On today’s Business Beat, Jeff discusses the current state of business travel with David Fishman, president of Cadillac Travel Group.
Tune in to the Business Beat, below, to learn more about what you need to know about business travel right now:
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Good morning, Paul!
Well, prior to the pandemic, you couldn’t be in business without traveling: traveling to meet customers or partners or traveling to meet with suppliers. The list goes on and on. Business and travel were fit together like hand in glove, and now, maybe more than any other industry, the pandemic has had and will have a lasting impact on business travel as we knew it.
We’ve got David Fishman, president of Cadillac Travel Group, to help us better understand the pandemic’s impact on business travel. David, tell us about the state of business travel today.
Hi, Jeff. I would say it’s probably back at a 30-40% maybe at this time, but it’s, like, literally with the Delta variants, it could have changed right back to more like 20-30%.
David, with virtual meetings cemented now in our business practices, at least in part, do you see business travel ever returning to pre-pandemic levels?
Honestly, I don’t. I find that even with my own organization that I can have a quality meeting, and I find that it will probably be back to about 70, 80% because I think there’s too many organizations that realize that they can save a significant amount of money by not having that in-person meeting.
Are there any special recommendations associated with travel or travel planning today, David, that we should know about before booking our next trip?
I just think that what people really need to know is that: don’t hesitate to make your plans. Just be smart, work with a travel professional and/or know what the rules are going to be, and make sure you protect yourself in regards to knowing what cancelation is, what you can do with changes, what you can do with protecting yourself with insurance.
Thank you, David, for breaking down the state of business travel today and for that helpful guidance on how we prepare for future travel.
I’m Jeff Sloan, founder and CEO of StartupNation.com, and that’s today’s Business Beat on the Great Voice of the Great Lakes, WJR.
