FUELED BY VACCINATIONS and a population looking to break away from government-imposed restrictions, corporate travel is on the upswing, thanks to what American Express Global Business Travel Executive Vice President David Reimer termed the “omicron hangover.”
In an article headlined “As U.S. business travel gets busy in 2022, expect higher costs,” Business Travel News says, “As the omicron variant wanes in North America, companies get back to their offices, and mask mandates and other restrictions are lifted … business travel is poised for a comeback.”
Here’s what I see going forward.
A return to face-to-face meetings. After two years of Zoom calls with 25, 50, 100 faces on a screen, companies have realized the need to conduct business in person. A strong handshake and an after-hours drink will once again be the mainstay in doing business. “Business travel is about relationships, and you can’t build relationships through videoconferencing applications,” said United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby.
A meeting and a massage. The need to combine a business trip with some type of leisure activity – known as “bleisure” – will increase. The workforce is becoming younger and vaccinated, and a recent survey by National Geographic indicated that 90% of millennial travelers “just wanna have fun.”
Lodging alternatives. The hotel, once a mainstay of corporate travel, is now sharing the attention of travelers, who are often opting for short-term rentals listed on web-based platforms to create a more “at-home” feeling. A survey by American Express indicated that over 70% of millennial corporate travelers stayed in a vacation rental during business trips.
Self-booking. Armed with smartphones, millennial travelers also are more inclined to self-book with online tools a fingertip away. However, as problems arise, companies will continue to rely on corporate travel management companies to provide access to their online booking tools in order to prevent problems as emergencies arise, such as canceled flights.
Increased tech. Mobile technology accounts for 39% of hotel bookings and 22% of airfare bookings, and as phone technology is refined, those numbers will likely rise. What international travelers will see in the future is less time in airport lines thanks to facial recognition technology, and fingerprint and retinal scanning. When it comes to travel delays, the ability to keep travelers updated immediately via their phones is a godsend. Business travelers enjoy online check-ins and the ability to access their hotel room via smartphone.
Business travel as a perk. If the ability exists to combine the enrichment that comes with travel with the professional advancement that comes with business travel, then you have the best of all worlds. According to the Global Business Travel Association, employees who travel often feel more empowered and engaged. Travel can help improve confidence and interpersonal relationship skills.
Many uncertainties still loom for the travel industry, from the war in Ukraine to the emergence of more COVID-19 variants, which could impede corporate travel’s full return to pre-pandemic heights. Fortunately, the fear for many Americans to travel abroad has dissipated, whereas the U.S. no longer requires testing upon reentry to the country via air travel.
The world is an ever-changing place, and businesses need to be able to jump back on as the business-travel carousel starts to rev up. Be smart and use the time to think about travel policies, habits and problematic travel matters that you now have time to address. Corporate travel is the bedrock of deal-making, and it will be imperative in resuscitating many businesses as we start to emerge from this COVID-19 malaise.
Franc Jeffrey is CEO of EQ Travel, with offices in Boston and the United Kingdom.
