The Association of Corporate Travel Executives (ACTE) and KDS will collaborate again in 2009 on the industry wide 4th ACTE/KDS Survey. The survey will measure the impact of the global economic crisis, travel spend trends and the effect on companies’ Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programs. "With the global economy still the key issue going into 2009, it will be interesting to see how companies’ emphasis on cost-savings will impact their CSR programs," Susan Gurley, ACTE Executive Director, said. “Every year brings new and provocative findings which are the benchmark for the industry. Last year’s survey indicated a sizeable shift toward a greener style of travel management - we will see if that holds true for 2009 as well."

"KDS is committed to leading the industry toward increased CSR awareness both through industry relations and through technology innovation,” commented Stanislas Berteloot, KDS Marketing Director. "We are pleased to work with ACTE on this fourth survey at a historical time for our industry, which is faced with unparalleled financial and environmental challenges. We anticipate fascinating results."

Several new questions have been added to the 2009 ACTE/KDS Survey that focus on the effect the economy is having on companies’ travel management programs. The results of the survey will be announced at a press conference during the Business Travel Show in London, 10-12 Feb.

Highlights from last year’s ACTE/KDS Survey included:

• 75 percent of travel managers who responded to the survey said their company had increased its travel spend in 2007
• 69 percent of companies said they used a self-booking tool to manage their travel arrangements
• 95 percent of travel managers said their company had a written travel policy
• 58 percent of respondent companies said they had a CSR charter
• 56 percent of business travelers looked to these charters in making environmentally sound travel decisions
• 34 percent of respondents felt their companies supported sustainable travel
• 59 percent of respondents looked to their companies to be responsible for decisions related to carbon emissions and business travel

Last year’s ACTE/KDS survey was taken by 263 respondents from 10 global regions including the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Asia, Africa, Latin America, Middle East, Eastern and Central, Northern and Continental Europe. Forty percent represented corporations employing more than 10,000 people, while 15 percent worked for companies with 1 to 100 employees. Respondents were also frequent travelers: 31 percent made more than 30 trips per year, while 42 percent travelled more than 20 times per year.