How do you see the business travel sector in 2023? What major trends can we expect?
Laurent La Rocca - In 2023, we anticipate a context marked by factors such as inflation, social issues, but also ecological issues which are increasingly visible. As a result of all these factors, the business travel sector is unlikely to return to pre-covid normality.
Isn't there a risk that environmental issues will be relegated to second place as tariffs rise sharply?
Laurent La Rocca - On the contrary, our vision is based on a more responsible way of travelling, with less frequent, more carbon-free travel. Focussing on essential travel not only helps companies to reduce their carbon footprint, but also to manage their budgets more effectively.
Is the relationship between business travel and the environment changing?
Laurent La Rocca - It's a theme we've worked hard on in our work on the Business Climate Convention. 150 companies came together to rethink our business models, our way of working, and try to contribute to this ecological transition. The aim is to define how we are going to reduce our CO2 emissions by 50% between now and 2030. Small steps will not achieve this objective. It is necessary set all the cursors to full. There are solutions with the rail network, eco-responsible hotels and electric vehicles, but they don't cover all the needs. We need to think about how to travel better. And Better travel sometimes means avoiding travel, even if that's hard to say for booking software! We need to take a fresh look at this issue and help companies distinguish between essential and non-essential travel, which can be replaced by the "essential" category. videoconferencingbecause companies are asking for it.
How can we meet this demand in practical terms?
Laurent La Rocca - We are currently working in R&D on algorithms which, based on various essentiality criteria, would enable us to distinguish between essential and non-essential travel. For example, I have to go and see a customer to close a deal, I haven't seen him for six months, the financial stakes are very high: whatever means of transport I use, I've got to go. Then it's a matter of implementing a carbon neutralisation strategy. But there is also a lot of non-essential travel, if we have a high frequency of contacts, for example. We're working on a tool that would get everyone to agree, based on rational criteria.
What would these criteria be?
Laurent La Rocca - There are the "classic" criteria such as duration, price and carbon footprint, but there are also the "traditional" criteria such as duration, price and carbon footprint. health and safety risksThe social aspect is also important, whether it's with customers or with teams, because when everything is done by video, the corporate culture breaks down. The date of the last face-to-face meetings is therefore also taken into account. There are certain reasons for travelling that severely limit its substitutability crisis management, a signature, on-site expertise. There are always solutions, but it's more complex than travelling. We are in the process of modelling this substitutability of travel by videoconferencing.
If these decisions are automated by technology, what happens to the travel manager?
Laurent La Rocca - The travel manager does not have all the answers. They establish a travel policy and put in place contracts to improve purchasing, but arbitrating these complex, multi-factorial situations is not easy. What we're looking for is harmony between the traveller and his manager. For example, a slightly 'old-fashioned' sales manager may be convinced that a good salesperson is never in the office, that he or she is always out in the field. But today the world has changed: deals are done remotely. We need to get everyone to agree on objective reasons.
How do you explain the fact that a point-to-point flight between Paris and Marseille is still preferred by business travellers?
Laurent La Rocca - The loyalty programme can play a role... somewhere, miles are the enemy of responsible travel. There is a subject there, there are habits... Hence the interest in nudging strategies, to highlight the reality: a traveller can sometimes even waste time and money to emit 80 to 100 times more CO2. If climate sceptic behaviour persists, rules need to be put in place. There are eco-responsible EVPs where you simply can't book a plane if it's not efficient enough compared to the train in terms of total time.
How do you view the European decision on the possible ban on short domestic flights when the train offers an alternative of 2.5 hours maximum? How far should or can we go with this logic?
Laurent La Rocca - The principle of this measure seems to us to be entirely appropriate, but it does not seem to us to be an effective means of achieving the objectives set. not ambitious enough. It could be even better if it took into account the total duration of the journey, i.e. including the time taken to get to the station or airport. Useful time should also be taken into account Business travellers can work more easily when travelling by train. At the Treep, we believe that if you can't save at least an hour of the total journey time by plane, then the train is the best option.
Should we introduce a "Duty of sustainability", like the Duty of Care for passenger safety?
Laurent La Rocca - At the Convention des Entreprises pour le Climat, we are campaigning for companies to make a real commitment to rules and systems that make it easy for employees to reduce their carbon footprint to a minimum. It's not just about coercionEspecially as it can also damage the employer brand...
Earlier you called for us to "go all out": has the Treep's positioning evolved towards a more demanding approach?
Laurent La Rocca - We've revised our principle: it's no longer just a question of trying to reserve low carbon, but of taking it up a notch. We're using the "avoid, reduce and then possibly offset or neutralise" approach. But at the end of the day, if all we're doing is carbon offsetting by planting trees, that's just "carbon neutral". greenwashing. The first step is to avoid what is unnecessary.
Is the economic rationale of the business travel industry compatible with this rhetoric and, above all, with its practical application?
Laurent La Rocca - It's important for us to be part of this dynamic, even if it's difficult for us to say so. One of the problems with business travel is the economic model, which is based on transactions. We're going to have to see whether decision-makers are prepared to accept a change in business model and pay for service on a consistent basis, whatever the volume. This is utopian because at present there is a strong attachment to the transactional approach. But by evolving, by de-indexing transactional business models, we would no longer have this ecocidal approach: "the more trips we sell, the more we earn". Customers would have to be prepared to pay in the form of a subscription, and that's complicated. That's why the change also starts with travel managers and buyers. We have to agree to smooth out the remuneration, even if it means revising the packages upwards or downwards depending on how things are going.
"Utopian, in your opinion?
Laurent La Rocca - I'm using a strong word, because today's model is largely transactional. But there are new players, there are start-ups that are offering subscription formulas.
Should we radically rethink the way we organise meetings and appointments?
Laurent La Rocca - We are working on an interesting concept: the "go between. I have a meeting in Berlin. The two of them agree to meet halfway by train. This requires some investment on the part of the person being visited, but the cost to the planet is much lower than if they were to travel alone by plane.
From the outset, The Treep focused on sustainability. Since then, the positioning has become mainstream. Aren't you afraid of falling into line with other business travel players?
Laurent La Rocca - It's always interesting to have more than one person working on an issue. We can only win if the exception becomes the rule. We're not afraid, because we're continuing to innovate, particularly on the concept of the essential nature of travel that I mentioned. We carry out R&D work, and in fact we are transparent about our projects, since they are talked about and could inspire some of our competitors. We don't have a culture of secrecy; we're in a spirit of open innovation. It could be interesting for several players to start working on this concept of essential travel. For us, this first stage of avoidance is part of the solution. Companies are waiting for it, they are even already doing it instinctively. In fact, we are already experimenting with a public company for our first version of the algorithm. We are also working hard on measurement. We want our data to be as close to reality as possible. We spent a year and a half researching all the existing methodologies. We came to the conclusion that there is no perfect methodology, but that we can combine different methods to propose a new algorithm that will take into account several criteria. Hotel measurement is also important. Today it's a disaster. ADEME provides an average per night in France, because the energy mix is known. But on an international scale, it's a total unknown. We are carrying out research to take into account the energy mix of different countries, to make calculations based on the number of stars... We are working to come up with our own methodology for calculating the carbon footprint as accurately as possible.
