Stages of Travel
Management Excellence
Strategies for Advancing Your
Travel Programme
Presented by
Scott Gillespie, CEO
TRAVEL
ANALYTICS
INC
Today’s Agenda
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Credentials
The Stages of Excellence Framework
Application and Limitations
Elements and Criteria
Discussion
Scott Gillespie’s Background
• Founded Travel Analytics in 1999
– Developed TANGO™ and BRAVO™ for airline sourcing
projects
– Analyzed in excess of $10 Billion of annual air spend
– Recipient of ACTE’s Industry Professionalism and
Distinguished Fellow honors
– Named by Business Travel News as one of the travel
industry’s most influential executives
• A.T. Kearney’s expert in strategic sourcing of travel
suppliers from 1994 -1999
• MBA, University of Chicago
Past and Current Clients
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AXA
Capital One
Coca-Cola
Chevron
Compaq
DaimlerChrysler
Dell Computer
John Deere
Ernst & Young
ExxonMobil
Ford
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Hewlett-Packard
Hoffman LaRoche
Invensys
International Monetary Fund
Lockheed Martin
Microsoft
Lucent Technologies
Proctor & Gamble
Nortel Networks
PricewaterhouseCoopers
Saint Gobain
Stages of Excellence For
Travel Management
The Framework
How Many Good Travel
Programmes Are Out There?
50%?
25%?
20%?
5%?
Poor
Fair
Good
Great
How Do Travel Programs Evolve?
By taking a series of prioritized
and often difficult steps
Stage 2
Stage 1
No real travel
program; mostly
fighting
fires
Stage 3
Advanced travel
program;
good support
Basic travel
program;
limited support
Right…What are
those steps,
exactly?
Stage 4
World class
program;
Great support,
Excellent
results
The Answers Are Not Clear…But
The Method Is
• The travel/procurement team must agree on a
basic strategy and key goals
– What is realistically achievable?
– What does our company expect?
• Requires a rigorous assessment of current
program, practices, processes and stakeholders
• Managers must prioritize costs and benefits of
each potential improvement
Managers need a useful framework
Stages of Excellence Framework
Dimensions
Stage 1
Stage 2
Stage 3
Illustrative
Stage 4
Travel
manager
None or parttime
Full-time
Category
specialists
Functional
specialists
Travel
policies
None or ad
hoc
Written, low
to moderate
enforcement
Moderate to
strong
enforcement
Regular
business case
reviews
Occasional
bursts of
involvement
Predictable
support
Engaged and
supportive
Keep the
noise down
Operational
excellence
Support the
Business
Keep making
promises
Focus only on
price
Strategic
sourcing
Criteria
Vocal but
Senior
management uninvolved
Major goals
Respond to
problems
Procurement None or ad
hoc
strategy
Better
14 Major Dimensions
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•
•
•
•
•
•
Senior Management
Travel Strategy
Goals
Travel Policy
Feedback
Controls
Procurement
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Suppliers
Transient Management
Group Management
Data
Travelers
Demand Management
Travel Organization
Organized Into Four Quadrants
Roadmap
Senior Management
Travel Strategy
Goals
Steering Wheel
Travel Policy
Feedback
Controls
Engine
Procurement
Suppliers
Transient Management
Groups Management
Data
Drivers
Travelers
Demand Management
Travel Organization
Similar to a Balanced Scorecard
Three Levels of Analysis
Dimensions
Criteria
Senior Management
Travel Strategy
Goals
Elements
No
goals
Goals are
hard to
measure
Goals are
easy to
measure
Goals are
meaningful
and
aggressive
Traveler
Satisfaction
1
2
3
4
Agency
Operations
1
2
3
4
Stage 1
Better
Stage 4
Each Element and Dimension Is Scored
Stage 1
Criteria
Dimension
Goals
Stage 4
Elements
No
goals
Traveler
Satisfaction
1
Agency
Operations
1
Goals are
hard to
measure
2
2
Average Goal Score: 2.0
Goals are
easy to
measure
3
3
Goals are
meaningful
and
aggressive
4
Can score
2.5 or 3.3
etc.
