How to design a Corporate Travel Policy to promote employee well-being
How to design a Corporate Travel Policy that promotes employee well-being?
Modern travel programs promote freedom of choice and the well-being of employees
A Corporate Travel Policy provides a guideline for a company’s business travel, from booking flights to selecting accommodation. There was a time when the purpose of these business travel programs was to control travel costs, but today’s travel policies focus on maximizing employee well-being, while still gaining savings from the right things.
The requirements for corporate travel programs have increased
Even though efficiency and monetary savings have long been used as the metrics for measuring the success of travel programs, it’s become increasingly important to track their impact on employee well-being and corporate culture.
Both employees and experts have become more and more concerned about work-life balance. Employees want to prioritize their healthy habits and lifestyle also when travelling, and employers must be able to support this.
Employees who travel for work also want to be able to influence the way they travel. For instance, what business travellers hope to find in their company’s travel policy, is sharing economy options, such as Airbnb or Uber. These new kind of needs for e.g. home-like accommodation place pressure on traditional corporate travel programs to renew themselves.
A modern travel policy offers freedom of choice
According to the leading travel news service Skift, a people-first travel policy is based on listening to the needs and desires of employees. Companies should focus on providing business travelers with freedom of choice and allow them to select the services or accommodation options of their own liking. In addition, companies should make sure to offer support for their employees on the road.
That being said, those in charge of company travel can’t just ignore the cost factor. If you’ve ever used hotels to accommodate your employees, then you’ve probably often paid more than you would have liked to. In recent years, companies all over the world have become to realize that a hotel isn’t always the only nor the best option for their accommodation needs.
Especially businesses who need also longer-term stays for their employees have found serviced apartments and aparthotels. These accommodation options and their services have originally been developed for the needs of business customers.
“Home-like accommodation allows the business traveler to keep up with their daily routines even when on the road. Instead of having to go out to eat every day, they can store their food in the fridge and cook their own healthy meals in the fully-equipped apartment. Serviced apartments also provide more space and storage, so you can for instance easily store your sports equipment in the apartment and wash your sports clothes in the washing machine”, Forenom CEO Johannes Kangas explains.
Home-like accommodation is the more comfortable and cost-efficient option to accommodate employees.
“The pricing model for home-like accommodation is designed for the needs of business customers. For example at Forenom, the cost per night significantly decreases as the length of stay increases. After only a few weeks’ stay, our corporate customer will have saved a substantial amount of money compared to if they had accommodated the employee in a traditional hotel room”, Kangas adds.
Costs are inevitably something to take into consideration when designing a travel policy for your organization. However, a well-designed travel program isn’t just about monetary savings. It’s increasingly about giving your employees freedom of choice and prioritizing their well-being.
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