The tools change, the generations pass, but the problem remains the same for travel managers: how to convince employees to adhere to the company's travel policy? The debate is crucial, not only because of the sluggish economy and budget restrictions, but also, and perhaps above all, because the new technological tools can bypass the booking channels recommended by the company. Rightly or wrongly, according to a study carried out by Badgeville, a technology services platform for businesses, a majority of travellers (54%) now believe they are better placed to find the best fares than their company's in-house online booking tool or dedicated travel agents. The rise to power of generation Y, which will account for 50% of business travellers by 2020, should not, on the contrary, slow down the phenomenon.
So, do travel managers have any alternative to the autonomy offered by new technologies? Not necessarily. "Compliance with travel policy is a perennial problem that is not about to be solved. What is changing is the way we respond to it."As Alicia Tillman, Vice President Deal Consulting and Business Services at American Express Global Business Travel, sums up. A consensus has emerged among technology providers: to gain in popularity, the tools made available to business travellers need to be modelled on consumer solutions. The user experience is now at the heart of the debate, with solutions that are more ergonomic and intuitive.
Gamification - or 'ludification' in its much less common French version - aims to import the mechanisms of games into the business world, in order to have a positive influence on employees' behaviour and encourage them to adopt attitudes that are considered 'virtuous' and therefore in line with management's objectives.
Influencing behaviour
The logic goes even further, as the business world is now incorporating certain functionalities from... video games. Long considered a buzzword, a passing fad like any other, gamification is gaining in both consistency and credibility with the various players involved. In other words, gamification - or 'ludification' in its much less common French version - aims to import the mechanisms of games into the business world, in order to have a positive influence on the behaviour of employees, and at the same time encourage them to adopt attitudes that are considered 'virtuous', in line with management's objectives.
If the numerous studies devoted to this fashionable theme are anything to go by, it's a promising one. The gamification market is expected to be worth $1.6 billion by 2015, up from $100 million in 2011, according to Gartner, a firm specialising in studies of new technological trends. Deloitte, for its part, made gamification one of the ten major trends in its annual Tech Trends 2013 report, not hesitating to refer to it as "one of the fastest-growing technologies in the world".a cultural change to reenchant the world of work"(sic).
Applied to the world of travel management, the trend most often consists of encouraging compliance with travel policy by adding a more fun approach to booking platforms. Users are rewarded with points or badges for every action they take in line with the company's policy. Anticipating bookings, choosing a preferred supplier, adopting online tools, reducing ancillary costs: the company decides on the value to be attributed to each of these actions by establishing a scale that reflects the objectives set. In this way, the platform creates positive competition between users, who can consult their rankings, compare their progress and improve their performance in terms of compliance with travel policy and data traceability.
Preaching to the choir, the apostles of gamification don't hesitate to build bridges between the world of games and that of business, comparing bonuses to incentives and promotion to the next level to promotion. "Instead of using rules to enforce travel policy, gamification teaches travellers why and how they should make the right decisions by using points, badges and rankings."says Alicia Tillman. "It's all about choosing the carrot over the stick"confirms Christophe Renard, Vice-President of the Solutions Group at Carlson Wagonlit Travel (CWT).
However, competition is not always desirable as such, and not all users are satisfied with virtual rewards. Depending on the company's culture, the logic may turn towards more tangible rewards. "Some companies decide to set up tangible rewards: increased comfort on subsequent trips, gifts, or as part of the company's social responsibility policy, setting up an account to make donations to environmental or charitable associations, etc.explains Christophe Renard of CWT, who adds: "However, a number of studies have shown that, even without tangible rewards, the simple spirit of competition drives people to get involved in the game.."
By stimulating users' competitive spirit, and adding a more or less virtual reward, the results are tangible. "Improving compliance with travel policy through these behaviours helps to generate greater savings. In addition, it provides better visibility of data, and therefore greater leverage in negotiations with suppliers, as well as a greater ability to locate the traveller in the event of an unexpected crisis."says Alicia Tillman of American Express.
Inspired by experience in the field and developed by risk management professionals, the Mr Travel 'serious game', developed by Layer Cake, confronts business travellers with thirty high-risk situations they might encounter during their travels.
In travel applications
The involvement of the travellers even pushes them to surpass themselves to take the top places. "For a given trip, there are several options in line with the travel policysays CWT's Christophe Renard. By playing the game, we're going to encourage travellers to choose the least expensive solution when, without any particular source of motivation, they might have chosen the most expensive option allowed by the travel policy."If the two leading networks have mastered their subject in this way, it's because gamification is at the heart of their respective activities. This summer, CWT integrated the Travel Gamification tool into its CWT To Go application. "Our solution is not set in stone. We configure it for each company according to the subjects it wants to focus on"says Christophe Renard.
