A pair of travel data consolidators have refined their technology tools to allow corporate clients greater ability to use travel data to monitor contractual performance, improve policy compliance and streamline communications.
"It's not so much about capturing data," said Todd Kaiser, vice president of product marketing and business development for the Alpharetta, Ga.-based Hi-Mark Software. "It's solving the information overload problem." The latest tools the company has worked on allow flagging for specific information that a CFO might want to see and give managers notification only of data that require some sort of action.
For example, travel managers and travelers can monitor flights but be notified only if rebooking is required because of a cancellation. Travel managers handling supplier contracts also can monitor threshold goals for a particular carrier or hotel by receiving alerts only if some sort of action is required to fulfill the contractual terms.
"This is kind of a whole different level," Kaiser said. "It's creating modules or a push-notification-type system that pushes information only if an action is required."
The next step will be a fully automated system that can make adjustments in a particular market, then notify users of that change. That is still in the planning stages at Hi-Mark, Kaiser said.
Prism Group Inc. is continuing to focus on air reporting and contract management for high-end clients through its Avion system. Prism received a patent in March for the contracting system that drives its management software. Avion's clientele now stands at about 10, although the 10 include some of the largest companies in the United States, such as General Electric, which signed with Avion in 2004
(BTN, May 10, 2004).The patented program gives companies the ability to compare the financial performance of contracts and measure the effective discount by carrier with the vast global data available, Prism vice president Les Baker said. In addition, the tool allows a company to model an airline alliance deal, compare it to an old deal and ensure that it is superior.
"The problem has always been the complexity of contracts for a company," Baker said. "They don't have to do manual summary spreadsheets to have a good handle on a contract before it's signed." Baker expects the use of Avion to double in the next year, as airfares, which are on the rise
(BTN, May 1), comprise such a large portion of travel spend and afford a ripe opportunity for cost management.
"It's really a growth area for Prism," Baker said. "We believe that contract management for airlines is one of the highest-yield activities, if not the highest yield for a travel manager. Corporations that license Avion from us have a tremendous tool because it's patent-protected."