IBM China
This article first appeared in the May/June 2004 issue of BTN China.

In June last year, IBM, which has 10 offices in China, appointed American Express (Amex) its travel management company (TMC).

IBM China manager in charge of corporate travel, Ms Xiao Ke, admits life has become easier since Amex came onboard.

With IBM's many on-site contracts and the need to provide prompt customer service, there is a high volume of business travel within China.

Ms Xiao explained IBM offices in other parts of the world were empowered to choose their own TMCs. In the US, Amex is IBM's TMC, while in Europe Carlson Wagonlit does the job.

Previously, IBM China was working with JTB, whose local partner is China Travel Service. But when Amex and CTS became partners and when IBM headquarters undertook a review of its TMC contracts, IBM China decided to pick Amex.

Ms Xiao said it was only after IBM China picked Amex that it understood managed corporate travel better and what an international TMC could do.

"Travel agencies in China mainly offer ticketing services only," Ms Xiao said. "But after Amex took over management of our travel, our staff could count on end-to-end, one-stop business travel services."

"There is definitely greater convenience for IBM's staff, and with the assistance from Amex, IBM is now able to offer more prompt service to its customers."

Ms Xiao emphasised the managed approach to corporate travel and the implementation of a transaction fee had resulted in greater transparency. "The company has become more aware of where the costs are," she added and likened a TMC to a goalkeeper in a soccer match.

With a TMC, dealing with airlines and hotels had also become easier. By choosing an established global TMC over a local player, Ms Xiao said credit card services were now available to its travellers, one of the main reasons why Amex was chosen.

"China is a big country and we need the network of Amex/CTS call centres for our business traveller who need to book their flights, accommodations, car rentals, apply for visas, etc."

Under its corporate travel policy, IBM chooses several preferred hotels in major cities, mostly in the four- and five-star category. These were not always international hotel groups, Ms Xiao said, because convenience and the surroundings were the main concerns for IBM business travellers who can choose from a list of preferred hotels.

The company believes flexibility is the best policy, and as corporate travel manager, Ms Xiao would often go online to research for information and to contact suppliers for CD-ROMS for information on the accommodation and other facilities.

Apart from Amex, IBM also hires international event management company, George P Johnson, for its larger and more specific events. Ms Xiao said incentive travel was also growing and more and more companies were choosing China as an incentive travel destination and IBM was organising its own incentive travel event in Shanghai in April.

And even though the appointment of Amex has been a boon, Ms Xiao said hotel rates in China were on the upward trend and IBM had to watch future trends. While IBM recognises that cost is not everything, the goal is still to streamline corporate travel management and to create the best efficiency.

Nokia
This article first appeared in the January/February 2005 issue of BTN China.

Mobile phone manufacturer Nokia has 16 manufacturing plants in nine countries and several R&D units in 11 countries. Some 51,000 employees work for Nokia around the world and procurement manager, Ms Genevieve Sulway, says it is important to understand the cultural differences of each market.

In the past, 21 travel management companies (TMC) were responsible for Nokia's corporate travel. But last year, Nokia changed its policy and picked American Express to be its global TMC.

According to Ms Sulway, Nokia spends E300 million (US$387 million) every year on corporate travel. With corporate travel management relatively mature in the US and Europe, the company is pushing for greater integration in the Asia-Pacific.

Ms Sulway admits China presents a huge challenge for TMCs and they need to make an effort to understand and adjust to China's ways of doing business. A good example is email. While it may have become prevalent elsewhere, in China people still rely on faxes and phone calls.

Nokia's business expectations in the Asia-Pacific region are expected to grow. But because of the differences in geography, politics and cultures, the process of integration will be comparatively slower.

While it may be easier to get employees to conform to policies in countries such as Singapore and Hong Kong, it is different in China for many reasons. Unlike the other countries, she said Internet bookings, etickets and corporate cards were still alien to China, which was predominantly still a "cash society". Moreover, China's GDS environment, where TravelSky Technology dominated, still did not allow for travel integration.

There was merit for Chinese companies to hire local TMCs which understood the philosophy and thinking of their clients. But what was also important in choosing the right TMC was finding the right partner in managing and cutting T&E expenditure.

Ms Sulway believed a good TMC could do a lot for a corporation apart from making the travel arrangements. They can help towards ensuring the safety of travellers when they are overseas, ensuring appropriate accommodations are chosen and negotiate for travellers the access to use airport lounges, etc.

Meanwhile, corporate travel policies are changing, for example, travellers are being encouraged to choose off-peak fares and low-cost airlines.