The Association of Corporate Travel Executives (ACTE) and KDS will collaborate again in 2009 on the industry wide 4th ACTE/KDS Survey. The survey will measure the impact of the global economic crisis, travel spend trends and the effect on companies’ Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programs.

“With the global economy still the key issue going into 2009, it will be interesting to see how companies’ emphasis on cost-savings will impact their CSR programs,” Susan Gurley, ACTE Executive Director, said. “Every year brings new and provocative findings which are the benchmark for the industry. Last year’s survey indicated a sizeable shift toward a greener style of travel management – we will see if that holds true for 2009 as well.”

“KDS is committed to leading the industry toward increased CSR awareness both through industry relations and through technology innovation,” commented Stanislas Berteloot, KDS Marketing Director. “We are pleased to work with ACTE on this fourth survey at a historical time for our industry, which is faced with unparalleled financial and environmental challenges. We anticipate fascinating results.”

Several new questions have been added to the 2009 ACTE/KDS Survey that focus on the effect the economy is having on companies’ travel management programs. To access the survey, please go to the ACTE website, or please click HERE. The deadline to respond is Friday, 30 January. The results of the survey will be announced at a press conference during the Business Travel Show in London, 10-12 Feb.

Highlights from last year’s ACTE/KDS Survey included:

  • 75 percent of travel managers who responded to the survey said their company had increased its travel spend in 2007
  • 69 percent of companies said they used a self-booking tool to manage their travel arrangements 9
  • 5 percent of travel managers said their company had a written travel policy 58 percent of respondent companies said they had a CSR charter
  • 56 percent of business travelers looked to these charters in making environmentally sound travel decisions
  • 34 percent of respondents felt their companies supported sustainable travel
  • 59 percent of respondents looked to their companies to be responsible for decisions related to carbon emissions and business travel

Last year’s ACTE/KDS survey was taken by 263 respondents from 10 global regions including the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Asia, Africa, Latin America, Middle East, Eastern and Central, Northern and Continental Europe. Forty percent represented corporations employing more than 10,000 people, while 15 percent worked for companies with 1 to 100 employees. Respondents were also frequent travelers: 31 percent made more than 30 trips per year, while 42 percent travelled more than 20 times per year.

To see the results of the ACTE/KDS survey from 2008, please click HERE.

ABOUT ACTE: The Association of Corporate Travel Executives (ACTE) represents the global business travel industry through its international advocacy efforts, executive level educational programs, and independent industry research. ACTE's membership consists of senior travel industry executives from 82 countries representing the €463 billion business travel industry. With the support of sponsors from every major segment of the business travel industry, ACTE develops and delivers educational programs in key business centers throughout the world. ACTE has representation in Africa, Asia-Pacific, Canada, Europe, Latin America, Middle East and the United States. For more information on ACTE, please go to .

ABOUT KDS: KDS on-demand travel & expense offers a completely integrated solution for travel and expense management, addressing essential needs ranging from travel policy definition and enforcement, to online travel self-booking, to automated travel expense processing and beyond. Every critical procedure can be completed through the KDS ASP offering, resulting in greater efficiencies and associated financial benefits. In addition, KDS offers the most extensive back-end connectivity to airline, car, rail and hotel providers in the industry, ensuring optimized pricing and up-to-the-minute inventory control. For more information on KDS, please go to .

Kathleen Brannigan
703.683.5322 x 203
ACTE