All we need is savings – from a cursory look at a study on expectations from travel managers for the upcoming year, you could get the impression that this is true. But take a closer look, and several new trends become apparent.

Travel managers are split beings. That at least is the impression you could get from reading the results of a study about the assumptions and expectations for the upcoming year: they have to give highest priority to costs savings, and yet a quarter of travel managers have no specific policy in the areas of flights, overnights, rental cars or train travel – although that is a significant condition needed to achieve lasting cost reductions.

But that’s not all: according to the study, 7 percent of companies have withdrawn their travel policies altogether. Particularly companies in Italy, Spain and Brazil are showing ever less interest in travel guidelines.

Another example: on the one hand, almost two-thirds of all travel managers assume that further savings potentials can be found and utilized in the areas of plane travel and overnight stays. But this positive message is tempered by the fact that travel managers, particularly in the USA and European countries, have to cope with a reduction of savings potential associated with their individual contracts with key service providers. Where travel managers a year ago could expect an 18% savings through contractual agreements with airlines compared to regular prices, in reality it has turned out to be only 16%. Even companies with high amounts of travel could not save more than 20%.

Most contracts with travel service providers are made in the area of overnight stays: two-thirds of all respondents had negotiated special deals in this area. Half of all companies had made a contract in the areas of rental cards and flights. Almost 40% have agreements with meeting or convention centers and 16% with rail services.

Travel managers will have to take on even more duties and responsibilities in 2009 than they have in 2008. In addition to applicable methods to increase savings, individual support given to business travelers will become ever more important, especially in western European countries. On a scale from one to five (very important to not particularly important), the support of travelers had the second-highest priority, with an average of 3.1 (reducing travel costs had 1.8). Next comes the optimization of internal processes (3.2), the introduction of travel policy guidelines (3.3), and reporting on costs for management (3.5).

1,500 travel managers from Europe, the USA, Mexico and Brazil, South Africa as well as China, Singapore and Australia were surveyed for the latest AirPlus International Travel Management Study.

Quelle: AirPlus International Travel Management Study 2008