Relieve yourself of all hassles involved with corporate travel management by planning ahead and getting the right goods. For first-time executives eager to have a taste of business travelling, preparation is key for an effortless trip.
Have the right mindset, organize all essentials needed for the travel, and rid of beginner stress and jitters by remembering these sage pieces of advice.
Section 1: Travel Light: Packing Tips for Business Travel
One way to ease corporate travel management is packing the right stuff. It means keeping only the essentials.
Check your business trip itinerary and consider the number of meetings, conferences, events, dinners, and lunches that you are obligated to attend. Make sure you have a suitable outfit for each occasion.
Pack wisely by separating each outfit and putting them in packing cubes so you only need to pull out clothing that is needed for the specific occasion. Be sure to iron them first before you pack.
Go for travel-sized toiletries and place them in a clear pouch or bag; it makes removing the item simpler for security checks. Packing smaller items will also save room in your suitcase or travelling bag.
Bring electronic devices and accompanying chargers or adapters to avoid spur-of-the-moment purchases.
Steer clear of giant suitcases or luggage. Lugging a hefty suitcase in an area that is not familiar is a hassle. For business travels, a rolling carryon and a shoulder bag are enough.
Section 2: Find and Reserve a Hotel Close to Your Destination
Look for accommodations that are close to the area that you plan to visit. You do not want to commute for an hour from your hotel to a business meeting. Remember this if you are going to major cities.
In addition, we cannot stress this enough – book all of your accommodations very early. The rule of thumb is to book a month in advance. Compare rates as well for the airfare, car rentals, and accommodations.
Section 3: Prioritize Your Connections
An integral part of corporate travel management is nurturing good relationships and building trust with your connections in the business. Thus, prioritize your connections and get to know them well.
Brush up on your small talk skills. Remember to mix smarts and expertise into your conversations with important people.
Get to know them as people, not as the professionals that you work with. Take them out or go with them for lunch, dinner, or a coffee once meetings or conferences are over.
Peruse all information and meeting materials before the trip to guarantee that you are well-versed and up-to-date with topics that will be hashed out during the meeting or event. Preparation is key in ensuring your in-person meetup with your connections will run without a hitch.
Section 4: Get There on Time and Enjoy a Smooth Ride
There is simply no excuse for being late, whether it’s showing up on time at work or meeting with a new client thousands of miles away from home.
Being on time matters since it tells others that they can always trust and depend on you. It also provides other people insight into how you give value to their time.
Being on time makes a great impression and it can also help you achieve your goals faster and it creates a hassle-free, less stressful start to everyone’s workday.
Do not start on the wrong foot by being late to a meeting with your client and other important people. Beginning a business meeting with an apology is awkward and unprofessional.
Running late and barging into the conference room all stressed out will also make other people in the room question themselves and wonder if they still want to work with you. If you cannot be trusted to be punctual, why would another professional trust you with crucial deals and projects?
And that is an essential factor in solid corporate travel management – be punctual and the whole trip will breeze by smoothly, as it should.
Section 5: Stay Healthy, Safe, and Secure
When travelling, safety and security should always be top concerns. As an executive, you’re privy to proprietary information and to protect yourself, it’s a smart move to check your destination’s travel advisories.
If you are travelling with other executives in your company, it pays to use the buddy system anywhere you go. Always consider the security and safety of your colleagues apart from your own. If your team has to split up, account for everybody in the group. Do not leave a colleague behind.
Let other people know about your whereabouts. Make a list of your activities and their locations, and the people that you need to meet during the trip. Give the list to a loved one, a trusted mate, or a reliable flatmate. Tell them how they can reach you in case you will be delayed.
Consider cybersecurity as well. Always keep your work equipment from your laptop to your external drives in a secure, locked location, like a hotel safe. Do not connect to Wi-Fi networks that are not encrypted. Do not work with unfamiliar thumb drives.
Don’t get yourself involved in altercations or fights. Steer clear of aggression and keep a cool head at all times. Keep in mind that during business travels, you are representing your company. Do not allow recklessness to tarnish your company’s reputation.
As for staying healthy during the trip, check your destination’s travel restrictions as well for better corporate travel management. The global pandemic is still going on and these days, world travels now involve vaccine passports, quarantines, negative PCR tests, antigen tests, and the like.
Stay healthy by complying with your destination’s COVID-19 protocols and hygiene routines. Stock up on hand sanitisers, wipes, tissues, handy alcohol bottles, masks, eye drops, and medicines.
Takeaway: Traveling for the holidays and business trips are two different things. Use this piece if you want your executive trip to become a worthwhile, eye-opening experience.
The Best Gadgets For Executive Travellers
Gadgets for business travellers differ from those of personal jet setters. There are administrative tasks to conduct during meetings and presentations to deliver. Thus, executives require tools and devices that will help them streamline and organize work-related activities.
Here are some of the latest in the market which will benefit many execs bearing frequent-flyer miles.
- The Bluesmart One Suitcase
The Bluesmart One spells style, strength, and travel savviness. This TSA-compliant luggage has helpful features that will lessen the load on your travel-weary shoulders. For starters, this one has tracking features and it can charge phones, too. Worried about going above bag weight limits? This luggage has weighing capabilities plus you can lock and unlock it straight from your phone.
- iPad Pro
The iPad is still a constant presence in most executive travellers’ bags due to its compact size and lightweight properties. This is entertainment in one handy unit. This makes for an excellent supplement to your laptop since it also allows you to browse the internet, edit spreadsheets, and document meetings at work.
- Tile Pro
The Tile Pro is a top tracking device and is a must for the exec who keeps missing his or her keys during travels. Whether to supplement your phone or your suitcase, this nifty device will prove to be an advantage.
- Belkin Boost Up Power Bank with Lightning Connector (10,000 mAh)
Power up devices anywhere you go with a formidable power bank. This model in particular is made to accommodate Apple devices and it can provide up to 70 hours of battery life.
- PhoneSoap
Items that promote cleanliness, safety, and health should be included in your travel essentials. Our phones gather a good deal of germs so eliminate them by using this handy phone sanitiser.
- Bose QuietComfort 35 II
Withstand long-haul flights by wearing the best noise-canceling headphones. The Bose QuietComfort 35 II is lightweight, can drown out massive background noise, and remains powered for up to 20 hours.
- Samsung T5 External Drive
Good corporate travel management is nothing without high-tech supplementary devices. Make sure to bring backups – tote along the T5 external drive so you can store loads of files that are too large for your laptop. It works fast and it also includes complete disk encryption for additional security.
- Master Lock Smart Padlock
Now, if you keep forgetting padlock combinations or losing keys, you have to consider using smart padlocks. The lock can be controlled by phone and it also features options to share access with other users and tamper alerts.
- Apple Watch Series 7
There’s no need to fret over missed events or meetings if you have the Apple Watch Series 7 on hand. Apart from time, this device lets you check out your appointments and provides reminders and weather forecasts without taking your phone out.
- Victorinox Pakmaster
Do not show up in business meetings and conferences with rumpled, wrinkled clothes. Keep freshly-ironed clothing in the Pakmaster. The Pakmaster is designed to protect folded, pressed garments to keep them presentable at all times.
