Businesses must brace themselves for a new breed of business travellers that favour new experiences over traditional workplace benefits.
New research commissioned by Booking.com for Business, the global leader in connecting business travellers with the widest choice of places to stay reveals that a staggering 30 percent of business travellers would accept a lower paying job, if it meant they could travel more for work.
The research further reveals that company bosses are potentially under-valuing business travel, as a staff remuneration ‘bargaining chip’ as well as a workforce motivation and retention tool.
These findings reflect a broader trend identified by Booking.com for Business which reveals that employees are increasingly smudging the line between business and leisure. Data shows that nearly half of business travellers (49 percent) have extended their business trip to a different city or country in the past 12 months, with nearly one third of this group (27 percent) claiming they intend to do the same in 2017.
It’s a trend that is predicted to continue in the coming year with 46 percent of those surveyed believing that they will travel more for business in 2017 than they did in 2016.
Ripsy Bandourian, Director of Product Development, Booking.com for Business comments: “No longer seen as lost time or a career inconvenience, business travel is increasingly seen as an opportunity to expand horizons, find inspiration and progress in a career. Today’s laptop and latte breed of employee is increasingly mobile and fluid with their travel plans, looking to strike a balance between business and leisure travel – bleisure.”
As such, they expect employers to keep pace with their need for greater fluidity and flexibility and are even prepared to negotiate on salary to do so.
This is why we are focused on providing a diverse range of accommodation choices for business travellers, while ensuring they can find, manage and enjoy company stays in the simplest, smartest and most rewarding way.
To help guide companies through the changing preferences of business travellers, we have identified a series of trends and packaged together some helpful tips for a workforce increasingly on the move.
Off The Beaten Track
Whilst cities like London, Paris and Frankfurt remain business travel hotspots, Booking.com for Business has also identified the top-10 fastest-growing cities for business travellers. Amongst the fastest-growing cites for business travellers (based on booking growth over the past 12 months), are Prague, Budapest and Guangzhou.
With 55 percent people saying they enjoy travelling for business, these more hidden gem destinations are encouraging this new breed of business travellers to tag on extra days to their trips to explore and make the most of their time away from the office.
See: 5 Things Every Business Traveller Should Know
Top 10 Fastest-Growing Business Travel Destinations
| 1 | Shanghai |
| 2 | Tokyo |
| 3 | Bangkok |
| 4 | Guangzhou |
| 5 | New York |
| 6 | Budapest |
| 7 | Singapore |
| 8 | Hong Kong |
| 9 | Prague |
| 10 | Amsterdam |
Frustrated By Dead Time
Dead time is a huge inconvenience for the modern business traveller. The research reveals that 62 percent of people are keen to do as many activities as possible when visiting a new location, so minimising transit time and maximising the sights and sounds of new cities is very important.
To help business travellers achieve this, we have created a map to be used as an indispensable guide outlining the average time it takes to get from aircraft to city centre accommodation at the top-20 business destinations around the world.
This new breed of business traveller is far more likely to book a trip or change their travel plans at the last minute.
Research from Booking.com for Business reveals that of those who stated they travel for business, nearly a quarter (23 percent) book their travel within a week before their trip for domestic locations, with one quarter of respondents (24 percent) booking their international business trip four weeks or less before departure.
“It’s clear that a one size fits all approach to business travel is no longer sufficient with this new breed of employee. Whether it’s exploring new destinations, using technology or apps to make their employees’ experience more seamless or trying out different places to stay such as villas or home stays, companies should build this flexibility into corporate travel policies or give staff the freedom to plan, book and manage their own itineraries. It can reap massive rewards in terms of staff satisfaction levels and make companies far more attractive to outside talent,” added Bandourian.
Also read: Travel Guidelines to Ensure Safety of the Business Travellers
