Business travel risks don't just threaten budgets and
timelines. Employee safety is on the line. Companies have a legal and moral
responsibility to protect travelers from dangers they may encounter.
Still, many travel policies lack guidelines to reduce major
risks. In fact, when in a 2013 BTN
survey 180 travel and meetings management professionals were asked which
aspects of risk management were addressed in their organizations' travel
policies, nearly one in five indicated "none." Many firms rely on
travel management companies or travel assistance partners to handle emergency
response efforts, which is vital. But what about prevention planning?
The following are policy considerations for effective travel
risk management that should be addressed before risks are encountered.
Preferred suppliers:
Most of us tend to think about preferred suppliers in terms of contract rates
and negotiated packages, but safety screening should also be a part of the
equation. In fact, you should question suppliers' safety ratings in your annual
request-for-proposals process. When comparing car rental providers, for
example, your RFP should include questions on safe driving features like GPS,
electronic toll payment devices, and even crash ratings from the Insurance
Institute for Highway Safety or the average age of vehicles in the fleet.
Make sure travelers know exactly why booking with
prescreened vendors is advantageous—that is, it's not just a question of cost.
Wherever available, communicate suppliers' safety statistics on things like
fire protection (which is the major threat among lodging providers) and other
examples that go above and beyond the standard of care displayed by local
competitors.
Traveler tracking:
Executing a traveler-tracking program presents many challenges, not the least
of which stem from travelers' disdain for being watched. With legal and ethical
questions swirling around global mapping tools and geo-fence compliance
monitoring, you may be among the majority of firms who work with a TMC to stay
connected to employees.
At a minimum, your policy needs to address the importance of
booking through the appropriate channels and/or making purchases with a
corporate card. Minus more sophisticated
global positioning or device tracking technology, you may also wish to spell
out what your travelers' responsibility should be in terms of communicating
check-ins, changes and delays.
Social media: For
good or ill, some of today's most popular travel apps make it easy to create
and share detailed itineraries, post reviews about travel vendors, and even "check
in" at specified destinations. The concerns are obvious. Do you want the
world to know where your employees are staying (or when they're out of town)?
Do you want competitors to know where your teams are going?
Clear-cut social networking rules can play a big role in
protecting your travelers and sensitive company information. If your policy
expressly bans company information from public platforms, you might make an
effort to offer (and promote) internal social networking tools—so verified
coworkers can still access each other's plans, while sharing tips on dining,
traffic, etc. If your company culture is open to social media, bring employees
together to decide what's important versus what's an unnecessary risk. Even
public networks can be modified with privacy settings.
Destination-based
training: It's not enough just to give your travelers links to emergency
contact information, international assistance centers and evacuation protocols.
Instead, include a provision in your policy that all travelers must receive
destination-based training for personal safety and health abroad. Training can
be as simple to administer as an online slideshow.
Training should incorporate the specifics of a given
destination—including required or recommended immunizations, weather
considerations, information on local hospitals, embassies and crime threats
relative to your preferred hotel neighborhoods or meeting locations. Sessions
might also include tips on how to avoid food poisoning, spiked drinks, identity
theft, incidents at cab stands or train terminals and even ways to "harden"
yourself as a potential target in an unknown environment.
IT security: Most
travelers instinctively will keep devices in view during trips and offsite meetings,
but physical theft isn't the only IT risk your policy needs to address. In some
countries, travelers may be more susceptible to identity theft, malware threats
or cyber-snooping. Be sure policy outlines specific pre-trip steps that
travelers must take to prepare technology assets.
On a basic level, this might mean including requirements to
install security software plugins or updates before any overseas trip. Consider
including information about the dangers of public Wi-Fi, plus how and when to
access your company's virtual private network. You might advise travelers to "sanitize"
devices before leaving home; valuable files can be stored in the cloud rather
than on the hard drive. In certain high-risk destinations, throwaway devices
with disposable SIM cards may be more prudent than personal ones.
Mobile devices:
Despite their virtual omnipresence, mobile devices aren't well-represented in
most corporate travel policies. Mobile strategies are quickly complicated by
questions of device ownership, use restrictions, and—when it comes to
travel—permissible apps.
From a risk management perspective, apps that encourage
mobile bookings outside program parameters are the most disconcerting. Luckily,
they aren't the most popular. Surveys indicate a majority of travelers are
using travel apps to confirm itineraries and check on flight status. Work with
your TMC to incorporate sanctioned tools and features—which can easily include
mobile booking and mobile travel alerts—into your company policy.
Executive co-travel:
Most corporations impose limitations on executives traveling together. If you
don't yet have a specific policy in place, create one. Decide by title or by
maximum headcount which officers can share the same reservations. Extend these
provisions to include all modes of transportation—including trains, ground
transit, boats and helicopters.
Traveler disabilities
and medical conditions: Thanks to Americans with Disabilities Act
standards, most U.S. hotels are prepared to host guests with disabilities—even
in the event of an emergency. Internationally, lodging and transportation
providers often are less accommodating. Protect your company and your employees
by spelling out policies for travelers with disabilities.
Outline your requirements for special requests (personal
attendants, interpreters, service animals, first-class seating), so no
guesswork is involved.
Traveler driving:
With so many headlines focused on crime, war and extreme weather, we tend to
forget that everyday driving is often the biggest hazard that employees
face—both locally and while traveling. According to the U.S. Occupational
Safety and Health Administration, "motor vehicle crashes cost employers
$60 billion annually in medical care, legal expenses, property damage and lost
productivity."
If your employees frequently are on the road, it makes sense
to dedicate a section of your policy to safe driving. You can even implement a
driver training program—including lessons on impaired driving, fatigued
driving, distracted driving, aggressive driving, interstate and international
traffic laws and more. At minimum, offer clear directives about car rental
liability and collision insurance; employees should know it is reimbursable.
As the workforce grows increasingly mobile, travel risk
management becomes every bit as important as traditional office safety. With
the right strategies and partners in place, your teams can avoid most travel
incidents while ensuring business continuity and protecting the people who
define your organization.
This Blueprint
originally appeared in the Nov. 25, 2013, edition of Business Travel News.