So, you are off on a business trip? Congratulations! Before you go and rock the clients or partners with your company presentation, be sure to plan. Post-Covid-19 times have made planning for corporate travel more complicated. In this article, we are going to go over five essential things you should consider before going on your next business trip.
Top 5 things you should consider when planning for your business travel
Planning for a business trip seems kind of easy, but it only looks that way. There are a lot of things to consider, especially when you travel with more people from the office. Your colleagues and managers can be picky and demanding. If you are in charge of organizing the trip, they will blame you if something goes wrong. Let’s check out the things you need to consider when you make your travel arrangements.
The current Covid-19 regulations
As we all know, Covid-19 regulations tend to change over time. It is important when you plan a corporate travel trip, to be familiar with the latest requirements for both vaccinated and not vaccinated travelers. It is a good idea to print them out and have a copy for all the people in the group. Also, send the digital version of the file to their e-mails and in a group chat. In that way, they will have quick and easy access to it if there is a need for that. Be sure to check what is the situation if someone needs to be put under quarantine and be sure to inform their families if such a scenario occurs.
Pick a hotel close to the venue
In the perfect situation, the venue of the meeting or the conference will be in the same hotel where you booked the rooms. However, most times this is not the case. Your colleagues and managers might have some preferences regarding how luxurious the hotel is, but the most important thing is to be close to the venue. Once you book the rooms, it is great to have all the information about the hotel in one place and send it to the people that are traveling. Add one page of interesting local sites that are nearby and are worth checking. Those can include museums, shopping malls, restaurants, bars/pubs, and more. The cherry on top (if you don’t have organized transportation) is to list how to get from the hotel to the venue and back.
Plan your schedule ahead
When you are on a business trip you still want to have a good time. To do that, you must have a strict schedule in place of what to do in your free time. Lock the hours of the meetings and networking and list some things you want to do. Maybe visit a local museum or some famous place for food and drinks? Or watch a game at the stadium of the local team? The choices are limitless. You can do some research online to see what interesting things you can see and try out. After you are done with your schedule, share it with your colleagues. However, if applicable to the party you’re with, give them a warning that this is not negotiable and they must follow your lead. Otherwise, you are going to be in trouble and follow the demands of everyone.
Arrange transportation
It doesn’t matter if you need a professional transportation service to take you from the airport or one that will be booked for your entire trip. Let’s face it – in some cases, it is not reasonable to book a flight and in today’s world with all the regulations and measures in airports but sometimes you have to – in these cases, you should always count on professional transportation services.
If you book a professional transportation company for your trip, you are guaranteed to worry less about things like where to park, what is the best route to get there, and most of all – you don’t have to argue who will be driving. A professional driver comes with another reassurance – safe and secure service based on years of experience on the road.
Pick proper dress code when you pack
Make sure the clothes you pack are going to be in line with the agenda of the business trip. Choose your outfits not only based on the weather but also on your activities. If there is a formal dinner you want to have a dinner jacket or a dress and official shoes. If the meetings are not going to be so formal, pack more lightly. Can you wear shorts or do you have to be all business with a suit and tie? Know the answers to such questions before you start packing.
It is a good idea to ask some of the colleagues that you are close with how they will pack. There might be some useful ideas there.
Time to go!
Depending on your level of preparation any business trip can be great but if you do your homework, you can always make sure that it is not a total disaster. It is important to plan the important aspects of these travels. And if you need a professional and trusted partner for your corporate travels, feel free to give us a call!