Business Class Is Cheaper Than Economy: Whole-Of-Journey Travel Risk Management

 Nearly all travel departments/managers are merely empowered, authorized or effective at taking a look at travel management from a price perspective exclusively. However, to seriously make certain that the procedure of travel is efficient, profitable and safe; a much wider focus is required-predominantly in the areas of cost, productivity and safety. When such a wider and more comprehensive perspective is engaged, most organizations will realize that business class flights are in fact much cheaper than economy class for many their executives and traveling talent.

Consider a short-haul flight of under four hours. For an executive this will typically translate to an eight-hour working day. If traveling in economy class they'll typically have to be at the airport nearly 2 hours before departure. Despite having privileged frequent-flier status they should be checked in much prior to when their business class counterparts. Without such privileges, enough time required maybe even longer as check-in queues and airline efficiency lengthen and decline respectively. The immigration processing will potentially be lengthened also as numerous airlines now have preferential immigration processing of business travelers. The traveller in economy will now be left to fend for themselves in people seating/WiFi/meals environment of economy class travel. Boarding time is going to be lengthened and carry-on luggage is going to be reduced which again will have put into the entire pre-departure time. Regardless of the physical size of the traveller, their work laptop, the airline or the seating space; very few people get anything near productive work conducted whilst in economy. And undoubtedly, when corners have been cut, everyone within proximity of a small business laptop user can often see the whole content and context of business presentations, e-mails, discussions and intellectual property. The arrival stage will also entail longer immigration processing times, time lost awaiting baggage and jostling within the bulk of the flights travelers. If after all of this, on a short-haul flight you expect the traveller to bring their A casino game or deliver pivotal business results, you need to prepare for disappointment now.

Conversely, a trip that's been considered in a whole of risk manner will play out significantly different. First, the traveller will have enough time and flight best suitable for the task productivity objectives and reduced commute, check-in and processing times. Utilization of the business enterprise lounge will ensure productivity and access to information and systems prior before departure. Overall fatigue and affect on the patient may also be reduced. Whilst not entirely risk free, the threat to personal belongings, company information or other valuables may also be reduced. Productivity (best calculated by adding the hourly cost to the organization for the executive and the hourly revenue potential of the trip or executive) may also be enhanced by a compact yet usable mobile workspace. Even if the patient is not conducting work on some type of computer platform, the demands to the patient may also be diminished. It is also almost ensured that the executive will hit the ground running and clear the aircraft, immigrations and baggage claim considerably faster, leaving only the commute from the airport to the area of business. This streamlining and efficiency is also replicable for multiple travelers or trips.

When analyzing most of these factors (even in a developed country) the hundreds as well as tens of thousands of dollars between economy class and business class travel is usually much cheaper compared to thousands or thousands of dollars of business productivity, time and dollars at flight risk matrix. However, the functional heads responsible for cost, productivity and safety are typically measured and evaluated on cost containment as opposed to profitability or maximized earnings of these senior executives. All of these elements are significantly amplified in developed or developing countries. When the whole journey is constructed along whole-of-journey travel risk management lines thousands as well as an incredible number of dollars in opportune business can be preserved while appropriate expenditure managed. Reduction or elimination of disruption and wastage can be easily achieved. As it pertains to whole-of-journey travel risk management most companies are penny wise and pound foolish.

There's nothing more comical and economically tragic than the usual senior executive or CEO traveling on a budget airline. While sitting in cheap seats being nonproductive and paying five dollars for peanuts or drinks they are losing tens of thousands of dollars as well as millions in productivity or earnings for the sake of a few bucks. In the wake of the financial crisis, some very savvy financial institutions openly conveyed they dare not reduce the privilege, risk or status of these major wealth generation executives for fear of losing them to more competitive or sophisticated banks or financial institutions. Why should this be any different in the face of several other threats to talent and revenue?

The empirical data and proof enhanced productivity and efficient travel risk management exists at contained in every company. The sole limitation is that few are rewarded or supported in harvesting, processing and analysis of such data. If companies and their respective leadership took the time to stop and analyze such processes as well as historical culture within the corporation, they'd find that simple and efficient adaptation of such processes like the utilization of business class travel versus economy class travel may potentially unlock tens of thousands of hours of productivity and greater business competitiveness. This is certainly the case in developed markets and now more acute in developing markets where there's an accumulation of much greater threat, costs, threat disruptions and safety issues.