Spending on corporate travel to fall in 2009
ACTE publishes results of new survey
By Susan Avery -- Purchasing, 2/9/2009 9:05:00 PM
Current economic conditions are having a significant impact on business travel, according to results of a new survey of travel managers by the Association of Corporate Travel Executives (ACTE).
Results of the ACTE 2009 Business Travel Spend survey show that 71% of respondents plan to spend less on travel in 2009, with 21% reporting they will spend the same, leaving only 8% saying they will spend more.
ACTE conducted a similar survey in September 2008 that found 33% of travel managers planned to spend less on business travel in 2009, 31% expected to spend the same and 36% said they would spend more.
“There are a number of reasons for this change,” said Susan Gurley, executive director at ACTE in Alexandria, Va.“The continued drop in U.S. consumer confidence has a profoundly negative effect on demand, which causes increases in layoffs and joblessness. Lack of demand causes a slump in manufacturing, which in turn creates a slowdown in global commerce. This has a massive trickledown effect on business travel.”
Results of the ACTE 2009 Business Travel Spend survey show that the hardest-hit area of business travel is internal meetings. ACTE research shows that member companies are targeting non-revenue producing (non-strategic) internal meetings; these can constitute up to 40% of a travel budget.
The survey showed that interest in electronic travel alternatives jumped from 32% in 2008 to 50% in 2009, making it the number-one ranked priority for this year.
Sixty-one percent of responding travel managers indicated they have approached their suppliers to renegotiate contracts in mid-term. Eighty-three percent are focusing on hotels as the most likely source of savings. Forty-six percent are approaching the airlines, and 31% are looking at reducing spending with rental car companies.
Survey results also revealed that travel managers have set savings goals ranging from 10% to 20%, depending on the market sector and their volume.
See also: Mitre engineers savings with travel gurus, employee training and online booking tool
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