4
Stages of Excellence For
Travel Management
Application and Limitations
Weak Points Can Be Addressed
Stage 1
Is this a priority?
Will it clearly
helpElements
us?
Goals
No
goals
Stage 4
Goals are Goals are
hard to
easy to
measure
What goals measure
Goals are
meaningful
and
aggressive
should we use?
Traveler
Satisfaction
Agency
Operations
1
1 are we
How
going to
measure them?
2
3
4
2
3
4
Scores Can Be Summarized
Roadmap
2.5
Engine
Procurement
2.0
Senior Management
1.8
Suppliers
1.6
Travel Strategy
3.4
Transient Management
1.2
Goals
1.0
Groups Management
2.7
Data Average: 2.3
Average: 1.6
Steering Wheel
2.4 Travel Policy
Drivers
2.6
Travelers
2.8
Feedback
1.4
Demand Management
3.1
Controls
3.6
Travel Organization
Average: 2.8
Average: 2.5
Priorities Can Be Set
Roadmap
4
3
2
1
Priority 2
Priority 1
4
3
2
1
Steering Wheel
4
3
2
1
Engine
Drivers
4
3
2
1
Entire Programs Can Be Compared
Stage 4
Stage 3
Stage 2
Stage 1
A
B
C
D
E
Company Codes
F
G
And More Importantly – Improved!
Goal
Today
Stage 4
Stage 3
Stage 2
Stage 1
A
B
C
D
Company Codes
E
F
G
How Is This Different From
Benchmarking?
• Most benchmarking statistics are descriptive
– “Our average ticket price is $375 vs. peer group’s
$344”
– “Our travel agency configuration is a single
reservation center; 63% of our peers use on-site
agencies”
• Descriptive statistics are not often prescriptive
– Should your average ticket price be lower?
– Should you use on-site agencies?
Stages of Excellence are
designed to be prescriptive
Limitations to Stages Of Excellence
• The Dimensions, Elements and Criteria were
developed by Travel Analytics
– There are many other possible views
• Requires honest self-assessment
• Scoring depends on assigned weights
• The path to improvement is not always obvious
– Must often ask “What do we need to do to improve
this score?” Stages of Excellence is a rigorous and
objective – but not perfect – diagnostic tool
Stages of Excellence for
Travel Management
Elements and Criteria
Roadmap
Senior Management (4)
Travel Strategy (6)
Goals (8)
Steering Wheel
Travel Policy
Feedback
Controls
( ) = Number of Elements
Engine
Procurement
Suppliers
Transient Management
Groups Management
Data
Drivers
Travelers
Demand Management
Travel Organization
Senior Management
Stage 1
Stage 2
Stage 3
Stage 4
Solid
understanding of
most key issues;
views Travel
strategically
SM1.
Understanding of
Travel
Management
Little or no
understanding of
the basic issues
Basic
understanding, but
struggles with
making decisions
Basic
understanding;
makes good
decisions
SM2. Ownership
of Travel
Management
Nobody owns
Travel
Ownership is not
very clear
Ownership is fairly Ownership is very
clear
clear
SM3. Support and
Enforcement
Little or no support
or enforcement
Support and
enforcement is
fairly weak and
inconsistent
Consistent but
moderate support
and enforcement
Strong and
consistent support
and enforcement
SM4. Utilization
of a Travel
Council
No Travel Council
Limited use; not
very effective
Moderate use;
fairly effective
Significant use;
very effective
Travel Strategy, part 1
Stage 1
Stage 2
Stage 3
Stage 4
TS1. Travel
viewed as a factor
for business
success
Not at all
Slightly
Moderately
Significantly
TS2. Travel
viewed as a factor
in employee
retention and
productivity
Not at all
Slightly
Moderately
Significantly
TS3. Travel
viewed as a
controllable cost
Not at all
Slightly
Moderately
Significantly
Travel Strategy, part 2
Stage 1
Stage 2
Stage 3
Stage 4
TS4. Success at
budgeting travel
costs
Little or none
Somewhat limited
Generally good
Excellent
TS5. Success at
tracking and
reporting travel
cost savings
Little or none
Somewhat limited
Generally good
Excellent
TS6. Success at
getting major
travel
management
initiatives
approved
Little or none
Somewhat limited
Generally good
Excellent
Goals, part 1
Stage 1
Stage 2
Stage 3
Stage 4
G1. Traveler
satisfaction
No goals
Exist, but hard to
measure
Fairly easy to
measure
Meaningful;
aggressive but
achievable
G2. Senior
management
satisfaction
