A complete guide to corporate travel management

For businesses of all sizes, having employees travel for work is often a necessity. Whether it's attending conferences, meeting with clients, or visiting remote offices, corporate travel is an integral part of operations. However, managing all the logistics of booking flights, hotels, ground transportation, and keeping costs in check can be a daunting task. This is where corporate travel management comes into play, providing a structured way to simplify the entire travel process from start to end.

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In this guide, we'll dive deep into the world of corporate travel management, exploring what it entails, key strategies to streamline the process, and how to maximize cost savings while ensuring employee satisfaction and safety.

What is corporate travel management?

At its core, corporate travel management (CTM) refers to the overarching process of coordinating and optimizing all aspects of business travel within an organization. It's a comprehensive approach that covers everything from setting travel and expense policies, booking business trips to manage expenses, and ensuring employee safety while on the road. The goal is to make sure that business travel is handled efficiently and cost-effectively, while also making sure that it aligns with the company's overall policies and objectives.

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Corporate travel management includes activities such as:

• Developing travel policies and guidelines for employees
• Booking flights, hotels, rental cars, and arranging full itineraries
• Negotiating discounted rates with travel suppliers like airlines and hotels
• Managing business travel expenses, reimbursements, and reporting
• Ensuring traveler safety through risk management and duty of care practices
• Analyzing travel data to identify cost-saving opportunities

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Ultimately, the main purpose of corporate travel management is to make business travel as smooth and stress-free as possible for employees, while also keeping costs under control and ensuring that travel supports a company's goals. 

The importance of corporate travel management

Effectively managing corporate travel is important for several reasons:

1. Cost control

Business travel ends up being a major expense category for most companies. Having a structured corporate travel program helps keep costs under control in a few ways. First, it allows your company to leverage its purchasing power to negotiate discounted rates with airlines, hotels, and other vendors. It also provides a way to set and enforce travel policies that prevent unnecessary overspending. 

2. Employee productivity

A well-run corporate travel program makes the entire experience much smoother for employees, allowing them to focus on the business objectives of their trips. With pre-arranged travel, they can skip the nightmare of last-minute bookings. Automated processes reduce the administrative hassle, and having support resources available lets them hit the ground running once they arrive.

3. Duty of care

When employees travel for business, their safety and well-being is the company's responsibility. This "duty of care" obligation is a major part of corporate travel management. It involves having rigorous risk assessment protocols, providing travel advisories and alerts, facilitating emergency assistance if needed, and prioritizing traveler security overall.

4. Compliance with travel policies 

Most companies have internal policies that govern things like booking procedures, preferred suppliers, expense limits, and more for business travel. An effective travel management program is key for clearly documenting those policies and ensuring that employees adhere to them. This helps maintain compliance with both internal corporate guidelines and any relevant external regulations.

5. Data and reporting

By centralizing all travel data—bookings, expenses, supplier usage, and more—corporate travel management programs can provide incredibly valuable reporting and analytics capabilities. Having insights into travel patterns, spending trends, areas of overspending, and so on allows companies to continuously analyze and optimize their travel programs over time.

Who manages corporate travel?

Corporate travel is typically managed by the procurement, finance, or operations department within an organization. The scope and structure of corporate travel management can vary significantly based on the size of the company and the volume of business travel required.

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In larger enterprises with substantial travel needs, there may be a dedicated corporate business travel management team or department responsible for overseeing the entire travel program. This team is typically led by a travel manager or director who coordinates with various stakeholders, such as finance, human resources, and department heads, to develop and implement travel policies, negotiate with suppliers, select and manage travel technology solutions, and ensure compliance with travel regulations and duty of care obligations. 

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They may also work closely with travel management companies (TMCs) or leverage in-house travel agents to handle complex travel arrangements and provide support to travelers. In smaller organizations, corporate travel management responsibilities may fall under the purview of a single individual or be shared among multiple roles within the finance or operations teams.

What is a travel management company?

