The pandemic reduced many of our business trips down to a video call, and the current economy has companies cutting back on business travel. One-third of travel managers surveyed in June 2021 expected to reach half of 2019 spend levels by the end of the year, but only 8% reached that mark, according to a 2022 report by Deloitte, which surveyed 150 travel managers and executives.
With the proliferation of connectivity tools, just how necessary is your next business trip?
What Is Business-Critical Travel?
Essential business travel can look very different depending on your company. It can be as simple as needing to meet the CEO of your new partner in person before signing a five-year contract. Or it can be as complicated as an engineer performing a site visit to troubleshoot the manufacturing facility design from another vendor. This is especially critical when you consider how many items today – from medical supplies to microprocessors in mobile phones – require precision manufacturing.
The ROI of business travel may be hard to quantify, but it’s easier to understand by breaking it down into objectives. This lets you create travel best practices for an account manager and an outward-facing salesperson while effectively dividing the budget between them, for example.
Here are three questions to ask to establish your company guidelines.
1. Will traveling improve the job?
The first thing to do is outline how travel may improve the way a person does their job. According to a 2021 Back to Blue Skies report by American Express and American Express Global Business Travel, 88% of business travelers said business travel improved engagement, creativity, and innovation, and 86% said business travel improved problem-solving skills. The survey polled 1,032 U.S. business travelers and 504 U.S. travel decision-makers.
Before any trip, identify if it is for the growth of the business or the maintenance and pull from the correct budget.
Can you imagine being a designer who can’t physically see and feel the fabric at a production facility? Without going in person to where the textiles are made, you won't have a thorough understanding of the producer’s labor practices. You can’t ensure they’re ethically sourced, which is especially necessary for certified B-corps that advertise certain certifications on their goods (fair trade, fair wages, supply chain transparency, etc.). You should not trust such an inspection to a simple video call, as that choice could backfire down the line.
Think through the value an in-person visit would provide your employee. Would going in person add additional insight that would help them perform their duties or is a call just as effective? To break this down even further, think in terms of information and tangibility. For the most part, information can be delivered virtually: think new systems, technology, business processes. Anything that requires the senses, however – objects, fabrics, facilities, offices – are better evaluated in-person.
2. Is the trip for business maintenance or growth?
Next, determine if your travel is for business maintenance or growth. Both are viable reasons to travel, but try creating two separate budgets – one for sales and one for procurement to ensure you are focusing on both. Before any trip, identify if it is for the growth of the business or the maintenance and pull from the correct budget. This will keep you from spending too much in one area over the other.
For example, a trip to gather members of the team together for a retreat would fall under maintenance as an attempt to facilitate employee bonding and teamwork. Travel for business growth may look like sending members of your team to tour other startups – their buildings, processes, and procedures – and bring ideas back to your company.
3. What is the ROI of business travel?
Finally, it is important to evaluate the ROI of business travel. Determine the investment it will take and the projected return. Although it may seem like a lot, a $300 dinner tab, $500 flight, and $1,000 hotel bill are nothing when you close a $50,000 contract.
Don't forget there is ROI in meeting face to face, especially as many employees are facing burnout and video call fatigue. Meeting in person lets you form a deeper connection, and I’d even recommend speaking with a travel agent to plan the trip, so you have that connection in the planning process as well.
In a world where everybody’s pushing for automation, AI, robotics, and digital realities, there’s still no replacement to simply working side by side with another human being. However, keep in mind that your employee’s time is just as important as the financial cost of the trip itself. You may be offering them the trip of a lifetime (and absolutely allow for some R&R on the trip), but make sure there are quantifiable goals that must be met to justify the expense
All in all, business critical means something different for every company, and realistically you can't afford to send everyone on a business trip. Using these questions to help guide your decisions will help you keep everyone on the same page and define values for your company.
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