As the world swings back into full gear, corporate travel is not just returning; it’s booming! But let’s face it—organizing a work trip can be a real headache, especially for small to mid-sized companies without the right tools at their disposal. Hence, it is important to use things like corporate travel programs that can help you and your teammates breeze through business trips stress-free — and manage expenses more easily, too.
In this blog, we’ll look at what a travel program is, share the best ways to start using one, and explain how ExpenseVisor’s advanced travel management software can make organizing your business trips much easier.
What is a corporate travel program?
A corporate travel program is an internal resource that sets up procedures for business travel. Usually, it includes rules for travel booking processes, tutorials for expense management systems, and partnerships with airlines and travel agencies. By having set guidelines for travel, you can save money on business travel for your team without compromising on comfort or safety.
Benefits of corporate travel programs
You arrive at the office at 9:00 am, a little later than usual, with a slight headache. You sit down at your desk to do a quick email and phone check before brewing your morning coffee.
To your dismay (but not exactly to your surprise), you have ten missed calls and six emails, all from the sales guy who’s finishing up a business trip. He has some serious logistical problems, and he needs your help immediately to resolve them.
Two hours and seven phone calls later, the sales guy is taken care of, but you’re stressed, already behind on your work, and your headache has worsened. And you still haven’t had your morning coffee.
If this nightmare seems at all familiar, you may want to consider implementing a corporate travel program.
Companies can experience a range of benefits:
- Reduced Travel Spending
- Improved Travel Policy Compliance
- Enhanced Travel Experience
- Simplified Expense Mnagement
- Data Driven Travel Decisions
How does a corporate travel program work?
There are two main ways in which corporate travel programs function:
- Primarily by the means of software offered by a corporate travel management company, a corporate travel program codifies and standardizes corporate travel policies company-wide. This means that everything from categorized travel spend limits to general business travel guidelines are readily available to traveling employees, eliminating repetitive, time-consuming questions. ExpenseVisor offers one of the best travel expense management software solutions on the market today.
- Whether accomplished internally or through outsourcing to a travel agency, a good business travel program will ensure the presence of a dedicated group of travel support staff, ready and on-call 24/7.
This means that any issues or emergency travel needs (such as canceled flights or problems with car rentals) will be resolved quickly, effectively, and without forcing any employee or manager to abandon their own time-sensitive tasks to assist.
How to implement a successful corporate travel program?
Implementing a successful corporate travel program is a detailed process that will vary from company to company. The basic steps are as follows:
- Create a plan that works for the whole company
Before implementing any software or procedures, a good travel manager should create a detailed plan, working with every department in the company to ensure that the most important needs and requirements will be met by the program. Suggestions include:
- Create a detailed series of travel budgets
- Compile a list of potential choices for travel management software
- Create a set of fleshed-out compliance procedures that apply company-wide.
- Invest in travel management software
Travel management software is essential to creating a truly streamlined business travel program. No matter how detailed the planning, budgeting, and compliance processes, there will be headaches if all details are not brought together under one roof—that is, integrated into an end-to-end travel management software.
Here are some points to consider when choosing a travel management software solution:
- How large and complex is my business? How advanced are my requirements?
- What departments would benefit most from this software, and what features would help them the most?
- What industry-specific needs should this software meet?
- How fast will the onboarding process be?
- Train employees
Even under the simplest and most intuitive of systems, you will need to ensure that employees are trained comprehensively on how to fully utilize the travel management software and travel agent support. Proper training at inception will prevent time-consuming questions down the line. Keep the following points in mind when training employees:
- Meetings and formal trainings are helpful, but practical, hands-on training is usually most effective
- Prioritize those departments that will be most heavily using the software
- Save time by only training employees on processes they’ll be using; don’t train everyone on everything.
- Monitor results and improve
Many travel management software companies have tools that automatically make charts and graphs from your employees’ travel data. These charts are easy to understand and help you review travel habits. Use these features a lot to keep making your company’s travel better and save more money. Here are some things to think about:
- Look at travel expense trends for both short-term and long-term.
- Saving money is important, but also think about saving time in your analysis.
- When needed, use travel management software to look at specific details, like how much each employee is spending.
Why choose ExpenseVisor travel management software for your corporate travel program?
ExpenseVisor has become a rapidly emerging provider of expense reporting automation through its commitment to developing long-term partnerships with its customers and delivering a Travel and Entertainment expense reporting solution.
No matter if you work for a new startup or a big company, a corporate travel program can help your business in many ways. And usually, the sooner you start this, the more money your business will make in the future.
Read More: Why Accurate Expense Reporting Matters For Your Business
