How To Build a Corporate Travel Policy
A corporate travel policy is a set of guidelines regulating business travel. Companies create travel policies to eliminate any confusion surrounding what expenses are eligible for reimbursement, what travel practices are encouraged, and what travel practices are discouraged or not allowed. A good professional travel policy also provides an opportunity for travel managers to identify trends that will help the business cut costs and create a better experience for employee travelers.
If you don’t currently have a travel policy in place for your company, now is a good time to implement one. Here’s what you should know about building such a travel policy and how it can benefit your business.
Benefits of a Corporate Travel Policy
More than 90% of corporate travel managers state that business travel is crucial to the growth of their companies. Many businesses send employees on business trips as part of their growth and retention strategy. Business owners understand the advantages of good travel policy. Duty of care requires keeping employees safe. Establishing protocol for travel makes tracking and managing travel-related expenses easier. Empowering employees to set itineraries by establishing guidelines increases productivity. And with Rocketrip, there is even the option to provide rewards to travelers who make cost-saving decisions
Without a clear travel policy, your employees may not make the best purchasing decisions during their business-related trips. They may also be confused about what they can and cannot include in their expense reports or reimbursement forms. For these reasons and more, it’s wise to have a clear and well-developed corporate travel policy that all employees follow anytime they go on business trips.
How To Write Your Travel Policy
Now that you know how important a concise travel policy is for your business, it’s time to learn how to create such a policy. Here are some tried-and-true tips to help you get started.
Ensure your policy meets your travelers’ needs. Think about the most common destinations your employees travel to for business purposes. Are there any specific items that should be included in your travel policy to reflect your employees’ needs at these destinations?
Make sure your travel policy is distributed to all employees. Consider sending your policy to all your employees in a company-wide email, then have a meeting to go over the various travel policy requirements and restrictions. You want to make sure every employee who travels is well aware of the new policy and what it entails.
Set clear guidelines for all traveling aspects. Don’t leave any room in your travel policy for doubt. Make sure your policy includes guidelines for all travel-related expenses, including gifts, airline booking, and any other expenses.
Give your employees options when possible. No one likes to feel like they’re so tightly controlled during their travels that they can’t make any decisions for themselves. Whenever possible, give your employees multiple options for airlines and hotels. That way, they can choose (from the allowed options) and still maintain a sense of freedom.
Define the objectives of your travel policy. When you write your travel policy, clearly define the objectives of the policy from the beginning. For example, is your objective to keep costs down? Is it to help employees make responsible decisions during their travels? Is it to keep your employees safe? Your policy probably includes a combination of objectives. When your employees understand why your policy is in place, it helps them have a better attitude about following the guidelines laid out in the policy.
Consider entertainment. While your employees are traveling, will you give them the freedom to take advantage of various entertainment options and be reimbursed for them? Examples include local plays, movies, dining, drinking, and other hospitality services. A good way to maintain a reasonable balance between entertainment and financial responsibility is to set a limit or range for allowed entertainment reimbursements.
Don’t forget tips. In many parts of the world, tips are appreciated and even expected. For this reason, many corporate travel policies cover tips. Usually, the limit is up to 20%. If a traveler decides to tip more than this and it is not covered by the travel policy, the additional amount will need to come out of their own pocket.
Set expense limits. Most business travelers want to be responsible and do what’s best for their company during their travels. However, it is still necessary to set expense limits for those employees who may view their professional travels as an opportunity to spend as much of someone else’s money as possible. You may consider setting expense limits per day or per activity (such as dinner).
Consider safety and security. When building your corporate travel policy, keep safety at the forefront of your mind. The cheapest airline may not always be the safest. Though saving money is probably one of the main goals of your travel policy, it should not trump employee safety. Your employees are your responsibility while they’re engaged in business travel. Take the time to research weather, political unrest and personal risk associated with travel to certain parts of the world. Provide your employees with detailed guidelines of what they should do in an emergency situation to keep themselves safe. Include emergency contact information in your travel policy and provide additional safety and training as needed if you fly employees to high-risk countries.
Forecast your budget. While it isn’t possible to determine exactly how much your travel budget should be, you can get a good idea of the range you should expect if you forecast carefully. Maintain data on the average cost to fly per mile, in addition to the typical costs of meals and ground transportation in the areas where you most frequently send employees. That way, you can forecast your budget with some degree of accuracy.
If you need some help creating your corporate travel policy, figuring out how to reduce corporate travel spending is a good place to start. Rocketrip offers an average of 20% savings on corporate travel costs. To take advantage of this cost-saving opportunity, get started with Rocketrip today!
