Corporate Travel Manager Job Description, Skills and Salary
Get to know about the duties, responsibilities, qualifications, and skills requirements of a corporate travel manager. Feel free to use our corporate travel manager job description template to produce your own. We also provide you with information about the salary you can earn as a corporate travel manager.
Who is a Corporate Travel Manager?
A corporate travel manager is responsible for planning, developing, and formulating a corporate travel policy for a company. Their responsibilities are: setting up travel budgets, negotiating rates with travel agencies, monitoring travel activities, and also reconciling expenses. They also assist in selecting a corporate travel agency that can handle bookings and decide on negotiations while they focus on other responsibilities. If they use the services of a travel agency, they act as the liaison between the agency and the company.
Smaller companies may use the services of a single individual to create a travel budget, execute policies for the employees to follow, and act as a liaison with an outside travel agency that handles arrangements. Larger companies on the other hand have a whole department that functions as commercial travel agents. If the organization is very large, a commercial travel agency can set up offices in different locations such as a branch office to handle its travel arrangement. Corporate travel managers perform the same responsibility as retail and wholesale travel agents. The role they play mainly is supervisory but they sometimes make reservations and select transportation and lodging for company employees within the economic guidelines established by the company. The responsibilities of being more than just doing some tasks they can also do other tasks like personnel relocation, convention planning, corporate aircraft administration, and group organization for employees.
The work environment of a corporate travel manager is a modern and well-lighted office. They spend most of their time at a computer terminal or on the telephone making calls or answering customers booking reservations. They also need to keep abreast with the latest industry news and information that covers vital travel planning processes. Because their clientele is fairly fixed, it is paramount for corporate travel managers to establish a reputation for discretion and reliability within the company. They usually work for 40 hours per week from Monday to Friday but they can also work on weekends if the need arises. One of the core skills they have is teamwork because they work closely with vendors and travel agencies. The job of corporate travel management can be very demanding if the agency is large.
Types of Corporate Travel Agencies
Businesses tend to utilize the services of a corporate travel management company to reduce costs and below are the types:
- In-House Travel Management Agents
- External Corporate Travel Management Agents
In-House Travel Management Agents
An in-house travel management agent is an employee that is recruited and saddled with the responsibility of booking trips, modifying last-minute travel itineraries, and maximizing savings while finding out the best deals for your employees. By hiring an in-house travel agent, you will have a full guarantee of working closely with a trusted employee who makes your business travel planning easier. Another benefit of hiring an in-house agent over an external one is that it saves you from paying a fee or commission.
- External Corporate travel Management Agents
External travel management agents are specialized in the field of corporate travel and have experience in booking business travel. These individuals are available at your request and utilize online bookings that will maximize savings. The main difference between an external and in-house agent is that you are not employing an individual to handle your business travel needs but you will be paying them a fee or a commission every time they make a booking for you.
An in-house travel agent may not be always available at the time you need his services. On other hand, a committed team of external travel management agents is always available for 24-hours per day. For instance, if one of your employees experiences difficulty abroad it may be they fell sick or lost their luggage- the agents will be on-call 24/7 to assist them.
Corporate Travel Manager Job Description
Below are the corporate travel manager job description examples you can use to develop your resume or write a corporate travel manager job description for your employee. Employers can also use it to sieve out job seekers when choosing candidates for interviews.
The followings are the duties and responsibilities of a corporate travel manager and they are:
- Develops and executes a corporate travel policy
- Sets up and organizes a monthly or annual travel budget
- Maintains a relationship bond with vendors, travel service providers, and agencies
- Provides suggestions and counsel on travel documents, import and export regulations, and insurance
- Negotiates rates, travel deals, and contracts with travel agencies
- Tracks and harmonizes travel expenses
- Records travel activities to ensure they conform with company travel policy
- Directs and guides employees on travel documents, insurance, and travel laws
- Updates the company travel policy as needed based on market research and travel regulations
- Completes daily travel tasks, such as booking tickets and managing credit card operations
- Continuously works towards the improvement of travel programs
- Researches new opportunities to improve overall travel efficiency
- Prepares expense reports or documents and identifies where costs could be reduced
- Documents all policy updates for future reference.
Qualifications
- A bachelor’s degree in travel and tourism, hospitality business, or a similar field is preferred
- Training in travel and tourism is required
- Past proven experience as a corporate travel manager
- Excellent knowledge of domestic and international regulations and customs
- Knowledge of T&E processing
- Excellent communication and negotiation skills
- Basic knowledge of computer skills in MS Office, GTM, and GDS solutions
- Analytical attitude with an organized approach
- Excellent time management and multitasking skills
- Proficiency in financial management
- Exceptional managerial skills and proven ability to work with a variety of service providers and staff members
Essential Skills
A corporate travel manager must possess the following skills and competencies to be exceptional in the course of discharging his or her duties and they are:
- Management and leadership: A corporate travel manager may either supervise other travel employees or work alone although this solely depends on the size of the company if it is a large company; he has the leadership responsibility to oversee other travel employees but if it is a small company then he works alone. They need to possess leadership and management skills despite the size of the department because the employees who travel look up to the travel manager for direction, support, and expertise.
