GBTA-差旅买家调查报告：千禧一代员工占比超过四成（英文）10页_913kb

The Travel Buyer of the Future: Summary

Core Content

This document presents findings from a survey conducted among U.S. travel buyers, highlighting the evolving role of travel buyers in the business travel industry. The survey was conducted between April 3 and May 15, 2019, targeting corporate North American travel buyers, including GBTA members and Cvent contacts. A total of 173 completed the full survey, providing insights into current trends and challenges in the travel management field.

Key Findings

Experience and Role Evolution

• Experience Distribution:

  • Nearly 2/3 (65%) of travel buyers have been in the industry for 10 or more years.
  • 17% have less than 5 years of experience.
  • 18% have 5 to less than 10 years.
  • 15% have 15 to less than 20 years.
  • 12% have 10 to less than 15 years.

• Role Expansion:

  • One-quarter (25%) of travel buyers who started in travel now sit in another department.
  • Nearly two-thirds (65%) of travel buyers who began with national responsibility now have a broader scope of responsibilities.

Traveler Demographics and Shared Economy

• Millennial Influence:

  • 73% of travel buyers believe Millennials demand more consumer-like tools.
  • 54% say Millennials tend to push the boundaries of corporate travel policy.
  • One-quarter (25%) of travel buyers indicate that over 40% of their traveler workforce are Millennials.

• Shared Economy Impact:

  • 30% of travel buyers are taking action to address the sharing economy.
  • 58% plan to always allow ride-sharing services.
  • 42% plan to allow ride-sharing in some situations.
  • 77% plan to allow home-sharing in some situations.

Technology Integration and Priorities

• Technology Importance:

  • Technology advancements are a major driving force in the travel buyer role.
  • Two-thirds (66%) of travel buyers say technology implementation and data integration have become more of a priority.
  • The same proportion (66%) reports being more involved in evaluating or implementing new technology than five years ago.
  • 71% expect technology implementation to become even more important in the next five years.
  • 70% expect to spend more time on technology evaluation and implementation in the next five years.

• Technology Integration Challenges:

  • Only 41% integrate TMC/hotel data with meetings management tools.
  • 37% integrate meetings management with safety and security tools.
  • 36% integrate meetings management with online booking tools.
  • 18% integrate meetings management with expense tools.

Industry Misalignment

• Safety as a Priority:
  • Safety is a top priority for vendor selection, but only 52% use it as a KPI.
  • Only half (50%) of travel buyers use traveler safety to measure the effectiveness of their travel program.

Main Points

• Experience and Role Shift: Travel buyers are increasingly moving into procurement roles and have broader responsibilities.
• Millennial Influence: Millennials are reshaping travel program expectations and are a significant portion of the traveler workforce.
• Shared Economy Adaptation: A growing number of travel buyers are addressing ride-sharing and home-sharing services in their policies.
• Technology Integration: Technology is a key driver for the travel buyer role, but integration across systems remains a challenge.
• Safety and Technology Misalignment: Despite safety being a top priority, it is not fully integrated into performance metrics, and technology integration is still limited.

Conclusion

The travel buyer role is evolving rapidly, driven by technological advancements and changing traveler demographics. While there is a clear recognition of the importance of technology and safety, many organizations are still struggling to align their policies and systems accordingly. This misalignment highlights the need for better integration and adaptation in the travel management industry.