Swine Flu impact on business travel
The
National Business Travel Association (NBTA) – the leading association for the business travel industry – published findings of a survey of 113 travel managers on the impact on business travel of the current H1N1 influenza, or swine flu, outbreak.
Key findings include:
- Corporate travel divisions are focused on disseminating information on the illness and how to prepare for it.
- 61% of travel mangers indicate that their travelers are canceling trips to Mexico
- Preparedness is a common theme:
- 42% of respondents indicate that their Risk Management Programs include emergency help lines, hospitalization and evacuation assistance to deal with outbreaks of illnesses such as H1N1.
- 59% of respondents track the whereabouts of employees allowing them to provide better assistance during medical emergencies.
- Estimated cost impacts of H1N1 to date vary widely from company to company:
- 34% of respondents estimate that the changes, cancellations and loss of business have cost their companies less than US$500.
- 16% estimate expenses to be higher than US$50,000 when loss of business opportunities are taken in consideration on top of the cancellation and changes costs.
NBTA President & CEO,
Kevin Maguire, CCTE, GLP, said,
“The survey findings support what I have heard in conversations with dozens of my colleagues: that travel managers are taking action to position their companies to meet this latest challenge. When the swine flu news first broke, they acted quickly to ensure their companies were able to keep travelers informed. Since then they’ve been tracking H1N1 developments on an ongoing basis and using that information to minimize risk through informed travel decision-making.”
Tatiana Rokou
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Wednesday, May 06, 2009