A New Year, A New Proposition: Expect More
Written by: George Kalka, Vice President – Business Travel
The new year rings in opportunities for a fresh start. Resolutions are set and new habits are formed. It’s no different for your organization’s travel program. It’s time to start tackling the changes you want to achieve in 2023.
At Fox, we speak with countless travel managers every year – both our current clients and prospective customers. The most frequent discussions involve digging into what is special about their organization’s travel program, the unique obstacles they face and our opportunities to solve. Too often, despite innovations seemingly everywhere, these travel programs have just settled for solutions that are not quite the right fit. We don’t accept this, and neither should you. In this new year, make a resolution to Expect More.
What does it look like for a travel program to Expect More? Here are 3 approaches you can take.
1. Invest in trusted partnerships.
Are your supplier relationships authentic and boldly transparent? They should be, especially as our industry continues through significant change in 2023. To illustrate this, look at how rapidly travel distribution is changing, particularly with recent advancements in the International Air Transport Association’s (IATA) New Distribution Capability (NDC) giving airlines new methods to sell their products. To navigate what’s ahead in 2023 and beyond, your travel program will benefit when supplier relationships advocate for your uniqueness, you share a mutual investment in your success, and you inherently trust the supplier to do what’s right and best for your organization.
2. Don’t settle for anything less than customized success and solutions.
Your travel program is unique, and your suppliers should deliver results custom to you. Encourage your suppliers to really dig and understand what you value, and then become obsessed with helping you solve your most complex business issues. This starts with alignment with the supplier to design custom business travel solutions and then deliver on these expectations to move your travel program forward.
Fox Case Study: Custom Development for Interactive Unused Tickets Library
3. Define value, then set expectations for it to be proven.
It’s unfortunate when this occurs, but it happens: supplier promises are left unmet. Your travel program deserves more. Discuss upfront how your organization measures value and what results are personal to your success. You should invest in suppliers that have proven they can bring these tangible results to you. Ensure your suppliers will deliver meaningful travel data, giving you the ability to keenly articulate your travel program’s success within your organization.
At times travel management can feel like an island. A strong partner in your corner, one whose actions meet their words, makes all the difference. In 2023, it’s time to Expect More and the team at Fox is here to help you deliver on your travel program resolutions.