For its part, American Express has launched the GoTime gamification platform in the United States, based on The Behavior Platform solution developed by Badgeville and taking the form of missions assigned to travellers according to the objectives sought. Pilot versions of GoTime are due to be tested in the UK and Australian markets from 2014, but American Express is moving forward at a snail's pace.each country has its own unique perception of gaming, particularly in a professional environmentsays Alicia Tillman. So we take great care to understand the nuances of each individual."Other business travel agencies should not be slow to show their cards, such as BCD Travel, which plans to integrate gamification into its TripSource Enterprise mobile application, without for the moment revealing either the contours or the timetable.
Before corporate travel agencies adopted this new way of looking at the adoption of travel policies, several specialist players paved the way for them. Since its launch in 2010, Badgeville has positioned itself as one of the market leaders in cloud-based gamification technologies, working with Oracle and Samsung before Amex. Rocketrip, another company dedicated to the business travel segment, is growing in strength and has just released three million dollars over the summer to finance the rewards and incentives offered to the best-performing employees on its platform. Integrated into the company's internal systems, this solution calculates a budget for each business trip based on the destination, departure and return dates, travel policy parameters and market data studied in real time. The amount saved by travellers on this reference fare gives rise to various rewards, while a ranking system rewards the best performers.
Learning through play
But cost reduction is not the only territory explored by gamification aficionados. Layer Cake has taken an interest in the safety of business travellers with its 'serious game' Mr Travel, followed by information protection with the edutainment game Keep It Safe. The French pioneer has no intention of stopping there, and is already looking at new subjects: two games are currently being finalised in the fields of crisis management and emotion identification. Other projects will soon cover intercultural relations and complex negotiation.
Are travel managers condemned to having to disguise the rules they have been trying to instil for years in a playful guise? Are business travellers finally incapable of complying by themselves with the rules set by the company? The rules of the game are not that simple, and gamification offers no miracle solution. "Companies lagging behind in programme management should not start with gamification, but rather with the basicssays CWT's Christophe Renard. Many of the companies where we integrate this gamification system are already mature, with high rates of online booking and compliance with travel policy. It is therefore difficult to find additional sources of savings.".
The amount travellers save on the reference fare gives rise to various rewards, while a ranking system recognises the best performers.
It is therefore still difficult to measure the impact of gamification on the French business travel market. According to the French Association of Travel Managers (AFTM), the maturity of the travel programme is not the only factor holding back the development of gamification. "French travel managers are still rather sceptical.", noted the association in a "Gamification Update" published at the end of 2013. And to note: "Here, we denounce "a very Anglo-Saxon vision of the Wall of honour that doesn't work here". Here, they fear the introduction of systems that "encourage over-consumption" or "favour frequent travellers"."." To conclude: "you can bring out the stick: it looks grated for the carrot...".
Business travel goes social
The boundary between work and leisure has never seemed so permeable, and the appearance of these game mechanisms in travel management is not the only manifestation of this. Unavoidable in the private sphere, social networks have not been slow to make their way into the business traveller community. A never-ending connection in New York? Just tweet #boarding JFK and the Boarding.fr platform will list all the members of the network departing from the same airport. A business trip to Mumbai? The Invite For A Bite community brings together female business travellers from all over the world to save them the embarrassment of dining alone, while reducing the risks incurred by a single woman...
More and more initiatives are being taken in the world of business travel, and not without risks. The confidentiality of a trip can often determine its success, and there's nothing to stop the competition taking a look at the itineraries of overly sociable business travellers. Many companies have realised that if they can't ban their travellers' social interactions, they can channel this information and even take advantage of it. "There was a certain amount of fear at the beginning, but today companies are looking for a closed community, which can be an extraordinary source for improving the quality of the hotel programme."confirms Christophe Renard, from Carlson Wagonlit.
To this end, the business travel agency launched its CWT Hotel Intel solution several years ago. "We're thinking of doing the same thing in the air transport sector."he adds. The AirPlus International Travel Management Study 2014 highlights that"Exchanging views, for example on feedback sites, has become the norm for tourists and business travellers alike. Some travel managers feel that it would be preferable to control the problem by creating an internal social media site, since travellers will be using these kinds of tools anyway.". In June, Accor launched its new AccorLive intranet to connect its 170,000 employees in 92 countries. It includes the AccorLounge social network, which encourages knowledge sharing. "What's great is being able to connect a reception team in Bangkok with another in Sao Paulo, so that chefs can share recipes, etc."Virginie Sido, Accor Corporate Brand Director, CSR & Internal Communications, is delighted.
However, the French market appears to be moving backwards towards these new networks, according to the barometer published by 3Mundi: "Social networks are little used by business travellers. 86% of them do not use them for business purposes. Is it for lack of time, lack of interest, or restrictions imposed by the company?"The authors of the study ask, confirming that French companies are somewhat wary of media based on the leisure model.
