The article encourages travel managers to proactively reshape their travel programs amid outdated policies, evolving expectations, and budget cuts. It proposes four key pillars: flexibility, sustainability, safety, and ROI.
SAP Concur announced it is re-platforming Concur Travel, rebuilding it from scratch with microservices technology to improve scalability, reliability, and flexibility. Over the past two years it added more than 200 engineers and product managers, one of the most significant development investments in its history. The roadmap includes a new car rental experience by end-2022, an end-to-end hotel booking experience in early 2023, a new air experience around GBTA Convention 2023, and additional rail carriers in Europe and the US. SAP Concur says it has the only truly integrated global T&E platform, serving 50,000+ customers with 700+ ecosystem partners.
A SAP Concur blog post notes that business travel has long faced challenges including logistics, expense compliance decisions, and expense report submission. It introduces how SAP Concur solutions use AI to simplify travel and expense experiences, citing a Forbes article showing how AI assistants help business travelers plan trips and offload financial decision-makers' busywork. Using fictional VP of Procurement Judy as an example, it shows AI can automatically develop itineraries, recommend hotels, provide built-in compliance policy queries, and AI-assisted auditing of 100% of expenses to speed up reimbursement.
At its Fusion Exchange event in Houston, SAP Concur shared a framework for assessing travel and expense policy from the traveler's perspective, covering airfare booking rules, airport experience, lodging booking, expense process, booking process, meals and entertainment, bleisure and culture, and communication, using scores to identify positive and negative traveler experiences.
SAP Concur experts note that although business travel has largely returned, budget cuts have reduced face-to-face meetings, requiring companies to maintain client relationships virtually in a hybrid work world. They recommend turning on cameras, reading body language and social cues, and adapting the pace of interaction to each client's state.
SAP Concur released a podcast where Marchelle Klippenstein, VP of the Value Experience Group at SAP Concur, and Katheryn Nolfo, Consulting Director at Huron Consulting Group, discussed how organizations can build resilient travel and expense programs to prepare for the next disruption. Key points include: organizations are shifting from measuring the ROI of travel to the Return on Travel (ROT), with a greater focus on employee safety and well-being. Additionally, car rental costs have increased due to rental companies reducing their fleets during the pandemic, leading to higher demand and lower supply. Companies are also re-emphasizing pre-approval processes and managing home office expendi…
A SAP Concur blog post discusses business travel readiness in the post-pandemic era. As COVID-19 restrictions ease, travel managers are swiftly adjusting policies, with 40% now requiring pre-trip approvals. Pre-approvals are not only for cost control but also crucial for duty of care. Companies need to define essential and permissible travel and understand each country's travel rules, testing, and quarantine requirements. Data tracking and TMC collaboration are vital for traveler safety. The article also mentions tools from partners like Deloitte and free resources like Travel Vitals and TripIt Travel Resource Center.
A SAP Concur podcast features Kara Bernard, Managing Director of the Lyndon Group, discussing how organizations can optimize spend management systems for post-pandemic global business needs. Topics include ERP migrations, M&A, system configuration for global expansion, policy development, change management, and using data to optimize spend. The Lyndon Group received the SAP Concur Partner Growth Award for implementing 27 certified projects in 2020.
A SAP Concur blog post notes that even smaller companies cannot ignore travel management. Post-pandemic pent-up demand is significant: a traveler survey shows 95% of travelers at companies with fewer than 1,000 employees are willing to travel again, and 63% are very willing. Traveler attitudes have changed: safety is a top concern, they want the freedom to plan trips flexibly, and over two-thirds want their company to loosen restrictions to allow for flexibility-oriented policies. Additionally, 60% of business travelers expect to make changes that improve travel sustainability and expect their organization to follow suit.
An SAP Concur blog post notes that COVID-19 has caused unprecedented disruption to the travel and hospitality industries: eight in 10 hotel rooms are empty, and 2020 is projected to be the worst year on record for hotel occupancy; ARC reported that airline ticket sales for the week ending April 5, 2020 fell 95.7% year-over-year. The article advises travel managers to take action to stabilize T&E programs, including adjusting T&E programs to support the changing business environment, ensuring reporting transparency, breaking down silos, preparing for the next disruption, and building stronger internal and external partnerships.
