September 28, 2023
In today’s fast-paced, globally connected business world, having a strategic corporate travel policy is more than a mere convenience. It is a necessity. As travel becomes an inevitable part of many organizations, the need for a well-defined, clear, and effective business travel policy continues to grow. But where do you begin? And how can you ensure that your corporate travel policy is genuinely serving your business goals, taking into account both your budget and your employees’ safety and satisfaction?
This is where Teplis Travel comes into the picture. With years of experience in corporate travel consulting and management, Teplis Travel has built a reputation as a trusted partner in helping businesses create travel programs that are both cost-effective and mindful of employee needs. Our range of personalized services, including advanced reporting solutions and end-to-end reservation services, help businesses maximize their return on travel investments while ensuring smooth and safe journeys for their employees. We aim to merge your desires with the best practices of the travel industry.
So, what exactly are these best practices? In this blog post, we provide a detailed breakdown of the four essential best practices to implement in your corporate travel policy. This guide will serve as a starting point for your business as you strive to balance fiscal responsibility with employee satisfaction in your corporate travel program.
1. Analyzing and Setting Clear Guidelines
Guidelines lie at the heart of an effective travel policy and is the ultimate pillar on which all your employee travel operations will stand.
The first step is to conduct a thorough analysis of your current travel expenses.
1. How much is your company spending on business travel?
2. What has been your major expense slot—flights, ground transportation, or accommodation?
3. Are there areas where savings can be realized without compromising employee comfort and safety?
Your analysis should track every dollar spent on travel in the context of your business trip: from the moment the journey begins to the moment it ends.
Once your assessment is complete, you can begin to develop clear guidelines to direct your organization’s travel-related expenses. For instance, are their guidelines for employees booking flights? How far in advance should accommodation and ground transportation be arranged? Are there limits on entertainment expenses? Each aspect of travel should have a defined process and limit that aligns with your business goals.
Building these comprehensive, clear guidelines not only helps keep business travel expenses consistent and predictable but also eliminates ambiguity for your employees during the planning and reimbursement process.
Remember, your employees are the core executors of your corporate travel policy. Making the policy user-friendly increases policy compliance, reduces errors in the travel booking, and ultimately saves the company money.
As you embark on developing your guidelines, remember that they are just the first step in an effective corporate travel policy. An equally important aspect is ensuring these policies are implemented and followed correctly.
2. Approval Workflow and Expense Reimbursement
Our next piece of the puzzle is creating an effective approval workflow and a streamlined expense reimbursement process. Once your clear guidelines are in place, ensuring they operate smoothly becomes the center stage.
Firstly, an approval process is critical. This includes setting up an approval workflow that both managers and employees can easily navigate. The approval workflow not only sets boundaries for employees around what can be billed to the company but also ensures that additional expenses or changes are approved proactively. This way, there are no surprises or conflicts when it comes time for reimbursement. The travel manager can play a pivotal role in ensuring the smooth functioning of the approval system, thereby easing the entire booking process for business travelers.
Speaking of reimbursement, a well-defined expense reimbursement process further complements your corporate travel policy. Employees should clearly understand the T&E (Travel and Entertainment) expense reporting guidelines, what they can expense, the company’s travel expense policy, and how to submit expense reports. Providing clear instructions and assistance can save both employees and the finance team a great deal of time and reduce the potential risks associated with misunderstanding reimbursement procedures.
When employees are assured that they can easily get their expenses reimbursed, they are likely to feel more satisfied and less stressed about their travel.
Equipped with these best practices around reimbursement and workflows, your approval process and expense management can operate like a well-oiled machine, keeping everyone happy without jeopardizing cost efficiency.
3. Adhering to Safety Protocols and Regulatory Compliance
Now that we have covered the importance of clear guidelines, efficient approval processes, and smooth expense reimbursements, let’s traverse to equally imperative areas of safety protocols and regulatory compliance.
