What Is a Travel Manager?

What does a travel manager do?

A travel manager plays a key role in making sure a business’s travel program runs smoothly while meeting organizational objectives.

Their responsibilities typically include:

• Policy enforcement: Helping to ensure that employees adhere to the company’s travel policies.
• Vendor management: Negotiating rates with airlines, hotels, and car rental companies.
• Booking oversight: Coordinating travel arrangements for employees.
• Expense management: Monitoring travel spending and helping to ensure cost efficiency.
• Support: Assisting travelers with issues such as rebookings or delays.

Why are travel managers important?

For Organizations

Travel managers help control costs, streamline processes, and maximize the value of business travel budgets. They may negotiate favorable terms with vendors or partner with a travel management solution that negotiates rates, which can lead to significant savings over time.

For Employees

Travel managers provide support before, during, and after trips, creating a better travel experience. By managing logistics or implementing software to help, travel managers allow employees to focus on their work rather than travel-related concerns.

Challenges Travel Managers Face

1. Balancing Cost Savings and Traveler Comfort

Travel managers must find the right balance between creating cost-effective solutions and providing a comfortable experience for employees. Tools that allow access to preferred vendors while staying within budget are essential.

2. Keeping Up With Changing Regulations

With constantly evolving travel restrictions and compliance requirements, travel managers need to stay informed. Partnering with travel management software that provides real-time updates can help them adapt quickly.

3. Managing Traveler Behavior and Policy Compliance

Ensuring that employees comply with company travel policies can be a challenge. Travelers may book outside of preferred channels or overlook spending limits. Tools that automatically enforce policy guidelines at the booking stage and provide visibility into non-compliant behavior allow travel managers to catch issues before they become costly problems.

4. Dealing with Last-Minute Changes

Changes in travel plans can happen unexpectedly due to urgent business needs, flight cancellations, or other disruptions. Travel managers need the flexibility to efficiently manage last-minute adjustments, which can help minimize the effect of those changes on costs and employee schedules. Using a travel management platform that offers 24/7 support and the ability to make quick modifications can reduce stress and keep the process smooth.

5. Managing Global Travel Programs

For companies with global operations, travel managers need to help ensure that travel policies and processes are consistently applied across regions, each of which comes with its own set of challenges. From currency differences to varying tax laws and travel preferences, managing a global program requires understanding local needs while maintaining overall program alignment. Leveraging a centralized system that consolidates global travel data can streamline decision-making and improve visibility across multiple regions.

Tools and Resources for Travel Managers

Travel managers can leverage modern tools to simplify their work and enhance efficiency, such as:

• Travel management platforms: For streamlined bookings and policy enforcement.
• Expense management software: To track spending and generate accurate reports.
• Analytics tools: To evaluate trends and identify cost-saving opportunities.

Pro Tip: Consider using a single, centralized system that integrates travel management, expense tracking, and analytics. This unified approach simplifies the process for travel managers by consolidating all data in one platform, reducing the risk of errors, and saving time on manual data entry. A centralized system can also provide a clear, real-time view of current spend, policy adherence, and traveler needs, making informed decisions easier and optimizing the travel program.