Big Idea: Did Your Travel Plans Disappoint the Remote Workers? - BCD Travel

What is Today’s Work Cultureand What Does it Mean for The changing world of work The world of work has been transformed by flexible workarrangements.Accelerated by global events and evolvingexpectations, traditional office setups shifted swiftly to remote,hybrid, and work-from-anywhere arrangements. The Big IdeaSessions at the GBTA Europe and APAC conferencesexamined some implications of flexible work models forbusiness travel. Christian Dahl, Executive Vice President of Our Sponsor The discussions explored:•How do you manage travel for a dispersed workforce?•How will remote work reshape recruitment, manager-employeedynamics, and business relationships? Remote work: It’s a standard, not a trend. Most Big Idea session participants responded favorably to the opportunities that remotework models present. Generally, they felt remote work models would soon be firmlyensconced as a standard and not a trend. Most agreed travel managers had a critical “The last few years have reshaped how we think about work. BCD leanedinto the change a lot faster than much of the industry so that we could makesure our people keep thriving regardless of where they worked. We’ve beena leader in remote work for some time and we’re doing really well.Adapting –Christian Dahl, EVP of People & Culture, BCD Travel The modern workforce is represented by a mix of models – with remote roles and hybridwork on the rise. Advanced collaboration and communication tools make these modelsviable – and benefits exist for companies and employees. Employees experiencegreater productivity from fewer distractions, better work-life balance, and decreased What the workforcelooks like Only 9% of pollees work onsiteor are embedded with a client. Source: Poll results of 361 participants,GBTA Europe Conference 2024, The BigIdea, Nov. 5, 2024 Remote work and the role of the travel manager Modern travel managers aren’t just experts in travel logistics – they manage diverseresponsibilities, and their scope will only keep growing. Travel managers should expectto support flexible workplace strategies by advising on collaborative meeting options,group travel, and travel policies that accommodate blended work and leisure trips. New “The role of the travel manager is constantly changing with the evolvingworkplace, from tickets handwritten by on-site agents to AI driven itineraries:thesehybrid and remote environments give us the opportunity tocreate greater solutionsfor teams to meet in person.” – Rosemary Maloney, VP for GBTA Board of Directors and Sr. Director ofCorporate Travel at Freeman Company The role of the travelmanager in supportingthe workplace of the Growing responsibility for travelmanagers Source: Poll results from 172 votes, GBTAEurope Conference 2024, The Big Idea,Nov. 5, 2024 Creating meaningful experiencesfor corporate travelers not only enhances their work at a company,but helps to build organizational culture. Duty of care in remote work models The ISO 31030 Travel Risk Management guidelines define duty of care as "the moralresponsibility or legal requirement of an organization to protect the traveler fromhazards and threats." These guidelines emphasize the critical role organizations play in “The last few years have changed the perspective on remote working andmobility; work from home has become work from anywhere. This can attractand retain talent, but it also provides additional challenges for organizations.That is whyforward-thinking organizations are moving from travel risk – Jorge Mesa, GBTA Europe Advisory Board member and Senior Director ofTravel Risk Management at BCD Travel. The shift to people risk management People risk management (PRM) involves identifying, assessing, and mitigating risksrelated to an organization's workforce. Key areas include employee behavior, healthand safety, talent management, compliance with laws, workplace culture, cybersecurity,and adaptability to change. It helps ensure business continuity, protect reputation,maintain financial stability, and improve workforce engagement. Tools include risk PRM provides the broader framework for managing risks to employees, while travel riskmanagement (TRM) focuses on a specific subset of risks associated with travel.Together, they ensure organizations meet their duty of care, protect their workforce, and While before the focus was about keeping traveling employees safe, nowthe focus will be to keep allpeople safe no matter where they are.It’s about ensuring employee safety during business trips,addressing risks in remote work settings, and planning for emergency responses in unfamiliar – Jorge Mesa Considerations for people risk management andremote work models Compliance with local laws:Employers must stay informed about labor laws, tax requirements,and occupational health and safety regulations in different regions where their employees are Employee health and safety:This involves providing guidelines for safe workspaces and offeringsupport wi