A travel management company (TMC) is an organization that handles all the travel planning and booking for other companies. Instead of having their own employees spend time and energy coordinating flights, hotels, rental cars, and all the other bits and pieces that go into business travel, companies can hire a TMC to handle it all for them. TMCs are like travel experts who take on all the heavy lifting and logistics of corporate travel planning.

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These organizations have specialized travel booking systems, relationships with lots of travel providers to get good rates, and deep knowledge about the travel industry. They use this expertise to find travel options that fit each client's budget, policies, and preferences. 

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TMCs offer round-the-clock support for travelers who encounter any problems during their journey. They also compile detailed reports of travel expenses, allowing companies to track their expenditures and identify areas for improvement in their travel program. Additionally, TMCs can provide valuable insights and recommendations for enhancing the company's travel program in the future.

What does a corporate travel manager do?

While TMCs can be valuable partners in handling corporate travel, many organizations also have dedicated internal resources to manage their travel programs. This is where the role of a corporate travel manager comes in.

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A corporate travel manager oversees and manages all aspects of their company's business travel. Their main job is to make sure that employees can easily book their trips and travel without any hassles, while also keeping an eye on costs and making sure everyone follows the company's travel rules. This means they wear a lot of different hats—from negotiating deals with airlines and hotels to get the best prices, to helping employees book complicated itineraries and making sure they get reimbursed for their expenses.

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One of the most challenging parts of the job is creating and enforcing the company's travel policies. The travel manager has to find a middle ground between making travel as easy and convenient as possible for employees, while also watching out for the company's bottom line. This means they need to really understand the company's budget and be able to dive into all the travel expense data to figure out where money can be saved. They also have to keep up with all the latest travel booking tools and technologies, so they can make the whole process as smooth as possible for everyone involved.

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Components of a corporate travel management program

When employees need to travel for work, having a well-structured corporate travel management program in place is essential. By combining clear policies, helpful technology, and ongoing support, companies can make the whole process of booking trips, managing business expenses, and staying safe on the road much smoother for everyone involved. Let's break down the key pieces that come together to create an effective business travel program:

Travel policies

A well-defined corporate travel policy lays out guidelines for booking trips, submitting expenses, getting approvals, and other travel-related procedures. It's the foundation that ensures everyone is on the same page and playing by the same rules. When the policies are clear and cover all the bases, it's easier for the company to keep things under control.

Online booking tools

These are websites and apps that let employees book their own flights, hotels, rental cars, etc. while still sticking to the company's travel policies. These self-service tools make booking easier for employees and take work off travel managers' plates. They streamline the process while enforcing policy guardrails.

Expense management

Using expense management software, employees can track business expenses while they're traveling, like meals, taxis, and other travel-related costs. These tools which connect to corporate credit cards and accounting systems make it easy for employees to file their expenses, get reimbursed, and keep everything organized. When expense reporting is automated like this, it saves time and reduces errors.

Policy enforcement

This is about having automatic checks in place to ensure that when people book their trips and submit their expenses, they follow all the company's rules. If anything looks off or goes against the policy, it gets flagged for a closer look. This helps keep spending under control and ensures everyone is consistent across the whole company. 

Supplier management

This involves negotiating deals and evaluating the performance of airlines, hotels, rental car companies, and other travel vendors used by the company. Effective supplier management leads to better rates and terms, and regular review helps optimize preferred vendor lists.

Challenges of corporate travel management

Managing corporate travel isn't all smooth sailing. Companies often face significant challenges when trying to run an effective travel program, which can include:

Cost control and policy compliance

One of the biggest challenges is simply making sure that travel expenses don't spiral out of control. With the cost of flights, hotels, car rentals, and other travel-related expenses constantly fluctuating, it can be tough to stick to a budget. Setting clear travel policies that outline things like spending limits can help, but getting employees to actually follow those policies is another challenge entirely. It often requires a lot of communication, education, and sometimes even enforcement to make sure everyone is on the same page when it comes to travel spending.

