Travel Matters January 2017

www.travelctm.co.uk www.travelctm.co.uk 18 | CTM INSIGHT CTM INSIGHT | 19 Redfern Travel is known for its automated, end-to-end booking system and gained prominence when it scooped a government contract, winning it from a large multinational TMC. Redfern processes more than 95% of all transactions online. “Redfern Travel’s key competitive advantage is its proprietary, automated end-to-end system, which creates a highly scalable operation,” said Jamie Pherous, CTM Managing Director. He said the Redfern acquisition would allow CTM to build and leverage scale and is expected to take it consolidated European Total Transactional Value (TTV), to £500-550m in the next financial year. Pherous praised Redfern’s highly experienced and passionate management team, innovative culture and best-in-class end-to-end automation. Redfern’s CEO Mark Bowers said the partnership was a natural fit. ”It is refreshing to be working with a like- minded company who value innovation and customer service as much as we do.” CTM has also acquired Tasmanian- based corporate travel firm Andrew Jones Travel. Collectively, both acquisitions are expected to contribute approximately AUD7.0m EBITDA from February to June 2017. Increasingly , suppliers are now offering incentives to book direct, and mobile technology makes it easier for business travellers to connect with suppliers, as well. Travel professionals are trying to bring together mobile technology and the corporate travel process to not only enhance the traveller experience, but also increase employee compliance. Travel professionals cannot fully achieve their top-level priorities of duty of care and cost savings, however, without addressing direct booking. If anything were to cement the successful journey that Chambers has taken over the last 18 months, morphing into Corporate Travel Management, it was a win at the annual Business Travel Awards. And so it was in early January that CTM scooped the award for Best Travel Management Company 2017 in The vast majority agree that in times of crisis, traditional corporate travel management tools aren’t able to locate travellers who have booked directly with suppliers. Educating employees, who generally want to do the right thing, on proper direct booking techniques, will not only increase spending visibility, but will also help companies save on their bottom line. Some of these proper direct booking techniques include: • Booking through approved channels • Tracking spend Unmanaged supplier direct booking can lead travellers to unknowingly ‘miss-out’ on negotiated rates and amenities, and ultimately pay higher prices. Travel professionals are turning to technology to capture direct booking data. Some are making it easier for travellers to share their trip information, while others are using an automated data capture system, among other methods. Some also rely on expense the category more than £50-£200m in UK annual sales. “We’re delighted that we’ve been recognised by the great and good of the industry,” said CEO Debbie Carling. The awards recognise and celebrate the achievements of the industry’s leading players who have performed outstandingly and are decided upon by an independent judging panel of senior travel buyers. Chairman of judges Mike Toynbee commented that some of this year’s entries were “outstanding” and that Best TMC category was one of the fiercely contested award categories. The splendid Great Room inside Grosvenor House Hotel on Park Lane was the venue again for the awards ceremony, hosted by comedian and impersonator Rory Bremner. reporting data—but because it is received after the trip—this approach causes serious duty of care implications. “The GBTA Foundation study strongly confirmed that nearly 40% of managed frequent business travellers regularly shop and book directly with suppliers and OTAs in addition to the traditional OBT/TMC channel,” said Mike Koetting, Executive Vice President, Supplier and TMC Services for Concur. “This multi- channel behaviour is a well-entrenched reality across every geography and every demographic that was studied. “Companies that continue to limit the scope of their travel management programme to the traditional channel have almost certainly lost visibility, savings, and control over spending in the non-traditional channels. Capturing and managing travel, no matter where it was purchased is no longer optional for a well-managed travel programme.” Come to CTMs stand at the Business Travel Show next month* and discover our newly launched product, Lightning, the next generation of corporate booking technology. It is an in-house developed online booking tool with speed as its USP. Watch a demo and find out more. And if you time your visit between 3-4pm on either day you’ll be able to talk business and down a Manhattan or Margarita at the same time as it’s cocktail hour with CTM. Enjoy! * Held at Olympia February 22nd and 23rd. CTM INCREASES UK FOOTPRINT DIRECT BOOKING IS HERE TO STAY ALL EYES ON OLYMPIA CTM SCOOPS TOP AWARD WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU We value your opinions and ideas on the contents of Travel Matters. Please email marketing@eu.travelctm.com with any feedback on the magazine or any ideas you may have for future articles. More policy information at their fingertips and quicker access to fares are just two advantages of travel consultants switching over from Sabre Red to Sabre Red Workspace 3.0. “It streamlines our workflow and brings efficiency savings,” says Averil Hooper of CTM. The new version of the software also empowers agents with virtual payment technology for air bookings, which translates to quicker invoices and end billings. RED TOGO A new study from the GBTA Foundation, in partnership with Concur, highlights that travel professionals report direct booking as a primary challenge. In a surprise acquisition, CTM announced in December that it had acquired Bradford-based Redfern Travel. It will make CTM one of the top seven corporate TMCs in the UK Pictured (l to r) are: Akira Nakamura from award sponsor ANA; CEO Debbie Carling; Shelly Matthews, VP European Sales; Karen Janssen, CIO; Julie Cope, GM England & Wales, and Rory Bremner. The judges thought CTM demonstrated both strength and diversity, with a good bespoke offering along larger TMC lines and that it was at the forefront of technology and innovation