Business Travel News this month named Intel global strategic sourcing mobility manager Megan Stowe the 2008 International Travel Manager of the Year during the opening session of the Association of Corporate Travel Executives global conference in Rome.
Editor-in-chief David Meyer cited Stowe "for leading in the development of a sophisticated, strategic, locally sensitive approach to multinational travel management, expanding its scope under the banner of mobility services and heading arguably the most active laboratory in testing the bounds of travel management this year."
Much of the work by Stowe and others at Intel has challenged the norms of travel management. Intel views travel as part of a broader conception of managing the needs of employees under the heading of mobility. Intel's procurement and human resources departments both oversee travel, helping to achieve balance between the essential, but potentially conflicting, management imperatives of controlling costs and maintaining traveler welfare.
Other examples of Intel's bold thinking include undertaking a rigorous assessment of whether the entire travel function should be outsourced—verdict: not for the time being—and Stowe's earlier six-year tenure as travel manager for Asia/Pacific, where she achieved one of the most impressive program consolidations in the region to date.
The initiative that has caused the biggest stir externally and provoked numerous discussions at the ACTE conference was Intel's decision to let some U.S. travelers book domestic air tickets directly through airline Web sites, even though its corporate booking tool and travel management company remain the company's preferred reservation channels
(BTNonline, Sept. 29). The policy change followed a three-month trial in which a group of travelers who booked independently paid 30 percent more for hotels and 50 percent more for car rentals, but 10 percent less for domestic airfares.
U.K.-based Stowe and her team, partnering with the U.S.-based human resources department, initiated the pilot after deciding to test the complaint all travel managers receive from travelers—that they can find lower prices if they go it alone. The test results showed only a small number really wanted to book independently, and though they had a case for their ability to find cheaper airfares—largely owing to lack of discounted fare availability in the corporate booking tool—the overall use of preferred suppliers and distribution channels brought the company substantial savings.
The Intel team was brave enough not only to conduct the test, but also to amend its policy based on the results. Stowe considers it crucial to challenge industry perceptions and entrenched organizational practices.
"Instead of moaning and grumbling, why don't we challenge the way we do things and try to take them to the next level?" she said. "We have moved one of my team, who comes from outside the travel industry, to manage our hotel requests for proposals and I have asked her to challenge us on the way we handle them, such as whether to issue RFPs on a yearly basis."
Stowe said other companies interested in following Intel's lead in allowing travelers to book U.S. domestic air independently should conduct research, as well.
"I wouldn't just implement it blindly," she said. "Make sure that the data is statistically valid and takes into account your company's nuances of buying air, hotel and car rental."
Stowe joined Intel in Australia in 1996 after a diverse early career in such fields as teaching and medicine. Originally, she managed the company's marketing and trade shows, but relocated to Singapore in 2000 to handle travel for Asia/Pacific. During her time there, she consolidated Intel's numerous travel management companies across the region to just one—except in Japan—and set up its first regional supplier deals, while implementing the extremely sensitive task of establishing an all-coach policy
(BTNonline, Feb. 5, 2007).Achieving such results in Asia/Pacific, where behavior, travel infrastructure and maturity of travel management are even more diverse than in Europe, was no small feat. The key to success, said Stowe, was that "you have to understand cultures," and in late 2006 she was rewarded by being appointed to her current global position.
Stowe has responsibility for sourcing numerous services for Intel, including benefits, payroll and staffing. Under the mobility banner, she buys transient corporate travel for 25,000 travelers worldwide with booked air volume in 2007 of $175 million and companywide T&E expenditures of $386 million. Stowe's cross-cultural skills have become increasingly important because nearly half of Intel's travel is now international.
Also included in Intel's definition of mobility are meetings, car leasing, relocation and immigration. Stowe believes the company gains considerable synergies from coordinating these categories.
"It means we have one team looking after one customer base and it also means we can consolidate our supplier base," she said. "In addition, we gain a better idea of our volumes and where our people go."
Perhaps the most successful example of supplier selection is that preferred hotels for transient travel also are awarded preferred status for meetings as long as they have the necessary facilities. In return, hotels offer the same room rates for Intel meeting attendees as for transient guests. Stowe said this strategy has achieved considerable, though not universal, success. She has found other efficiencies in the use of corporate apartments not only for relocation, but also for transient travel.
Also unusual is the Intel travel program's twin ownership by procurement and human resources. The procurement part of the team is subdivided further into specialists: strategic sourcing, negotiators and supply management personnel who manage the contracts and suppliers.
Intel procurement teams work with an internal business partner. For mobility, it is human resources. HR manages the execution of Intel's global T&E program by setting strategic direction and managing day-to-day operations. "We are joined at the hip. We partner very closely and are both accountable for outcomes," said Stowe. "We use HR to take the pulse of the regions, which is extremely helpful because my team is very globalized."
One example of the way the two work together is the hotel program. HR obtains feedback from each Intel location about the hotels it prefers to use in the surrounding area. The procurement team then benchmarks, looks at volume distribution and decides whether to add them to the program, assuming they meet the approval of the security department and a satisfactory commercial agreement can be reached.
As part of the continuing quest for innovation and improvement, Intel even has conducted in-depth research into outsourcing the travel procurement function. "We concluded there was no correct fit at this stage," she said. "The true outsourcing companies that presented to us were too small and inexperienced to handle a company of our size." However, Stowe did identify potential synergies in outsourcing, such as the ability to consolidate spend with other corporate customers and an assured continuity of expertise. She does not rule out a switch in the next couple of years.
Stowe's instinct for collaboration extends to her peers in other companies. She is acknowledged by buyers on both sides of the Atlantic for taking time to benchmark and share best practices and experiences.
"We try to share the results of what we do," according to Stowe. "It can only make our industry stronger."