ACTE shared high-level findings of the survey with the business travel community today at ACTE’s Global Education Conference in Munich, Germany. The fifth annual Executive Corporate Travel Survey was conducted in August 2007 by an independent market research firm, and sponsored by ACTE, ProMedia LLC, GetThere(R), Sabre Travel Network(R) and Travelocity Business(R). The survey generated 305 qualified responses from companies based in Asia, Canada, Europe, and North and Latin America and the United States ACTE will work in conjunction with the survey’s sponsors to publish a detailed white paper on the results later this year.
For the first time, the survey included procurement personnel, who are increasingly overseeing managed travel programs at companies big and small. One consistent theme - managing business travel expenditures is a top priority for all respondents, especially among senior executives, of which 72 percent said it is “very important.”
Other findings released in the executive summary include:
- Senior-level executives, procurement managers and travel managers increased their direct involvement with their company travel programs, and plan to stay as involved or more involved in 2008.
- 58 percent of all respondents indicated their travel budgets would increase over last year.
- US & European travel programs employ a full range of demand management tactics to control travel spend, while programs in Asia and Latin America are evolving in implementing measures that will allow them to better manage costs.
- All survey respondents reported that using an online booking system is an effective tool for managing travel expenditures.
- Online booking systems have become core tools in the U.S. and Europe, while Asia and Latin America are quickly migrating toward implementation of these tools.
- Across the board, the vast majority of survey respondents reported that online booking systems provide savings on overall travel expenditures.
- More than a third of U.S. respondents stated they received “significant” savings from moving their programs online, with Europe (25.6) and Asia/Latin America (26.1) not far behind.
- 72 percent of respondents believe they are not receiving timely and accurate data from their suppliers.
Susan Gurley, ACTE’s Executive Director said, “These results validate that travel expenses are coming under increased scrutiny in the executive suite – and the fact that more companies are working with travel management companies and technology providers to manage that spend and drive efficiencies.” Gurley went onto say, “It is also apparent that companies around the world are embracing technology to deliver savings mandated by their procurement departments.”
Methodology | The fifth annual Executive Corporate Travel Survey was conducted in August 2007 by the Phoenix Marketing Group, an independent market research firm, and sponsored by ACTE, ProMedia, GetThere, Sabre Travel Network and Travelocity Business. The survey generated 305 qualified responses from companies based in Asia, Europe, and North America.
Forty percent of participants spent between $5 and $59 million in air volume, while a third spent less than $5 million, and a quarter spent in excess of $60 million. Nearly 27 percent of respondents employ less than 1,000 people, with the same percentage also coming from companies with 1,000 to 10,000 employees. A little over 20 percent employ between 10,000 and 50,000, and about 19 percent employ more than 50,000.
The survey was geared toward senior executives, procurement managers and corporate travel managers. Respondents were screened to ensure they were directly involved in managing corporate travel policies or budgets. Executive responses include senior executives with financial responsibilities such as CFO’s, Senior VP’s, Executive VP’s, Presidents, CEO’s and COO’s.
Procurement responses include procurement executives with purchasing responsibilities such as CPO’s, Procurement/Purchasing VP’s and Directors. CTM responses include Corporate Travel Managers affiliated with ACTE or ProMedia.
Founded in 1988, the
Association of Corporate Travel Executives is the only organization wholly dedicated to the science of business travel management with an international constituency. ACTE membership totals more than 2,500, including entities in Asia, Europe, Canada, and the United States. The organization is headquartered in Alexandria, Va. More information is available at
www.acte.org.
