After a time of travel bans, we have noticed that our customers are putting travel back on the agenda. Slowly and carefully, but still – some people are traveling for business purposes again. In most cases, we’re talking local (commuting) travel. But one of my friends who lives in Prague actually hopped on flight KL1350 to Amsterdam this week. On my LinkedIn feed, I’ve seen several posts about sales people who have embarked on business trips again. And how about those tech-savvy folks who need to keep the machines running and the engines humming? Airlines, hotels, restaurants, and other travel-related businesses are heatedly taking measures to keep their customers and staff safe. Have you joined them?
Duty of care = duty to inform
There’s not a doubt in my mind that you have drafted a great plan. And if a small number of employees start traveling again, I’m sure you have the resources to provide them with all the personal assistance they require. But I’m worried about what will come next. Suppose you’ll return to 20% of your pre-COVID-19 volume. In that case, how will you make sure your travelers are aware of their transportation and dining options? And how on earth will you keep them posted on the local COVID-19 situation?
We believe that if you want to take good care of your travelers, you should do two things:
1. Know where your travelers are
You can only provide local assistance if you know exactly where your road warriors are. It’s simple as that. But it can be trickier than you might think. My friend, for example, may take flight KL1350 to Amsterdam, but that doesn’t mean he stays in the Dutch capital. In fact, he takes the train to the city of Gorinchem. That’s a 50-minute commute – which makes you wonder whether the train is really the best option.
On top of that, you need to consider your company policy. Perhaps it states your employees should rent a car, and you need to direct them to local car rental options. And what if your company policy has changed in the light of COVID-19? It’s important to know the rules per airport, office, country, and company. Now more than ever, they differ greatly. You can only provide travelers with correct information if you know their whereabouts.
2. Engage in personal, real-time communication
A business traveler who’s headed to Europe couldn’t care less about Canada’s policy. She’s interested in one thing: the travel policy that applies to her trip. And she needs real-time information from a reliable source, so she won’t be dependent on local news.
Where to find a safe, personalized, real-time travel program?
Before you ask – yes, Roadmap offers all of this. Not because we’re a bunch of researchers who have collected the required data, but because we’ve integrated with all of your suppliers and duty-of-care providers (GeoSure, ISOS, Anvil, and others). This means we will help you locate your travelers, combining this information with your travel program and policies as well as your duty-of-care provider. And voila: there’s your safe, personalized, real-time travel program, right where it belongs – in the hands of your road warriors.
How about we carry the weight together?
Now that people have started to travel again, what challenges and concerns keep you up at night? We are very eager to discuss them with you. And who knows? Perhaps we can take some of that weight off your shoulders. Let’s try and distribute it a bit, shall we?
Markus Emmer
