2025’s Wild Ride Brings More for 2026

If you’ve been working in travel buying over the past 12 months, you know it’s been anything but business as usual! 2025 threw surprises at everyone, shaking up routines and forcing people to adapt fast. Whether you’re navigating new tech, keeping up with company changes, or trying to make sense of mergers & acquisitions, one thing’s for sure: You’re not alone. As we step into 2026, let’s talk about what’s changed and how you can stay focused, no matter what comes next.

2025: Change, Change and More Change

What industry are we even in? Travel, Expense, Payment, Hospitality? The travel players are extended into expense and the expense player strategies to own more of the travel come to life. Instead of T vs E, we’re truly in the T&E world now.

Tech overload: Automation has been around for years but in 2025 after a few years gracing conference agendas, AI exploded onto the scene, popping up in booking, expense tracking, and traveler support. It’s a learning curve, but getting comfortable with these tools can really help you and your travelers.

Supplier shuffle: With alliances, mergers, buyouts, and plenty of big changes among vendors, you’ve probably had to navigate new supplier relationships, renegotiate deals or hunt for new partners.

Consumer demand intensifies: The much lauded “consumer grade experience” is now table stakes. Travelers now expect the whole travel industry to up its game, not just business travel.

Follow the money: Travel buyers are saying “enough” to a broken commercial model and many started moving their viewpoint beyond individual suppliers into the investor landscape, where is the money being invested and what are TMCS, tech players and suppliers investing in?

“Value” and “Trust” heard on repeat. If I had a dollar for every time I heard these two words, either individually or together I’d be retiring onto a Caribbean island by now! We have a trust gap and a value gap in the T&E world.

And that’s just scratching the surface. There’s been new rules, global uncertainty, and economic ups and downs. Standing still? Not an option.

2026: Say "No" to Say "Yes"

With so much happening, it’s easy to get stuck in reactive mode—just putting out fires instead of steering the ship. But travel buyers who managed to keep their focus found ways to thrive. If you’re wondering how to stay steady for 2026, here are some tips:

1. Relentlessly prioritize. Take a breather and look at your T&E program’s big picture. Are your goals still right for the company? Are your daily tasks linked to these goals? If not strike it off from your to do list.
   
   
2. Let Data Guide You. When things are unpredictable, data really helps. Use analytics to track spending, emissions, and traveler satisfaction. The facts can help with business cases for investment, to enable better decisions and guide adjustments to plans.
   
   
3. Governance is your friend. Ensure your supplier relationships are well managed. Once you have great alignment across buyer/supplier relationships, this naturally frees up time previously used to solve disputes and operational issues.

The T&E buying community is a resilient bunch. Global financial crisis, volcanic ash clouds, pandemics … you’ve faced it all. Change isn’t slowing down, but if you focus on what matters, and look after your own wellbeing, you’ll be ready for whatever 2026 brings. Remember, you don’t have to do it all alone—reach out, share ideas, and support each other. The road ahead might be twisty, but together, you’ll get where you want to go.

Here’s to a new year filled with T&E buyers leading the way!