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4 minutes readContents
- What is a travel manager?
- What are their responsibilities?
- What a travel manager should know
- How to plan business travel without a travel manager
- How to simplify the process of booking business travel
What is a travel manager?
A travel manager is a professional responsible for overseeing all aspects of corporate travel. They handle tasks such as researching and booking flights and hotels, arranging transfers, and securing conference or meeting rooms. But their responsibilities go far beyond bookings alone.
A travel manager is a professional responsible for overseeing all aspects of corporate travel.
Photo by Vitaly Gariev on Unsplash
What are their responsibilities?
In addition to direct travel arrangements, the travel manager typically takes on several key responsibilities:
- Supervises the execution of the company’s travel policy. A company’s travel policy establishes the rules to be followed when organizing business travel. These include the travel approval process, the per diem allowance, the budget for booking hotels based on rating, and the available train and airline classes when purchasing tickets.
- Plan the travel budget. They work with management to allocate the company’s travel budget for the year, quarter, or month, and often identifies ways to optimize costs.
- They supervise contractors. They negotiate with suppliers to secure favorable terms on hotels, tickets, transfers, insurance, and related services.
- They manage scheduling and logistics. They ensure employees adhere to their travel plans and itineraries.
- They take care of employees who are on business trips. They assist with any travel disruptions, such as missed flights or hotel check-in issues.
- They handle documents. They ensure that all advance reports, invoices, and receipts are submitted on time to account for expenses.
What a travel manager should know
A travel manager monitors visa requirements, employee destinations, and stays informed about news that could impact the success of a trip — from health restrictions and flight cancellations to civil unrest and natural or man-made disruptions.
A travel manager monitors visa requirements, employee destinations, and stays informed about news that could impact the success of a trip.
Photo by Kit (formerly ConvertKit) on Unsplash
A travel manager is well-versed in travel-related regulations, such as airline baggage and carry-on policies, and ensures employees are informed before departure. This helps avoid unexpected fees for overweight luggage and prevents delays at check-in or boarding, contributing to a smoother travel experience.
How to plan business travel without a travel manager
When a company does not have a dedicated travel manager, employees often handle their own trip arrangements. This includes comparing ticket prices and departure times, finding hotels within budget, and checking for suitable locations and amenities. Many turn to online booking platforms, which help speed up the process and often provide downloadable documents required for expense reporting.
When a company does not have a dedicated travel manager, employees often handle their own trip arrangements.
Photo by Vitaly Gariev on Unsplash
How to simplify the process of booking business travel
Whether business trips are booked by an employee or a dedicated travel manager, Roundtrip makes the entire process easier and more efficient. Travel managers often juggle reporting, tight schedules, and employee support — so it’s only fair someone supports them in return. Roundtrip streamlines corporate travel by saving time, reducing admin, and helping travel managers work more productively.
- For this purpose, we have an impressive inventory: 2.9 million hotels and apartments, plane tickets from 330 suppliers, rail travel, transfers, and insurance. For all services, users receive instant confirmation in the form of a voucher or itinerary receipt.
- No travel manager can offer round-the-clock support — and they shouldn’t have to. That’s where Roundtrip steps in. Our operations team is available 24/7, speaks 12 languages, answers calls within 10 seconds, and is always ready to help via live chat or through your personal account. Every client receives fast, personalised support whenever it’s needed.
- Travel policies for different employee categories or departments can be uploaded directly into the system. Roundtrip will automatically flag budget limits when searching for tickets and hotels and, if configured, will prevent any bookings that exceed them.
- At Roundtrip we take care of your documents with precision. A complete set of travel documents is automatically generated and always available in your personal account.
- Any reports for budget reconciliation and forecasting for future periods can be generated in the system in a few seconds, avoiding manual calculations and errors.
Roundtrip brings together simplicity, expertise, benefits, and automation—everything a modern travel manager needs to do their job not just efficiently, but exceptionally. It makes the process so seamless, it takes the stress out of business travel.
Cover image: Photo by Sincerely Media on Unsplash
