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Nordea:
Experiences Outsourcing Travel Management
“Before, we had reports coming in from four different
countries, in different formats, plus from a range of travel
agencies and airlines. Everything had to be collected and put
together manually. It could take up to a week – we can do
that now in less than a day”, says Tina Faddersboll,
Nordea Travel Management.
Background
Nordea is the product of a cross-border merger between several
major, Nordic banks. After the merger, there were operations
in four countries, each organizing travel management in their
own manner. In Denmark, there were an internal travel
department, which carried out all processes, just like a
travel agency. In Sweden, all travel activities were handled
by an implant, where employees from a travel agency worked
onsite in Nordea. In Norway the bank cooperated with a range
of travel agencies, which performed all travel production and
travel management. The bank in Finland operated travel
management in the same way, but using only two travel
agencies.
The pan-Nordic solution: Outsourcing and Self-booking
In October 2002, it was put on the agenda to streamline travel
management in Nordea. Travel management were to be
consolidated on a Nordic level, with one central travel
department, which reflected the structure of a pan-Nordic
bank.
Nordea chose a model, where merely three experienced employees
assumed the core activities of the travel management-function.
From here, Nordea adopted a two-legged strategy: self-booking
and outsourcing.
All sails were set to implement a self-booking system, where
the travellers would be actively involved and book the more
simple itineraries themselves. The travel department put in a
considerable effort in internal marketing, and travelled to
all countries to train the staff in the new system. It was
made mandatory to book all travel in the Nordic region via the
self-booking system, as well as major destinations such as
Paris and London. The effort has been rewarded, and today
Nordea has adoption rates beyond 50%.
At the same time, an agreement was made with BTI Nordic, which
were to handle everything related to the production of travel.
BTI Nordic established a call-centre in Hoje Taastrup, from
where the personnel only caters to Nordea and speak all Nordic
languages. This is where Nordea’s travellers call and book
the more complex itineraries, which cannot be handled by the
self-booking system.
With the outsourcing and self-booking solutions in place, the
travel department has released itself from the operational
activities of the travel management. The travel department now
only handles the more strategic, high-value activities - such
as negotiating with suppliers, controlling policy enforcement,
producing reports to management and general liaison with all
the involved parties.
What does Nordea achieve by using Skygate Consolidator?
Having outsourced and decentralized so extensively, Nordea
faced a range of tangible challenges, which had to be dealt
with. For example, in an outsourcing relationship it is
generally the supplier who owns the critical data. One of the
greatest needs was therefore to secure access to statistics
and data, independent from the travel agency.
Travel Manager at Nordea for 15 years, Pernille Hilker,
considers it extremely important that Nordea maintains control
and keeps a close watch on activities and costs. Pernille
Hilker states: “I cannot and must not rely blindly on our
supplier, the travel agency. They have their data, but I need
to have my own statistics. It is imperative that we sustain
that independence.”
Here, Nordea chose to implement the SkyGate
Consolidator system, which automatically collects and
consolidates all information from the travel agency. This
means that Nordea has a continuous overview and possesses all
data and statistics. Hence, there is far more independence
between company and supplier. Travel management employee Tina
Faddersboll, says of the solution: “With Consolidator, we
have our own, proprietary data, and nothing can be hidden. We
can see exactly what has happened - and what has not happened.
It is a cornerstone in our relation to our supplier. It has
many advantages.”
Consolidator also makes the production of reports far easier.
Nordea creates monthly savings-reports, which are forwarded to
top management. With the new system, consolidation is
automatic: “Before, we had reports coming in from four
different countries, in different formats, plus from a range
of travel agencies and airlines. Everything had to be
collected and put together manually. It could take up to a
week – we can do that now in less than a day”, says
Tina Faddersboll.
With the highly decentralized structure, another critical
challenge was to ensure that Nordea’s travel policies were
enforced. It was especially important to know whether the
self-booking system was being used. Pernille Hilker says: “Consolidator
helps us on the entire compliance-front. We can compare our
numbers with those of the travel agency, and we can
immediately see if our policies are being enforced.”
These insights into policy enforcement have been an
indispensable component of Nordea’s successful outsourcing
and high self-booking adoption rates.
“This is the future. It requires competence, it requires
a lot of time, and it requires support. But it is worth it
all, and there is money to be saved” Travel Manager
Pernille Hilker concludes.
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