The findings from Flight Centre Travel Group’s brands, FCM Travel and Corporate Traveller, reveals a growing trend of corporate customers seeking to push back or bring forward travel times to better align with their shifting schedule.

“It’s a real priority for our corporate customers,” says Flight Centre Corporate global COO Melissa Elf.

“Flexibility is critical, and they’re willing to pay for the ability to change their travel arrangements.

“We know productivity and flexibility in travel booking is just as important as the cost of travel because more than half our customers’ bookings are rebooked or rescheduled. Agility in travel management is essential.

“For people travelling for business, time is their most valuable asset, and a minute wasted is money lost.

“Technology is rapidly evolving, and with heavy investment in our tech offerings, we’re able to offer customers real-time access and visibility over individual travel programs.”

Corporate Traveller and FCM Travel’s mobile apps allow customers to easily adjust their travel schedule when needed.

“If you’re heading to the airport to get home sooner than you had intended, or if your meeting is running overtime and you’re not going to make your return trip, the apps our customers have access to gives them the ability to make adjustments,” says Elf.

“It saves them sitting on hold to the airline’s customer service line, or waiting in line at the check-in desk, which is what those who haven’t booked through a travel management company would need to do.

“By leveraging our network, cutting-edge technology and expertise, we ensure every customer is prepared and supported to navigate unexpected or last-minute changes.”

Corporate travel in Australia is dominated by the mining, oil and gas sector, which comprised around 14 per cent of all travel bookings in Australia in the first quarter of 2024.

This was followed by construction (10 per cent), government and not-for-profit (8.5 per cent), services (8 per cent) and finance and insurance (6 per cent).

“It’s evident across our corporate customer base that travel is non-discretionary, and falling airfares – domestically and internationally – will keep demand for business travel strong against the backdrop of economic pressure,” says Elf.