Doubling down on the bet that many businesses are willing to replace certain trips with virtual meetings, BCD Travel and its consulting practice, Advito, have expanded their relationship with worldwide technology leader Cisco. Advito will provide the travel data and analytics that help customers define where and what Cisco collaboration product offerings a customer would need to optimize or reduce travel while still providing the best experience. This is one enhancement that has led the way for the new Demand & Behavior Management practice.
Next to the expanded Demand & Behavior Management practice, Advito also introduces a new breakthrough Savings Calculator. The calculator gives travel managers immediate insight into savings they could gain from different approaches to managing demand, behavior and category spend. With a virtual collaboration program alone, the calculator shows that most companies can reduce or redirect up to 4 percent of their total travel spend by reducing just 10 percent of internal trips.
Savings Calculator
“This savings calculator is an eye-opener, providing compelling data to spark discussions,” says Lesley O’Bryan, principal and vice president of Advito. “Our experience has revealed that successful collaboration programs have a corporate sponsor and interdepartmental teams focused on the initiative. Understanding the potential budget impact of collaborative technology gives travel managers a starting point for conversations with other departments and corporate leaders.”
Since launching the Cisco relationship in 2016, companies that have invested in a Total Collaboration Management (TCM) program with Advito have experienced a tremendous return on investment – as much as 15:1. “What’s unique about a TCM program is the quick cost take-out. Companies can achieve significant savings in months, not years like other savings opportunities,” says O’Bryan.
Virtual collaboration is gaining traction, and usage will continue to grow significantly in the next few years. With the right program and the right virtual technology, teams can collaborate from anywhere at a fraction of the cost of travel. Advito and BCD Travel’s approach to Total Collaboration Management encompasses a range of innovative technology solutions from Cisco, including meetings and cloud-based collaboration solutions. Companies have more choices and better options to help employees determine whether they should stay or go.
Demand & Behavior Management
The expanded Demand & Behavior Management Practice will build upon the success of the Cisco relationship and Advito’s Total Collaboration Management and Traveler Engagement practices by applying unique ways for organizations to change travel demand and influence buying decisions. “We already operate on the leading edge of demand and behavior management, and have made significant investments to grow this area of the business,” says April Bridgeman, managing director, Advito, and senior vice president, BCD Travel. Consultants in this specialty help organizations change traveler behavior and win buy-in for the corporate travel program. “It’s no longer necessary for companies to use methods like travel bans to make significant cost impacts. After the ban is lifted, costs rise again. Instead, companies can use innovative techniques like Total Collaboration Management, apply budgets to beat and traveler incentives, or Traveler Engagement to fundamentally change the culture by changing why people travel. This will change the travel and expense outlay structurally and result in a more consistent approach to travel cost control. Most companies aren’t even using the current range of capabilities within their online booking tools to influence traveler buying decisions,” according to Bridgeman.
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