How to Transform Your Program for the Evolution of Business Travel

Business travel isn't returning to normal — and the organizations winning right now are the ones that have stopped waiting for it to. The defining challenge for enterprise travel programs today isn't technology or cost. It's trust.

This whitepaper from SAP Concur's Achieving Outcomes series draws on the 8th Annual Global Business Travel Survey — capturing insights from 3,300 business travelers across 21 global markets, 800 travel managers in 8 markets, and 700 CFOs from 7 markets, conducted in partnership with Wakefield Research. It delivers expert perspectives and practical strategies for travel managers and finance leaders navigating the most significant evolution of enterprise travel in a generation.

Key findings and strategies covered:

• The compliance gap is a trust gap: 48% of business travelers admit to bending or breaking policy during a trip — not out of defiance, but because half believe their policies are flexible enough to justify most decisions. Stricter rules won't close the gap; trust and co-design will.
• Generational shift is incumbent: 55% of Gen Z and Millennial travelers admit to policy non-compliance, compared to 37% of Gen X and 32% of Boomers — a signal that programs built for previous generations aren't resonating with today's workforce.
• Duty of care has expanded: 67% of business travelers say they're nervous about traveling for work this year. 90% would consider refusing a trip if safety, social, or health concerns were the primary reason. 87% of travel leaders believe their organization isn't doing enough to protect employees on the road.
• Shadow AI is already in your program: 72% of business travelers say they have used or would use unsanctioned AI tools to plan or book travel. 60% of CFOs report expense fraud is increasing, and 92% believe employees are likely using AI to falsify receipts — creating a governance exposure most programs aren't yet equipped to address.
• AI as a governance advantage: Organizations that embed AI intentionally — with sanctioned tools, clear policy, and anomaly detection — reduce friction for travelers, improve data quality for program leaders, and free up significant time previously spent on manual review and exception handling.

Readers will come away with practical frameworks for rebuilding traveler trust, modernizing policy design, expanding duty of care, and governing AI — positioning their travel program as a strategic driver of business outcomes, not just a cost center.