Amadeus/ACTE Study Finds Companies Can Save Up to 45% of Travel Spend Through Implementation of Global Travel Programmes

Madrid, Spain, 23 October 2006: Global travel management programmes are helping companies to save up to 45% on their overall travel spend. This is according to new research commissioned by Amadeus, a global leader in technology and distribution solutions for the travel and tourism industry, and the Association of Corporate Travel Executives (ACTE) on global travel programmes .

The research, which was conducted amongst 240 corporate travel managers from around the world, looked at the impact globalisation is having on corporate travel programmes. Whilst the results highlighted that global travel management programmes are still evolving, a third (33%) of the organisations surveyed already have a global policy in place with an almost equal number (39%) implementing a global travel policy with regional variations. Even in companies that had not yet implemented a global travel management policy, 57% of travel managers indicated that their travel policies were consistent across all regions and moderately strong.

Amongst the companies that have implemented global travel management programmes, 41% have achieved savings of between 16-30%. A further 11% of companies gained savings of between 31-45%, with another 4% of companies achieved savings of even more than 45%.

Commenting on the findings, Marcos Isaac, Director of Corporate & Distribution Channels, for Amadeus e-Travel, said “The ability to reduce costs was cited by 84% of corporate travel managers as one of the key benefits to come from their global travel management programme. When broken down by region, average savings rates were even higher for companies based in Asia-Pacific and parts of Europe. This perhaps reflects the fact that travel programmes in these markets are at an earlier stage of maturity than those in the US and Western Europe and therefore there were greater opportunities to realise significant savings when the travel programme was consolidated at a global level.”

In order to achieve savings through their global travel programme, the research highlighted that companies are focusing on automating processes, using technology to improve efficiency (82%) and making the most of the increased negotiating power (86%) that consolidating their travel spend offers. However, whilst many companies aspire to further automate key processes, many are still struggling to achieve this with 85% of respondents citing the integration of technology as the key challenge to implementing a global travel management programme.

The struggle to find solutions that are suitable for use across multiple markets was reflected in the finding that currently only 18% of respondents are using a single expense management system in all regions. A further 10% had one in some regions and 28% weren’t using one at all.

However, the integration of self-booking solutions as part of a global travel management programme has been more successful, with the majority of companies (68%) already using one. Interestingly, the higher the travel expenditure within an organisation the more likely companies were to be implementing these tools with 96% of companies with a travel expenditure of over $100 million already using a self-booking solution.

Isaac continued “The ability to implement automated processes, such as online booking, e-ticketing and web-based expense reporting are helping companies create consistency across their travel programmes as well as reducing transaction costs, cut down on errors, streamline staff and help compliance. As the business travel market continues to grow, the pressure on businesses to reduce their operating costs across all areas will continue to be strong .”

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Notes to the editors

The full report relating to this research can be found online at: www.amadeus.com/globaltravel

The research defines a global travel programme as one that brings together multiple countries and creates a consistent structure or vision that allows the corporate travel manager to source suppliers and gather the data to manage compliance.

The research was conducted in the third quarter of 2006 amongst 240 corporate travel managers. Geographically, 61% of respondents were based in the US, 24% in Europe, 6% in Canada, 5% in Asia Pacific and 3% in South Africa.

Amadeus disclaims any liability in connection with any inaccuracies in the data provided by ACTE hereunder.

Amadeus is a chosen technology partner for providers, sellers, and buyers of travel. The company provides distribution, IT and point-of-sale solutions to help its customers adapt, grow and succeed in the fast changing travel industry. Customer groups include travel providers (airlines, hotels, car rental companies, railway companies, ferry lines, cruise lines, insurance companies and tour operators), travel sellers (travel agencies) and travel buyers (corporations and travellers). Solutions are grouped in four solution categories – Distribution & Content, Sales & e-Commerce, Business Management and Services & Consultancy.

Solutions for corporations

In e-commerce, Amadeus is a global leader in online travel technology and corporate travel management solutions. It services travel agencies in 90 countries, and powers the websites of over 1,000 corporations and more than 70 airlines and hotels. Amadeus e-Travel Management is an online travel booking solution to help corporations manage their travel policy more efficiently. Both Amadeus and its partners enable corporations to integrate all the elements of their global travel programmes, into one easy-to-use and easy-to-administrate solution. Customers include Altria, Cemex, Daimler Chrysler, Ericsson, Huntsman, Nestlé, Total, Thales and Siemens.

The company is owned by WAM Acquisition, whose shareholders are BC Partners, Cinven, Air France, Iberia and Lufthansa. Amadeus employs nearly 6,700 employees worldwide, representing 95 nationalities.