Skift Take

It's not easy to make someone change an ingrained habit, even when there's a good reason to do so. So if companies don't focus on majorly improving the end product for travelers, they can expect a lot of out-of-policy bookings.

A lot of great tools to book and expense corporate travel are already on the market and in common use. Now companies are trying to bring all these tools together on one platform, where travelers can book and change flights and hotels, order cars, track spending, and so on — all without leaving the app.

There are a few reasons why companies are pushing for an all-in-one platform, but a major one is that it saves them money long-term. While most companies have at least a partially integrated travel management platform, only a small percentage actually report using a truly all-in-one booking tool, according to a recent report by the Association of Corporate Travel Executives in collaboration with American Express Global Business Travel.

Bringing all the moving pieces together is complex, though. The most difficult part is getting the actual business travelers on board — they are often resistant to change if the new product isn’t markedly better than the first.

Bruno Murray, vice president at American Express GBT, talked to Skift about how travel buyers can make new travel platforms exciting for travelers and how he sees the industry evolving over the next several years.

Read this story, and many more, below.

If you have any feedback about the newsletter or news tips, feel free to reach out via email at [email protected] or tweet @ikcarey.

Isaac Carey, Travel Reporter

Featured Stories

All-in-One Management Platforms Need Traveler Support to Get Off the Ground: This trend is becoming more and more pronounced: The future of corporate management is going to be all about the traveler.

Duffel Joins Wave of Startups Accelerating Efforts to Reinvent Airline Distribution: Venture capitalists are turning their sights on airline distribution. Duffel’s backing by VC firms Index and Benchmark bring hope to the sector. New ideas and technologies may help create more efficient and user-friendly ways for travel agencies to access airline data to sell tickets and other products.

American Airlines Gets Ready to Bounce Back in 2020: American Airlines has had a rough year. But on its third-quarter earnings call, top executives made a compelling argument that they’ve turned things around. Are they right? Or was it just spin?

Southwest Is Latest to Remove Expiration Dates From Frequent Flyer Miles: Those who are used to glacially accumulating airline miles over the course of many years may now have a better program to look forward to with Southwest Rapid Rewards. For those who took advantage of companion passes though, the story may be a bit different.

The Future Of Travel

Airlines Care Less About the Environment Than They Lead You to Believe: Airlines know passengers care about the environment, so they’re all ready with talking points to provide their sustainability bonafides. But many are changing little about their strategies.

Ctrip Name Change to Trip.com Group Is Now Official: The name change to Trip.com Group is not a bad idea for Ctrip as it increasingly comes out of its shell and becomes a global force in online travel. A catchy domain name, though, doesn’t guarantee anything.

Southwest Will Look at Buying Jets Other Than Boeing 737s After 48-Year Run: Southwest Airlines always is hesitant to mess with its secret sauce. But it’s a gigantic airline, and it might benefit from operating more than one aircraft type.

Travel Reporter Isaac Carey [[email protected]] curates the Skift Corporate Travel Innovation Report. Skift emails the newsletter every Thursday.

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Tags: american express gbt, amex gbt, corporate travel, ctir

Photo credit: Business Travelers at Beijing International Airport. Business travelers have been resistant to adopt all-in-one corporate management platforms; including user-friendly features like in-app messaging is key. Marc van der Chijs / Flickr

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