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Taking a comprehensive approach to travel risk management

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Taking a Comprehensive Approach to Travel Risk Management

By Lise Levesque, Senior Crisis Program Manager

Year after year, BCD Travel’s survey of travel program priorities shows that duty of care continues to be the top priority for travel managers.

Yet 29% of travelers surveyed say they don’t even know if their organization has a travel risk management policy. Given this gap, it’s crucial to adopt a comprehensive approach that not only formalizes your travel risk management program but also keeps your travelers well-informed.

Involving the right stakeholders

One of the biggest hurdles in taking a comprehensive approach to travel risk management is getting the right stakeholders involved. While it seems obvious that the travel manager or security manager should be part of the discussion, a robust travel risk management program involves many departments within an organization. The departments often involved in travel risk management go way beyond the C-suite to include IT, marketing, audit, legal, HR, procurement, and security. So, a holistic approach with all relevant stakeholders is a must when assessing and managing travel risk.

Why a Travel Security Program Assessment matters

A formal assessment to review your travel risk management program is a great opportunity to bring ALL the necessary stakeholders together to evaluate your program and identify any gaps and areas where there’s potential for improvement. Our Travel Security Program Assessment (TSPA) examines eleven key areas of an effective program and provides recommendations to bring your organization into compliance with the ISO 31030 guidance for travel risk management. A formal assessment like the TSPA will help you benchmark where your program stands compared to similar organizations and best-in-class programs.

Leveling up your travel risk management program

Our travel risk assessment approach has successfully identified two key areas where programs often need to focus their efforts: sourcing security providers and updating policies while keeping travelers informed. To help, we have expanded our travel risk management offerings to meet these needs.

  • RFP development and support: For organizations that lack the internal resources to handle aspects of risk mitigation, such as the provision of 24/7 medical and security support or traveler safety training, it’s important to outsource with a third-party. We can help identify the optimal mix of suppliers for your program and support you throughout the selection and negotiation process.
  • Travel risk management policy: We can craft a tailored travel risk management policy that aligns your goals and focus areas with the needs of your company’s stakeholders and travelers. This approach empowers you to set a new benchmark for travel risk management within your organization. If you already have a travel risk management policy in place, our team can conduct a full policy review and gap analysis and rewrite your policy to better align with your business objectives. Whether you’re fine-tuning an existing policy or starting from scratch, we’ll develop a strategic communications plan to educate and engage travelers on your new policy.

Case study: Finastra improves traveler safety with a dedicated travel risk policy

Finastra, a long-time Advito client manages a global workforce of 7,500 employees, more than half of whom travel regularly for business. Advito conducted a Travel Security Program Assessment with the goal of aligning Finastra’s program with the ISO standard. Leveraging the TSPA results, Advito developed a dedicated travel risk management policy paired with a robust communications strategy, enabling Finastra to exceed industry standards for traveler safety and duty of care. To keep Finastra’s employees educated and engaged, Advito also developed a targeted communications strategy, ensuring the future success of the program.

Some organizations aren’t proactive about managing travel risk, and fall into the trap of complacency, mistakenly believing that because a crisis hasn’t yet occurred, there’s no need to prepare for one. However, BCD Travel’s survey shows that 30% of travel managers review their program annually, as recommended by ISO 31030, to ensure their organization is prepared to deal with travel risks that could happen at any time. To learn more about our extended travel risk management approach, contact our team today.

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