In the ever-complex and unpredictable world of corporate operations, business continuity management (BCM) stands as a cornerstone for ensuring an organization's ongoing stability. Business continuity refers to the planning and preparation undertaken to ensure that an organization can continue to operate in case of serious incidents, disasters, or unexpected events. These could include natural disasters and weather disruptions, cyber-attacks, system failures, or, as the recent pandemic has shown us, global health crises. While often overlooked, one of the most critical aspects of business continuity planning is corporate travel.
Imagine the logistics and complexities involved in managing the travel of hundreds, thousands, or even tens of thousands of employees spread across various locations globally. From flights and hotel bookings to rental cars and other transportation services, there is a web of dependencies. Any disruption—such as a travel agency becoming insolvent, a natural disaster affecting travel routes, or cybersecurity breaches—can have ripple effects across the entire business.
Corporate travel is not just about convenience and efficiency; it's about safety and duty of care, too. Companies are responsible for the well-being of their employees when they are on the road. Hence, organizations need a backup plan in the event that their primary means of managing corporate travel falls apart.
Traxo’s complete travel data capture solution plays a pivotal role in enhancing business continuity planning in the realm of corporate travel. While traditionally known for empowering travel managers to improve program savings and increase compliance, Traxo also serves as an indispensable tool for business continuity and disaster recovery (DR).
A business manager who oversees travel for a global banking group said, “I see [Traxo] as a form of BCM and DR in the event that an agency becomes insolvent and can no longer perform services or a privacy or system breach occurs that forces the business to shut down its service temporarily or indefinitely. In both scenarios, we would have to allow users to book through their own means for at least some period of time. During such an event, Traxo would allow us to continue to have visibility into travel bookings and provide duty of care for all employees.”
In an era where real-time data is invaluable, Traxo provides organizations with instant visibility into their entire travel program—no matter where employees book travel. This feature becomes crucial during unforeseen situations. For example, if a travel agency becomes insolvent or faces service disruptions due to a cybersecurity breach, organizations using Traxo can still stay aware and updated with their employees’ travel bookings. This helps reduce risk and maintain duty of care (as required by travel risk management standard ISO 31030, ensuring employee safety even when primary systems fail.
One of the unique features of Traxo is its ability to capture travel data from a multitude of sources, not just from a single agency or service provider. This means that even if businesses are forced to let employees book travel directly with suppliers or through an online travel agency due to some disruption with the primary travel agency or online booking tool, Traxo ensures that the company still has a centralized system for identifying those bookings. The flexibility offered by Traxo essentially future-proofs programs, allows organizations to adapt quickly to unplanned situations without compromising data integrity or sacrificing employee safety.
In the event of system breaches or privacy-related issues that could potentially shut down your primary travel management service, having a secondary, secure data handling solution is invaluable. Traxo's stringent data security measures make it a reliable alternative, ensuring business continuity even when your main systems are compromised.
Traxo's real-time data capture and reporting capabilities mean that you can respond more rapidly to any disruptions, thereby limiting their impact. Whether it’s rerouting employees due to a natural disaster or quickly arranging alternate accommodation in case of issues, the timely information provided by Traxo could literally be a lifesaver.
Business continuity is an often underestimated aspect of corporate travel management. With complexities and vulnerabilities growing, it’s more important than ever to have a robust, flexible, and secure system in place to manage disruptions. Traxo's complete travel data capture solution not only improves travel program performance but also serves as a powerful tool for business continuity planning. By offering real-time visibility, flexibility, secure data handling, and speed of response, Traxo ensures that organizations can navigate through the uncertainties of corporate travel with confidence and resilience.