- Communication: Corporate travel managers act as a liaison between many groups of people, including company executives, employee agencies, and travel vendors. This requires that they should be able to communicate both verbally and orally to ensure that everyone comprehends the information they pass across. Corporate travel managers also formulate and implement the company’s travel policy, so it is highly paramount that they can communicate the policy to the employees effectively.
- Technology Skills: this skill is essential because travel manager needs technology to perform their duties easily. Corporate travel managers can also utilize a variety of software, websites, and other applications to ease their work. If they cannot get assistance from the agency, the manager handles all the bookings They can also use travel websites or applications which may not be the best. Some companies have their travel portals where employees can request travel approval or upload a receipt whenever they return from their journey. It is highly paramount for a travel manager to comprehend and be comfortable with technology because they will use it on daily basis in the course of discharging their duties.
- Financial Skills: one of the core responsibilities of a corporate manager is to handle or manage employees’ travel budgets. They have to consider some factors such as the revenue of the company, what the company will reimburse, the reimbursements limits, where employees are traveling, and how much employees need for food and accommodation. There are certain situations and travel regulations which will affect the budget. A corporate manager needs to know about finances so that they will be able to balance all these factors and make the best decision about the travel budget. If the travel manager mismanages the budget; it can lead to a big catastrophe on the part of the organization and so a corporate travel manager must be much more focused to manage the budget.
- Interpersonal Skills: one of the responsibilities of a corporate travel manager is to build interpersonal relationships with vendors and agencies. Building a strong bond with vendors can lead to better deals on rates and can allow the travel manager to learn how the vendors operate; It also brings about new resources such as when there is an issue; vendors you have built a relationship with can be able to help you settle that issue or give you some essential tips that could help you out. It is very paramount for corporate travel managers to possess good relationship skills so that they can navigate and maintain this vendor relationship.
- Problem-solving Skills: Travel employees or clients can encounter many challenges in the course of traveling such as flight delays or cancellations, issues with hotels, or unexpected emergencies. Travel managers need to possess excellent problem-solving skills so that they can be able to settle these issues when they spring up. Their capacity to handle these challenges will make employees feel safe and have wonderful travel experiences.
How to Become a Corporate Travel Manager
Any individual considering being a corporate travel manager should take the following steps:
- Earn a Bachelor’s Degree
The major requirement by most companies for a travel manager is a bachelor’s degree in hospitality and tourism, travel, or a similar field. Although some companies can accept a candidate with a high school diploma for the position. The best way to be a corporate travel manager is to earn a bachelor’s degree because it will help you have steady career growth and help you explore more opportunities in your field. The degree usually takes four years to complete and it has courses that will explore the management of travel, leisure, and hospitality.
- Gain the Relevant Experience
Most employers or companies prefer a corporate travel manager who has experience in the field of tourism and hospitality or traveling. No employer wants to hire a novice and so experience once very is important. This experience can expose you to the travel industry operations and makes it very easy for you to do some parts of the job such as deciding budgets, booking tickets, and arranging accommodations.
Most employers will not give you the role of a corporate travel manager as a new entry employee; you may start as a travel agent before being promoted to the role of a travel manager. As a travel agent, you will get to harness skills that will aid you to perform your role exceptionally as a corporate travel manager. You can also gain other experiences such as jobs that international travel regulations, international currencies and travel, and expense reporting.
- Earn Certifications
Acquiring a certification can boost your career as a corporate travel agent. The company may not require certification but most states require certification; you need to check for the requirements. If your state does not require certification; proceed to acquire a certification because it can make you a more qualified employee and increase your prospects of getting the job. Below are some certifications you can acquire:
- Travel and Tourism Professional(TTP): this provides entry competency to new travel agents or potential corporate travel managers in the industry of travel and tourism
- Certified Travel Associate (CTA): this is also known as the CTA certification. This is particularly for travel agents and it helps them explore a high level of understanding of travel subjects.
- Certificate in Corporate Travel Execution (CCTE): this certificate is for anyone working in corporate travel and it gives an in-depth understanding of travel topics such as finance, risk, legal issues, and human resources.
Where Can a Corporate Travel Manager Work?
A corporate travel manager works in the tourism, travel, and hospitality sector. This industry is a global multibillion-dollar industry that cares for recreational, leisure, and business travelers. This industry handles transportation services, hospitality services, and entertainment. They usually work in hotels or airlines.
Corporate Travel Manager Salary Scale
- In the United States, a Corporate Travel Manager earns a salary of $80,725. Salaries from $69,263 to $97,593. Experienced corporate travel managers earn more than entry-level corporate travel managers.
- In Nigeria, a person working as a corporate travel manager earns around 205,000NGN per month. Salaries for 111,000NGN (lowest) to 310,000NGN (highest). The salary includes other working benefits such as housing, transport, and other benefits.