Base Tendriling Vacation Fees

As business travel sensatori sharm el sheikh  bills nose upward, businesses are noticing that improved cost-management procedures can make a big difference

US. company travel charges rocketed to much more than $143 billion in 1994, in accordance to American Express' most recent study on enterprise vacation administration. Private-sector companies commit an estimated $2,484 for each worker on travel and leisure, a 17 percent enhance in the last 4 a long time.

Company T&E costs, now the third-largest controllable expense behind sales and data-processing costs, are under new scrutiny. Corporations are acknowledging that even a savings of 1 % or 2 percent can translate into millions of dollars added to their bottom line.

Savings of that order are sure to get management's attention, which is a requirement for this type of project. Involvement begins with understanding and evaluating the components of T&E management in order to control and monitor it a lot more effectively.

Hands-on management includes assigning responsibility for vacation management, implementing a quality-measurement system for vacation services used, and writing and distributing a formal journey policy. Only 64 percent of U.S. corporations have vacation policies.

Even with senior management's support, the road to savings is rocky-only one in three providers has successfully instituted an internal program that will help cut travel fees, and the myriad aspects of journey are so overwhelming, most firms don't know where to start. "The industry of journey is based on information," says Steven R. Schoen, founder and CEO of The Global Group Inc. "Until such time as a passenger actually sets foot on the plane, they've [only] been purchasing information."

If that's the case, information technology seems a viable place to hammer out those elusive, but highly sought-after, savings. "Technological innovations in the business journey industry are allowing firms to realize the potential of automation to control and reduce indirect [travel] costs," says Roger H. Ballou, president of the Journey Services Group USA of American Express. "In addition, many corporations are embarking on quality programs that include sophisticated process improvement and reengineering efforts designed to substantially improve T&E management processes and reduce indirect costs."

As companies look to technology to make potential savings a reality, they can get very creative about the methods they employ.