The corporate travel industry has been slow to adopt mobile technology,
and when companies do, they still don't have cohesive mobile travel strategies,
according to a survey of 231 United States-based travel managers and interviews
with 16 travel managers from the United States and Europe. The Global Business
Travel Association and Carlson Wagonlit Travel conducted the research in April
and May.
Sixty-nine percent of respondents do not have a mobile
travel strategy in place, though within the past year, 54 percent had at least endorsed
a mobile app, such as those from travel management companies, expense
management providers and security risk management firms. One travel manager for
a consulting firm said of their program, "There are probably many elements
[of a mobile strategy] in place, but I would not say we have a plan on how they
all work together."
While nearly 49 percent do not know when they will adopt a
mobile strategy, 21 percent plan to implement one within the next year and 24
percent will do so within two years, according to the survey.
The most common reasons for wanting to adopt a mobile travel
strategy are increasing traveler engagement (78 percent) and increasing
compliance (55 percent). Those interviewed also cited communicating with
travelers, collecting feedback, offering support and providing pre-trip
destination information.
Implementing a mobile strategy, however, is difficult. IT
security topped the list of challenges for 41 percent of travel managers,
followed by personal devices used for work (32 percent) and the high number of
decision-makers it would take to approve a strategy (21 percent).
"Mobile technology is a change everyone has
seen coming for almost a decade. Even though its effects on the corporate
travel industry were imminent, the industry has not kept up with the fast
adoption of this technology," the report stated. "This has created an
environment where travelers [believe] they can handle it all on their
own." To bring travelers back into the program, the report suggested focusing
a mobile travel program strategy on simplifying the traveler experience.