Comment gérez-vous les budgets et les approbations de voyage?

Recently, I created and rolled out a travel expense approval process for the team (those I don't support directly). I review the submissions weekly with my Exec. Once approved, I send the team member a form that gathers all necessary information for their air, hotel, etc., and book it for them based on the travel policy of the company. By streamlining the process, I'm able to log and track the expenses for the team more effectively and consistently.

A travel management company (TMC) can help manage all aspects of travel budgets and approvals for corporate travel from booking all the way through expensing and reimbursement! Your TMC can build your travel policy into the booking process and require an approval process when something is booked out of policy. There is a hard stop approval where the travel is not actually ticketed until approval occurs, or there is a soft approval process where the travel is booked and the approver has a timeframe they need to deny the travel by to void the travel arrangements without penalty. Companies like Adelman Travel and BCD Travel can help you figure out the best policy and approval process for your company and travelers.

As I deal with researchers who travel for fieldwork, I have to check if there are any threats in that particular location during the time of travel such as protests, potential strikes, natural hazards, diseases etc. I have to ensure that my team also have adequate medical coverage for the task they need to accomplish, eg search and rescue insurance and also any required vaccinations based on the condition of the location where they are conducting their fieldwork eg tetanus, typhoid, malaria, hepatitis A. We need the team to complete an Emergency Plan and Risk Assessment for these trips.

Managing budgets and travel approvals efficiently involves setting realistic budgets, implementing clear policies and approval procedures, using expense tracking systems, communicating transparently, and encouraging early bookings and cost-effective options. Regular reviews, training, assessing benefits versus costs, negotiating with suppliers, electronic request systems, and post-travel reports are essential practices. Keeping policies updated ensures compliance and resource optimization.

1. Review Your Company’s Travel Budget Policy 2. Find the Best Deals on Flights, Car Rentals, Accommodations, etc. 3. Look for Convenient Flight Times 4. Make Sure Flight Times Allow Plenty of Time for Your Business 5. Look at Trip Packages 6. Find Affordable, Convenient, Well-Placed Car Reservations 7. Finalize Travel Arrangements by Booking Well in Advance Book Your Accommodations 1. Book a Hotel That’s Geographically Close to Where You’ll Be Doing Business 2. Make Sure to Compare Rates 3. Make Sure to Book a Hotel That Offers the Proper Amenities 4. Only Book with Hotels or Motels That Offer Flexible Cancellation 5. Book Accommodations Well in Advance

I just paid the airline tickets and the executives brought back all the receipts from the trip. And I went over the receipts with them upon their return. Sorting through them I made sure the receipts were all of good purpose. If they were suspect, questions would pursue, to the executive. A case of him answering to me. It worked well.

Utilize travel software such as Concur, or TripActions to streamline travel bookings, manage expenses, and handle approvals. Use tools like Expensify or Zoho Expense for tracking and reporting travel expenses efficiently.

Efficiency: Corporate travel online booking tools allow employees to make reservations and manage travel plans quickly. Cost Savings: By comparing prices and options, these tools can help businesses find the most cost-effective travel arrangements, reducing expenses. Convenience: Booking tools provide employees with the convenience of booking flights, hotels, and transportation from one platform, Policy Compliance: Many booking tools integrate with a company’s travel policies, ensuring that bookings align with corporate guidelines and budgets. Real-Time Updates: Travelers receive real-time updates on their reservations, reducing the chances of missed flights or accommodation issues.

Travel management tools are helpful in making informed decision as regards prices, safety, preferences etc. it is good to equip or educate yourself with the different tools inorder to navigate and make the best travel decision for the executive

Utilizing a travel management tool can greatly simplify the process of managing travel budgets and approvals. These tools provide a centralized platform to search for and compare flights, hotels, and other travel options. They often include built-in approval workflows, allowing you to submit travel requests for review and obtain necessary approvals efficiently.

Effective travel management starts with understanding and aligning with your exec’s preferences. Clear updates, aligned with policy and budget, keep things smooth and stress-free. Communication really is the secret to seamless travel planning.

Not only communicating regularly with your executive but communicating regularly with the teams that are travelling really helps manage expectations versus budget for business travel. For example, it really helps if you can be invited to team meetings, particularly in sales and business development departments, where business travel is a key element of their role. Communicate what the budgets are, remind all of the policies and request to be made aware of any group travel that may see those budgets being breached ahead of time. You can then communicate that back to the executive or whoever sets the budget in the first place to see if they are realistic for the year.