SAP Concur launched a revamped TMC Partner Program, replacing the Preferred Partner Program, with three levels: TMC Partner, TMC Select, and TMC Elite. The program is not pay-to-play; TMCs earn levels based on the value they offer customers. TMC Elite partners have adopted the full suite of SAP Concur travel solutions (including TripLink) and use Concur Expense in their own business, enabling increased visibility and control of all T&E spend, compliance across reservations, and improved traveler safety.
A SAP Concur blog post notes that UK SMBs make up more than 99% of private sector businesses and employ more than 60% of private sector workers, yet the business travel industry has been geared toward large enterprises. It discusses SMB travel challenges such as flexibility needs, lack of dedicated travel managers and overlooked domestic trips, and describes responses including Triplink and a Booking.com partnership.
The president of SAP Concur reflects on 2017, noting key industry trends: duty of care became a priority for customers; digital transformation accelerated, such as e-Fapiao in China and e-Bunsho in Japan; the end-user became a key stakeholder; global solutions need to be local; and businesses became more accepting of spend outside preferred channels, managed via TripLink and the NDC standard.
SAP Concur highlights its App Center partner VisaHQ, which integrates with Concur Travel to help business travelers obtain visas and passports. VisaHQ's automation reduces errors and delays, with over 99.91% of applications approved on initial submission. It has assisted more than 500,000 business travelers across 112 countries.
SAP Concur blog notes that travel managers are spending 60% more time on data analysis, technology evaluation, and traveler safety. However, a 2018 GBTA Foundation survey shows 80% of travel programs don't use technology to capture outside bookings, and 86% don't use tools for suppliers to send reservations directly to TMCs. Automated connected travel solutions can help simplify processes.
SAP Concur blog outlines four best practices for higher education institutions returning to travel: 1) Create a cross-campus travel working group including risk management, finance, and academic stakeholders; 2) Consider mandating TMC use for itinerary transparency, supplier discounts, and compliance visibility; 3) Develop new travel approval guidelines including pre-trip approval and COVID-19 risk considerations; 4) Improve back-office efficiency using Concur Invoice to automate invoice processing and eliminate data silos.
TCG Consulting announced an expanded partnership with SAP Concur in 2019 and beyond. Members of its leadership and delivery teams have received Certified Implementation Partner (CIP) accreditation and will complete Certified Consulting Partner (CCP) accreditation before the end of 2019. TCG uses its patented TCO-TMPE® approach to help clients optimize travel, meetings, payment, and expense programs.
An SAP Concur blog post announces that the U.S. Department of Defense awarded SAP Concur a prototype project agreement to modernize its Defense Travel System (DTS). The U.S. Department of Defense spends nine billion dollars annually on travel. Under the agreement, SAP Concur will deliver an end-to-end travel-as-a-service capability to improve the travel management experience, reduce costs, scale, meet efficiency objectives, and transform satisfaction and usability for government employees.
SAP Concur blog notes that SMBs waste millions annually on travel and expenses due to hidden spend, inconsistent booking processes, and manual expense reports. Adopting managed travel solutions that are integrated, ecosystem-based, secure, and workflow-automated can save an average of 122 hours per week and $40,000 per year.
SAP Concur's TripIt Pro has added a Neighborhood Safety Scores feature, providing business travelers with destination safety information. The feature covers 65,000 cities and neighborhoods worldwide, with scores ranging from 1 to 100, representing low to high risk. Scores cover overall safety plus six specific categories: physical harm, women's safety, LGBTQ safety, theft, political freedoms, and health and medical. Scores also change based on time of day. Travelers need the TripIt app to access the feature. Available through Concur TripLink, it aims to help companies enhance duty of care responsibilities.
The SAP Concur blog published a London travel guide for attendees of events such as SAP Concur Fusion, covering five major airports (Heathrow, Gatwick, Stansted, London City, Luton), express trains and taxi costs, business hotel options, Tube and taxi transport, plus dining and sightseeing suggestions.
