2020. Locating, contacting and moving travelers before the impending border closures came into effect was urgent. This shed light on the challenge travel managers have faced for years – incomplete travel data and the inability to contact ALL travelers quickly.
Unfortunately, these data blind spots can be a matter of life or death. Lack of data visibility on off-channel bookings creates unnecessary risk for both travelers and businesses. Now, however, these risks are preventable.
Pre-trip data capture for all itineraries, including changes and cancellations, will play a pivotal role as companies crawl out of the COVID-19 induced travel freeze. Traxo assists companies with real-time, pre-trip business travel data and intelligence to minimize risk and maximize data accuracy.
The True Risk of Incomplete Duty of Care
On average, travel managers observe that 31% of corporate bookings are made outside of the corporate program, which means that more than 30 out of every 100 business travelers are unaccounted for at some point during their trips, if not entirely. Let that number sink in for a moment while you think of your colleagues.
While some executives may feel this is an acceptable risk, it remains a burden to travel managers and a massive liability to companies when duty of care is not a priority.
An InternationalSOS report shares several examples, including the following:
“In Munn v. The Hotchkiss School, a student alleged that her school had breached its duty to her when, during a school trip to China, she contracted a rare tick-borne disease. The jury in that case agreed, and entered a judgment against the school for $41.7 million.” This “duty” extends well beyond schools and universities. Businesses can be sued over car accidents, injuries, kidnappings and other tragedies that happen during business travel.
The Importance of Complete Business Travel Data Aggregation
Data aggregation tools such as Traxo provide your organization with complete visibility into all traveler’s whereabouts without requiring any action from the traveler. Traxo captures all itinerary data, including changes and cancellations, regardless of the booking method. This complete data creates an actionable visual of itineraries before, during and after travel.
Ease Risk Management Concerns
By migrating to an “omnichannel” travel management strategy – one that incorporates data from TMC and non-TMC sources – travel managers can take proactive steps toward complete travel data visibility. Traxo’s ability to parse email reservations (without the need for email-forwarding) and consolidate itinerary information into one reporting tool, provides you with accurate and comprehensive pre-trip data insights.
Previously, off-channel booking data was only captured through credit card and expense reports after trips ended. Post-trip reconciliation is outdated and creates additional risk exposure, which can be minimized with real-time data aggregation. Now, travel managers can intervene before travel occurs if a booking is non-compliant or requires an employee to travel to a high-risk area.
Leveraging Off-Channel Bookings
Regardless of how stringent your policy and program is managed today, you know that some leakage is inevitable. By employing the right platform to eliminate inconsistent and incomplete travel data insights, you can see and manage your off-channel bookings. This proactive approach benefits itinerary management, rate re-shopping, negotiations with new and existing suppliers, policy compliance, and reduces risk to both the organization and the traveler.
If a more flexible travel policy suits your organization, you can empower your employees to book where they want without missing any necessary travel information. In many cases, such as this Ritchie Bros. case study, this flexibility leads to increased traveler satisfaction without compromising duty of care.
Create Win-Win Scenarios for Your Business and Its Travelers
Traxo empowers travel managers, globally, to act quickly and proactively when faced with an imminent crisis. You have an opportunity to create beneficial scenarios for all parties involved; you, your organization and, most importantly, your business travelers.
Business Benefits of Traxo:
- Complete pre-trip data visibility in one platform, accessible 24/7, allowing you to manage your program and travelers proactively.
- Complete data for eliminating risk, identifying missed savings opportunities, more effective supplier negotiations, and improved policy compliance.
- Reduced administrative lift of communicating, reporting, and tracking traveler policy violations.
- 20-minute implementation and no need for employee training.
Traveler Benefits:
- Peace of mind knowing their employer can easily locate travelers in a crisis to help reduce the severity of the situation, no matter how they booked their travel.
- Seamless data capture that doesn’t require any action by the traveler or traveler training. Itinerary details are automatically delivered to duty of care providers and directly accessible through Traxo’s customer portal.
- Greater booking flexibility in organizations that embrace a “hybrid travel program.”
Are you ready to start managing the never-before-seen parts of your travel program with Traxo’s robust data insights platform? Contact a Traxo travel data consultant today.
