Business travel is essential for many businesses but can also be challenging. It can be expensive, time-consuming, and even pose security risks, among other concerns. However, business travel also has plenty of upsides: It’s an excellent opportunity to get a team out of the office, give team members exposure to new cultures and experiences, and encourage collaboration and innovation by forcing colleagues to solve problems with new constraints. Since business travel is inevitable in most businesses, employers must understand what they need to know before sending employees on such trips. Here are some helpful tips on what employers should know about sending employees on business travel.
Research the Destination
When sending employees on a business trip, it’s critical to do some upfront research on the destination — its culture, the health and safety risks, local laws that might impact your team members, and the best ways to navigate the city. If your team members are abroad, ensure they are familiar with the State Department’s travel advisories. This upfront research will help you develop a better itinerary. It can also help you identify any potential cultural landmines before they happen. An ideal business trip will allow your team members to feel like they know the city well enough to navigate it independently. If the itinerary is too packed, there may not be enough time to explore and truly understand the city.
Create a Travel Checklist
A travel checklist is a critical tool for business travel. It can help you anticipate any potential challenges that might arise on the trip in advance, giving you plenty of time to resolve any issues. If your team members are flying, it would be a good idea to get them the correct
travel document number/TSA PreCheck/TSA Pre/Global Entry IDs — these IDs can help speed up the security lines making the experience a lot less stressful for employees. Consider creating a travel app for your team members to ensure they don’t forget anything on the trip and know their itinerary. Your team members must learn early on exactly what they will be doing on the journey so they can buy any necessary equipment or supplies.
Provide Safety Information
Ensure that your team members and their spouses or partners have all the safety information they need before traveling. You should provide information on local laws, tips for avoiding dangerous situations, and instructions for what to do in the event of medical or safety issues. If your team members travel abroad, they should also be aware of U.S. State Department travel advisories. Suppose your team members are traveling to Mexico, for example. In that case, they should be mindful of the State Department’s travel warnings and tips, including avoiding travel to certain areas and checking its website for alerts and updates.
Set Transparency Expectations
It’s essential to set transparency expectations for your team members. Make sure they know you don’t expect them to share every detail of their lives on social media when they are on a business trip. In fact, you might encourage them to keep their social media posts light and impersonal while they are out of the office. It’s also a good idea to set expectations for the types of photos and posts your team members are allowed to post while on the trip. For example, if a public event is planned, such as a keynote speech at a convention, and you want to keep that event confidential, make sure your team members know not to post about it on social media.
Offer Travel Companions and Stipend Options
If your team members are traveling to a dangerous area, you may want to offer them the option of bringing a travel companion, such as a spouse or partner, or security detail. Some companies may even want to foot the bill for security detail, depending on the situation. It may also be appropriate to offer a stipend to help your team members cover the cost of travel. For example, if your team members are flying economy and they have to spend extra money on food allergy-friendly snacks and gluten-free meals, a travel stipend can help to offset those costs.
Conclusion
Business travel can be a great way to stimulate employee creativity, break down silos within organizations, and strengthen bonds between colleagues. However, if those team members travel too often, they can pose serious health risks to themselves and their co-workers. To mitigate those risks, employers must understand what they need to know before sending employees on such trips. Researching the destination, creating a travel checklist, setting transparency expectations, and offering travel companions and stipend options are essential.