|
Security and Risk Management in Travel
The world today is a volatile place. Whether it’s a natural disaster, an instance of political unrest, terrorism, or a flight disruption, there’s never a shortage of drama on the global stage.
These occurrences are not just reserved for our television screens and newspapers. They impact the lives of business travellers each day, around the clock, and around the world. So in this complex and turbulent world, companies want the peace of mind that their travellers are safe. They want to manage the risks their travellers face, and need to be able to locate and assist their employees when an interruption or crisis occurs.
But with a huge number of travellers across the globe at any given time, how can companies manage this risk? To put it simply – they require a best-in-class travel management company, who will give them this peace of mind.
Travel management companies (TMCs) should have a relationship with a third party risk management specialist partner - someone who is proactive prior to travel, responsive with advice during travel, and reactive to emergencies, should they occur. In collaboration with these partners, TMCs can provide companies with practical advice and real-time information, on both potential and current risks. Customers can take proactive steps, to maximise safety and minimise impact.
Instead of security and risk management in business travel being only reactive, mainly focused on removing individuals from a situation, companies have recently taken a much more holistic approach. Security and risk management organisations now focus on helping companies create business plans that restrict travel to unsafe destinations, as well as predict, prepare for and rapidly respond to internal or external events, with minimal disruption to key business drivers.
In today’s environment, knowledge is king. So TMCs will work with their strategic partners to provide organisations with detailed information and advice. This may include monitoring government warnings, advising of locations to avoid, safety advice for travellers, strict travel guidelines, management policies with insurance, medical and security procedures, and so on. These services also allow companies to streamline their assistance to travellers; empowering them to meet their duty of care obligations. When an organisation is able to prove that they have done everything in their power to keep a traveller safe, they also eliminate a range of legal obligations.
Of course, there will always be false alarms. As an example, several years ago, a large organisation planned a conference in Peru, with over 100 individuals due to attend. One week prior to the event, there was a great deal of civil unrest, causing the President to flee the country. After receiving information from their TMC’s risk management partner, the company cancelled their conference and lost 100% of their conference costs; favouring the safety of their attendees. One week later, nothing happened in Peru. However, the organisation had to take ownership of their decision, live with the consequences, and know that they had made the right judgement for the safety of their travellers.
By proactively assessing business travel conditions in a particular location, companies are able to mitigate the risk of an emergency, and provide the foundation for an effective and timely response in the case of an interruption.
At the end of the day, the safety of a traveller falls in the hands of the employer. But by working with a TMC, that employer can rest assured that their travellers are in good hands. And we all know that a little peace of mind goes a very long way.
By Graeme Bracey – Director of Sales Australia, American Express Business Travel
|