Difficulty in tracking approvals

Another common challenge in corporate travel management is keeping track of all the approvals needed for trips and expenses. In many companies, there can be a lengthy approval process that involves multiple people signing off on travel plans before an employee can book anything. This can lead to delays and frustration for travelers, and it can be a real headache for travel managers to keep everything moving along smoothly. Streamlining the approval process and finding ways to speed things up can make a big difference in the overall efficiency of the travel program.

Managing expense fraud

Unfortunately, expense fraud is a real problem in many companies, and it can be especially tricky to catch when it comes to travel expenses. Employees might exaggerate their expenses, claim reimbursement for things that aren't allowed under company policy, or even submit completely fabricated receipts. This kind of misreporting can add up to significant losses for the company over time. Having a robust expense management software in place, like Ramp, can be a huge help in preventing fraud and catching any suspicious activity early on.

Issues with data integration

Another big hurdle in corporate travel management is dealing with all the data that comes from different parts of the travel process. There's information flowing in from online booking tools, expense reporting software, invoices from travel suppliers, corporate credit card systems, and more. Trying to get all of that data into one place so you can actually make sense of it and use it to make decisions about the travel program can be a real headache. It often requires some technical know-how and a lot of patience to get it all sorted out.

Logistical inefficiencies

Even the basic logistics of corporate travel can be a challenge to manage, especially when you're dealing with a lot of employees traveling at once. Just getting everyone to use the company's booking tools correctly, making sure traveler profiles are up to date, and keeping all the different processes running smoothly can be a full-time job in itself. These kinds of inefficiencies can be really frustrating for travel managers and travelers alike, and finding ways to streamline and simplify things is an ongoing battle.

Tips to manage business travel effectively

Create a clear and easy-to-follow travel policy

The first step to managing business travel well is to have a travel policy that lays out all the rules and guidelines in a way that's easy for everyone to understand. This policy should cover everything from how to book trips and what kinds of expenses are allowed, to safety tips and how to report expenses. Make sure the policy is easy to find and access for all employees, and review it regularly to keep it up to date with any changes in the company or the travel industry.

​​Leverage technology for efficiency

Investing in the right travel management tools can make a big difference in streamlining processes and saving time. Online booking platforms, expense management software, and mobile apps can automate many tasks and make it easier for employees to handle their own travel arrangements.

Build strong relationships with travel vendors

Building strong partnerships with travel suppliers like airlines, hotels, and rental car companies can lead to better rates, terms, and service. Negotiate favorable contracts and establish preferred vendor programs to get the most value. Regularly evaluate supplier performance and be open to making changes if needed to ensure you're getting the best deals and meeting your company's business needs.

Emphasize communication and education

Effective communication is key to ensuring that everyone understands and follows the company's travel policies and procedures. Provide regular training and updates to keep employees informed about the travel program. Encourage open feedback and listen to travelers' concerns and suggestions. The more engaged and informed employees are, the smoother the travel process will be.

Adopt data for continuous improvement

Travel generates a wealth of data that can be used to identify areas for improvement and optimize the travel program. Regularly analyze spending patterns, policy compliance, and traveler feedback to spot trends and issues. Use this data to make informed decisions about policy changes, supplier negotiations, and program enhancements. Continuous monitoring and adjustment will keep your travel program running efficiently and effectively.

Ease your travel experience with Ramp

Ramp offers an innovative solution to streamline corporate travel management and expense reporting. By providing smart corporate cards with built-in spend controls, Ramp empowers employees to book their own travel while ensuring adherence to company policies. Customizable spending limits prevent overspending, while automatic receipt matching and real-time transaction data eliminate the need for manual expense reports. This automation saves countless hours and reduces errors compared to traditional processes.

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Ramp's platform also integrates seamlessly with popular accounting software for smooth data syncing and accurate expense categorization. This simplifies month-end close and gives finance teams clear visibility into travel spend. With low rates, rewards, and an intuitive booking experience, employees enjoy seamless travel. Letting Ramp handle travel expenses saves even more time and keeps T&E on track.