Travel policies are key components of any successful corporate business trip, but there’s currently a gap between policy awareness and compliance.
According to recent research, more than 95% of travellers know where to find the travel policy, but more than two-thirds deviate from this.
When this includes vital procedures to follow (everything from safety to the reimbursement process), compliance is paramount. To boost this, we’re looking at how centralised travel booking improves policy compliance.
What is travel policy compliance?
Travel policy compliance refers to the extent to which the team follows a predetermined travel policy which should include established rules and guidelines. Typically, this document will span the booking process, the trip, and the post-trip reimbursement process.
Every business in the UK is responsible for a duty of care, with travel policy compliance falling under this category. Even when a team member is away on corporate travel, this responsibility also extends to cover this.
What is a centralised travel booking platform?
A centralised travel booking platform is where all the information you need to manage business travel bookings is in a unified system.
This is a ‘one-stop shop’ that employees and employers can access to book travel, track prices, review travel policies, approve trips, view data, and access support.
Not every travel management provider offers a centralised system, but here at Good Travel Management, we have everything you need to book flights, hotels, rail tickets and cars at your convenience.
We have an extensive network of over 400 airlines and hundreds of thousands of hotels, and our platform features automated fare checking. With this feature, we can monitor whether a better deal has become available post-booking and pass the savings on directly to you.
P.S. Our team of business travel specialists remain by your side every step of the way!
5 reasons why centralised travel booking improves policy compliance
Utilising a centralised travel booking can speed up the process, keep everything in one place and help improve policy compliance.
In this article, we’re digging into how centralised travel booking improves policy compliance.
1. Better oversight over bookings and trips
When everything is located in one spot, it provides a bird’s-eye view of all the necessary information.
For travel managers, HR, or finance teams, real-time monitoring of bookings is possible. Through this, any potential roadblocks or out-of-policy additions can be identified before it’s too late.
Decision makers, or budget holders, are also able to see if bookings align with what is typically approved. This can reduce the time spent on both submitting a corporate travel request and approving the trip.
2. Standardised process with built-in policies
A standardised process improves policy compliance, as it guarantees that all employees are using the same system and following a pre-determined workflow.
Due to this, the travel policy can be embedded from the outset, which will guide employees towards compliant choices. This could be in the form of a policy added as a document, or even booking options that only allow pre-approved options.
Certain booking attempts can be configured to block or flag any activity that violates the policy, including selecting a hotel that exceeds the budget, failing to choose adequate transport, or using a non-preferred airline.
3. Data collection, with everything in one place
With all of the travel data collected in one place, it’s easier to identify patterns in previous bookings, as well as non-compliance.
Once armed with the data, actions can be taken to correct previous issues and errors while preventing them from happening again. This insight can be used to identify patterns and adjust policies as needed to ensure everyone is on the same page.
You can track exactly who is booking outside of the policy, whether it be choosing unapproved hotels or flights.
Employees, however, should be aware that this information is transparent, with a full audit log of travel activity possible to view.
4. Risk management can be built into the system
Risk management features can be directly embedded into a centralised travel booking platform, with these being made visible to employees as and when they visit the platform.
This could include adding pre-trip risk assessments, which could be completed at the booking and pre-approval stage. This could be in a checklist format and include an overview of the risks in the specific country, while also collecting emergency contact details and information about health or vaccination requirements.
Having this included means team members can ignore critical safety information, especially if an acknowledgement is required before a form can be submitted.
At this stage, the company’s duty of care policies can be included too, along with cultural guidance for the location and local laws.
5. Fewer errors = better overall compliance
When everything is together in a centralised travel booking system, rather than being on countless pieces of paper strewn around the office, errors are less likely to occur.
As the manual data entry is limited, people can follow pre-set procedures which already include aspects of the travel policy. Through this, employees won’t face errors with booking unapproved vendors if the choices are limited.
What should be included in a business travel policy? A Checklist
The actual policy will be dependent from business to business, but typically includes key aspects which everyone needs to be aware of.
It doesn’t need to be extensive, but it should be circulated to all involved. This should include the booking process, reimbursement, along with details on how to travel safely and more:
- How to book: Instructions or a guide on using the centralised travel booking platform
- Who can book: Are employees able to book directly or is a line manager needed?
- Timelines: When should bookings be made? I.e. Six weeks in advance
- Transport: Should rail travel be selected if travelling within a certain radius?
- Mileage reimbursement
- Insurance requirements
- Nightly rate limit for accommodation
- Preferred hotel chains
- Incidentals: Is the room service or minibar reimbursable?
- Daily per diem rates for meals
- Expense reporting: Guidelines on how to do this, along with the required documentation
Opt for a centralised travel booking platform for your business travel
We all know the benefits corporate travel can bring to both employee and employer, whether it’s new opportunities, learning experiences, or confidence-boosting purposes, but planning it can be difficult.
It can be time-consuming, with lots of aspects to consider (duty of care, travel policy, reimbursement plans and much more).
That’s where utilising a corporate travel service, which has a centralised travel booking platform built in, can be extremely helpful. At Good Travel Management, we provide customised travel planning and booking solutions, tailored to the needs of your business.
We can manage all aspects of corporate travel requirements and always put the traveller’s experience at the forefront, prioritising their comfort and meeting their needs. We thrive on efficiency and have a pain-free booking system.
Interested in working with a travel management company that removes the pain points? Contact us today about your corporate trip plans.