Carlson Wagonlit Travel believes mobile is the way to reduce friction for the business traveller, drive productivity and boost the bottom line but there is still work to be done

In our hyper-connected, fast-paced digital world the managed travel industry is witnessing some major changes. Much of this is being driven by shifts in the world of leisure travel where today there is so much choice. Means of communication are faster, there are easier ways to book travel and countless, not to mention varied, options for travellers. As a result the demands from [business] travellers are growing too, says Carlos Sánchez, Senior Manager Big Data Analytics, Product Innovation at managed travel company Carlson Wagonlit. 

This trend is being driven by Gen Y, which by 2030 will account for 75% of the work force, who are increasingly merging business with leisure travel – they want the best of both worlds. Indeed, business travellers today are way more ‘connected’ and this trend of ‘any time, any place’ connection, says Sánchez,is expected to continue and customer expectations and preferred communication channels will evolve as a result.

Against this backdrop of advancements in technology, a crowded and complex marketplace and shifts in travel distribution, there is a growing recognition of the need to reduce friction in business travel. Innovative companies see that by doing so they can drive productivity of their employees, and boost the bottom line as a result.

As we pointed out last month in Why the heat is rising in the business travel world innovative companies are developing corporate tools (think TripIt from Concur, TripCase by Sabre, TripSource from BCD Travel, CWT to Go from Carlson Wagonlit) that mirror those in the leisure travel space – because it’s in leisure travel where the innovation usually starts.

Mobile opportunity

Where Sánchez – and he is certainly not alone - sees the biggest opportunity for the ‘connected traveller’ and for a company’s bottom line is in mobile.

“In the future, there’ll be one point of contact for the entire traveller journey, from their front door to their meeting and back again,” he says. 

At CWT it’s about connecting the dots by combining technology with customer service to help with travel expenses, processes, procedures and most importantly traveller safety and security – a major issue for companies sending their value employees out onto the road.

“When people need assistance on the road, or even more importantly, when they are in distress, they want to connect to a real human, not a computer,” he stresses.

Of course, more innovation is still needed but this takes time - not just for development, but also for deployment and ultimately mass adoption.

“We are now at a moment in time where technology is influencing our lives in many different areas and for companies to compete, they need to do an outstanding job at differentiating themselves and providing great value,” says Sánchez.

He has to admit, however, that there are many internal and external challenges, not least the use of big data, new and legacy technologies, delivery mechanisms and omnichannel solutions. However, what seemed impossible just a few years ago is now becoming common practice.

Looking ahead, the best-case scenario will involve mass adoption of mobile as the primary way to communicate with travellers. The benefits will be two-fold: empowering the tech-savvy traveller to make the right, informed decisions and enabling managed travel companies to offer personalised services at every stage of the journey.

For the traveller this could mean everything from:

• Easier and more effective pre-trip planning and booking
   
• Maps, bag check and trip disruption information at the airport
   
• Improved inflight connectivity
   
• In destination services – such as geo-specific restaurant offers - at the destination designed to make the traveller feel at home
   
• Automatic expense reporting or, perhaps real-time feedback, about the trip to a travel manager

For the travel manager it will mean:

• More effective management of the programme and the ability to pass on relevant information to travellers
   
• Reduction in travel costs while maintaining the quality of the travel experience

However, although a majority of today’s business travellers own a smartphone and use it for many tasks, this channel still represents a small percentage of corporate travel bookings. Sánchez sees this changing with mobile being the springboard into the future of business travel.  

For this reason, CWT’s focus is the continued development of their mobile app - CWT To Go. “The ultimate goal is to provide an app which not only gives relevant and real-time information to the traveller as they leave the office, catch a flight or hail a taxi, but also suggests and offers bespoke and customised information,” he says.

To his earlier point of the importance of human contact, a counselor connection will be integrated.

“We are working to connect our travellers with our counselors through click-to-call functionality and trip disruption services so travellers have access to our counselors 24/7 at the touch of a button,” he says.

To hear more insights into the world of managed travel and what companies like CWT are doing to drive productivity, join us at EyeforTravel’s upcoming Connected Traveller event (Oct 22 – 23). Don’t miss it!