More than two-thirds of global business travelers believe business travel is critical to their careers, according to the sixth SAP Concur Global Business Travel Survey. Despite this, around 2 in 3 (66%) feel they haven’t had an equal opportunity to take business trips compared with their colleagues. That’s slightly higher than the 62% from the 2023 survey. The survey included 3,750 business travelers in 24 markets.

Charlie Sultan, president of Concur Travel at SAP Concur, said the current economic environment is driving tension among business travelers, travel managers and company leadership. “Balance between flexibility and cost is delicate, not to mention pressures from new distribution channels and ongoing geopolitical issues,” he said. “This year’s report demonstrates the need for a mutual understanding of these realities and compromise in corporate travel programs.”

Among the survey’s other findings:

• More younger travelers feel business travel is important for their careers, compared with older generations (Gen Z: 72%; millennial: 68%; Gen X: 64%; boomer: 58%).
• Global business travelers attribute the perceived opportunity inequity to the following reasons: level of seniority (19%); age (18%); status as a parent or caretaker (14%); where they live (14%); physical appearance (12%); how often they come into the office (12%); their gender (11%); their accent (11%).
• Certain reasons for not having travel opportunities are slightly more of a factor for women than men, including age (20% of women vs. 17% of men); status as a parent (17% vs. 13%); and gender (14% vs. 9%). More men say they’ve never felt they didn’t have equal opportunity for business travel (38% vs. 29%).
• More LGBTQ+ business travelers feel they haven’t had equal opportunity because of their physical appearance (20% vs. 12% of general population); disability (14% vs. 8%); or sexual orientation (20% vs. 7%).
• The majority of global business travelers have been significantly impacted by travel disruptions in the past year. Nearly 9 in 10 (88%) have been forced to take unanticipated steps in the past 12 months because of unexpected delays, cancellations, or the need to reroute during business travel.
• Safety concerns are still the biggest reason that business travelers decline business trips (44%), but more than a quarter of respondents (29%) are willing to decline a business trip due to the likelihood of delays or cancellations. Thirty-three percent would also decline a trip due to safety concerns around the mode of transportation required.
• While these travel challenges are bad for business, they’re also bad for employees’ work-life balance. In addition to the nearly 2 in 5 (38%) who have had to cancel or reschedule meetings, many have had to spend additional, unplanned days on a business trip (38%) or sit through longer or additional layovers (33%).
• Travelers have had enough of losing out on their personal time and critical career connections: Four in 5 (80%) are proactively taking steps to account for such events, including booking extra time for arrival (34%), departure (19%), or even both (27%).
  • • Despite business travelers saying their company is focused on their needs for flexibility, nearly all (91%) have seen their company cut back on allowing certain options in the past 12 months. This includes blended travel. Employees have seen cutbacks in allowing remote work while traveling for pleasure to avoid taking leave days (27%) or adding personal travel to a business trip (25%).
  • Around 1 in 5 (22%) say they’re willing to decline a business trip that doesn’t allow them to extend it for personal travel. Companies have also cut back on comfort-focused requests, such as staying overnight to avoid a long day of travel for a day trip (28%), paying more to get a nonstop flight or direct route (28%), using business or premium class (27%), or using options like taxis or ride-share apps rather than public transportation (27%).
  • Travel managers are stuck in the middle of these issues. A survey of 600 travel managers across six markets found that when asked what their company is most focused on, 35% say meeting employees’ needs for flexible travel options; 32% say cutting back on business travel costs; 33% say increasing the use of sustainable travel options.
  • When asked what will make their job more difficult this year, 2 in 5 travel managers (42%) say company directives to cut travel costs amid ongoing challenges. Their concern is valid, as more than a third of business travelers (36%) say they’ve incurred additional expenses on a business trip because of unexpected travel challenges, and a similar percentage (34%) have had to use an alternate transportation method.
  • More than 1 in 4 (30%) have booked travel directly with suppliers because of unexpected travel challenges.
  • The survey offered suggestions on how to address these challenges in corporate travel programs, including:
  • 1. Connect with employees. Regularly survey employees, between and after business trips, to learn how the challenges identified in this study impact their experience.
  • 2. Act on employee insights. Turn the responses received from surveys into an actionable plan. Ensure that the right travel tools are in place to help employees navigate challenges. Revisit travel policies and consider what might improve their experience while booking and traveling for work.
  • 3. Enlist the help of outside resources. Work with outside resources to facilitate employee training on things like safety and inclusion. Lean on travel management companies (TMCs) and suppliers to come up with solutions to travel disruptions.

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