Three-quarters of business travelers now are required to state a reason for travel before taking an overseas trip, according to a global survey by online booking and expense tool provider KDS. The survey of 435 travelers appears to corroborate a U.S.-only
BTN survey earlier this year that found 71 percent of companies now have pre-trip information or authorization processes. Travel management companies also have confirmed that they have seen a big rise in pre-trip scrutiny by corporate clients.
Other questions in the KDS survey found that 71 percent of respondents have had their travel reduced significantly since the recession began. Of this group, 37 percent said their companies made the cuts before October 2008, 54 percent between October and April 2009, and the remaining 9 percent since April.
Despite these reductions, the survey suggests that companies still have not succeeded in eliminating unnecessary journeys. Asked about their last five trips, only 49 percent considered all of them necessary, with 16 percent saying only four were necessary, 26 percent that between one and three were necessary, and 9 percent claiming that none of their travel was necessary. Meanwhile, 62 percent said they would prefer to travel less.