The Future Already Happened — Skift Corporate Travel Innovation Report

The Skift Corporate Travel Innovation Report is our new weekly newsletter focused on the future of corporate travel, the big fault lines of disruption for the travel managers and buyers, the innovators emerging from the sector, and the changing business traveler habits that are upending how corporate travel is packaged, bought, and sold.

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The Future of Corporate + Business Travel

European corporate travel experts at the 2016 ITB Berlin Convention spoke last week with a laser focus on encouraging travel managers and buyers to better understand how clients are making their travel decisions.

“Forty-five percent of travel managers can’t specify savings made through travel policies,” said Rainer Schäfer, Sabre Corporation’s country director for Germany and Austria. “Travel managers need to assimilate all this data to show the success of their work. The better they can show that data, the higher the satisfaction will be for companies and travelers.”

The truth is that changes in the way travelers use technology have already shifted how workers book and experience business travel. Travel managers need to know the ramifications of spending outside policy and understand which travel choices make happier business travelers.

In other words, the challenge and opportunity for travel managers isn’t that the world is changing; the world already has already changed, and corporate travel needs to catch up.

–Andrew Sheivachman, Skift

Social Quote of the Day

“It is good to have an end to journey toward; but it is the journey that matters, in the end.” ― Ernest Hemingway @CWTAmericas

Leisure Meets Corporate

Interview: Filling the Vast Innovation Gap in Corporate Travel: Corporate travel CEOs who want their companies to grow must seize every opportunity to innovate. And there are plenty of opportunities because the pace of change within corporate travel has been very sluggish. Read more at Skift

Report: What Online Hotel Ratings and Reviews Aren’t Telling Consumers: That online hotel reviews are extremely important—both for potential guests and travel managers—is undisputed, but looking at numerical ratings isn’t enough. Read more at Skift

Corporate Travel Is Under Threat From Economic Weakness: Slowdown in the global economy is likely to impact corporate travel this year, especially in the oil sector and Asia. Read more at Business Travel News

Business of Buying

Travel Managers Try Incentives to Get Business Travelers Into Preferred Restaurants: Using incentives to better control spending on meals is a smart move for companies and travel managers. Read more at Skift

Flight Centre Is Moving Into Central Europe: By buying a Netherlands-based corporate travel agency, Flight Centre Travel Group is looking to reestablish its corporate travel bonafides in Europe. Read more at The Sydney Morning Herald

Marriott Strikes Back at Online Travel Agencies With Another Direct Booking Push: Marriott is introducing new lower hotel booking rates that are exclusive to Marriott Rewards loyalty program members who book directly on Marriott.com, the Marriott mobile app, its call centers, and select corporate travel professionals and travel agents. Read more at Skift

Disruption + Innovation

South by Southwest Director on Building the World’s Buzziest Business Event: While the presence of big name headliners and breakout technologies drive a lot of exposure around SXSW, it’s still the face time among speakers, exhibitors, and attendees from different industries that drives the event’s success. Read more at Skift

Tracking Your Clients Is Easier Than Ever Before: New tools and innovations are making it easier to automatically track travelers when travel disruptions strike. Read more at Business Travel News

Comments

The Skift Corporate Travel Innovation Report is curated by Skift editors Hannah Sampson [hs@skift.com] and Andrew Sheivachman [as@skift.com]. The newsletter is emailed every Thursday.

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