Business Travel Is Resilient, But Slowing — 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 travel managers and buyers, the innovations 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

Sometimes, it’s instructive to take a step back and view the broader implications of the events and trends that are affecting travelers around the world and the corporate travel ecosystem itself.

Terrorism and shaky economic numbers are creating headwinds for corporate travel growth. At the same time, consolidation is rocking the hotel and airline industries, while sharing economy services are moving into the mainstream.

And a new study shows that nine out of 10 travelers are routinely stressed out on their pricy international business trips.

Whether or not a sustained period of reduced business travel spending is ahead, travel management companies need to stay attuned to the needs of their clients, specifically with respect to providing security for travelers and driving savings for their companies.

Smart companies that adopt innovative digital methods for providing and monitoring travel services will be well-positioned regardless.

— Andrew Sheivachman, Skift

Social Quote of the Day

#BusinessTravellers have told us their main priorities – cost, convenience and speed and productivity are key when traveling— @TheGTMC

Business of Buying

Business Travel in Europe Was Affected but ‘Resilient’ After Brussels Attacks: Global security concerns have been a reality for travelers for years, so it’s alarming to see 20 percent of respondents to a GBTA poll say that their company does not have a policy to deal with such risks. Read more at Skift

The Future of Corporate Travel Is Slow Growth: As business travel grows slowly in the U.S., travel management companies with more robust digital tools will be able to capture more bookings. Read more at Skift

Alaska Airlines’ Acquisition of Virgin America May Be Good For Business Travelers: The deal will turn Alaska into a behemoth on the U.S. west coast. Read more at Business Travel News

Skift Podcast: How Business Travel Is Trying to Become More Traveler-Friendly: Business travel is evolving — slowly — to become more like consumer travel as companies start to take employee satisfaction more seriously. Listen at Skift

Safety for Travelers

TSA Isn’t Doing Enough To Secure U.S. Airports from Rogue Employees: Somehow just three U.S. airports out of 300 have greatly increased oversight of airport workers in the last two years. This should worry travel managers. Read more at Skift

Nine Out of 10 U.S. Business Travelers Stressed Out by International Travel: Traveling abroad for business isn’t quite the escape many travelers portray it as. Read more at Skift

Disruption + Innovation

AccorHotels CEO: It’s Foolish and Irresponsible to Fight Against the Sharing Economy:  With its multi-million-dollar investments in Onefinestay, Oasis Collections, and Squarebreak, AccorHotels is taking a smart, strategic approach to battling the encroachment of home-sharing platforms like Airbnb and HomeAway by embracing direct competitors. Read more at Skift

Expense Fraud Is Rampant in Business Travel: As companies cut back on business travel spending, expect them to pay more attention to the employees that fib on their expense reports. 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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