In partnership with the Office Management Group, Chapman & Carter surveyed office managers, executive assistants, personal assistants and support professionals to understand how business travel is really managed day to day, and where the friction lies.
The picture that emerges is one of low-level inefficiency, not crisis. Most organisations have some form of travel policy, though a significant portion of respondents are unsure whether one exists or when it was last reviewed. Booking is fragmented across a mix of tools and suppliers. Satisfaction is lukewarm rather than poor, and when things go wrong the cause is usually a last-minute change, not policy or paperwork.
Looking ahead, cost is the dominant concern: increased cost pressure is expected, by a clear margin, to be the single biggest influence on business travel over the next two years, far outweighing sustainability, global uncertainty or new technology.
About the research
Respondents are predominantly office managers, EAs, PAs and other support professionals responsible for arranging travel, often alongside a broad range of other duties, rather than as a dedicated function.
They span a wide range of industries, with the strongest representation from Finance and Professional Services, alongside Legal, Technology, Manufacturing, Education, Government, Charity and several other sectors. Company size is similarly varied, with mid-sized organisations forming the largest single group, though every size band from small businesses to large enterprises is represented.
Policy and process: fragmented and inconsistently maintained
Most organisations represented in the survey do have a formal travel policy in place. But a notable share of respondents can't say either way - some saying there isn't one, and others simply unsure whether a policy exists at all.
Where a policy does exist, how well it is maintained varies considerably. A small group had seen their policy updated recently, and a similar number within the past year, but just as many said they were unsure when their policy was last reviewed, or that their organisation has no formal policy to speak of.
"Having an easier booking system/portal that users can book their own travel without much interference with travel agents/administrators"
Booking behaviour tells a similar story. The most common approach by some distance is a mix of methods rather than one consistent process, followed by use of a dedicated Travel Management Company. A smaller but meaningful group has no formal process at all.
Taken together, this suggests policy and process are present in principle for most organisations, but not consistently applied, reviewed or centralised in practice - leaving room for confusion about what the 'right' way to book actually is.
Time and role: a secondary but persistent responsibility
For most respondents, arranging travel is not their primary role. It is something they handle occasionally, alongside a much broader set of responsibilities. Only a small minority describe it as a major part of their role.
Time spent reflects this: the majority spend a modest amount of time on it each week, and a further sizeable group spend under an hour. Only a small minority spend a substantial number of hours per week arranging travel.
This matters for how any travel solution should be designed. For most respondents, travel management is an interruption to their main responsibilities rather than a core specialism, reinforcing the appeal of simple, low-effort processes over feature-rich but complex ones.
Satisfaction: contentment without enthusiasm
Satisfaction with current travel management setups is best described as lukewarm. The single largest group of respondents feel neither satisfied nor dissatisfied, which reads as indifference more than enthusiasm or frustration.
Notably, having a formal policy in place does not appear to guarantee higher satisfaction. Dissatisfaction was reported only among respondents who do have a policy, suggesting that the existence of a policy matters less than how well it, and the tools around it, are actually executed.
What matters most in a travel supplier
When asked to rank what matters most when choosing a travel supplier, respondents were consistent: reliability and consistency came out clearly on top, followed by value for money and speed of response. Sustainability, reporting and visibility, and recommendation or referral ranked lowest.
That order suggests the market wants a supplier that does what it says, responds quickly and costs no more than it needs to. Innovation, ESG credentials and advanced reporting matter less to this audience than a proposition built around them would assume.
Where the real friction lies
The same ranking exercise applied to challenges reveals an equally clear pattern: last-minute changes are, by a significant margin, the most difficult part of managing travel. Traveller compliance and the approvals process follow some distance behind, while administration and duty of care rank as the least troublesome areas.
"Text/WhatsApp travel disruption intelligence"
"Alerts if travel disruption"
The pain in business travel is therefore operational. It comes from coping with change as it happens, not from administration or compliance. Suppliers and tools that reduce the friction of last-minute changes address the biggest single source of frustration in this market.
The next two years: cost pressure dominates
When asked what will have the biggest impact on business travel over the next two years, respondents pointed overwhelmingly to increased pressure on costs, far ahead of global uncertainty, sustainability, greater use of technology and AI, or hybrid working patterns.
This aligns closely with the supplier priorities above: value for money is already a top consideration, and respondents expect that pressure to intensify rather than ease. Any supplier proposition for this market needs a credible, demonstrable answer on cost, not just service quality.
In their words: what would make travel easier?
When asked what single thing would make managing business travel easier, more efficient or less stressful, responses clustered around three consistent themes:
- Consolidation: a single platform, app or account covering flights, hotels, transport and approvals, instead of juggling several tools and suppliers.
- Responsive service: quick answers, and suppliers who find competitive rates without being asked.
- Disruption support: real-time alerts and help when travel plans change unexpectedly.
"A one stop shop for everything in front of me."
"A booking platform with competitive rates, quick response from customer service, and easy to use when colleagues are covering each other for annual leave"
"Integrated visa and travel requirement tracking, including reminders when visas, passports, or other travel documents need attention."
Conclusions and recommendations
This research describes a market that is under-served, not failing. Policies exist but aren't consistently maintained or understood, booking is fragmented across multiple methods, satisfaction sits in a comfortable middle ground, and the operational pain is being managed as it arises instead of solved.
For organisations managing travel, and for suppliers serving this market, three priorities stand out:
- Bring booking, policy and approvals into fewer, more consistent tools and processes.
- Plan for disruption. Last-minute changes are the biggest source of friction, and proactive alerts and rapid support will be felt more than any other improvement.
- Treat cost credibility as a core part of the proposition alongside reliability. Cost pressure is expected to dominate the next two years.
About Chapman & Carter
Chapman & Carter gives each client a single, consistent point of contact for their travel programme, so a change of plan means one phone call to someone who already knows the account. This research was conducted in partnership with the Office Management Group to better understand the real day-to-day experience of the people who manage travel across UK and international businesses.