A multi-market travel program comes with its complexities, but coordinating such a program is made easier with a few simple steps.
As a Travel Manager, if you’re juggling travel program coordination over multiple markets, teams and countries, you may very well feel overwhelmed. There’s a lot to manage, between regional compliance, differing Traveler preferences, supplier negotiations, cultural differences, siloed data and more. Luckily, getting a handle on your multi-market travel program can be a bit easier if you take a few basic but impactful steps.
6 Tips for Managing Your Global Travel Program
1. Unify Your Travel Management Platforms
If your various markets are using different travel management platforms, it’s time to unify all those users onto one, centralized travel management platform. This will allow you to see data and bookings all in one place, without needing to juggle a range of platforms. It’ll streamline your workflow, allowing you to get the info you need, when you need it, so relevant decisions can be made quickly. Additionally, after you’ve unified your travel management platforms, you can then begin integrating other travel technologies into that platform, so all Travelers can benefit.
2. Understand Local Nuances
Yes, you might be taking a global approach to your multi-market travel program, but that program also needs to be flexible enough to adapt to local nuances. Your Travelers on one side of the world are going to have very different needs than your Travelers on the opposite side of the world.
This doesn’t mean that you necessarily need to create a totally different travel policy for each market. It does mean, though, that you should make small adjustments and tweaks as necessary to cater to the differences that you can reasonably accommodate. Doing so and remaining flexible will better ensure that all your Travelers are happy — and happy Travelers are more productive Travelers, as well as more compliant Travelers.
3. Make Things Simple
A more complicated travel booking process and travel policy are more likely to lead to non-compliance and general Traveler dissatisfaction. Additionally, while you might think that a more complex, robust multi-market travel program keeps all your bases covered, it could actually be making your job more difficult.
Make things as simple as possible for everyone involved. One tool that can help you do this is Teal, a new global travel management tool launched by JTB Business Travel and powered by Spotnana.
Teal is a streamlined, scalable platform that’s available in 15 countries (and that will be available in 25 countries by the end of 2025). It allows Travel Managers the ability to see all their Travelers’ data in real time, control policy and track things like sustainability and expenses. Meanwhile, Travelers are free to autonomously book their own air, hotel, rail travel and car rentals, all while remaining policy compliant. If they need any help, they have access to global support at any time.
4. Understand Your Stakeholders’ Needs
If you’re specifically going from multiple segmented travel programs to a unified multi-market travel program, then it’s essential to understand your stakeholders’ needs ahead of time. Ask your stakeholders some questions. What is the overall goal for this multi-market travel program? How will you determine if the program is successful? Do your stakeholders want you to meet certain metrics related to profits, sustainability or productivity?
Understanding these needs ahead of time can help you ensure that your multi-market travel program is structured in a way that facilitates meeting these needs more easily. Additionally, if you can meet these needs, you’re more likely to gain stakeholder buy-in. The more buy-in you can secure from the C-suite and various relevant departments such as finance, HR, and the like, the more you’ll see buy-in and compliance among your broader traveling teams.
5. Adapt to Technological Advancements
While somewhat alluded to above, harnessing helpful travel tech can make managing your multi-market travel program significantly easier. Keep a finger on the pulse of the new tech available within the business travel industry, as well as the trends impacting Travel Managers’ roles. Doing so can help you determine which tools are worth your time and how you might be able to leverage them to streamline your workflow.
For example, AI tools may be able to assist you in building Traveler itineraries, finding the best deals for your Travelers (if they’re not self-booking their travel) or recommending changes to your existing travel policy based on differing geographic or cultural needs.
6. Consider Partnering with a Travel Management Company
Lastly, consider partnering with a Travel Management Company (TMC). Don’t think of it as outsourcing your role as Travel Manager to a third party, but instead, gaining a full team of support staff to help you perform your role more effectively. Partnering with a TMC can give you greater expertise in the areas where you might not be as knowledgeable. A TMC can likewise keep an eye on your global markets, ensuring total compliance and providing support wherever and whenever it’s needed.
It’s no secret that outsourced travel management is on the rise. Business Travel News reported earlier this year that outsourcing travel management is becoming particularly crucial for in-house Travel Managers who need assistance dealing with more complex travel programs (such as a multi-market travel program). The article also noted that TMCs are becoming valuable for their expertise in areas such as technology and sustainability, wherein Travel Managers may not have as much experience.
Want to See the Benefits for Yourself?
If you feel as if you could likely use a helping hand—whether for your overall travel program or just in a few key areas such as technology or sustainability—reach out today. JTB Business Travel offers resources for Travel Managers that will make managing a complex multi-market travel program the easiest that it’s ever been.