No goals
Exist, but hard to
measure
Fairly easy to
measure
Meaningful;
aggressive but
achievable
G3. Policy
compliance
No goals
Exist, but hard to
measure
Fairly easy to
measure
Meaningful;
aggressive but
achievable
G4. Agency
performance
No goals
Exist, but hard to
measure
Fairly easy to
measure
Meaningful;
aggressive but
achievable
Goals, part 2
Stage 1
Stage 2
Stage 3
Stage 4
G5. Self-booking
adoption
No goals
Exist, but hard to
measure
Fairly easy to
measure
Meaningful;
aggressive but
achievable
G6. Contract
compliance
No goals
Exist, but hard to
measure
Fairly easy to
measure
Meaningful;
aggressive but
achievable
G7. Supplier
performance
No goals
Exist, but hard to
measure
Fairly easy to
measure
Meaningful;
aggressive but
achievable
G8. Financial
performance
No goals
Exist, but hard to
measure
Fairly easy to
measure
Meaningful;
aggressive but
achievable
Roadmap
Senior Management (4)
Travel Strategy (6)
Goals (8)
Steering Wheel
Travel Policy (3)
Feedback (8)
Controls (4)
( ) = Number of Elements
Engine
Procurement
Suppliers
Transient Management
Groups Management
Data
Drivers
Travelers
Demand Management
Travel Organization
Travel Policy
Stage 1
Stage 2
Stage 3
Stage 4
TP1. Quality of
travel to be
purchased
Little or no
guidelines
General guidelines
Fairly specific
Very specific
TP2. Processes to
be used for
purchasing travel
Little or no
guidelines
General guidelines
Fairly specific
Very specific
TP3. Typical
consequences of
not complying
with a key travel
policy
Little or no
consequences
Minor
consequences
Moderate
consequences
Strong
consequences
Feedback, part 1
Stage 1
Stage 2
Stage 3
Stage 4
F1. Traveler
satisfaction
Little or none
sought
Obtained
irregularly
Obtained
regularly
Clearly drives
future actions
F2. Senior
management
satisfaction
Little or none
sought
Obtained
irregularly
Obtained
regularly
Clearly drives
future actions
F3. Policy
compliance
Little or none
sought
Obtained
irregularly
Obtained
regularly
Clearly drives
future actions
F4. Agency
performance
Little or none
sought
Obtained
irregularly
Obtained
regularly
Clearly drives
future actions
Feedback, part 2
Stage 1
Stage 2
Stage 3
Stage 4
F5. Self-booking
adoption
Little or none
sought
Obtained
irregularly
Obtained
regularly
Clearly drives
future actions
F6. Contract
compliance
Little or none
sought
Obtained
irregularly
Obtained
regularly
Clearly drives
future actions
F7. Supplier
performance
Little or none
sought
Obtained
irregularly
Obtained
regularly
Clearly drives
future actions
F8. Financial
performance
Little or none
sought
Obtained
irregularly
Obtained
regularly
Clearly drives
future actions
Controls
Stage 1
Stage 2
Stage 3
Stage 4
C1. Exceptions to
travel policies
Easy to obtain; not
tracked or reported
Fairly easy to
obtain; tracked and
reported
Fairly hard to
obtain; tracked and
reported
Very hard to
obtain; reported to
senior management
C2. Supplier
preferencing at
point of sale
Little or none
Agents are
expected to sell
preferred suppliers
Preferred suppliers
identified
automatically at
Point of Sale
Preferred suppliers
automatically
prioritized based
on contract needs
C3. Ability to
move business
away from key
suppliers
Little or no ability
Fairly limited
ability
Moderate ability
Significant ability
C4. Ability to pass
travel costs onto
business units
Little or no ability
Fairly limited
ability
Moderate ability
Significant ability
Roadmap
Senior Management (4)
Travel Strategy (6)
Goals (8)
Steering Wheel
Travel Policy (3)
Feedback (8)
Controls (4)
( ) = Number of Elements
Engine
Procurement (7)
Suppliers (4)
Transient Management (5)
Groups Management (4)
Data (5)
Drivers
Travelers
Demand Management
Travel Organization
Procurement, part 1
Stage 1
Stage 2
Stage 3
Stage 4
P1. Tender or RFP
process
Very informal
Require proposals;
but have rolling
contracts
Formal sourcing
process
Strategic sourcing
process; directed
by senior
management
P2. Analysis of
pricing
Informal; back of
the envelope
Benchmarking of
key rates, city
pairs, etc.
