A Software Company Wanted Global Services With a Personal Touch
Maintaining consistency and control across a global organization doesn’t mean you have to give up flexible, convenient, friendly local service.
‘Our local offices like dealing with local people, but we needed consistency in program implementation. Global Solutions gave us the best of both worlds.’
The challenge
An international business intelligence software firm had been using disparate travel agencies for each of their local offices. While the organization had a global travel policy in place, each agency had implemented and enforced the policy based on local interpretations. Compounding this issue was the fact that the firm’s local managers were reluctant to use overseas travel agencies that didn’t understand their culture. As a result, management had become frustrated by the lack of consistency and cost control.
The strategy
The owner of a leading Global Solutions location met with the firm’s management to analyze its global footprint and determine which travel decisions and policies should be centralized. After evaluating the needs and cultural preferences of all stakeholders, Global Solutions proposed a model that serviced the firm’s local offices through locally owned travel management companies, while providing centralized coordination of activities such as policy interpretation, control and reporting.
The result
The proposed model provided a viable alternative that met everyone’s needs. The client’s local travel managers were pleased with the local services, which reflected their culture and language. At the same time, global managers were able to align these local services with global policy. In addition, Global Solutions was able to deliver additional value by assisting management in negotiating global hotel and car program pricing on the strength of the global data that was now being compiled.
