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The difference between a delay and a disaster is proactive travel planning

Imagine this: Your boss or colleague is on a work trip, and their flight has just been canceled. Bad weather, mechanical failure, natural disasters, pilot staffing issues…whatever the issue, it’s become your problem. 

They’re texting and calling you because you booked their business travel. They’re frustrated. They don’t know what to do. They’re worried about the extra time and expense of this delay. And now your day is disrupted as well as theirs.

At Corporate Traveler, we hear stories like this all the time, and we know the corporate travel risk management strategies to avoid these situations.

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The best defense against travel disasters? Being proactive.

A little proactive planning can help mitigate business travel risks. Here's why a proactive business travel disruptions management plan matters:

  • It can minimize or avoid financial disasters. Canceled flights could mean your travelers are stuck for a day or two. So the company might need to cover extra hotel stays and/or transportation (at last-minute prices, no less). And extra per diem.
  • It helps you get to your important meetings. Booking flights with tight connections or reserving hotels too far from destinations could create delays that cause your colleagues to miss meetings. Your company could even lose business due to a missed meeting. Yikes!
  • It helps keep your travelers safe and happy. Having a travel risk management program in place can improve the safety and well-being of traveling employees by avoiding having them stranded in airports or missing moments at home with loved ones.

5 ways to be more proactive when planning travel

Here are five real-world ways to be more proactive with corporate travel arrangements:

  1. Book early. Booking before everyone else gives you more options (including flights with the best connections or hotels in the most convenient locations) and often costs less.
  2. Assess risk potential. Traveling in January/February? Expect winter weather to cause delays and cancellations.  
  3. Research the destination. What’s happening in the destination city? Should your travelers expect heavy traffic, parking issues, or even transportation strikes?
  4. Prep your travelers. Make sure your business travelers know what to do and who to contact if they’re delayed.   
  5. Review your travel policy. Stay up to date on approval processes, preferred vendors, spend limits, and compliance reporting.
Download our checklist for more proactive business travel tips.

 

Download the checklist

Even better: Dedicated travel experts, on your side

Don’t let business travel details keep you from the rest of your work. Let our dedicated Travel Managers handle the logistics for you.

With an average tenure of 8+ years, our Travel Managers have the expertise and resources to give your travelers more seamless trips. And give you fewer headaches. 

  • Extensive route knowledge? Check!
  • Insights on which days to avoid traveling? Check!
  • First-hand experience with airport wait times and ideal flight times? Check and check!

Our relationships with airlines, hotels, and vendors mean your business travelers receive VIP treatment at every step of every trip. Think expedited service, late checkouts, and upgrades. All at rates that we negotiate in bulk (which saves money and makes you look like a hero).

But wait. What if there’s an unexpected delay because of a storm or a mechanical issue with a plane? No worries. You get 24/7 support from expert Travel Managers who know your travelers and business travel policies. Instead of waiting in line at the airport or spending the day on hold, your traveler can swiftly solve their travel disruptions by calling, emailing, or chatting online with our dedicated Travel Managers, who respond in less than 2 minutes!

One client had booked something seemingly way out of policy, so I notified themof the booking and prices. I was able to void the airfare and cancel the hotel without penalty and get them rebooked into their preferred hotel and airfare within policy. Approximate savings of $500 for one trip.

- Katelyn Benedict, Travel Manager

My client does a ton of group bookings for their new store openings. So I’ll reach out to hotels in the markets I know they are going to be opening in, and start forming relationships with the hotel reps in the area. When the time comes to book, I am able to negotiate rates on their behalf that save anywhere from $2-12k depending on group size! Even saved them $40k on their larger General Manager conference by negotiating not only hotel rates, but meeting space and f&b as well!

- Kristina Montaperto, Travel Manager

Smart tech solutions for seamless business travel arrangements and logistical support

With Corporate Traveler, you get access to Melon, our all-in-one travel platform, which helps you meet your duty of care obligations and ensure corporate travel safety. Melon allows you to:

  • View upcoming business trips for easy organization.
  • Track your travelers through their journeys (traveler tracking is especially helpful when bad weather’s brewing and you need to see who might be affected).
  • Get real-time notifications through Crisis 24 alerts to help you stay ahead of developing issues.
  • Set minimum star ratings for your hotels to make sure they meet your travelers’ preferences.
  • Access emergency support with just one click 24/7.
  • Track travel spending without collecting and reconciling receipts from individual business travelers.

Partner with Corporate Traveler's dedicated travel experts today

You can’t avoid every business travel disruption. But you can anticipate and mitigate them.

Even better, you can let the pros handle the travel plans for you. No more stressing over weather issues, airline staffing problems, or mechanical trouble. With Corporate Traveler, your travelers are always supported by dedicated agents with the expertise and insight to avoid travel delays whenever possible and quickly recover from any unavoidable situations.

Wanna make your work life easier?

Book a meeting with Corporate Traveler for a personalized solution to your business travel needs.

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