Detailed
comparisons of
bids and current
contracts
Use sophisticated
cost/pricing models
P3. Analysis of
quality
No analysis
Limited analysis;
mostly rely upon
supplier’s
reputation
Fairly detailed
analysis of
RFP/tender
responses
Use of quality
scoring models and
traveler feedback
P4. Analysis of risk
(implementation,
contract
cancellation,
traveler
dissatisfaction
No real analysis
Limited analysis;
primarily based on
judgment
Fairly detailed
analysis combined
with judgment
Significant
analysis; tied
clearly to
procurement
decisions
Procurement, part 2
Stage 1
Stage 2
Stage 3
Stage 4
Significant
integration
P5. Travel’s
integration with
Procurement
No integration
Minimal
integration
Moderate
integration
P6. Basis for
awarding
contracts
Primarily based on
relationships
Primarily based on
price
Suppliers evaluated Decision rules
established prior to
on total cost,
receiving bids
quality and risk
P7. Legal
department’s
input
None
Minimal review of
contracts and bids
Moderate to
significant input,
but timeconsuming
Moderate to
significant input;
issues resolved
quickly
Suppliers
Stage 1
Stage 2
Stage 3
Stage 4
S1. Delivery of
expected level of
service
Very or mostly
dissatisfied
Fairly satisfied
Very satisfied
Delighted
S2. Resolution of
traveler
complaints and
other operational
issues
Very or mostly
dissatisfied
Fairly satisfied
Very satisfied
Delighted
S3. Quality of
people assigned to
your account
Very or mostly
dissatisfied
Fairly satisfied
Very satisfied
Delighted
S4. Current
pricing
Very or mostly
dissatisfied
Fairly satisfied
Very satisfied
Delighted
Transient Management
Stage 1
Stage 2
Stage 3
Stage 4
Some
consolidation;
mostly in major
countries
Counselors trained
to sell preferred
suppliers, but are
fairly passive
Mostly
consolidated at
country level
Mostly
consolidated at
regional level
TM1. Agency
consolidation
Very little
consolidation
TM2. Ability to
control the point
of sale
Little or none
TM3. Agency
service quality
Poor or very
inconsistent
Fairly satisfied
Very satisfied
Delighted
TM4. Agency
productivity
Not measured or
getting worse
Fairly stable
Some recent
improvements
Significant and
sustained
improvements
TM5. Agency as a
trusted advisor or
consultant
Not used in this
capacity
Use is limited
mostly to agency
operational issues
Provides practical
advice on a range
of issues
Trusted as an
objective and
proactive source of
excellent advice
Counselors actively Able to easily
control preferred
sell preferred
supplier market
suppliers
share
Group Management (GM)
Stage 1
Stage 2
Stage 3
Stage 4
GM1. Ability to
measure GM
spend
Unable; difficult
for even major
events
Very basic ability
for most large
events
Fairly easy for
most large events
Fairly easy for
most large and
medium events
GM2.