Former SAP Concur President Jim Lucier summarizes the inaugural Travel Industry Summit, which drew more than 2,000 attendees. Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian described measures including electrostatic wiping of every surface before each flight, keeping middle seats empty through at least the end of the year, requiring masks for customers and employees, and HEPA filters. Marriott International CEO Arne Sorenson stressed the need to earn the confidence of workers and travelers. Travel managers discussed using the pandemic pause to improve programs, and Salesforce's Dorian Stonie said OBTs infused with more AI and travel management companies 'are going to be more important than ever.'
An SAP Concur blog post discusses how travel managers can leverage business intelligence (BI) to keep up with technological change. It highlights SAP Concur's partnership with TMC partner Travel Incorporated, developing automated solutions on the Compleat platform, such as Seat Finder, automated schedule change processing, and Traveler Self-Service, to improve efficiency and data transparency. Travel Inc. also shares its practices of using real-time data and predictive BI to enhance traveler tracking and duty of care.
SAP Concur's Concur Travel offers a single interface for booking flights, hotels, cars, and trains, integrated with expense management to ensure policy compliance. Features include color-coded policy indicators, e-receipts, mobile app, TripLink, TripIt Pro, and analytics, providing spend visibility and control for businesses.
The COVID-19 pandemic has severely impacted global business travel, forcing TMCs to rethink pricing models, such as shifting from transaction fees to management fees. Travel costs are expected to rise due to supplier consolidation and health safety costs passed to consumers. Expense transparency becomes crucial, and travel budgets may be reduced.
An SAP Concur blog post introduces how its customer community helps Travel, Expense, and Invoice (TE&I) professionals advance their careers. With over 80,000 members, the community offers various engagement opportunities such as online forums, user groups, leadership councils, and the annual Fusion conference, aiming to foster knowledge sharing, networking, and career growth.
A SAP Concur blog post argues that employee travel safety should extend to rideshare and other ground transportation. It cites a global survey: 77% of female travelers experienced harassment or mistreatment, 85% of LGBTQ+ travelers changed travel arrangements due to safety concerns, 54% of travelers say safety is not a top priority in their company's formal travel policy, and 67% say their company lacks technologies that make travel easier. The post recommends consolidating corporate card data with itinerary details, tracking employee locations, providing neighborhood safety information, and encouraging trip sharing when using rideshare.
A SAP Concur podcast features Jorge Monge, T&E lead at Smith & Nephew, discussing the company's implementation of a Global Business Services (GBS) program across more than 40 countries using SAP Concur solutions to centralize and standardize processes. 80% of Smith & Nephew's volume comes from the U.S., and the GBS center is in Costa Rica. Monge emphasizes cultural factors and compliance challenges, requiring partnerships with the chief compliance officer, legal, and audit. The company deployed Concur Detect AI auditing tool, identifying anomalies no human could. The project returned over 20K productivity hours, benefiting over 9,000 employees globally, and won the GBS Giants Award in all c…
A SAP Concur blog post cites Wakefield Research data: 32% of business travelers are excited about the return to travel, and 92% expect negative business consequences if they can't travel. The article outlines seven steps for traveling in the new normal: plan for continuous change, stay informed to stay agile, set up pre-trip approvals, help travelers make smarter and safer choices, build safety into pre-trip planning, help employees stay safe while traveling, and proactively manage the post-travel experience. It also cites data: 96% of business travelers think safety measures need to be in place before they travel again, and 18% say they'll look for another job if adjustments aren't made.
A SAP Concur blog post announces that Concur has been named the 'Most Admired Travel Technology Company' in the business travel industry by The Beat's Readers' Choice Awards for the sixth year in a row and eighth time in ten years. The post also highlights Concur's innovations in AI and bots, traveler safety, such as the Concur bot for Slack, Concur Expense for Outlook add-in, and Concur Locate and Active Monitoring travel risk management solution.
A SAP Concur blog post notes that according to a J.P. Morgan study, company travel and expense (T&E) is the second largest expense behind payroll. Travel management companies (TMCs) can help companies optimize travel programs through service, savings, and visibility, including 24/7 support, policy enforcement, unused ticket management, and comprehensive reporting tools.
SAP Concur announced the expansion of its duty of care partner network in the App Center, adding Healix International, International SOS, Terra Dotta, and WorldAware. Concurrently, Concur Locate and Active Monitoring will be retired effective September 1, 2021. SAP Concur will provide consolidated travel data via its Itinerary API to help organizations fulfill duty of care commitments.
