Worldwide: More than 40 per cent of member companies surveyed this month by the Global Business Travel Association have restarted non-essential domestic business travel or have set a date for restarting.
Around 34 per cent of the 336 travel buyer and procurement managers surveyed in the poll of GBTA members, taken between 7 and 12 June, indicated that their companies have already resumed nonessential domestic business travel in their country. An additional nine per cent indicated their companies have “decided on or announced a date” to do so, and a large majority indicated that date was within the next three months.
Around a third (31 per cent) of buyer respondents indicated their companies “are working to finalise a date but have not decided or announced one yet,” while the remainder said they aren’t sure what will happen or are awaiting more information before making any decisions.
“Optimism has given way to action, and the gradual support of corporate policies to resume business travel has actually begun,” said GBTA CEO Suzanne Neufang. “While this is an important breakthrough, our research says it will take some time for companies to allow as many trips — or even the same kind of travel—as they did before the pandemic.”
More than three quarters (77 per cent) of buyer respondents indicated their organisations’ employees are at least somewhat willing to travel for business now, continuing a month-on-month rise. Around 58 per cent of the buyer respondents to the poll suggested their travelers were “somewhat willing” to travel for business under current conditions, with another 19 per cent calling their travellers “very willing.”