Firstly, ensuring safety protocols are a top priority for every travel policy you create. Employee safety must not be compromised at any point during a business trip, and there should be actionable procedures in place to safeguard them from potential risks, both common and unforeseen circumstances. Ranging from simple precautions like restricting late-night travel to comprehensive support systems for situations like medical emergencies or sudden travel disruptions, safety protocols play a vital role in protecting your employees on the move.
Parallelly, another strong pillar to consider in your corporate travel policy is adherence to regulatory requirements.
National and international business travel involves intersecting with a multitude of legal and regulatory landscapes and these regulatory requirements should be considered during the policy-making process. Aspects like visa laws, tax implications, and legislative standards in different locations may affect your travel policies, and keeping them into account will ensure policy compliance on all fronts.
While these areas are high priority, they can also bring complexity into proceedings. Well-crafted safety protocols and diligent compliance practices create an environment of assurance for your employees, ultimately leading to improved employee satisfaction. Knowing that their organization has taken every step to ensure their safety and operate within legal parameters brings peace of mind to travelers and boosts their confidence in the company’s travel policy. The subsequent effect on their productivity and loyalty can only be positive.
But the journey to a robust corporate travel policy doesn’t end here. As business goals, travel trends, and policies evolve, it becomes important to regularly review and adjust your policies.
4. Review and Adjust for Cost Efficiency and Employee Satisfaction
Our journey through the complex landscape of corporate travel policies brings us to our final stop: Regular review and adjustment. As static as a policy document may seem, it is crucial to understand that a corporate travel policy is a dynamic entity — something that should be reviewed and revised as needed for more cost efficiency and improved employee satisfaction.
Remember, your corporate travel policy isn’t set in stone. As changing travel trends, new cost-saving opportunities, or legislative changes emerge, your policy should adapt. Regular reviews of your policy can help to identify any potential weaknesses, recognize opportunities for improvements, and ensure that it remains in lockstep with your company’s evolving needs and goals. Most importantly, performing regular audits of your travel costs could reveal substantial cost savings over time.
Equally, always keep an eye on the pulse of your greatest asset: your employees. Your corporate travel policy needs to take care of your employees’ needs and consider their satisfaction. A rigid, non-employee-friendly travel policy could lead to resentment, poor policy compliance, and even employee attrition in the long term. Listen to feedback, gauge travel experience through surveys, and make necessary changes to enhance your business travelers’ experiences.
Reviewing and revising your policy might seem like a daunting task, requiring a great deal of time and effort. But, with Teplis Travel by your side, it doesn’t have to be. We provide valuable assistance in keeping your corporate travel policy up-to-date and aligned with your business goals. With our advanced reporting solutions, we constantly monitor and evaluate your travel program for all necessary improvements, thus ensuring both cost savings and employee satisfaction.
Having navigated through the five comprehensive best practices of an efficient corporate travel policy, the path to a robust, cost-effective, and employee-friendly policy should be clearer now.
How Can Teplis Travel Help With Your Corporate Travel Policy?
At Teplis Travel, we understand corporate travel policies. We’ve work with them day in and day out for 50+ years. As your trusted travel manager, we utilize our extensive industry knowledge and advanced reporting solutions to help you analyze your current travel expenditures, offer a comprehensive support system for your reimbursement process, and provide valuable assistance in keeping your corporate travel policy up-to-date and aligned with your business goals. With our advanced reporting solutions, we constantly monitor and evaluate your travel program for all necessary improvements, thus ensuring both cost savings and employee satisfaction. Reach out today for more information!
This blog was reviewed for accuracy by
Ted Petty, CIO/CTO Teplis Travel
Ted is a seasoned expert in the corporate travel industry, currently serving as the Chief Information Officer (CIO) and Chief Technology Officer (CTO) at Teplis Travel. With over two decades of experience, Ted has consistently demonstrated his prowess in optimizing travel solutions for businesses, leveraging innovative technologies to streamline operations and enhance the traveler experience. His dynamic leadership and commitment to staying at the forefront of industry trends make him an invaluable asset in the world of corporate travel and leisure travel.
