Corporate travel safety in a post-pandemic world

It has been almost two years since the global pandemic brought business travel to a halt. As governments roll out mass vaccination programs and restrictions slowly start to lift, many organisations are dusting off their corporate travel policies and gearing up for business travel during uncertain times.

Safety has always been paramount, but for business travel in 2021 (and the foreseeable future), there’s more pressure than ever to ensure business travellers are safe, well and supported at every step of the journey. That requires robust, agile corporate travel safety and security procedures that not only effectively identify and mitigate risk factors, but also deliver on duty of care.

Business travel comes with a myriad of benefits for organisations, most of which have a positive effect on their bottom line. However, travelling to and operating in unfamiliar environments and situations don’t come without risks, which can endanger the outcome of a trip and, more importantly, the safety of those travelling.

Moreover, the global effects of COVID-19 have exacerbated the security, political, operational and medical risks of many countries (both developed and developing), on top of risks that existed pre-pandemic.

In other words, global travel risks are now far more complex, and with that comes uncertainty and hesitancy even in the most seasoned business travellers. Now, more than ever, organisations must be able to demonstrate their commitment to employee safety with robust contingency measures for disaster management, because of the influence it’ll have over many travel decisions in the future.

“Coming out of COVID, I think there’s a common belief that organisations will spend less on business travel. So, when they do fly, it will be for good reason, increasing the importance of corporate travel, and further escalating duty of care,” says Nick Queale, Corporate Traveller NZ General Manager.

Let’s look at some typical risk scenarios and what you can do to avoid them, or alleviate any stress or confusion.

Sanitation, health, and medical support

While it’s difficult to predict health issues, you can plan how to manage them in advance. Here are some things to consider:

• Key contact information. Before business travellers leave, make sure they know where to go if they require medical attention. That way, if something does happen wherever they are, they’ll know what to do. Cover-More is our travel insurance partner who have a global network, and therefore access to health care professionals worldwide to assist you in finding the highest quality of care.
• Food and water safety. Some countries don’t have the hygiene standards of many developed countries, so it’s often recommended that travellers opt for bottled water and avoid street food (particularly meat) to avoid contracting any foreign bugs.
• Vaccinations. “Vaccination status is another lens that businesses will need – to plan for and understand the cost implications of not having the correct documentation,” Nick says. Many countries now require travellers to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 or provide a negative PCR test to enter the country. “Through our Traveller Hub, you can access the latest info on where mask-wearing, tests and vaccine certificates are required. While that need is simplistic now with domestic travel, it will grow as businesses begin to travel further afield again,” Andy adds.
• Health insurance. Good business travel insurance including adequate health cover is imperative, especially in the context of COVID. However, some insurance providers require travellers to be fully vaccinated and others may not cover certain expenses in the case of an outbreak, so you must know insurance provider does and does not cover before any of your corporate travellers hit the road.

Political instability or unrest

Business travel to and within areas that are politically unstable needs careful planning based on up-to-date advice and information, to ensure travel plans and travellers aren’t endangered. For example, websites of relevant governmental institutions notify, at a global level, information in terms of security, protection and level of terrorist threat. Corporate Traveller's YOUR.CT platform posts global alerts and restrictions, and travellers using CT Mobile will receive push notifications if their is an significant alert or event that will likely impact a travellers' plans.

Female traveller safety

It has been reported that 83% of women have had concerns about their safety while on a business trip, yet only 18% of travel policies specifically address female safety. While the safety of all business travellers is important, the unfortunate reality is women can face more challenges than their male counterparts while travelling for work.

Corporate Traveller’s TravelSMART programme will help you get more value from your travel, and give you the confidence of booking with partners and suppliers that have been well-vetted for security. Also, mobile apps and notifications give female travellers assurance that help is always just a click away.

Third-party contractors

Your duty-of-care obligations extend beyond your employees to cover other people your company may have responsibilities towards – third-party contractors. They may also pose new risk elements which must be assessed. Using trusted third parties who have been thoroughly audited (especially overseas) is recommended.

Adverse weather conditions

Natural disasters like floods, earthquakes and hurricanes can happen at any time and, in some countries, they’re more common than you might think. Business travellers must be prepared, with weather warnings in real-time and an emergency plan should they get stuck in transit or in a foreign country.

Planning future travel can feel like flying through a fog of uncertainty, which makes it even more important for businesses to leverage real-time data, with that COVID lens, to inform their decision-making.

“Historically, we’ve seen the status of COVID outbreaks in a country change incredibly fast – we’ve even had it change while a business traveller is still flying. So particularly for the short to medium-term, live updates will be critical to making real-time decisions on whether someone should be travelling to a certain country,” Nick says. 

“We have an online tool, customised to our customers’ travel needs, that feeds in live inventory from air, hotel and car suppliers. It's quick and efficient, so you're not flitting from one site to the next, saving you time and increasing the efficiency of your travel programme,” explains Andy.

Itinerary tracking and traveller location

During an incident, your priority is knowing exactly where your people are at any given time. Technology has been a powerful lever for change in the business travel industry, with location-tracking apps and mobile safety features providing businesses with a way of keeping tabs on their corporate travellers.

“From a flight delay or disruption to a local crisis alert, these push notifications are powerful because they give travellers that awareness they need to plan accordingly. Even something as simple as being able to take a photo of a traveller’s pre-departure COVID test and attaching that to the trip’s itinerary will make things a lot simpler for the traveller,” Andy explains.