Communication
between internal
GM planners
Little or none
Fairly fragmented;
not well organized
Well organized
network; effective
communications
GM planners have
very strong
communication
network
GM3. Centralized
visibility of GM
events
Little or none
Limited to major
events
Fairly good for
most large and
medium events
Very good for most
events of all sizes
GM4. Processes
for planning,
sourcing and
managing GM
events
No or few
standardized
processes
Standardized
processes only for
large events
Standardized
processes for most
large and medium
events
Standardized
processes for most
all events; very
effective
Data / Information
Stage 1
Stage 2
Stage 3
Stage 4
Very easy and fast;
good data quality
D1. Ability to
consolidate
enterprise-wide
travel spending
Very difficult; poor
data quality
Fairly difficult;
data quality
questionable
Fairly easy; good
data quality
D2. Airline data
Very limited; long
delays
Basic reports;
moderate delays
Excellent reports
Good reports;
fairly timely; useful and analyses
D3. Hotel data
Mostly limited to
agency bookings;
40+% missing
Mostly limited to
agency bookings;
20-40% missing
Visibility of 80+%
room nights by
property
D4. Agency data
None or limited
Basic monthly or
quarterly reports
Informative reports Daily dashboard
reports on all key
available weekly
metrics
Fairly satisfied
Very satisfied
D5. Other
Very or fairly
information needed dissatisfied
for managing travel
Visibility of 90+%
room nights by
property
Delighted
Roadmap
Senior Management (4)
Travel Strategy (6)
Goals (8)
Steering Wheel
Travel Policy (3)
Feedback (8)
Controls (4)
( ) = Number of Elements
Engine
Procurement (7)
Suppliers (4)
Transient Management (5)
Groups Management (4)
Data (5)
Drivers
Travelers (4)
Demand Management (4)
Travel Organization (4)
Travelers
Stage 1
Stage 2
Stage 3
Stage 4
T1. Awareness of
travel policies and
preferred
suppliers
Little or no
awareness
Moderate
awareness
Good awareness
Strong awareness
T2. Compliance
with key travel
policies
Low; less than 65%
Moderate; between
65 and 80%
Good; between 80
and 95%
Strong; over 95%
T3. Input on
travel policies and
suppliers
Generally not
solicited
Limited input
sought
Moderate input
sought
Moderate or
significant input
sought; clearly
effective
T4. Opinion of
Travel
department
Low opinion
No opinion, or
somewhat mixed
Generally
favorable
Fairly high
opinion; clearly
respected
Demand Management
Stage 1
Stage 2
Stage 3
Stage 4
DM1. Ability to
eliminate
unnecessary trips
before they are
taken
Very difficult
Somewhat difficult
Fairly easy
Very easy
DM2. Guidelines
for evaluating the
need for a trip
None
Basic, such as use
good judgment
Fairly useful
guidelines
Specific criteria
suited to job
DM3. System for
evaluating a trip’s
value
None
Post-trip evaluation
or report
Pre-trip
authorization
Pre-trip
authorization and
post-trip evaluation
DM4. Promotion
of non-travel
alternatives
None; not in scope
Limited efforts
Moderate efforts
Significant efforts
or cooperation with
other departments
Travel Organization
Stage 1
Stage 2
Stage 3
Stage 4
TO1. Ability to
execute major
new policies,
projects and
initiatives
Very difficult
Somewhat difficult
Fairly easy
Very easy
TO2. Staffing
Staffed mostly by
fairly ineffective
people
Staffed mostly by
fairly effective
people
Staffed mostly by
effective people
Staffed mostly by
very effective
people
TO3. Recruiting
Fairly difficult to
recruit effective
people
Fairly easy to
recruit effective
people
Very easy to recruit Very easy to recruit
highly effective
effective people
people
TO4. Career
Advancement
Travel department
viewed as
unattractive
Limited
advancement
opportunities
Regular
advancement
opportunities
Travel department
viewed as a
desirable career
stepping stone
Where Do We Go From Here?
• Score your program
– Should generate deep discussions and frank
assessments
– Many companies will not like their scores
• Organize confidential comparisons
– Travel management companies or consultants can
lead these efforts
• Develop specific goals and priorities for your
program
• Measure results year to year
We Can Go From Here…
50%?
25%?
20%?
5%?
Poor
Fair
Good
Great
…To Here!
50%
25%
20%
5%
Stage1
Stage 2
Stage 3
Stage 4
Thank You!
For a copy of this presentation and
the accompanying scoring tool,
please visit our Free Tools page at
www.travelanalytics.com
Or send an e-mail to:
Scott.Gillespie@travelanalytics.com