When it comes to travel budgets the first thing that you want to get sorted is knowing the limit. Before you even think about booking get a clear picture of the spending limit for the trip. Secondly, track an analyze. Budgeting tools and spreadsheets can be your secret weapons here.

1. Communicate to create a successful experience • Clarity • Support • Time management • Personalization • Fun 2. Find a travel management tool to arrange travel and accommodation 3. Have a point person for itinerary changes in the eleventh hour 4. Help prepare your executive's cell phone 5. Always keep track of preferences • Frequent flyer programs in use • Transportations and seating preferences • In-flight meal preferences (especially any allergies) • Contact details of family members, friends, or spouse that they would like to have a copy of their itinerary 6. Simplify expense reporting 7. Prepare an in-depth travel itinerary for your boss 8. Take care of the "little extras"

It is crucial to let the executive in on the travel process, communicate with him/her to know their preferences and budget, after you search let them know what you have found, if it exceeds their budget, less than the budget, your recommendations and your proposed way forward.

Having an end-to-end process can help you provide your final users with a better experience, finding all they need in one single tool. Reporting comes along the way!

1. Integrate your travel policy into your booking too-To control real-live bookings, you should be able to integrate your business travel policy into your booking tool. This not only benefits the finance team but allows employees and travel managers to be better informed of what’s in budget. 2. Set up automatic approval workflows-It helps to define approval workflows so that travel managers can review and validate requests more efficiently. 3. Reclaim VAT on your business travel-Small and medium sized businesses lose millions each year from unclaimed VAT on their business trips.

Being able to handle changes and emergencies with ease is essential to managing travel approvals and budgets. Create a transparent, adaptable travel policy that specifies what to do in the event of unforeseen circumstances or changes to the itinerary. Establish a simplified approval procedure that enables prompt decision-making in an emergency. Real-time updates and modifications can, in my opinion, be facilitated by keeping lines of communication open and making use of travel management technologies. Create backup plans and give authorized staff the authority to act quickly when necessary.

A room for emergency adjustments is a must in any traveling plan and schedule. This is important because we don't know when are we required to make a quick change upon an immediate decision from the executive's office. That's why it is crucial to create an easy room and slot for potential emergency adjustments without disrupting the entire workflow.

Even if you plan carefully, unexpected events or emergencies may disrupt your executive travel arrangements. You should prepare contingency plans for different scenarios, such as flight delays or cancellations, lost luggage, medical issues, or security incidents.

Changes might occur abruptly and as an assistant, you should be armed to forsee and take action immediately, seeking alternatives and remedies to the current situation while informing the executive on the changes.

It is also important to keep everything, whether it is a contact person from the hotel and restaurant, a good or bad experience, and receipts, so you can provide feedback and experiences that the executive has. This is a primary step to make connections in case you require assistance from them in the future. If you have any questions or concerns, you will be able to communicate with them easily.

Always remember that whilst many execs might just want to do business, take time to consider their down time and build that into their itinerary. Let them explore and experience the country they have traveled to for business. It looks after them and their well-being but it also helps them understand the local culture more. Have a few options available for them to pick from if they want to. Your contacts in country are great for making recommendations and can help you plan these.

Being an EA it is important to be detail oriented. From my experience- Once we had an employee coming in to Mumbai from Bangalore and I was trying to book a nearby hotel so that he wouldn't waste time in traffic. The preferred hotel was declared sold out by our dedicated travel team and we were offered something that was charging 15k per night and 20-30 mins one way commute time. I called up the hotel directly and got the room @8k per night for that stay. Connecting with the hotel directly actually helped. Maybe the bucket of rooms for our company was exhausted and hence our travel team could not get it. Lesson- "come out of your comfort zone to be better, to get better."

Knowing your company's travel policy and procedure is fundamental as an Assistant. There are no two ways around it, learn it inside out. Why? So you can add value, and be able to provide insights into possible breaches of policy that could later down the line, turn into something more serious for your organisation, under compliance policies. Managing budgets and approvals for travel can only be mastered if you are privy to the information that allows you to effectively control both of these. You should ask to be present at meetings where budgets are discussed and set for travel and add your knowledge and ideas. Ask to be updated on future business development travel to be aware of travel. NETOWRK LEARN GROW