As millennials join the workplace in droves, the different travel patterns and desires of this new generation are also changing the face of business travel.
Millennials are quickly becoming a force to be reckoned with. Currently in their 20s and early 30s, these tech-savvy digital natives are expected to account for nearly half of the workforce by 2020, bringing with them vastly different travel habits and preferences from previous generations.
According to new study by GBTA, millennials are more likely to want to travel for business than baby boomers (45 per cent vs 26 per cent respectively).
On the road, this mobile-first generation care more about having access to Wi-Fi at airports and hotels, express a greater preference for using corporate cards over personal ones, and more likely to use social networking for a variety of purposes than their older cohorts.
At the same time, the rising appeal of the sharing economy has caught the eye of the millennial business traveller as an alternative mode of accommodation, sources revealed.
A rapidly changing workforce dynamic
Kevin O’Sullivan, CEO of travel technology provider Open Destinations, said: “What we have seen with our clients is a shift in their customers’ booking patterns. The millennials want hotel properties that are more casual and offer amenities like in-room music entertainment, free Wi-Fi and an environment that reflects their lifestyle.
“Many (millennial) customers expect their business travel to mirror their personal travel experience,” he added.
General manager of FCm Travel Solutions, Bertrand Saillet, remarked: “Millennials today are familiar with alternative options like Airbnb, which are appealing because they offer local experience and interaction when staying within the community.
“The different characteristics of the millennials obviously pose some challenges to companies, but also present opportunities to make travel policies more relevant,” Saillet said, urging companies to adopt greater flexibility in their corporate travel policies as millennial employees increasingly look towards vacation rentals as accommodation choices.
He added: “Companies must acknowledge that the sharing economy is here to stay. There is a need to move away from the traditional format of preferred hotels and airlines and consider flexibility.”
Alvan Aiau, vice president, global sales & program management, Asia-Pacific at Carlson Wagonlit Travel, agreed: “Sharing economy services are likely to gain in popularity, and what we see now is just the beginning. Whether they like it or not, companies should be mindful that corporate travellers are probably already using these services.
“Whether or not companies are comfortable integrating sharing economy offerings into their programmes ultimately depends on their culture. The more traditional, risk-averse companies may decide that the risks outweigh the benefits,” added Aiau.
Capturing the business and loyalty of a new generation
In June this year, Airbnb expanded its Business Travel programme to start a worldwide roll-out of tools that will make it easier for companies to book accommodation for business trips through the short-term room rental service.
The expansion of these tools brings Airbnb closer in line with the traditional hotels, as it helps to promote their service as a viable alternative for business travellers. For instance, this new suite of tools provides visibility into employee travel itineraries and help track financial data to improve the business travel experience for travellers and travel managers.
Chip Conley, head of hospitality, Airbnb, said: “Airbnb offers inspired spaces in memorable places to make the most of any type of travel. Nearly 10 per cent of Airbnb’s customers already travel for business and we have heard from customers that this type of offering is high on their wish list.”
According to Conley, Airbnb for Business is “gaining a lot of traction”, and there are over 1,000 businesses including Google and SoundCloud in more than 35 countries which have signed up to use its business service.
Meanwhile, Airbnb’s business travel tools have found takers, particularly from the technology sector.
Darragh Ormsby, global travel manager of Google, said: “Our employees worldwide appreciate the choice and flexibility that Airbnb listings provide them when they are on the road – whether for conferences, meetings, or team offsites.”
Kelly Cammer, travel manager for Twilio, said: “Not only are we able to get better insights into how and when our employees are using Airbnb, but travellers are able to choose a place that feels like home at a price that fits our travel budgets (as well).”
Skepticism, challenges remain
However, TMCs and corporate travel managers do not entirely trust the sharing economy when it comes to meeting corporate travel criteria.
FCm’s Saillet noted that the majority of companies are not looking to change policies yet. “Most companies continue to stick with standard travel policies focusing on cost control and working with traditional providers. So far, companies have put in some effort and work with their partners to upgrade their technology without a real shift in paradigm,” he said.
“Clearly, there is more that can be done to tailor their travel policy to strike a balance between flexibility, accountability and safety of the employee,” he added.
Amarnath Lal Das, general manager, India Travel, Accenture, said: “To meet corporate travel requirements, certain standards need to be met. The big challenge we have seen with the corporate (sector) is data security and privacy.”
While Airbnb has come up with various categories of accommodations, they are not integrated into GDSs, said Lal Das. “You have got to integrate it with your programme. Integrating their technology and ours can be a challenge.
“In the meantime, while we are not officially open to (the shared economy providers), we do allow people to use with some do’s and don’ts,” he added.
To aid companies on this front, Simon Akeroyd, vice president, corporate strategy and business development, Amadeus Asia-Pacific, said: “The key is collaboration across the industry and an openness to doing things differently. While not all sharing economy content would fit into our distribution business, there is a great opportunity to cooperate – be it with these new players expanding our online travel accommodation offers or them potentially becoming new distributors of our already existing GDS content.”
While Amadeus does not currently collaborate with Airbnb, Akeroyd said the company is “leading this charge” through partnerships with players in the same space such as BookingPal, a distribution and booking platform for vacation rental properties.
By plying to the travel preferences of this millennial generation, companies will be able to build their travel programmes into a staff retention strategy as well, and that reaps more benefits for the companies in the long run, said FCm Travel Solutions’ Saillet.
He said: “With so much online activity and the millennial travellers leaving a massive cyber trail, there are opportunities for suppliers to use the big data available to track traveller patterns and predict their needs to provide the best travel solution that meets their expectations.”
Additional reporting from Mimi Hudoyo
