SAP Concur report shows five challenges affecting business travel in 2024

SAP Concur’s latest report shows that companies need to balance numerous factors related to business travel, particularly those in the Asia-Pacific region.

According to SAP chief revenue officer for the Asia-Pacific and Japan Sushant Jain, these organisations have to find a balance between conflicting corporate and employee travel needs, address employee reluctance regarding business travel as this could disrupt their work-life balance, and accommodate the growing demands for sustainable travel.

Jain said: “Measures businesses could take include improving the flexibility of their travel policies, and better harnessing emerging technology like AI to obtain data-based insights to streamline workflows, minimise disruption, cut cost and raise employee satisfaction.”

Five critical areas

To ensure smooth running and maximise their investments in business travel, business leaders need to understand the possible friction points.

These include the threat of disruption, employees’ reluctance to travel, balancing operational costs with sustainability measures, unequal access to travel opportunities, and the need to use AI to provide a seamless experience from arranging for travel to travel security and safety.

Disruption, particularly in light of the 19 June IT outage that struck airports and airlines throughout the world, is seen as one of the biggest issues when it comes to business travel. Around 86 percent of travellers in the Asia-Pacific needed to make last-minute changes to their trips last year due to unexpected delays, cancellations, and rerouting of flights or land transportation measures.

Keeping this in mind, organisations should consider giving their employees extra turnaround time per booking, private or subsidised connecting transport, as well as other features for easier rebooking in the event of untoward incidents.

Dealing with reluctance and sustainability

There are valid reasons behind the reluctance of many business travellers in the Asia-Pacific, and these stem from safety concerns, as well as the sociopolitical tenor in certain nations. 42 percent of would-be business travellers cited their concern for personal safety as a reason for turning down or hesitating over orders to travel.

At the same time, up to 28 percent of business travellers in the region expressed their willingness to decline a trip if it means expanding the company’s carbon footprint or if they are not given options for sustainable travel. 

However, this poses an even greater budgetary concern as most companies feel that their travel budgets are inadequate for covering the cost of sustainable travel options.

Unequal travel opportunities are also among the key issues that require addressing. Even in the 21st century, unequal access to travel remains, with up to 22 percent citing seniority, 18 percent pointing out age, and 10 percent saying gender as the top points of consideration whenever companies assign people to business trips.

Where does AI come in?

Up to 95 percent of Asian travellers said that they are open to using AI-enabled tools and options whenever they arrange for business trips. It is interesting to note, however, that only six percent are comfortable using current-generation AI-enhanced options.

It should also be noted that up to 90 percent of business travellers within the region want their companies to give them assurances for personal data protection, protection against potential biases, as well as for any repercussions in the event that AI-assisted bookings run against company travel policies.