A SAP Concur blog post discusses finance leaders' concerns about travel management. Citing a 2019 online survey of 50 CFOs conducted by BTN Group Content Solutions and sponsored by SAP Concur, it reports: traveler safety and well-being was the top concern for the largest share of respondents (44%), including 54% of CEOs and COOs; traveler satisfaction was also a top concern for CEOs/COOs (39%), HR leaders (33%), procurement executives (26%), and finance leaders (24%); controlling costs to align with budgets was a top concern for finance executives (44%), HR leaders (49%), and procurement executives (50%); and 34% of finance executives cited travel policy compliance as a high-priority concer…
A SAP Concur blog post reviews its annual event, SAP Concur Fusion 2019, where more than 3,200 customers, partners, and employees gathered in San Diego for four days of networking, learning sessions, and micro-forums. It highlights Innovation Award winners: Alteryx eliminated manual processes and applied analytics to travel and expenses; Discovery used Concur Expense and TripLink to connect travel and expense and integrated Uber and Airbnb to let employees book directly with suppliers while staying in policy; and George Washington University moved from a paper-based system to Concur Expense for improved controls and traceability, and uses Concur Locate to protect student safety. The article…
A SAP Concur blog post describes Concur Labs joining Fusion Exchange Tokyo to showcase emerging technologies including virtual reality and machine learning. The event had roughly 2,000 attendees and 40 partners. It says Japan is one of Concur's fastest-growing markets. Concur Labs explores the future of travel and expense, with latest initiatives involving connected cars, conversational and voice-based interfaces, IoT integrations, machine learning, and virtual reality. It mentions a proof of concept called Project ARC created with the Concur Mobile team to improve mobile app usability for people with visual impairment, and announced Concur for Slack now supports Japanese. Concur Labs and C…
A SAP Concur blog post shares the experience of creating two online video advertisements during the COVID-19 pandemic. To adhere to health guidelines, the team hired a real family to minimize contact. The production team used digital communication tools like Zoom to collaborate across continents, and director Dave Laden enabled virtual collaboration during the eight-hour shoot. The article aims to show how SAP Concur solutions simplify the remote work environment and share experiences overcoming pandemic challenges.
SAP Concur published an article discussing the growth trend of supplier-direct bookings (SDBs) in the post-COVID world. It notes that pre-pandemic, SDBs were growing due to travel personalization, with suppliers offering 'book direct low-price guarantees' and applying extra fees for not booking directly. Post-pandemic, travelers prioritize flexibility and health safety, and SDBs are expected to continue increasing. The article emphasizes that transparency equals compliance, and SAP Concur solutions like Concur TripLink provide end-to-end transparency to help travel managers manage SDBs and improve travel program compliance.
SAP Concur held the Spike Global Hackathon finals on January 30, 2018, where 12 teams from around the world out of over 100 competed. Projects ranged from visualization tools using machine learning to predict expense and travel trends, to bot assistants that speed up expense processes. To date, internal hackathons at SAP Concur have generated over 200 hacks, some of which have been integrated into internal toolchains and customer products. Team Constructors won with an event-based batch job approach, achieving 50% less instance utilization.
SAP Concur published an article noting that small and midsize businesses, despite limited budgets, can achieve travel management through appropriate technology. It describes a seven-step process: employees book freely, the system captures itinerary details, data flows into the system, expense reports auto-populate with categorized charges, employees avoid receipts and reports, and businesses gain spend visibility and employee location information. The article emphasizes savings in work hours, reduced paperwork, and lower hard costs.
A SAP Concur blog post announces the 2019 Partner Growth and Innovation Awards, recognizing four partners who leverage digital innovation to help customers run at their best, plus thirteen Distinguished Partner Awards. Winners include CWT, which used its RoomIt division to build a solution integrating with Concur Travel to expand lodging choices; Delta Air Lines, which launched its TripLink solution in January 2019 serving over 500,000 travelers, recognizing corporate travelers and giving them their corporate discount; Deloitte Consulting as a longtime implementation partner; and WIPFLi as an App Center partner adding an average of 200+ new SAP Concur customers annually.